•Cubana Chief Priest and Cosmas Maduka
Celebrity nightlife promoter Pascal Okechukwu, popularly known as Cubana Chief Priest, has fired back at billionaire businessman and Chairman of Coscharis Group, Cosmas Maduka, over his criticism of the popular phrase, “Money Na Water.”
Maduka, in a recent speech, distanced himself from what he called the “lavish spending culture” of the younger generation, saying he avoids events where people “throw money around,” reports The PUNCH
Reacting via his Instagram stories today, Cubana Chief Priest defended his signature catchphrase, describing it as a modern-day “philosophy of abundance and flow,” rather than a call to wastefulness.
Chief Priest argued that while Maduka’s generation built wealth through “factories, fleets, and real estate,” his own generation thrives on a different kind of capital, attention, stating that visibility has become the new currency in a digital economy.
He wrote, “With all due respect to the motivational speaking older generation who built wealth quietly, the world you thrived in is not the one we live in today. In your time, capital was factories, fleets, and real estate. In our time, attention is the main capital. These capitals listed cannot sell in today’s market without the major capital Attention (visibility)
“Visibility has become the new currency. In a digital economy, obscurity is bankruptcy. What you don’t show doesn’t sell. What you don’t amplify dissolves into silence. We are the noise that’s why you know us to the extent you had to use us to make references in your dry speech because you want to use us to trend without paying us, na why you dey run when you see us, you no wan show us real love. Tell me, Why musta billionaire pretend to use the toilet just to run away from an event, that’s a lot of stress for a real billionaire.
“When i say “money na water,” it’s not vanity – it’s a revelation of excess liquidity, abundance, and flow. Water moves So does relevance, visibility, and influence. The ability to attract attention and sustain engagement is the new oil field. A man with massive attention today has more leverage than one with quiet billions but no presence.”
He further argued that “money na water” symbolises “excess liquidity, abundance, and flow,” adding that attention and visibility are the “new oil fields” of the digital age.
“Content is not noise. Content is digital equity. The same way factories produced wealth in the 80s, attention produces wealth today. We’ve moved from industrial capitalism to introducing attention capitalism thanks to Zuckerberg.”
In a parting jab, Chief Priest urged Maduka to “remove his name” from billionaire peers like Tony Elumelu and Femi Otedola, whom he praised for using their wealth to “give Africa proper visibility.”
“While your generation built fences to protect their wealth because they don’t want to help, our generation builds platforms to project it. Silence once symbolised power, today presence does. You mentioned Elumelu that’s my mentor on the corporate sector, he doesn’t just say money na water Papa Lives it, likewise the overall Don Otedola, these are people who used their wealth to give Africa proper visibility that’s why you can publicly identify with them because they are not the only billionaires you know, why didn’t you use our nnewi billionaires ? You go dey mention the ones wey sabi chop their money, why you no use the ones wey sabi hoard money like you, dem plenty for main market. well you did so because you know they do more for Africa with their money by the way they spend it which commands respect for Africa. Remove your name from that Otedola & Elumelu list, you don’t belong there sir, your name dey nnewi billionaires list .
“And like I said at my last interview on Channels TV “Money na water” is a prophecy that connotes wealth overload. This is my story. Perhaps some may choose to go with “lack na water” but over here… MONEY NA WATER! na my business be this, Na My Lamba make nobody try spoil am as e dey go.”
