In the glare of the spotlight on social media, celebrities have been known to indulge in a peculiar form of theater – the show off of wealth. An elaborate performance, not always based on truth but often designed to mesmerize and enchant their ardent fans and followers.
We have all witnessed a celebrity in a moment of casual boastfulness share a screenshot of their Mpesa or bank balance on their social media platform.
The numbers are staggering, the zeros enticing, and the comment section light up with awe, admiration, and envy.
However, the truth behind these glittering displays can be murkier than what meets the eye.
In a world where the perception of wealth is often as influential as wealth itself, it is not uncommon for some celebrities to artificially inflate their Mpesa and bank balances.
A little digital manipulation here, a cleverly cropped screenshot there, and voila – the illusion of a balance that would make even a billionaire blush!
Here are some of your favourite celebrities who have been caught in a lie.
Oga Obinna
Born Thomas Maghana, the former Kiss 100 presenter, was left with an egg on his face after sharing an edited screenshot of his bank account balance.
In a ‘tug of war’ between him and comedian Eric Omondi, who has the most amount on their account, Obinna ‘mistakenly’ shared a screenshot of his account but failed to make good edits on his over Sh51 million balance.
With the decimal too glaring, Obinna was made a laughing stock. Pushed to the wall, Obinna had earlier claimed that he would have remained humbled and not shown off how ‘wealthy he was’ were it not for Omondi annoying him.
The two got into an altercation after Obinna claimed that Omondi’s activism was sponsored by someone he did not name. In a swift response, Omondi shared his money, over Sh13 million, saying he lived and slept on money and could buy a radio station and employ him.
Shakilla
Last year, the socialite cum influencer took to her socials to flaunt her Mpesa balance after she seemingly received Sh237,000 from an unidentified sender.
Prior to the amount and as per the screenshot she shared, Shakilla had received Sh25,000 from Olamide Babatunle.
Interestingly, Shakilla ‘forgot’ to keenly edit her Mpesa balance after receiving the Sh237,000 with her fans calling her out for faking her balance.
In the screenshot she shared, the ‘New M-PESA’ balance was not rightfully edited. She seemingly overlooked the ‘a’ in M-PESA and did not capitalize the article.
Eric Omondi
In his recent altercation with the Trade CS Moses Kuria, Omondi shared a screenshot of having refunded Sh126,000 the former had spent on him on his first USA tour.
The self-proclaimed president of comedy shared the screenshot after the refund, saying that respect should now be maintained between the two.
However, Omondi’s edited M-PESA screenshot lacked a hyphen, leading to an online debate.
Additionally, the message failed to include a space between the time stamp and the “new Mpesa balance details.”
