Nigerian television host and filmmaker, Frank Edoho, has revealed that the suspension of popular quiz show Who Wants To Be a Millionaire was caused by the withdrawal of its sponsor after a Federal Government fine, rather than his reported removal from the programme.

Edoho made the revelation during an episode of The KK Show published on Sunday, where he dismissed earlier reports that he was dropped from the show.

The broadcaster, who hosted the programme for 13 years, said the show’s sponsor supported it for about a decade before ending its involvement due to financial pressure arising from a government penalty.

“Who Wants To Be a Millionaire sort of came to an end when our sponsor withdrew. I don’t know if I can mention brand names here, but our sponsor stayed with us for a decade sponsoring the show,” Edoho said.

He explained that the sponsor was fined by the Federal Government over a corporate matter, and the resulting financial obligation affected its ability to continue funding the programme.

“I think the Federal Government fined them based on some industry issue. It was just like a punitive measure for one corporate thing that happened. I can’t go into details, but that affected the sponsorship of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire,” he said.

Edoho added that after hearing about possible new sponsors for the show, he began negotiations to become an executive producer and secure a stake in the programme, having contributed significantly to its growth.

“I wanted to have a stake in it because I feel that I built myself up to the extent that I assumed I was an asset to the show,” he said.

According to him, the negotiations later broke down due to differences between both parties, leading to speculation that he had been removed from the programme when it returned under a new sponsor.

Edoho said a newspaper report claiming he was dropped from the show was inaccurate.

“They announced that I was dropped from the show, which was false then. I gave my statement. I felt I was thrown under the bus after all the years I put in,” he said.

Who Wants To Be a Millionaire premiered in Nigeria in 2004, with Edoho as its host. He remained the face of the programme until 2017, when he left the show.

The programme went on a temporary break in 2017 after its sponsor, MTN Nigeria, withdrew support. It later returned in 2022 with a new structure, updated prize money and new sponsors.