•Actress alleges she used drugs at husband’s behest
•Nwoko: ‘Why I want her clean, sober’
•No such complaints before us, say police
Nollywood actress, Regina Daniels and her estranged husband, Senator Ned Nwoko, are trading words over allegations including drug use, domestic violence, manipulation and harassment against each other following their troubled marriage.
The couple had been in the news since last week after a video posted on the social media showed Daniels crying and alleging there was trouble in paradise.
In the video, the actress was heard saying she was tired of the abuse in Ned’s house and was done with the relationship, alleging that the Senator’s aides attacked her and her siblings at his instance.
But Nwoko in a swift response, accused Daniels of drug dependence and refusal to seek rehabilitation, stating that Daniels’ brother, Sammy West (arrested and arraigned), and others frustrated his efforts to get her drugs-free.
In a lengthy statement posted on his X account, Senator Nwoko alleged that Sammy repeatedly invaded his residence in Abuja, harassed his children and domestic staff, particularly in his absence, describing the visits as “aggressive and disruptive.”
According to Nwoko, Regina was undergoing therapy for substance dependence, and doctors had advised restricting access to her enablers, which Sammy, his lover and several of his wife’s friends defied.
“They would come into the house uninvited, sometimes forcing their way in, and bring her the same drugs she was being treated for. “Instead of helping her recover, they encouraged her addiction and completely frustrated the efforts of the doctors and therapists working with her,” he alleged.
He alleged that Regina had repeatedly defied security protocols, stayed out overnight without explanation, and associated with people who supplied her with drugs, adding that when he questioned her on one occasion, she replied that he was not her father.
The lawmaker denied allegations that he sent thugs to assault his estranged wife, insisting that the viral video circulating online was staged in his absence. He claimed that he only wants her to go through rehabilation so that she would be alive and well to care for their young children. Nwoko maintained that he had supported Daniels’ family financially and academically, claiming to have spent N125 million on her mother in two years and sponsored her siblings’ education and upkeep.
Nwoko wrote: “This is someone I sponsored through his last two years at the University of Ekpoma. I bought his musical instruments, rented and furnished a flat for him in Abuja, in addition to the house I bought for Regina in Asaba before our marriage for the use of all of them. I also routinely provided allowances to all members of the family, including her mother, Rita Daniel. Indeed, in the last two years, I have a record of transferring N125 million to her alone…
“When Regina started her rehabilitation, there was a clear instruction by the doctors to strictly restrict people, especially her enablers, from having access to her. The therapy was arranged after I noticed troubling changes in her behavior linked to her dependence on certain illegal substances, including going for 48 hours without sleeping and eating every two hours…
“I do not drink alcohol nor smoke. In fact, I am a vegetarian. So I found these characters and behaviors reprehensible and totally unacceptable…
“They did not stop there. On several occasions, they verbally assaulted and intimidated the police officers stationed at the house for security. The officers were simply following instructions to restrict access for the sake of Regina’s recovery, but Sammy and his group would insult and threaten them.
“Whenever Regina wanted to go out and I was not around, she would become extremely hostile toward the police and domestic staff. She would shout, threaten, and use abusive words, insisting that she must leave the house no matter what.
“There were at least two serious incidents where she left home in the evening and did not return until the next day. The first incident she returned in the morning around 9a.m. When I asked where she had been all night, she casually said she was at a nightclub.
“When I questioned why she would stay out all night, ignoring my calls and refusing to answer messages, her response was, “You are not my father, so don’t ask me where I was.” I found out that she was with Cassie and that Cassie was staying in Regina’s house in life camp. “Cassie is the chemist and supplier of the group. I had to go to life camp at 6pm to ask her to leave. With her around Regina, the therapy became a joke. On another occasion, on the kids’ birthday to be precise, I returned home with the kids because Regina said she would stay with her Nollywood friends for dinner. She didn’t return until 5p.m. the next day. I took so much nonsense just for the sake of the kids. I also knew that drugs had a lot to do with it.
“As to her reasons for continuing with drugs, she will always say, just like her mother, that it is a celebrity lifestyle. They will always mention two well-known pop stars.
“Imagine the pain of a husband trying to help his wife recover, only to have the process sabotaged by her siblings and friends, the very people who should have been supporting her healing.
“This pattern of behavior made it almost impossible for her to recover. Each time progress was made, they would undo it by smuggling in the same drugs she was fighting to give up. The entire household lived in tension and fear because of their constant harassment, interference, and disregard for boundaries.
“It will be interesting to know her reasons for the violent behavior in the house the day that Sammy and other siblings came and attacked my staff and security, taking Regina away after doing a video which they posted the next day.
