Veteran actress and pastor Eucharia Anunobi has announced that she has initiated legal action against Apostle Psalm Okpe, founder of the US-based Fresh Oil Ministry International Church, over an audio recording in which the cleric allegedly claimed to have had an amorous relationship with her.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that a recorded phone conversation between Mr Okpe and Pastor Martin surfaced online, in which the cleric alleged that he dated and had carnal knowledge of Anunobi for more than five years.
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Responding to the claim in a series of videos posted on her Instagram page on Sunday, the 60-year-old actress described Mr Okpe’s statements as “false, defamatory and damaging to her reputation.”
Redress
She said: “I am not going to allow that to be swept under the carpet because that malicious, vile statement has left me in emotional trauma. And it is also a testament to his threats over the years to destroy my ministry. So I have instituted legal action so that he can come and prove that he dated me for 5 years and 6 months.
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“My lawyers have been instructed to start the process of writing a petition to the Nigerian police force, the U.S. Security and Immigration Department, against Psalm Okpe, for defamatory accusations, bothering on issues that I do not know, defamatory accusations that is out to tarnish my integrity, my reputation as a renowned actress and a preacher of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Anunobi further stated that her life and ministry are under attack, warning that Mr Okpe should be held accountable for any harm that may come to her.
“If anything happens to me, my material possessions, acquisitions and family members here in Nigeria and outside Nigeria, as in physical injury, harm or death, Apostle Psalm Okpe, founder of Fresh Oil Ministry, Egbeda, Lagos, Nigeria and his entire family should be held responsible.
“I am ready to be taken for medical examination to ascertain if I have been having sex in almost 14 years (almost fourteen years), if there is anything like that, since I have been ordained (midwifed into Ministry)”, she noted.
High class
Additionally, Anunobi insisted that Mr Okpe could never have dated her, noting that she is of a higher standing than the cleric.
She added that any notion of him dating her existed only in his dreams.
“Psalm Okpe, you claimed that you dated me for five years, six months. You claimed you had sex with me for five years, six months. Do you know what it means to date? You couldn’t date me. You wish you could date me. How could you date me? You beggarly, miserable street urchin. I was giving you money to support your ministry because I am sold out to the things of the kingdom.
“So how could I date you? How could you date me? You can’t afford me. I am a higher class. The records are there. The bank records are there. Oh, you have suddenly forgotten. Oh, you wish you could date me. Hallucinating monster. You wish in your dreams”, said the actress.
Celibacy
Furthermore, she revealed that no man has been intimate with her since she dedicated her life to Jesus Christ fourteen years ago.
Anunobi added that, although she has been courted and engaged multiple times, none of the men can claim to have had sexual relations with her.
She noted, “Psalm Okpe, not only are you vile, you are malicious, wicked and mean. Everything evil, it’s your name. And through the recent trending video, you have shown your anger, jealousy and bitterness towards me. That being said, I want to state here categorically that in almost 14 years since I have been midwived into ministry, I have been celibate and have been keeping myself for the man that will be deserving of my new virginity.
“That is not to say that I have not been in courtship or not been engaged. I have been engaged all this while severally. I have been in courtship all this time. But none of these men can come out and say they have had penile penetration with me. None of them can say they have had sex with me.”
Transactional ministry
Anunobi also acknowledged that Mr Okpe ordained her and guided her entry into ministry.
However, she said she eventually left after witnessing what she described as evil and demonic activities.
“Serving as an associate pastor under his ministry, as time went by, I began to see a lot of evil and demonic things and especially his continuous engagement in transactional ministry.
These things left me very uncomfortable, and I felt that it was a toxic environment, and I knew it was not going to be good for me as a righteousness preacher. In late 2015, I went to him, and I said I wanted to be released.
“He said no, he was not going to release me yet, that he had not made up his mind. While I was still in the ministry, I used to hear a lot of people saying to me that they heard the Apostle Okpe threatening that he midwifed me into ministry, he ordained me into ministry, that he was going to destroy my ministry”, said Anunobi.
She further revealed that after leaving Mr Okpe’s ministry, he continued to mislead people into believing she was still affiliated with him.
She emphasised that no attempt to undermine her would succeed.
Anunobi noted that she had witnessed numerous efforts on social media aimed at tarnishing her name, ministry, and everything she stands for and worked tirelessly to build.
“After I had left, people would call me or send me messages via the internet asking about my whereabouts, still asking whether I am still in his ministry, and I would tell them no, I had left years ago. They said, but we went there now, and we asked him where you are, and he told them that I just travelled for my acting work. I said, but I left two years ago, or I left three years ago.
“They said, Are you serious? I said, Yes, I have left a long time ago. So he kept lying to people that I was still in his ministry, even though I had left years ago. So this authenticates the fact that he is embittered and jealous of me and truly meant to harm me as he had been saying behind my back.”
Backstory
This newspaper previously reported that the actress shared screenshots on her Instagram page of blog reports claiming that Mr Okpe had apologised for his comments.
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During a TikTok Live session with her followers, she described the preacher as a “monumental global embarrassment.”
“God has made the man who tried to tarnish my image a monumental global shame. He has confessed. And may the thunder of God fire everyone of you who have been writing negatively,” she said.
