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Davido sued his baby’s mother, Sophia Momodu, at the Lagos State High Court seeking custody of their daughter, Imade.
Davido welcomed Imade, his first daughter, with Momodu, niece of famous journalist Dele Momodu, in May 2015.
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In its report on Thursday, Punch newspaper said that Davido’s lawyers, Olaniyi Arije, Okey Barrah and others, filed the suit on April 17, 2024.
The 31-year-old singer asked the court to grant him joint custody of the nine-year-old boy and an order for unrestricted access to his daughter (Imade).
In the suit marked LD/1587PMC/2024, Davido acknowledged his past relationship with Ms Momodu, which he produced Imade but which ended years ago.
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The ‘Timeless’ hitmaker noted in the lawsuit, which lists Momodu as the sole defendant, that they agreed to care for their daughter as biological parents.
The original motion is supported by a 44-paragraph affidavit deposed by Davido himself.
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“It is on record that I have been responsible for paying all of my daughter’s school fees to provide her with the best possible education and to meet all of her educational needs without problems. I have also been contributing money towards the rent of the apartment where the defendant resides with our daughter,” Davido said.
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Accusations
The Grammy-nominated singer claimed that the 37-year-old turned down a N200 million apartment in a gated community with swimming pool and 24-hour water and electricity supply in Oniru, Victoria Island, Lagos, which he had purchased for proper care . by Imade.
He said: “The respondent rejected the offer for me to stay and live in the above described Oniru secured apartment which had already been purchased but demanded that I continue to pay N5,000,000 annually for a rented facility as my contribution towards my daughter’s accommodation . .
“I purchased a Range Rover sport utility vehicle for the use of the child and the defendant to meet transportation needs, including transporting the child to and from school, etc.”
The singer said that in 2023, his daughter’s school informed him of her two-week absence. When he asked Momodu about it, she said the Range Rover SUV was defective.
However, he noted that she only informed him of the problem after the school contacted him.
“Following information about the said condition of the vehicle, I provided another vehicle, the Highlander SUV, and in addition, the sum of N5.8 million requested by her for the repair of the Range Rover SUV, making them two vehicles in the custody and use of the defendant and our daughter.”
“I also agreed to pay living expenses, our son’s nanny fees, provide medical and health care, insurance, periodic international travel expenses and tickets. “That despite my efforts in the general interest of my daughter, the defendant has continued to make extravagant and utopian demands to frustrate me,” the singer added.
The ‘Unavailable’ singer claimed that Imade’s mother demanded that he pay the nanny he hired $800 a month, for a total of $19,600 a year, as a lump sum.
He alleged that despite his efforts to ensure a better life for his daughter, Momodu continued to treat him with unwarranted cruelty and caused him significant pain.
Background
In June 2024, Sophia hinted on Snapchat that she might change her daughter’s last name to her own (Momodu), citing her role as father and mother to Imade.
The posts read: “Can’t wait to change his last name. “I still think Momodu is perfect, since I am both a mom and a dad.”
However, in 2021, the businesswoman posted on her Instagram page that she was hurt when her daughter took Davido’s last name instead of hers.
She wrote: “I remember my mom and my aunts laughing at me when I cried because my daughter’s last name wasn’t going to be Momodu.
“I was really distraught. I even argued that they put the full name of his father and not a letter of mine. I got my feminist card and everything; She hurt me that year.”
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