Why did they do that video? Why did they post it? They simply planned and orchestrated a script all in my absence, regardless of the fact that my kids were there. They took away many things from my house, including one of my phones, money, and many other items.
“Everything that happened that day was in my house, in my absence. Nobody was beaten, and nobody could have contemplated that. It is blatantly false to say that I sent thugs to beat Regina in another house. The video that went viral was filmed entirely in front of my house by Regina’s sister and her friend. It was a pure Nollywood scenario, in front of my property, in my absence.
“Sammy should have a life of his own outside of Regina and focus on building his career independently. When his brother Lawrence went to London a couple of years ago to do his master’s degree, I personally sponsored him with $75,000 for tuition and upkeep.
“I sent him abroad partly to help him escape the toxic environment of drug exposure and bad influence around them at the time. Out of fairness, I offered Sammy the same opportunity, but he declined, insisting he wanted to remain in Nigeria to pursue his music career. “Unfortunately, he has since been arrested several times by both the police and the EFCC. His behavior has become increasingly violent and unstable. What he needs now is total rehabilitation and professional guidance; otherwise, his aggression and self-destructive tendencies will only worsen,” stated Nwoko.
In a sharp rebuttal, Regina Daniels accused Nwoko of spreading falsehoods to deflect from the real issues between them. She admitted to using drugs in the past but said her estranged husband was using that narrative to manipulate public opinion and isolate her from loved ones.
Daniels said: “Ned, how could you lie so openly and without even small remorse? You know my family has absolutely nothing to do with this. You have always tried to cut them off because of the bond we share, and now you are trying to make them look bad for no reason.
“Fine, I did drugs. So what? Is that even the issue between us? The moment we had a fight, you rushed to the public shouting “drugs, drugs, drugs,” because you knew it would make a perfect story for the media, something dramatic enough to distract everyone from the real issue!
“You want to find a reason to arrest everyone around me so that I will have no one left beside me, no friend, no support, no safe place to turn to. Then, when I’m completely isolated and broken, I will be forced to come back to you because I will have nowhere else to go.
“That has always been your strategy, break people down, make them weak and powerless, and then have your way with them. But guess what? It’s not going to work
“Why don’t you also tell them that all your wives and ex-wives are on drugs? And can you be kind enough to explain to them why that is?
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Why don’t you also tell them how you lock me up and Doctors to inject me with drugs meant for people with bipolar disorder? Why don’t you tell them how you take my phones for weeks just because you hate that I talk to my family a lot.
“You have never seen me act incoherent, stumble, or lose control, so just stop. Every problem we have had started when I no longer wanted you, whether sober or even high. Stop using the “drugs” narrative to create distraction…
“You are feeling rejected and hurt, and you are struggling to make peace with the fact that it’s all over this time. Not anymore! You say you want me to go for rehab, but you are the same Ned who always wanted me high because, in your words, I’m “sexier” when I’m high. You liked me that way because it made me wild and romantic exactly how you wanted me to be.
“Why don’t you also tell them how you force yourself on me whenever I say no? Why don’t you tell them how you lock me up, seize my phones, and suddenly declare me “mentally unstable” the moment I say I no longer want to be in this relationship. But once I change my mind just to get out of that locked room, suddenly I’m fine again, I’m no longer mentally unstable, and apparently not in need of rehab anymore.
“Let me make this very clear, No matter how much you think you spent on me, it can never equal the value of the time I gave you, my prime years, my energy, and the career opportunities I sacrificed while being with you
“And for the record, I would have filed for divorce long ago if there was ever a legal marriage between us. We were never married in any court of law, and no documents were signed. Leave me alone, Ned. Marriage is not by force. Love is not by force. Stop trying to control what no longer belongs to you!”
The actress’ brother who’s resident in the United Kingdom, Lawrence alias Sweazy, also took to social media to dismiss Nwoko’s claims that he gave him 75,000 US dollars.
He challenged the Senator to post evidence of his claims, adding that he should do well to send his daughter who’s been begging him that she wants to go to the UK.
Sweazy also dismissed as falsehood, all the claims by Nwoko, sharing a voice note which he alleged was that of the Senator admitting physical assault on Daniels.
Contacted, the police said none of these allegations were before them, stressing that the only petition received so far was that against Sammy West, which was swiftly attended to and charged to court.
Spokesperson for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, CSP Josephine Adeh, told The Nation that there was no investigation pending involving the couple.
“We are not investigating any case like that involving the couple. There is no petition before us on that. They have not reported to us and will need to report so that we can take action. All these things are on social media and if they do not inform us, what can we do?
“The police are for everybody. Let the parties making the accusations send in their petition and we will have something to work on,” she said.
