Nollywood actress Rita Edochie has responded to the circulating rumor of the passing of her fellow actor, Osita Iheme, famously known as Pawpaw.
In a lengthy Instagram post, Rita Edochie expressed frustration over the recurring false death reports about Osita Iheme, which many believed and mourned in the comments.
She noted that similar false reports had been made about her, using a movie set photo to spread the news.
Rita criticized social media for causing harm, despite its benefits, and condemned the practice of spreading false death wishes to gain followers, labeling it madness.
“If ONE BLOGGER AND ONE HUNGRY SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT CREATOR haveN’T BEEN MERCILESSLY DEALT WITH, THE REST WON’T LEARN.
THIS RUMOR HAS COME UP BEFORE, A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO, IT CAME UP FOR THE SECOND TIME,
PICTURES OF MY GREAT SON AND VETERAN COLLEAGUE OSITA IHEME, POPULARLY KNOWN AS PAW_ PAW, TRENDED EVERYWHERE ON SOCIAL MEDIA WITH CAPTIONS THAT THEY WERE DEAD. CRÃZY NETIZENS BELIEVED THE FAKE GIST AND BEGAN COMMENTING RIP ON THEMSELVES.
I AS A PERSON, THINK THIS IS GRADUALLY GOING BEYOND CONTROL.
THIS IS NOT THE FIRST, NEITHER THE SECOND NOR THE THIRD, IT HAS BECOME A RECURRING MEDIA PRACTICE BY SO-CALLED BLOGGERS AND CONTENT CREATORS, MY QUESTION IS THIS,
WHY, IN THE NAME OF GOD, WOULD YOU WISH UNTIMELY DEATH ON SOMEONE, ESPECIALLY THE NIGERIAN CELEBRITIES, SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU FEEL WE ARE FAMOUS AND CAN FETCH YOU THE TRAFFIC, ENGAGEMENTS, AND FUNDS THAT YOU DON’T DESERVE?
I HAVE SAID IT BEFORE, AND I’M SAYING IT AGAIN: SOCIAL MEDIA HAS LITERALLY DONE MORE HARM THAN GOOD TO SOCIETY. IT HAS ALSO BEEN A CONSTANT SOURCE OF ENRICHMENT MOST NIGERIAN YOUTHS IN THE COUNTRY, BUT THE ABUSE IS GETTING OUT OF HAND.
OVER THE YEARS, IT’S BEEN ABOUT CHARACTER DEFAMATION JUST TO GENERATE TRAFFIC; NOW IT’S AS IF THE DEFAMATION THING IS BECOMING COMMON; YOU HAVE NOW SWITCHED TO SPREADING DEATH RUMORS ON CELEBRITIES AND MAKING THE WORLD BELIEVE WHAT ISN’T TRUE.
MY GREAT HUSBAND AND I, SIR PETE EDOCHIE, WERE ALSO VICTIMS OF THE HEARTBREAKING RUMOR.
I CAN REMEMBER WHEN I SHOT THE MOVIE CALABASH, WHERE I PLAYED THE MOTHER OF INI EDO, MY CHARACTER DIED IN THAT MOVIE, AND THE FLESH WAS MEANT TO BE DECOMPOSED; THESE BLOGGERS STARTED POSTING THAT THEY HAD AN ACCIDENT WITH THEIR ENTIRE FAMILY MEMBERS AND DIED, NOT ME.
THESE SET OF BLOGGERS ALSO SAID THAT SIR PETE TRAVELLED TO THE UNITED STATES, AND THEN THEY SLUMPED AND DIED, NOT HIM.
THIS IS MADNESS, AND IT MUST HAVE TO STOP.
YOU DON’T HAVE TO GROW YOUR PAGES THROUGH DEATH WISHES ON INNOCENT HEADS, IF WE ALL DIE TODAY, AS CELEBRITIES, NA WHO UNA GO COME DEY WATCH
GBONU NDI ALA NDI ALA?
WELL, I HAVE COME TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE MAJORITY WERE CREATED BY GOD, YES, BUT SOMETIMES SAT@N DEY STILL C”.