A legal practitioner and author, Timothy Tugbiyele, has called on Afrobeats singer David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, to apologise to Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, over his social media post displaying the governor’s alleged West African Examinations Council (WAEC) result.
Tugbiyele made the call in a trending video originally posted on Facebook on Monday while commenting on the political exchanges ahead of the August 15 Osun State governorship election.
The controversy began after Governor Okpebholo criticised Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke over what he described as the governor’s penchant for dancing during public engagements.
While campaigning for the All Progressives Congress candidate in the election, Bola Oyebamiji, popularly known as AMBO, Okpebholo mocked Adeleke’s dancing and questioned his style of leadership.
Davido, who has been actively campaigning for his uncle, subsequently shared what appeared to be Okpebholo’s WAEC result on his Instagram Story without a caption.
Reacting to the incident, Tugbiyele said Davido should not have personally responded to Okpebholo’s remarks, arguing that Adeleke could have responded through official channels.
The lawyer said the alleged result, even if authentic, should not have been used to ridicule the Edo governor.
According to him, Adeleke should have responded to his fellow governor or directed a commissioner or special adviser to address the criticism rather than allowing Davido to engage Okpebholo directly.
Tugbiyele also argued that Davido and the Edo governor occupy different positions and should not engage each other in the same manner.
Describing the singer’s post as disrespectful, he urged Davido to show humility and apologise to Okpebholo.
“I think what Davido did is disrespectful and I will plead with him, he should exercise some humility and apologise,” Tugbiyele said.
He recalled seeing photographs of Davido prostrating before elders, describing the singer as a properly brought-up Yoruba man and urging his elders to caution him.
The lawyer rejected the argument that the incident should simply be regarded as part of political rivalry, stressing that political disagreements should not descend into personal attacks or disrespect.
He also argued that a person’s academic performance at one stage of life should not be used to define their achievements, noting that Okpebholo’s alleged result was in the past and that he is now serving as governor.
The controversy comes amid heightened political activity in Osun State ahead of Saturday’s governorship election, with Davido openly supporting Adeleke’s bid for a second term.