Founder of Coscharis Group Cosmas Maduka has responded to nightlife promoter Cubana Chief Priest following the controversy surrounding the popular phrase “money na water.”
In a WhatsApp message shared on Instagram on Wednesday by chairman of Nigerian real estate company Gtext Homes, Stephen Akintayo, Mr Maduka said he had no issue with Cubana Chief Priest and did not refer to him in his earlier comments about Nigeria’s value system.
He said, “I have just discovered also the above, even though I never met him nor attended any of his events, and if I did, I cannot remember. I never had him in mind when I said what I believed was a wrong value system we have embraced. I respect his views because he is entitled to his opinion, and I wish him the best of life. May God bless him.”
Maduka’s clarification followed social media reactions to a video in which he criticised the culture of flaunting wealth and the use of the phrase “money na water.”
In the video, he said he had never met a truly wealthy person who used the expression and urged Nigerians to reject wasteful spending.
His comment was widely interpreted as a reference to Cubana Chief Priest, who popularised the phrase as a show of abundance.
Reacting through his Instagram stories, Cubana Chief Priest said the billionaire’s view was outdated, arguing that visibility and attention are the new forms of wealth in the digital age.
He wrote that while Maduka’s generation built factories and physical assets, the present generation thrives on digital relevance.
According to him, “visibility has become the new currency,” and “content is not noise but digital equity.”
Cubana Chief Priest also asked Maduka to “remove himself” from the list of billionaires such as Tony Elumelu and Femi Otedola, saying they have used their wealth to promote Africa’s image globally.
He added that the phrase “money na water” represents liquidity and the ability to attract opportunities, not wastefulness.
