Dele Momodu, publisher of Ovation Magazine and former presidential aspirant, has opened up about his experience during the 2022 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential primary.
In a candid interview published on Sunday, Momodu expressed regret over his decision to spend about N50 million on the nomination form for the PDP presidential ticket.
Momodu described the primary as heavily influenced by money.
He revealed that a particular aspirant allegedly paid each of the 774 delegates $30,000 to secure their votes.
“One of the candidates paid as much as $30,000 per delegate,” he said.
“How do you want to compete with them? They have stolen the country blind and are doing all kinds of deals to make money, especially those in the oil-rich areas.”
The journalist and politician lamented the monetisation of Nigeria’s political system.
According to him, the system makes it impossible for candidates without access to vast amounts of cash to succeed.
Momodu shared his dismay at spending N50 million on the nomination form, which he now considers a waste.
“That money would have bought me a property,” he said.
“I didn’t get even one vote because everything was monetised.”
Momodu was among several aspirants who contested the PDP presidential ticket in 2022.
Others included Atiku Abubakar, Nyesom Wike, Bukola Saraki, and Bala Mohammed.
Atiku emerged as the winner of the primary, clinching the ticket with 371 votes.
He defeated Wike, who scored 237 votes, and Saraki, who polled 70 votes.
Momodu, alongside Ayodele Fayose and Sam Ohuabunwa, did not secure a single vote.
Reflecting on the experience, Momodu ruled out contesting for any presidential ticket unless he is adopted as a consensus candidate.
“Experience is the best teacher,” he said.
“I have come to realise that there are powers you can describe as principalities that control Nigeria.”
He added that without broad support from a major political party, it would be futile to participate in the system.
“Unless a major political party decides to adopt me—where you have a consensus of people who say Dele Momodu is best suited to change and lead Nigeria—then I will consider it.”
Momodu criticized the overwhelming influence of money in Nigeria’s political landscape.
He said the problem is exacerbated by politicians with access to untraceable cash.
“There’s no country where people buy raw cash like Nigeria,” he said.
“The bulk of their money is not in any bank, so they are not traceable.”
He painted a grim picture of the financial clout wielded by some politicians.
“If today you say to some politicians that you need $500 million to become president, they will find it,” he said.
The PDP primary was a pivotal event in Nigeria’s 2022 political calendar.
It set the stage for the eventual presidential race in 2023.
Atiku, who won the PDP ticket, went on to contest the 2023 general election.
He faced Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who emerged as Nigeria’s president after a tightly contested poll.
Momodu’s revelations highlight the broader issue of money politics in Nigeria.
Observers have long criticized the influence of cash in the country’s electoral processes.
Political analysts argue that such practices undermine democracy and exclude credible candidates with fewer resources.
