The corridors of power in Abuja just witnessed one of the most talked-about political scandals of the year. Fegho John Umunubo, Special Assistant on Digital and Creative Economy to Vice President Kashim Shettima, has been shown the door. And it is not a quiet dismissal. His sack by President Bola Tinubu has tied politics, Nollywood, and money drama into one explosive story Nigerians are already whispering about.
On September 8, 2025, the Presidency released an official statement announcing Umunubo’s immediate dismissal. The notice didn’t just say he was out, it warned anyone still doing business with him that they were on their own. For a presidential aide, that’s as brutal a disclaimer as it gets.
But before this, Umunubo had been quietly suspended for more than two months, following investigations into claims that he was signing unauthorized agreements in the creative industry. Rumors had been swirling in Nollywood circles that he was presenting himself as a “power broker” for funds that weren’t really at his disposal.
Then came the blow that made everything public. On August 30, 2025, filmmaker and author Arese Ugwu, best known for her hit The Smart Money Woman, took to Instagram with a fiery post. She accused Umunubo of owing her N10 million after promising sponsorship for her latest film project Lara Unlimited. According to her, the deal was supposed to include branding opportunities for the Presidency’s office - logos on backdrops, mentions on podcasts, even influencer shoutouts. None of it materialized. Instead, she says she was left chasing money that never came.
Her words lit up the entertainment and political scene. The combination of Nollywood money, alleged fraud, and presidential office abuse was too hot for Nigerians to ignore. Suddenly, search words like “Fegho Umunubo sack,” “Arese Ugwu N10 million,” and “Tinubu aide Nollywood scandal” started trending across social media.
Digging deeper, multiple reports revealed that Umunubo allegedly paraded multimillion-dollar funds—like the $617 million Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme and a N5 billion Creative Fund as if he had direct control. This reportedly gave him influence among creatives eager for government support. But insiders claimed he was never officially authorized to handle such deals.
Things escalated when Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, reportedly petitioned the Presidency over Umunubo’s interference in agencies under her watch. It became clear that the creative economy aide was operating far beyond his brief.
By the time Arese Ugwu’s Instagram post went viral, the Presidency had little choice but to move from suspension to dismissal. In the world of politics, perception is everything, and this one looked too much like abuse of office tied to Nollywood money.
Umunubo himself has tried to downplay the matter, insisting he was being misrepresented. But the official sack letter has left no doubt: he no longer represents the government, and anyone who still treats him as an aide does so “at his or her own risk.”
For Nollywood lovers, this saga reads like a real-life drama, power, politics, money, and betrayal rolled into one. For the Tinubu administration, it is a sharp reminder that the creative economy is now too influential to be toyed with. For Arese Ugwu, it is a fight to reclaim what she says is rightfully hers.
Whether the N10 million will ever be paid remains to be seen. But for now, Fegho Umunubo’s name is set in stone as the presidential aide whose fall from grace came through a Nollywood scandal and a filmmaker who refused to stay silent.
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