Social media personality, Blessing Okoro, popularly known as Blessing CEO, has admitted to deliberately claiming that she had breast cancer to attract financial donations from members of the public.
She spoke during an interview with social media activist Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, in a video shared on Thursday.
“The pressure was too much. So what did I do? That was where the cancer drama came in. And because of the pressure. I saw this embarrassment coming. I said to myself, what stunt can I pull? What stunts can I pull? Then I pulled out the cancer,” she said.
She was referring to financial pressure from an EFCC-related dispute involving a man identified as Dr Onuoha Okeigwe.
Blessing CEO said a medical check-up had revealed a lump in her breast, but the finding was not cancerous.
She admitted to taking advantage of the discovery by telling the public that the lump was cancerous because she wanted financial assistance.
“Honestly, I do not have cancer. The truth is, I had gone for a check-up a few months ago and they found a lump on my breast, but it was not cancerous.
“So I took advantage of that, came to the media, cried for help and said that the lump was cancerous. I played an emotional game. I wanted funds, but I didn’t come out directly to ask for funds,” she said.
Explaining how the fundraising began, Blessing CEO said she initially created the impression that she was considering selling her personal belongings, including her car and house, which prompted people to encourage her to share her bank details for donations.
She said contributions started coming in from members of the public, with people sending different amounts of money.
According to her, the donations stopped after VeryDarkMan questioned her cancer claims and demanded evidence to support the fundraising appeal.
“When I saw the video, immediately he (VeryDarkMan) made that video, the donation stopped. The donation paused. So I’m like, what do I do? What do I do? That was where the whole orchestration and resolving and all that stuff came,” she said.
She added that she was not proud of her actions.
The latest development marks a reversal of her earlier position during the controversy, which erupted in March after she announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and sought financial support for treatment.
In an interview with content creator Egungun of Lagos in April, Blessing CEO admitted receiving N13m in donations but insisted that she owed nobody an apology.
She attributed the confusion surrounding her diagnosis to possible miscommunication and said she was still seeking clarification from her doctors.
However, the Delta State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association subsequently disowned a histology report circulated in connection with her claims, saying it had originally been issued to another patient, Deborah Mbara, and not Blessing CEO.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission later arraigned her on a six-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence, forgery and other alleged offences involving N13m raised from members of the public.
She pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The commission alleged that she used a falsified medical report to solicit donations. The allegations remain subject to determination by the court.
The cancer-related case is one of three fraud cases instituted against Blessing CEO by the EFCC.
In a separate case, she was arraigned over an alleged N36m fraud involving a property transaction. She secured N10m bail in the matter in June.
She is also standing trial over an alleged N69.15m fraud involving a five-year lease of a property in Lekki, Lagos, which the EFCC alleged she presented as belonging to her.
The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja granted her N20m bail in the case in July.
At the continuation of the trial on October 26, a prosecution witness, Dr Onuoha Okeigwe, told the court that Blessing CEO allegedly misrepresented herself as the owner of the property before collecting the money.
PUNCH Online reported on October 27 that Okeigwe maintained during cross-examination that he relied on her representations, including WhatsApp conversations and other documents, before making the payment.
He also told the court that he had instituted a separate civil suit to recover more than N100m allegedly spent renovating the property. The criminal case was adjourned until January 12, 2027, for the prosecution to call additional witnesses.
Blessing CEO pleaded not guilty to the charges in the separate fraud cases.
