Big Brother Naija Season 7 winner, Ijeoma Otabor, also known as Phyna, broke down uncontrollably during an emotional Instagram live session, alleging that her family betrayed her and turned against her after she started saying no to their financial demands.
The emotional outburst followed her response to a critic who wrote: “It was ur greed, nobody lied against u, stop all this emotional blackmail, u were too greedy u didnt care about ur sister’s welfare.”
Phyna, with tears in her eyes, told about the sorrow of losing her younger sister, Ruth, who was crushed by a Dangote truck driver in August 2025. She mentioned that her sister would have turned 25 the next day.
I’ll never forgive myself for not getting justice for someone lying about me and turning the case into rubble. “My sister deserved peace, love and justice,” she added.
The reality star has talked up about how her familial ties fell apart after her win in 2022. She said she had received no advice on how to invest her prize money and that family were only expecting handouts.
Nobody cared about my investing. “Everybody wanted something,” she added. “The minute I said no, I started having problems.”
Phyna claimed that her father gave an interview to a national publication to talk ill of her after she initially refused. She stated that he had asked her to purchase an expensive roofing sheet and when she recommended a cheaper alternative, he went to the press and lied about her.
I wish I could turn back time. “Instead of yelling at my daddy and mummy, I should have just run. Straight away they announced me as the winner. At the end of the day, I’m the one taking everything,” she wept.
And she claimed that while her sister was going through the accident and death, some family members seemed more concerned with what they would gain from the tragedy than the loss itself.
“I’ve been the bad guy since I was a kid. Nothing good in me was ever seen by them. I don’t know how God blessed me and I still remembered them,” she added.
Social media flooded with support for him. “Sometimes I wish I could hug her big,” one user said. “The amount of trauma she’s had is a lot. Another told her to pick her own peace above blood relatives.
Phyna’s tearful confession has sparked renewed conversations about the stress of rapid success, familial pressure and the financial perils of young celebrities after winning big in Nigeria.
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