“I Just Want Her Alive” — Senator Ned Nwoko Demands Rehabilitation for Wife Regina Daniels Amid Drama

In a development that has sent shock‑waves through both Nigeria’s entertainment and political circles, Senator Ned Nwoko has publicly declared that his embattled wife, Nollywood actress Regina Daniels, must undergo drug rehabilitation — not just for the sake of her career, but to safeguard her life and ensure she remains in the right frame of mind to raise their children. While the couple have long been under public gaze, the latest chapter of their dispute appears fraught with fresh allegations of substance abuse, family sabotage and counter‑claims of manipulation.

Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Sunday, Nwoko, who represents Delta North, said his primary concern is simple: “I want her alive and healthy, not just for me, but for our children.” He added, “We have two young kids together, and they cannot fight for themselves, and I’m going to fight for them by safeguarding their mother.”

Nwoko revealed that the call for rehab follows a series of alarming toxicology results and a marked change in Daniels’ behaviour. Previously calm, he claims she has become increasingly violent and destructive, with repeated health crises. “Many people have died of drug overdose,” he warned. “If anything happens to her now, what will I tell her children tomorrow? I have lived with this problem for eight good months, and on three occasions I had to carry her to Nizamiye hospital unconscious from a drug overdose.”

Highlighting the urgency of the situation, Nwoko said that rehabilitation is necessary to prevent access to drugs during treatment. “I said: let her go to rehab, here or outside Nigeria. Choose any toxicologist of your choice … I will pay,” he said. He also accused Daniels’ mother and siblings of living in denial of the problem.

The story, however, is far from one‑sided. On the flip side, Regina Daniels has publicly admitted to drug use — but turned the narrative back on her husband, accusing him of enabling and exploiting her addiction as a smokescreen for deeper issues. In social media posts, Daniels wrote: “Fine, I did drugs. So what? Is that even the issue between us? The moment we had a fight, you rushed to the public shouting ‘drugs, drugs, drugs,’ because you knew it would make a perfect story for the media.”

Daniels went further, accusing Nwoko of manipulation, control and abuse. She alleges he confiscated her phones, locked her in, instructed doctors to inject her with medication meant for bipolar patients, and wielded a sex tape against her. “You say you want me to go for rehab, but you’re the same Ned who always wanted me high because, in your words, I’m ‘sexier’ when I’m high,” she wrote.

She also claimed the union was never legally recognised. “For the record, I would have filed for divorce long ago if there had ever been a legal marriage between us. We were never married in any court of law. Leave me alone, Ned. Marriage is not by force. Love is not by force.”

Nwoko, for his part, laid blame on Daniels’ siblings and close friends. He alleged that they repeatedly sabotaged her recovery by bringing the very substances she was being treated for into the home, and that they harassed his children, staff and security officers in his absence. “When Regina started her rehabilitation there was a clear instruction by the doctors to strictly restrict people, especially her enablers, from having access to her,” he said. “Unfortunately, Sammy, Destiny … would come into the house uninvited… and would bring her the same drugs she was being treated for.”

The couple’s marital dispute has earlier turned publicly messy. Daniels had accused Nwoko of physically assaulting her in a video, and he responded by calling her behaviour erratic and drug‑influenced.

Observers say the drama transcends a simple marital row — the stakes involve reputation, mental health, child welfare and the intersection of celebrity and politics in Nigeria. On one hand, a high‑profile senator publicly branding his spouse as dependent on “illegal substances” is unprecedented; on the other, an actress turning the accusation back on her husband with grave claims of coercion and abuse opens up conversations about power dynamics in polygamous relationships and the cost of fame.

As the headlines proliferate, several critical questions remain unanswered. Has there been an independent toxicology verification of the results Nwoko cited? What legal status does the union hold, given Daniels’ claim that they were never legally married? How will the welfare of their two young children be ensured amid the crossfire of allegations? And perhaps most pertinently: who will step in to ensure that genuine help is given if indeed substance abuse is present?

In an environment where justice is often uneven, and where powerful figures may operate above the law, some commentators — such as one article in The Independent Nigeria — have noted: “If the senator claims his wife is addicted to hard drugs and knows her suppliers, while his wife alleges he introduced her to drugs and manipulated her, should both parties not be investigated by the [National Drug Law Enforcement Agency]?”

For now, Nwoko has issued an ultimatum: rehabilitation. He claims he has offered both local (Asokoro) and foreign (Jordan) options for Daniels to remove her from access to substances.

Regina Daniels, however, appears resolved to fight back, tying its impetus not only to reputation, but also to what she describes as freedom from a relationship that manipulated her voice and story. She ended one post with: “I might be ashamed that all this had to come out in the messiest way … but I will rewrite my story.”

As Nigeria watches, this drama raises important issues: the thin line between marital conflict and public health crisis, the role of family and influence in addiction, the responsibilities of high‑profile individuals when private pain becomes public spectacle — and the welfare of children caught in the middle. Whether this ends in reconciliation, legal battle, or eventual rehabilitation remains uncertain. But for now, the message — loud and clear — is one of urgency: “I want her alive and healthy,” says Senator Ned Nwoko.