Chef Dammy Vs Pastor War: From Cook-a-thon to Threat-a-thon, donations, other events

Following the altercation between Damilola Adeparusi, also known as Chef Dammy, who completed a record-breaking 120-hour cook-a-thon, and her pastor, Adegoke Jerry, the founder of Spirit World Global Mission, which escalated due to death threats from church members, among others, an insider source has revealed to THE PRESS some events which contributed to the entire situation and escalated steps from the Chef.

If it had been foretold that Damilola Adeparusi, better known as Chef Dammy, would ever have disagreements with Pastor Adegoke Jerry, she would have categorically labeled the source of the prophecy as a prophet of doom and advised her thronging flock of followers to disregard it. She would have characterized the prophecy as the vituperation or expression of grief of a jealous man. Why? Chef Dammy had a warm and loving relationship with the preacher she once referred to as her mentor.

When a philosopher asserted that money is the true yardstick for determining friendship and compatibility, those who agreed with him would not have suggested that it may have an impact on those who serve in the church, particularly acclaimed ministers of God. There is no constant friend or foe in life, just like in politics. Interest can occasionally also be momentary. When this occurs, it turns even the ‘best of friends’ in politics against each other. Between Damilola Adeperusi, aka Chef Dammy, and her mentor, Pastor Adegoke Jerry, things have definitely taken a turn for the worse.

The issue worsened in late July, but findings by THE PRESS show that it actually began after Damilola Adeparusi, also known as Chef Dammy, finished her 120-hour cook-a-thon, which was started, planned, and supported by the church.

How it started

A Nigerian chef by the name of Hilda Baci began her quest to break the record for the world’s longest cookathon, known as the “Hilda Baci Cook-a-thon,” on May 11, 2023. Baci broke the record on May 15. On June 9, an Ekiti-born chef by the name of Chef Dammy started her quest to cook for 120 hours in order to beat Hilda Baci’s 100-hour record attempt as Baci and her supporters waited for the confirmation of their record attempt.

Damilola Adeparusi received a lot of criticism when she started her cooking trip. She should have waited for Guiness Book to formally certify Baci’s record attempt, many people argued. Chef Dammy explained that her recently finished cooking marathon was not an attempt to break the Guinness World Record in an exclusive conversation with VANGUARD. She added that her church had funded the entire cooking endeavor.

Damilola Adeparusi discussed how she accepted the nomination from her church to participate in her just completed 120-hour cook-a-thon record in a YouTube video interview.

The founder of Spirit World Global Mission, Pastor Adegoke Jerry, was interviewed in the YouTube video and said that Chef Dammy had already started a 40-hour cook-a-thon that was supported by the church. He also revealed that individuals who came around were served with a variety of foods. We extended it further to 72 hours, and every meal that was prepared was paid for. According to him, people paid N500 per plate.

Dammy and the other young people who took part in the initial initiative did an outstanding job. In the said YouTube video, Pastor Jerry remarked, “We sat down and started to think that if we can achieve the 40-hour cook-a-thon, we can possibly do better and achieve than what we had done.”

Chef Dammy claims that after the church and I decided to go with a larger cook-a-thon, they picked me to be the cook.

Dammy was selected because she is a strong-willed woman and a visionary. She is equipped to start the cookathon. Supporting Dammy was simple, and Joshua would serve as her helper. In a YouTube video, Pastor Adegoke Jerry added, “Let’s see how far we can go and we put resources together and we are happy to see the result.”

Monetary donations

On June 11th, 2023, former Osun commissioner Remi Omowaiye also promised to provide N100,000 to support Ekiti-born chef Damilola Adeparusi’s 120-hour cook-a-thon. In a chat with ex-Osun commissioner, Omowaiye disclosed that he has given her the fund before the media knew about it and also facilitated her management’s involvement. I wanted to galvanized support for her US trip. But a lot of things came up, so I had to pull back, he added.

During a visit to Ekiti-born chef Damilola Adeparusi, a student at the Federal University of Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), on June 13, 2023, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Abayomi Fasina reportedly gave the student a financial present of N200,000 as a gesture of support from the university’s administration.

Opeyemi Falegan, an Ekiti politician and the former lover of well-known actress Nkechi Blessing, gave Ekiti-born chef Damilola Adeparusi N50,000 on June 14th, 2023, in appreciation for finishing her 120-hour cook-a-thon. The politician promised to secure endorsement arrangements for her and posted the receipt on his social media sites. Although he posted the receipt online, THE PRESS was unable to determine whether the pledge on the endorsement deals was kept.

On June 13, 2023, a Nigerian doctor in the diaspora by the name of Doctor Ayo Arojo promised a young chef from Ekiti named Damilola Adeparusi, also known as Chef Dammy, a two-week cooking tour in the United States in exchange for N500,000. However, at the time of reportage, THE PRESS was unable to determine whether these commitments had been kept.

On June 15, 2023, influencer Maria Ude Nwachi revealed that her client, a US citizen, had pledged to give the chef Damilola Adeparusi, the sum of N1 million. The influencer said the money is a gesture of support for Damilola’s remarkable attempt to break the Guinness Book of Records for longest cooking hours by an individual and that she will pay it directly into Chef Dammy’s account. However, as of the time of reporting, THE PRESS was unable to determine whether this promise had been kept.

