Nigerian singer Peter “Mr P” Okoye has alleged that his late mother, Josephine Okoye, repeatedly urged his brothers, Paul and Jude Okoye, to apologise to him and his wife, Lola Omotayo-Okoye, over the family’s treatment of them, but said the apology never came before her death.
PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the singer’s mother died in 2012 at a hospital in India following heart surgery. Doctors initially admitted her to St. Nicholas Hospital on Lagos Island before transferring her abroad for further treatment.
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Mr P made the claim in the latest instalment (part eight) of his ongoing tell-all video series on social media, where he has been revisiting the events that led to the collapse of P-Square and the strained relationship within the Okoye family.
The singer, who married Lola in 2013 after several years together, said his relationship with her was strongly opposed by Jude and, at times, Paul, long before their wedding. He alleged that the hostility continued even after the birth of their first child and persisted despite efforts by their late mother to reconcile the family.
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Apology
According to Mr P, only his eldest brother apologised after his mother intervened, while Paul and Jude never did before she died in 2012.
The 44-year-old said, “While our mum was still around, she felt my pain. She said, ‘Don’t worry.’ When I was telling her everything, I said, ‘Mum, look at it this way: you thought you were telling me some good news, that the child is mine, but see how everyone left.’ She said, ‘No problem, I’ll talk to your brothers — they will apologise to you.’ I said, ‘No problem.’ My mum went back to Jos, and after about a week, she called me.
“She asked me, ‘Have they apologised?’ I said, ‘Only the first son, our firstborn, has apologised.’ She said, ‘Don’t worry, they will all apologise.’ After a few more weeks, Henry apologised too, except Paul and Jude, the ones I live with; they never did. One month, two months, three months, four months, five months, our mum died, and the apology was never made. My mum told them to do it, but they never did.”
Lola and Psquare’s mother’s relationship
Furthermore, the singer dismissed his brothers’ claims that their late mother never liked his wife.
He explained that his mother and Lola enjoyed a cordial relationship before her illness led to her hospitalisation in Lagos.
According to him, his mother had already accepted Lola and often referred to her as “our wife.”
“When our mum was sick in Jos, we flew her all the way to Lagos; we took her to St Nicholas Hospital on the Island, we live on the Mainland. Our mum was admitted, and four of her pastors came all the way from Jos to be with her. Guess where they stayed? Lola’s house. Lola got up as early as six o’clock every morning to make food for them, breakfast, everything. By seven o’clock, she would take them to the hospital and stay there. We lived on the Mainland so that we would arrive around eleven. When we came, Lola would leave for work.
“We stayed with our mum in the hospital with the pastors. By around six o’clock, Lola would leave work; her office wasn’t far from St Nicholas, and she would come back to the hospital. As soon as she arrived, we would leave. She stayed at the hospital until midnight, then took the pastors back to their house. The next morning, the same routine was repeated for over two months. During that time, in that hospital, they still tried to create a narrative that Lola and my mum never had a relationship, even though before I married Lola, my mum was already addressing her as ‘our wife’”, said Mr P.
Wedding
Mr P expressed concern that Jude was using his own twin brother as a pawn in what he described as his “evil games”, insisting that he had never been at odds with his brothers.
He also alleged that Jude scheduled a show for him in Ghana a day before his wedding to Lola.
According to him, despite personally giving Jude the fabric for the ceremony, Jude failed to attend the wedding.
“When I had my own wedding, my elder brother, our so-called manager, never attended. Let me tell you how bad it was: the night before my wedding, Jude booked a show with Globacom in Ghana, and showed me a return ticket for the next day, my wedding day, on a 2 o’clock flight. I said no, and insisted until they got us a private jet. I was at my own wedding. I was trending online for the wrong reason; Jude had posted a picture of himself at Mavin studio with Wizkid, Dr SID, Phyno, Don Jazzy and the rest of them.
“Jude posted that picture and started trending. Someone commented, something like, ‘You didn’t attend your brother’s wedding.’ He responded along the lines of, ‘If our mum were alive, this wedding wouldn’t have happened’, or something like that. And people said Jude was with Don Jazzy, Dr SID, Wizkid and Phyno, but all of them still left that studio and attended the wedding. My own senior brother, my manager, refused. I even arranged a barber for him and everything.”
Rudeboy responded to Mr P regarding their late mother’s legacy
Meanwhile, Rudeboy responded to Mr P’s claims about their mother. In a statement posted on his Instagram page, he said he regretted that their mother was no longer alive to defend herself.
He wrote, “Unfortunately, you’re not here to defend yourself and us. Continue resting, mum.”
As of the time of filing this report, Jude hasn’t responded to Mr P’s latest allegations.
READ ALSO: TRENDING: PSquare Feud: Fans back Mr P, launch campaign to boost his music
The newspaper also reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigated the dispute, leading to criminal charges against Jude over alleged money laundering involving about ₦1.38 billion, $1 million and £34,537.59.
Jude pleaded not guilty to the charges, and the case remains before the Federal High Court in Lagos.
During the court proceedings, Mr P testified for the prosecution, while Rudeboy publicly defended Jude, further exposing the rift within the family. The court initially remanded Jude in custody before later granting him bail.
Before P-Square split and the controversies that followed, the duo released several hit songs, including “Bizzy Body”, “Do Me”, “Personally”, “No One Like”, “You” and “Chop My Money”.
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