Big Brother Naija All Stars winner, Ilebaye Odiniya, has revealed how hurt she feels to have not been congratulated by some housemates when she was announced the winner of the reality TV show.
She made the revelation in a chat on Chude Jideonwo’s #WithChude.
According to her, fellow housemates’ failure to congratulate her on her big win reminded her of how being betrayed at a young age made her afraid of making friends, how being bullied in the house made her feel alone and abandoned, and the depression she had to fight off after her first appearance on the Big Brother show.
While explaining how she felt when some housemates refused to congratulate her, she recalled her bitter experience of loneliness while in the Big Brother house.
“I am still hurt that I didn’t get congratulations from some of the housemates because I know that If I were in their shoes, I would be happy for them. In the bathroom scene with Ike, she said, ‘I felt sad and lonely, I was like what did I do to deserve this? Even if I have done something to hurt you, you should have just come to me to talk about it, not throwing my clothes. I just felt like ‘God open the ground let it swallow me’. My energy just went low” ” she explained.
Speaking on how she prepared for her return to the show for the All-Stars season, she noted that her major aim was to have fun while being optimistic she would get to the finals.
She said, “I just went there to have fun. I was just like I wanted to go have fun, and my only strategy was just to pray and believe God that I would at least get to the final stage. I didn’t think I was going to win; my prayer was that I should just last and stay till the 6th week or final if God permits. On the rumour that her strategy was to gain public sympathy by saying she was being bullied, she said, “I think that is false because my win is by grace. This is my year, what is meant for you is going to be for you. I feel like I was prepared for the journey because my going and coming out in the third week the first time was a taste of it the first time. I also think that people genuinely loved me for who I am not because of pity”
Recounting how she felt being maltreated by fellow housemates, she noted, “I was misunderstood a lot, I went through a lot, people did stuff to hurt me. I wouldn’t say I was bullied but rather I was treated unfairly”.
Speaking further, the Kogi-born star cleared the air on her relationship with male housemates while on the show.
“In the house, I wanted to get to know Prince. He was cool, and I noticed he was scared, so I told him ‘I am the kind of girl that does not like competition, I am the kind of person that when I am for you, and I am just for you alone’. But I think he probably felt like I was just joking, and that we should just leave the house first”, she stated.
She added, “There is nothing serious between us, we are just guys, I like intelligent people- and I like the way he speaks and thinks. On her relationship with Cross, she said, it was nothing serious, it wasn’t like I wanted a relationship. The house is going to be boring if you don’t have somebody beside you – cuddling, I was like let’s just have fun, and it was nothing serious.”
Sharing her future plans, she said, “I want to be the biggest runway model in the world and own my orphanage home. Also, I want to go into acting and own my own business. I just want to sit down and think about something that will bring out my identity.”
