By Chioma Obinagwam
Dr. Cosmas Maduka, the billionaire CEO of Coscharis Group, has set Nigeria’s social media ablaze with a viral video condemning the reckless spraying of naira at events.
Titled “Money Na Water,” Confiance News gathered that the clip, released days ago, captures Maduka’s fiery rebuke of a phrase and practice he sees as economically ruinous. “Show me any wealthy who says ‘money na water.’ I’ve never heard Tony Elumelu say, ‘money na water.’ I’ve never heard Femi Otedola say ‘money na water,’ and I’ve never said ‘money na water,’” he declares in the two-minute video, now trending with millions of views on platforms like X.
Confiance News learnt that Maduka’s passionate delivery resonates as he recounts his journey from a N200 dismissal in the 1970s to building a N500 billion empire. Holding naira notes, he mimics the flamboyant spraying at weddings and parties, a cultural norm now outlawed under Nigeria’s 2021 anti-currency abuse laws, punishable by fines or imprisonment. “This money wey una dey throw like say e no get value, na our economy e dey kill!” he warns, linking the act to the naira’s plunge past N1,600 to the dollar. Maduka argues that dismissing money as “water” fuels inflation and undermines national pride, contrasting it with the discipline of tycoons like Elumelu and Otedola, who he says embody wealth with restraint.
The video has sparked a firestorm online. On X, #MoneyNaWater trends with over 60,000 posts, splitting opinions. Supporters hail Maduka’s call for fiscal respect—“Baba don preach sense!”—while critics defend spraying as cultural expression. Economists back his stance, noting Nigeria’s forex struggles, but some youths argue it’s a harmless tradition. Maduka, a street-preaching billionaire, urges investment over ostentation: “Money na tool, no be confetti.” As Nigeria grapples with economic woes, his words challenge a nation to value its currency—and its future.
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