After seeing a popular video of an Ekiti-born chef purchasing roasted corn from a roadside vendor, a Nigerian businessman by the name of Komiyo Lawrence Adefemi presented Damilola Adeparusi with a check for one million naira on July 17, 2023. Even though an open check was presented, THE PRESS was unable to determine if the young chef had actually received the funds all at once or in installments at the time of reporting.

Cook-A-Thon: ‘I did not make up to N2m’ – Chef Dammy

Ekiti-born chef Damilola Adeparusi, often known as Chef Dammy, refuted claims that her highly publicized and contentious 120-hour Cook-a-Thon made her a millionaire on June 20, 2023.

Chef Dammy dispelled rumors that she made a big profit from her cooking marathon in a video she shared on Instagram in response to rumors.

Chef Dammy asserts that the social media allegations about her most recent cook-a-thon, notably the claims that she won a car, were untrue.

She said:

Good day everyone, this is Chef Dammy. I’m here to address some issues going on. About the car, money and all. So, I heard that I was given a car but I only heard about it.

“I’ve not seen it. I pray the car comes. I will celebrate with my fans. Sure, I will take pictures and I’ll post them. My fans would jubilate with me.”

“So, there’s nothing like a car o. I didn’t see any money. I didn’t see anything.”

The fight

The conflict between Damilola Adeparusi and her pastor, according to a source who spoke on the condition of anonymity for THE PRESS, was sparked by two things: money and Chef Dammy’s decision to forego participating in a second, 150-hour cook-a-thon that the church had planned.

A reliable source claims that the church took over Chef Dammy’s social media accounts, took her phone, and confiscated her ATM cards, infuriating her family members in the process.

“The church was reported by the family to the Ekiti State Government. The church, Chef Dammy, and her family were all invited. There, a directive was issued requiring them to return all of her personal belongings, including new passwords for her social media accounts, the source told THE PRESS over the phone.

The source explained that Chef Dammy transferred N500,000 to her mother and N200,000 to her older brother out of the N1.2 million in her account, which infuriated the church because none of her family members contributed to the cookathon, when asked why her ATMs and phones were seized by the church.

It grew tense and chaotic on a Whatsapp group set up by the church for her followers days after word spread that Chef Dammy had sent money to her mother and older brother.

Another source informed THE PRESS that Chef Dammy had endured harassment, insults, and curses from some churchgoers who thought she treated their pastor rudely and haughtily because of money and fame.

Some church members could be heard ridiculing, swearing, threatening Chef Dammy’s life, and humiliating her relatives in these audio recordings from the church’s Whatsapp group that this reporter was able to obtain.

One of the leaked audios from the church’s whatsapp group 

One wonders why Pastor Adegoke Jerry, who is a part of the church’s Whatsapp group, did not intervene when others started verbally abusing the girl. I think Chef Dammy found these slurs, curses, and abuses to be too much for her, which is why she left the group and the church as well. These slanders continued even after she left the group. They continued coming, said a trustworthy source who requests anonymity.

Damilola Adeparusi, a young cook, believed that leaving the church’s Whatsapp group would bring her independence and serenity, but she was mistaken. Reliable sources tell THE PRESS that she frequently received calls or messages including threats to her life, as well as insults, swear words, and abuse from fellow churchgoers. Following her departure from the church’s WhatsApp group, this persisted for weeks.

Hold my pastor responsible if anything happens to me — Chef Dammy

On October 20, 2023, Damilola Adeparusi, a popular Nigerian chef, took a new direction and stormed her social media accounts with a message claiming that her pastor, Prophet Adegoke Jeremiah, should be held accountable if anything were to happen to her.

Chef Dammy said in an Instagram post that the alleged abuse, curses, and threats she has received from church members and man of God have put her life in jeopardy.

She stated that she had recently been on the verge of passing away and had been living in continual anxiety.

She did, however, mention that she would soon be in Lagos for an interview in order to provide additional information about the situation.

She wrote:

‘By the time we are done with you,you will not be able to stand on your feet again’, this was from the acclaimed “people of God”. Among many of the countless insults, curses, threats and bullying.

“Now, I understand the content of 1 Peter 4:17, Surely judgment will begin from the house of God. The first time the man of God tried to challenge my God he failed, then he told me to prepare for war. But these are the people of God, are they not supposed to be Godly?

“Assuming I had died a few days ago; people would’ve understood better what I’ve been facing, by the testimony of those around me. But I’ll still try and bind my piece because it is a testimony that others can learn from.

“I know about gods that is why I chose the undefeatable God. Surely they shall gather, but they that be with me are more than they that be with them. I’ve been in constant fear for my life.

“Countless times they’ve tried to destroy me as promised,

but with God I keep moving as if nothing ever happened.

Shouldn’t we have gotten over this?

I mean it’s 4 months already,

guess you will not stop until I stop breathing? I’ll try to update this piece, while I try to hold onto my peace.

In another post, she wrote, “I’ll be having an interview in Lagos soon. And I’m ready to let everything out once I get back.

“But in case anything happens to me; Adegoke Jeremiah A.K.A Billion Dollars Prophet, hold him responsible, he told me to prepare for war and we are both on it.”