The publisher of Ovation magazine, Dele Momodu, has expressed his views on the ongoing custody dispute between his niece, Sophia Momodu, and Afrobeat star, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido.
The former lovers have been in the spotlight due to their battle over the custody of their 9-year-old daughter, Imade.
In a detailed post on his X account on Saturday, Momodu shared his perspective on the matter, revealing his surprise at Davido’s recent affidavit seeking joint custody of their child.
He emphasized that their previous conversations had focused solely on Davido’s upcoming wedding and efforts to reconnect with his daughter.
“Last night, I received a distressing message from Mr David Adeleke (aka Davido).
He was obviously devastated by the counter-affidavit submitted in court, earlier in the day, in response to his affidavit seeking joint custody of his daughter with my niece Sophia Momodu,” Momodu wrote.
He continued, “I had seen David’s affidavit about two weeks ago, and I was very surprised as David, and I had spoken on a video call days earlier, with him and Pastor Tobi Adegboyega, and he never told me he had any custody issues with my niece.
So you can imagine my confusion to find out via social media and subsequently confirmed by my niece that he had filed an action in court seeking joint custody of their daughter.”
Momodu detailed his previous efforts to mediate the situation, including thanking Davido’s father, Dr Adedeji Adeleke, for his support during Davido’s absence and highlighting instances where Sophia had allowed Davido access to their daughter.
He pointed out that communication breakdowns between Davido and Sophia had exacerbated the custody dispute.
“The issues were: non-payment of school fees for several sessions; non-payment of accommodation and salaries of a nanny.
There was no car dedicated to David’s daughter. And so on. Mercifully, I mentioned all to Dr Adedeji Adeleke and he responded positively, like a true grandfather,” Momodu noted.
He added that Dr Adeleke had cleared the outstanding school fees, set up future payments, and provided a car for Imade’s transportation to school.
However, accommodation issues remained unresolved due to a miscommunication about living arrangements in one of the family’s apartments.
Momodu stressed the importance of maintaining a positive relationship for the sake of their daughter, urging both parents to engage genuinely in the court-referred alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process.
He highlighted Sophia’s willingness to cooperate, provided certain conditions were met, such as the presence of a nanny during visits.
“My opinion is that the absence of camaraderie between David and Sophia has caused this debacle.
I have cautioned repeatedly that their daughter must not be allowed to suffer or be treated like a second-class child. David’s global status makes this imperative,” Momodu wrote.
He concluded by calling for an end to the inflammatory rhetoric in the media, which he believes only worsens the situation and affects the child.
Momodu emphasized that Sophia’s actions were driven by a desire to protect their daughter and ensure a structured, safe, and sustainable relationship with her father.
“It is important to note that Sophia did not instigate this court action and is only seeking to protect their daughter and ensure that there is a structured, safe and sustainable manner in which father and child can engage with each other.
The vitriolic rhetoric in the media should be avoided by all means, as this only further inflames what is already a traumatic experience for all parties involved, especially the child in question,” Momodu advised.
