The mother of David Adeleke’s first child, Imade, Sophia Momodu, has been sued by the multi-award-winning musician David Adeleke, better known by his stage name Davido, to get custody of their daughter.
Davido requests “an order granting joint custody of Miss Imade Adeleke to the applicant” in an initial motion that was submitted to the Lagos State High Court on April 17, 2024 by his attorneys, Dr. Olaniyi Arije, Okey Barrah, and others.
Alternatively, the singer asked for “an order granting to the applicant unfettered and unrestricted access to Miss Imade” from the court by praying. Mr. David Adedeji Adeleke is identified as the applicant in the lawsuit, which is numbered LD/1587PMC/2024, while Ms. Sophia Momodu is listed as the only respondent.
Davido himself provided a 44-paragraph affidavit in support of the original request. Despite his relationship with Momodu, which resulted in the birth of their child on May 14, 2015, he explained that the two of them had broken up a few years prior “while we resolved to take care of our child as biological father and mother.”
Davido said, “That it is on record that I have been responsible for the payment of all the school fees of my daughter to provide her with the best education possible and to meet all her educational needs without a hitch.
“That I have also been providing money for the rent of the apartment where the respondent resides with our daughter.”
The artist claimed that because of his love for Imade, he spent N200 million on an apartment in a gated community of condominiums in Oniru, Victoria Island, Lagos, which included a swimming pool, round-the-clock power and water supply, and a swimming area. He made this offer to the mother. He said that an offer was rejected.
He said, “The respondent rejected the offer to stay and live at the above-described secured Oniru apartment, which had been purchased already, but demanded that I continue to pay N5,000,000 annually for a rented facility as my own contribution towards my daughter’s accommodation.”
“I bought a Range Rover Sport Utility Vehicle for the use of the child and the respondent to meet the transport needs, including transportation of the child to and from school, etc.” declared Davido in order to ensure that the interests of Imade were well-catered for.
He continued by saying that at some point last year, he received a call from her daughter’s school that Imade had been absent for two weeks, and upon his inquiry from Momodu, “She began to make excuses and complained that the Range Rover SUV was not in a good condition, however, she refused to inform me about that.”
He added, “That sequel to the information about the said condition of the vehicle, I provided another vehicle, Highlander SUV, and in addition, the sum of N5.8m as requested by her for the repair of the Range Rover SUV, making it two vehicles in the custody and use of the respondent and our daughter.”
Davido claims that in order to further guarantee that their child’s interests were suitably met, “I also made commitments to pay for living expenses, the fees of the nanny to our child, provide medical and health care, insurance, and tickets for our periodic international travel.”
“That notwithstanding my efforts in the overall interest of my daughter, the respondent has continued to make outlandish and Utopian demands to frustrate me,” the singer added.
Listing the other demands allegedly made by Momodu, he said, “The respondent, among others, is demanding that I should pay the nanny she hired the sum of $800 per month, and that the total sum of $19,600 per annum be paid as a lump sum.”
Davido claimed that despite his contribution towards ensuring a better life for their daughter, “the respondent has continued to show me unwarranted cruelty, inflicting so much pain on me.”
Davido and Sophia have often been at loggerheads.
In 2021, Sophia revealed that she was pained when their daughter, Imade, took Davido’s last name and not hers.
Momodu revealed this via her Instagram Story when she reacted to a post about children bearing their mothers’ names.
According to her, she cried bitterly because her daughter could not bear her last name ‘Momodu’.
She wrote, “I remember my mom and aunties laughing at me when I was crying because my daughter’s last name wasn’t going to be Momodu.
“I was genuinely distraught. I was even arguing and everything, that they put her father’s full name and not a single letter from mine.”
She further revealed that her mother made her understand that Imade should bear her father’s name so that she could gain from her father’s lineage and inheritance.
She added, “It made me shut up real quick, but I lowkey had so many questions.”
