•Adelabu and Ayodele
… Minister offered to give anything to become Oyo governor – Prophet
The Minister of Power in Tinubu’s cabinet, Bayo Adelabu, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS), accusing Primate Elijah Ayodele, founder of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Oke Afa, Lagos, of attempting to blackmail and extort N150 million from him under the guise of offering “spiritual intercession” to secure his emergence as governor of Oyo State.
Adelabu, a former governorship candidate who has already declared his interest in the 2027 Oyo governorship race, alleged that Ayodele resorted to malicious prophecies and character assassination after he declined the cleric’s overtures, reports The Nation.
In the petition dated October 13, 2025, and signed by Bolaji Tunji, his Special Adviser on Strategic Communications and Media Relations, Adelabu claimed that Ayodele persistently pressured him for a large sum of money and costly spiritual items, and, upon his refusal, embarked on a campaign of false prophecies aimed at tarnishing his image.
According to the aide, “Under this guise, he had on several occasions demanded huge sums of money and expensive spiritual items, cumulatively amounting to over N150 million, as purported prerequisites for divine favour.”
He, however, noted that the minister had consistently declined his requests, believing that his political ambition is driven by genuine service to the people and not by any spiritual manipulation or fetish practice.
Tunji said following Adelabu’s refusal to accede to his extortionate demands, Primate Ayodele has embarked on a campaign of malicious and false prophecies targeted at discrediting him publicly.
The letter stressed that the Primate has gone as far as declaring through various media channels that “God told him Adelabu will not win the election,” and has recently made more provocative and inciting statements suggesting that he would fail because of his association with the ‘Èmi Lòkan’ slogan (“It’s my turn”).
Being a minister, Adelabu, according to the petition, had previously chosen to ignore his antics to avoid unnecessary public confrontation with a religious figure.
The letter stressed that Primate Ayodele’s continued propagation of these false prophecies, which are evidently retaliatory and malicious in nature, now pose a threat not only to the minister’s reputation but also to public order and confidence in the democratic process.
The letter read, “I write to formally draw the attention of the Department of State Services (DSS) to the extortive, deceitful, and inciting activities of one self-acclaimed pastor known as Primate Elijah Ayodele, of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, whose actions have become not only personally distressing to the Honourable Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, but also capable of disturbing public peace and undermining the integrity of the political process in Oyo State.
“Since his tenure as the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and particularly in the period leading up to his current aspiration to serve as the Governor of Oyo State, this individual had persistently approached him with unsolicited offers of “spiritual intercession” purportedly to guarantee electoral success.”
Continuing, Tunji said, “I therefore urge the Department of State Services to kindly investigate the activities of the said Pastor Ayodele for extortion, blackmail, and deliberate dissemination of false and inciting information; compel him to retract his false prophecies and issue a formal written apology; and bring him under the force of the law, in accordance with relevant provisions of the Nigerian Constitution and Criminal Code, to deter similar fraudulent religious practices in future.
“We are in possession of documentary evidence, including recordings and message exchanges, which clearly show his repeated demands for money and other items under the guise of spiritual assistance. We will willingly make these available to your office for the purpose of investigation.
“I trust that the DSS, as a key institution for national security and public integrity, will handle this matter with the urgency and seriousness it deserves.”
Reacting to Adelabu’s claims, Primate Ayodele, denied allegations that he attempted to extort N150 million from the minister of power, over the latter’s political ambitions, stressing that he only discussed the cost of the musical instruments after the minister inquired about them.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Osho Oluwatosin, Ayodele rejected the claims, saying Adelabu sought clarification on prices, and he merely advised that the minister send someone to the market to verify costs, alongside a representative from his own church.
He explained that he told Adelabu it would be difficult for him to secure the governorship ticket but suggested he could “seek the mercy of God” by purchasing the instruments, “not necessarily for my church,” he added.
Ayodele said, “I didn’t ask Bayo Adelabu to bring money for prayers. I told him to ask someone from his end to go to the market and find out how much the said trumpet cost, while someone follows them from my end too. His personal assistant, himself, and the person he sent to me put me under so much pressure because he was desperate for governorship.
“He was the one who sent someone to me to talk to me on his behalf. He went as far as saying he was willing to give anything to become the next governor of Oyo State, and the only thing I told him was to get the trumpets for his own good.
“I told him that they won’t want to give him the governorship ticket, but if he wants it so bad, he should seek the mercy of God by buying the musical instruments for God, not even for my church, but he said he can’t do it. That’s all.”
Ayodele added that he had long spoken publicly about the challenges facing Adelabu’s governorship ambition and maintained that his prophecies were unrelated to any disagreement over the instruments.
“I have been talking about how he won’t be made Governor of Oyo State for years; this is why he called me to seek solutions. I have never spoken to him before till he sent people to me and personally requested my spiritual help,” he said.
”I don’t make prophecies to make money. I am blessed already, and my subsequent prophecies after our discussion about his ambition aren’t because he failed to buy the musical instrument. It can never be.”
