Ekiti State Sues Pastor for Violating Chef Dammy’s Rights

Chef Dammy, an Ekiti-born chef who attempted to break the Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon in June this year, is seeking justice for the alleged violation of her rights by her former sponsor, Pastor Jeremiah Adegoke, and the Ekiti State Police Command.

The Directorate of Citizens Rights (DCR) from the Ministry of Justice in Ekiti State has filed a lawsuit on her behalf against Adegoke, who is the head pastor of Spirit Word Global Mission, an Ekiti-based church, and the police authorities for allegedly harassing, intimidating, and threatening her.

The DCR is also demanding N10 million as compensation for the damages suffered by Chef Dammy, who is a 300-level Mass Communication student of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE).

The dispute between Chef Dammy and Pastor Adegoke started in October, after the 24-year-old chef accused him and some other individuals whom she called “people of God” of making relentless threats and intimidation against her on social media. She claimed that the pastor was trying to take credit for her cook-a-thon project and exploit her for his personal gain.

The cook-a-thon project, which was aimed at breaking Hilda Baci’s record of cooking for 68 hours non-stop, was reportedly sponsored by Pastor Adegoke. However, the project failed due to technical and logistical challenges.

Following Chef Dammy’s public outcry, Pastor Adegoke, through his lawyers, Bisayo Sule & Co legal practitioners, sent a letter to her on October 23, 2023, demanding that she retract her alleged defamatory statements on social media, apologize to him on two national newspapers, and pay him N22 million for damages. He gave her seven days to comply or face legal action.

However, Chef Dammy did not comply with the demands and instead reported the matter to the DCR, which took up her case and filed a suit against Pastor Adegoke and the police on November 24.

The suit, which named Chef Dammy as the applicant and Pastor Adegoke, Ajewole Samuel, the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, and the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 17 Akure, as the respondents, seeks a declaration that the actions of the pastor and the police infringe on Chef Dammy’s fundamental human rights.

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