The winner of the sixth edition of Street Foodz Naija, Olufadeju Adeniyi David, has taken to social media to cry out after not receiving his prize money — eight months after winning the show.
TheNewsGuru reports that David was declared the winner of the docu-reality cooking series, tagged “Correct Hustle”, after defeating 15 contestants to emerge with the N10 million grand prize.
In an Instagram post, David described “physical and mental exhaustion” over the eight-month delay in receiving his prize money, despite putting “my blood, sweat and tears” into fulfilling the competition’s requirements and winning.
“I went for the Streetfood Naija Competition season 6 last year and won N10 million. Eight months later, I haven’t received a single naira from what I won. Nigerians, please help me,” he wrote.
“When they announced this competition, they promised life-changing rewards. The structure was clear: first place gets N10 million, second gets N5 million, third gets N3 million, fourth gets N2 million and fifth gets N1 million, alongside a scholarship to the Hospitality Business School (HBS).
“I put my blood, sweat and tears into this, believing it would be the breakthrough my culinary journey needed. I am exhausted, and I can’t stay quiet anymore.
“The deception started early. It all began with an audition video I submitted. They reached out to me via WhatsApp, asking me to come for a physical audition. But when I got there, the audition didn’t even hold. Instead, they took us straight to an apartment where we were kept for about two whole months.
“For those two months, our lives were put on hold. We did countless shoots, generating massive content and value for their competition. We gave them our time, energy and skills, completely trusting the process.
“During the finals, I poured everything I knew into my food. I won based on presentation, skills, time maximisation and confidence. The entire footage is on YouTube. I won fair and square.”
David further claimed the organisers introduced new conditions after he won, including submitting several documents, completing the Hospitality Business School, pitching his business and producing a professional business proposal before he could receive his prize money.
He also said organisers later visited his akara stand and told him they “didn’t like how my business is”, which he described as “disrespectful” because he had planned to use the prize to improve the business.
He claimed the organisers later asked him to take the prize money as a loan and offered him only N4 million, saying his business was “too small”.
“The first red flags and the unwritten rules. Right after winning, something felt incredibly suspicious. They didn’t give me a plaque for the N10 million prize. The only plaque I was handed was for the HBS scholarship,” he added.
“During the post-win board meeting, the MD promised we would receive our money within two weeks, but suddenly, there were conditions. We were asked to submit an affidavit, a statement of account, our business registration and other documents. None of this was part of the initial requirements to get our payout.
“Still, I wanted my money, so I complied and submitted everything immediately. They moved the goalposts and made me spend money I don’t have. Two weeks passed. No money. Then the stories began. Suddenly, we were told we had to finish the Hospitality Business School before we could get paid. Another requirement that was never part of the initial agreement.
“Then they demanded that we pitch our businesses. I pitched nearly five times. They kept rejecting them and asking for more pitches for things that were never requested in the first place. Then they demanded a professional business proposal, which I also did. I jumped through every single hoop they created out of thin air.
“The ultimate disrespect: insulting my hustle. After submitting the proposal, they started ignoring my messages entirely. But the absolute peak of the disrespect was when the MD came to my stand where I sell akara. Instead of supporting me, he looked at my setup and told me they “didn’t like how my business is”.
“I sell akara to survive! The entire point of competing for that N10 million was to use the funds to upgrade my business and put things together properly. How can you withhold my capital for eight months and then mock the hustle I’m using to survive? I just want my money!
“Now, eight months later, I am physically and mentally drained. They are even asking me to take the money as a loan and saying they’ll only give me N4 million because my business is “too small”. From where to where? I earned that N10 million with my sweat and talent. Stop ignoring me. Pay me my money.”
However, the organisers of Street Foodz Naija are yet to respond to the allegations.