UNICEF withdraws fraud alert against Nkechi Blessing’s ex-husband Falegan

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has withdrawn its scam alert issued against Nollywood actress, Nkechi Blessing’s ex-lover, and politician, Opeyemi David Falegan.

Falegan had claimed to be on a fundraising drive for the people of Ukraine with his charity organization, ODF Foundation, in collaboration with UNICEF on his Instagram page, @hon_falegan_official_.

The Nigerian arm of the organisation thereafter debunked the claim via its Instagram page @unicef_nigeria, on Friday, April 08, 2022, tagging it a “scam”.

Despite the alert, Falegan posted a video on his Instagram page to support his claim that he had indeed raised £61 to be donated to UNICEF’s relief efforts in Ukraine.

The video demonstrated how a link was generated from UNICEF’s Instagram page to create a fundraiser on his personal page

The Instagram donation feature ensures that donations made with the link will be directly remitted to the organisation’s account.

However, Falegan also solicited funds and added bank account details for his foundation in the fundraising post.

On Monday, April 11, 2022, the Nigerian branch of UNICEF made a U-turn, by deleting the scam alert post.

The organisation via its Instagram page, @unicef_nigeria, also clarified that the alert was issued because Falegan tried to promote his charity organisation while raising funds in the name of UNICEF.

In response, Falegan has threatened a lawsuit against the UNICEF over the allegation.

The politician also described UNICEF’s scam alert as “gross irresponsibility” which he said would “be lawfully handled”.