Adelabu Rejects Cleric’s N150m ‘Spiritual Intercession’ Demand, Files Petition For Blackmail

Minister of Power, Chief Bayo Adelabu, has accused Primate Elijah Ayodele, founder of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church in Oke Afa, Lagos, of blackmail and attempting to extort N150 million from him.

The minister alleged that Ayodele demanded the money in exchange for “spiritual intercession” to secure Adelabu’s victory as governor of Oyo State in the 2027 election.

In a petition dated October 13, 2025, by Bolaji Tunji, special adviser on strategic communications and addressed to the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), the minister claimed that Ayodele made false prophecies aimed at damaging his reputation after he rejected the cleric’s demands for large sums of money and costly spiritual items.

According to investigations by TheCable, Ayodele in text messages asked Adelabu to provide 24 APC flags and 1,000 saxophones or trumpets for prayers. The cheapest Nigerian “fairly-used grade” of the instruments would cost about N50 million, while imported Chinese grade-one versions would total N130 million. The deadline for delivering the items was initially April 1, later extended to April 4.

“Sir, I don’t do this, but because of the love I have for you,” the cleric wrote.

Ayodele claimed he had previously sent letters to Adelabu during his time as Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and made repeated requests to speak with him, which the minister ignored due to being on pilgrimage. The cleric instructed Adelabu to “recite almu nasira 200 times” and insisted his actions were under divine instruction.

“I have divine advice for you sir, which can help a lot sir, kindly pick my call,” one text read.

“Do vigil and the angel of God is coming to hear request by 1am…I don’t want you to lose the coming election. That is why I’m following the instructions.”

Adelabu responded, saying he could not afford the expensive items.

Following this, Ayodele publicly declared at his church that Adelabu had failed and would not become governor, describing his message as a “warning from God.” In videos reviewed by TheCable, the cleric dared the minister to arrest or sue him.

In his petition, Adelabu stated he rejected Ayodele’s demands because his political ambition is motivated by genuine service, not “spiritual manipulation or fetish practices.” He urged the DSS to investigate the cleric, compel him to retract the “false prophecies,” and issue a formal apology.

The petition reads in part:
“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, Chief 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.

“Under this guise, he had on several occasions demanded huge sums of money and expensive spiritual items, cumulatively amounting to over N150 million (one hundred and fifty million naira), as purported prerequisites for divine favour. 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.

“Following the Honourable Minister’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. He has gone as far as declaring through various media channels that ‘God told him he 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’).

“As a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he had previously chosen to ignore his antics to avoid unnecessary public confrontation with a religious figure. However, 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.

“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 the future.”

Adelabu also filed a petition with the Oyo State Police Commissioner over Ayodele’s “extortive and inciting activities.”

LEADERSHIP gathered that Primate Elijah Ayodele denied the allegations in a phone conversation with TheCable, insisting that Adelabu was the one who approached him first. He claimed the minister sent emissaries to him out of desperation to become Oyo governor.

“I didn’t blackmail him. We didn’t have any transactions. Again, no money was exchanged between us,” Ayodele said.

“I discussed some terms with him, which he didn’t agree with. I didn’t make any attempt to extort him. I can sell my services for any amount. I can value it at N1 billion as much as I provide the value he wants. It’s nobody’s business. Why did you come to me in the first place if you didn’t believe in me? What are you doing with someone you claim is dishing out fake prophesies? He should say anything he likes.”