Over two months after launching his self-titled NGO, ‘Martins Vincent Otse Initiative,’ VeryDarkMan (VDM) has disclosed that hackers stole N180 million from the official account.
On 14 October, PREMIUM TIMES reported that VDM launched the ‘Martins Vincent Otse Initiative’ Within just 24 hours, the NGO raked over N33 million in donations from ‘generous’ Nigerians.
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Days later, Don Jazzy contributed N100 million to the cause. He would later announce that over N200 million had been raised.
But, in an Instagram post on Friday, VDM shared that the incident left him distressed but that he and the police are actively working to recover the stolen funds.
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“I’m at the airport. I’ll be honest: I have not been myself over the past few days. I am here with an officer, and we are on our way to Jos,” VDM stated.
“The NGO money—somebody hacked into the NGO website, and I don’t know how they did it, but 180 million is missing. Thankfully, we’ve tracked the person and are heading to Jos. They’ve already arrested one suspect, so I’m sharing this now.”
The 30-year-old social media critic explained that he had to temporarily shut down the NGO’s app for maintenance to prevent further breaches. He also promised to keep his followers updated on the situation.
VeryDarkMan added, “I’m excited because the account has been put on PND. The account currently holds N20 million, but N160 million has been diverted to another account. We are heading there now to see how I can recover the money. I just wanted to update you all.
“I even had to shut down the app so people wouldn’t notice what’s happening. But let me be honest with everyone—I hope to get the money back. I couldn’t get a regular ticket because flights were full, so I had to book business class. I’ll keep you updated soon,” he noted.
Background
Announcing the NGO launch in October, VDM said the initiative was created to tackle Nigeria’s educational challenges, such as the lack of motivated, modern teachers, and to make education more engaging using tools like projectors, especially in underfunded rural and underserved areas.
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During the NGO launch, VDM criticised unethical practices in some NGOs, accusing them of using their platforms to enrich themselves and their lifestyles rather than help the public.
He also condemned the misuse of funds raised for specific causes and promised to account for every donation to his NGO, with full transparency on all transactions.
Then, VDM revealed his long-term plan to hire National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members as teachers in public schools and pointed out that many corps members have to take on menial jobs due to a lack of opportunities.
Despite mixed reactions to his initiative—some praise and others concerned about government interference—VDM believed that combining the experience of older teachers with the energy of younger educators is key to improving Nigeria’s education system.
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