Mr. Ibu, Nigeria’s Nollywood comic star, is on the verge of losing his leg, local media have reported.
Renowned Nollywood figure John Ikechukwu Okafor, popularly known as Mr. Ibu, is a Nigerian actor who has been trending on social media over health challenges.
Mr. Ibu recently celebrated his 62nd birthday. But he celebrated his birthday on a hospital bed, as family members could be seen around him in a video that has now gone viral.
The comedian, who lay on the hospital bed in the company of his wife and daughter, said, “As I speak to you, I am still lying down in the hospital; the medical director of this hospital said that the best solution is that, in case his new idea didn’t work, the best idea is to cut off my leg.”
“Just see me; if they cut off my leg, where do I go from here? Please pray for me, talk to God Almighty, and I don’t want my legs to be cut off. Thank you so much. God bless you,” he added.
His daughter, Jasmine Okafor, confirmed in a post on Instagram that her father has been in the health facility for two weeks.
This is not the first time the Enugu-born actor is coming online to talk about his health challenges and demanding help. In March 2022, the renowned comedian was hospitalized at Zenith Medical and Kidney Centre Abuja.
He claimed to have become ill following two instances of poisoning by his “village people” while visiting his country home in Nkanu West, Enugu State, at the time.
Also, in 2020, Mr. Ibu claimed his relatives paid his domestic staff to poison him because of his successful career.
In an interview with Nigezitv, Mr. Ibu recounted how he was kidnapped and poisoned at an event in Nnewi. He also noted that his protruding stomach was a result of the poison.
In a recent interview with Vanguard, Okafor disclosed that he was already “seeing people on the other side,” but God brought him back to life. He said, “My illness was actually perpetrated by people who hate me.
It is not yet clear how the actor’s case will be handled, but from the two options given to him by the doctors handling him, amputation might be an option, something the actor does not want.
A cry for help has been sent out for the public to help him, hoping the worst does not happen. The cry for help with Nollywood actors over the past years has been rampant, and many have turned to questioning what they do with their movie pay checks.
Many veteran actors have come out to publicly seek help during their worst days, and we have had some even pass away due to a lack of finances to pay for their medical bills.
Mr. has featured in more than 200 Nollywood movies, which include Mr. Ibu (2004), Mr. Ibu and His Son, Coffin Producers, Husband Suppliers, International Players, Mr. Ibu in London (2004), Police Recruit (2003), 9 Wives (2005), Ibu in Prison (2006), and Keziah (2007).
