Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Bayo Adelabu, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) over an alleged N150 million extortion attempt by Primate Elijah Ayodele, who reportedly demanded money and items in exchange for “spiritual intercession” to secure the minister’s 2027 governorship bid.
According to TheCable News, in a petition dated October 13, 2025 and signed by Adelabu’s Special Adviser on Strategic Communications and Media Relations, Bolaji Tunji, the minister accused Ayodele of issuing false prophecies to tarnish his image after he refused to comply with the cleric’s requests. The petition alleged that Ayodele demanded large sums of money and costly spiritual materials, including 24 APC flags and 1,000 saxophones/trumpets—items valued between N50 million for locally used versions and N130 million for imported grade-one pieces from China.
The cleric reportedly instructed Adelabu to deliver the items by April 1, later extending the deadline to April 4. Ayodele also claimed he had repeatedly written to the minister since his days as CBN deputy governor and lamented that his letters and calls were ignored. He allegedly urged the minister to “recite almu nasira 200 times” and insisted that his directives were based on divine instruction. Despite repeatedly assuring Adelabu that he would rule Oyo State, the minister declined, saying he could not afford the demands.
Following the breakdown in communication, Ayodele was said to have told his congregation that Adelabu would fail in his political ambitions. In video clips circulated online, the cleric accused the minister of making “spiritual mistakes” and described his message as a “warning from God,” even daring Adelabu to arrest or sue him.
In his petition, the minister stated that he rejected the cleric’s demands because his political aspirations were based on genuine public service, not spiritual manipulation or fetish practices.