Nigerian entertainer Darlington Okoye, widely known as Speed Darlington, has refuted allegations leveled against him and stated that he will not comply with a summons from the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).
In a video shared on his Instagram page on Monday, Speed Darlington maintained his innocence, dismissing the accusations as unfounded and accusing the agency of seeking social media publicity. He further declared that his professional appearance fee as an entertainer is ₦2.5 million.
“This video I am making is for NAPTIP. You people should pay attention. All these wanted posters you people posted all around, you all need to take that (summon posts) down.
“I’m not coming. You hear me? I’m not coming. I have not committed any crime. All I did was speak. Irresponsible is not a crime,” Okoye said.
The 41-year-old singer accused NAPTIP of trying to use him for social media attention, questioning the agency’s motives and demanding evidence of any wrongdoing.
“Where is your evidence? Who is the complainant? You want to use me to collect social media clout? ‘Hey, look at us. We are doing our job. We summoned a celebrity and he came,’” he said.
The ‘Baby Oil’ crooner further described the agency’s invitation as a psychological ploy, stating he would only appear if paid his standard appearance fee.
“2.5 million is what I charge for my appearance. You want to pay me 2.5 million plus round-trip tickets for me and my PA to come? Because I call that appearance,” he added.
Referring to his controversial Instagram livestream where he appeared to confess to sleeping with a 15-year-old girl, Speed Darlington maintained there was no evidence against him and dismissed the uproar as unjustified.
“There is no crime. All I did was try to claim it. You have no evidence. So, me coming here is a waste of my time… Which one is cyberstalking? Who did I stalk? Did I post or bully or call anyone names in the video?”
He also criticised women tagging NAPTIP to take action, accusing them of “hating on him”, and warned that he would sue the agency for defamation if his name was not cleared.
“You have no evidence against me,” he insisted.