The ongoing legal battle between gospel singer Mercy Chinwo and her former label (EeZee Conceptz Global) boss and manager, Ezekiel Onyedikachukwu, took a new turn on Tuesday.
PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the Federal High Court in Lagos issued a warrant of arrest against Mr Onyedikachukwu.
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Justice Alexander Owoeye granted the order following an ex parte motion filed by the EFCC seeking the manager’s arrest.
The arrest warrant, which was later halted, stemmed from a petition by Chinwo, who alleged that her manager diverted $345,000 without remitting her share.
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In a video posted on her Instagram page on Tuesday, Chinwo addressed the incident between her and Mr Onyedikachukwu after her lawyer released a statement detailing how her former boss violated their agreement.
She further alleged that he (Mr Onyedikachukwu) masterminded a paternity fraud allegation against her in April 2025.
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On 3 April 2024, this newspaper reported that four bloggers—Okoronkwo Ejike, Kingsley Ibeh, Terrence Ekot, and DJ Spoiltkid—alleged that gospel singer Nathaniel Bassey was the father of the 3-year-old son, instead of her husband, Blessed Uzochikwa.
Chinwo, her husband, and Bassey subsequently petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, over the allegations.
The bloggers, however, later apologised, admitting their claims were false.
The Excess Love crooner said that Mr Onyedikachukwu allegedly sponsored the paternity fraud allegation: “One of my major “crimes” was performing at a show with Pastor Nathaniel Bassey. Because you (Mr Onyedikachukwu) hate him—you went ahead and sponsored fake news about an innocent child—my son. You said my son wasn’t mine and paid bloggers because you hate Pastor Jerry Eze.
“You didn’t want me to attend his (Jerry Eze) events. You also expected me to fight the people you fought with, and when I asked why you didn’t like them, you started harassing me. You’ve threatened me countless times, saying you made me who I am and that you have the power to destroy me. But you’re not God, and you can’t destroy me. You have bloggers; I have God.”
Royalties
The singer also alleged that her ex-manager withheld her royalties for two years and threatened to ruin her career.
Chinwo further alleged that Mr Onyedikachukwu’s threats and bullying forced her to relocate from Lagos to Port Harcourt.
“You bullied me, threatened my life, and said you made me who I am and that you’ll destroy me. You were the same person who kept changing lawyers because you said you’d deal with me since you have connections and money. What did I do? I took you as a father. I was once your backup singer, served you diligently, and signed a management contract in 2017.
“As we progressed, you tried to convince me to sign a 12-year contract, which I refused. Since then, you started acting funny and became toxic because I didn’t extend the contract. Immediately after my contract, I discovered you forged a new one. Please tell the world what happened to the 2017 and 2019 contracts. You seized my royalties for two years. You’re a bully and an oppressor”, said the mother of one.
Bully
She maintained that whatever Mr Onyedikachukwu is currently doing on social media is insignificant compared to the bullying, threats, and other challenges she endured as his backup singer and signee.
Chinwo added, “For the sake of the body of Christ, I thought of bringing some clarity to a lot of misleading news online about the Mercy Chinwo brand. A man—my ex-manager—said I sued him, came online, made videos to tarnish my image, and looked at me, saying, “I made you who you are, and I’ll destroy you.
“I became scared for my life, and it got to a point where I had to move from Lagos to Port Harcourt because this man made the environment toxic for me. This is not to paint him as bad. He took me to court and came online to tell the public I took him to court. Here are the documents: he took me and Minister Judikat to court, yet he’s here playing the victim.”
She expressed optimism that the God she served would not allow Mr Onyedikachukwu’s plan to succeed, stating, “I know God will not let your plans come to pass, for His thoughts for me are of good and not evil.”
Onyedikachukwu
Meanwhile, Mr Onyedikachukwu, in a video posted on his Instagram page on Saturday, said his record label paid Chinwo’s royalties.
He further alleged that the singer diverted funds meant for the record label into her account.
Mr Onyedikachukwu said, “She collected money for an event and diverted it to her account while using our content for other purposes. She withheld event proceeds without remittance, and my record label continued remitting royalties until we officially emailed her to state that we would stop sending royalties until a proper mutual financial reconciliation was conducted.
“We told her that we need to have a meeting, which will take place in the presence of an unbiased auditor, without any form of religious influence from either her (Chinwo’s) mother or father.”
This reporter contacted Mr Onyedikachukwu to obtain his response to the allegation that he orchestrated the paternity fraud claim against the singer, but his number was switched off.
Additionally, messages were sent to Mr Onyedikachukwu via Instagram and WhatsApp; however, as of press time, he had not responded.
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