Media mogul and former presidential aspirant, Dele Momodu, has made a startling revelation regarding the 2022 presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), claiming that a former Nigerian president privately advised him against contesting due to the staggering cost of securing delegate support.
Speaking on the matter, Momodu disclosed that he was informed the stakes had been dramatically raised by then-Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, who allegedly pegged delegate inducements at $30,000 per person. With 774 delegates expected at the time, the total financial requirement for any serious contender, he said, amounted to over $23 million.
According to Momodu, this information was relayed to him by a trusted emissary of the former president, who cautioned him against spending resources on a contest that had allegedly become heavily monetised. He expressed concern over what he described as the commercialisation of the internal democratic process within major political parties, stating that such practices continue to undermine genuine competition and credibility.
PDP primaries drew intense political interest ahead of the 2023 elections, the allegations by Momodu, if accurate, further underscore persistent concerns about vote-buying, systemic corruption, and the prohibitive cost of political participation in Nigeria’s electoral landscape. As of press time, there has been no official response from Wike or the PDP regarding these claims.
