A Nollywood actor and Instagram sensation, Williams Uchemba, who had posed as a United Nations ambassador and even met with President Muhammadu Buhari for his work on youth matters in September, has been accused of fraud
United Nations Youth Envoy, Jayathma Wickramanayake, who is an aide to the Secretary-General of the UN, António Guterres, said he was unknown to the organisation.
A United States-based Nigerian human rights activist, Edafe Okporo, had shared a screenshot of a supposed chat thread with Uchemba requesting information on how to attend an upcoming UN Youth Assembly event.
The response from the former child actor read, “I will need three things from you: passport data page, email address and registration fee ($1,000). After payment is confirmed, I will then send you a questionnaire for you to fill and send back.
“The $1,000 covers for your United Nations invitation letter (which is what you will take to the embassy and the UN will also send a copy to the embassy) which is also registration and admission into the UN HQ, your training materials and certificate from the United Nations, your US visa process and filling of your DA-160 (online form).”
According to screenshots that went viral on social media, Okporo alerted Wickramanayake, who responded, saying she was working on a message “to save young people from scams like these.”
Shortly after, in a statement via her official Twitter account, the UN envoy said, “It has been brought to my attention that organisations and individuals claim affiliation to my office and the United Nations, promising participation in meetings and conferences upon payment of a fee.
“Please note: The United Nations does not charge a fee at any stage for participating in meetings and conferences. The Office of the United Nations Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth does not have country or regional representatives.”
Uchemba, who is also the brains behind the #GiveChallenge, has garnered over 1.4 million followers on Instagram and over 35,000 followers due to his many comedy skits.
Attempts to get a reaction from him proved abortive as his telephone indicated that it was switched off while a text message was not responded to as of press time.
United Nations Youth Envoy, Jayathma Wickramanayake, who is an aide to the Secretary-General of the UN, António Guterres, said he was unknown to the organisation.
A United States-based Nigerian human rights activist, Edafe Okporo, had shared a screenshot of a supposed chat thread with Uchemba requesting information on how to attend an upcoming UN Youth Assembly event.
The response from the former child actor read, “I will need three things from you: passport data page, email address and registration fee ($1,000). After payment is confirmed, I will then send you a questionnaire for you to fill and send back.
“The $1,000 covers for your United Nations invitation letter (which is what you will take to the embassy and the UN will also send a copy to the embassy) which is also registration and admission into the UN HQ, your training materials and certificate from the United Nations, your US visa process and filling of your DA-160 (online form).”
According to screenshots that went viral on social media, Okporo alerted Wickramanayake, who responded, saying she was working on a message “to save young people from scams like these.”
Shortly after, in a statement via her official Twitter account, the UN envoy said, “It has been brought to my attention that organisations and individuals claim affiliation to my office and the United Nations, promising participation in meetings and conferences upon payment of a fee.
“Please note: The United Nations does not charge a fee at any stage for participating in meetings and conferences. The Office of the United Nations Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth does not have country or regional representatives.”
Uchemba, who is also the brains behind the #GiveChallenge, has garnered over 1.4 million followers on Instagram and over 35,000 followers due to his many comedy skits.
Attempts to get a reaction from him proved abortive as his telephone indicated that it was switched off while a text message was not responded to as of press time.
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