Ruth Semilore
A Nigerian TikTok employee was found dead in her apartment in Lower Kambete in Kenya on Friday.
The employee, who has been identified as Ladi Anzaki Olubunmi, worked as a content moderator for Teleperformance, a subsidiary of TikTok, before her death.
According to The Kenyan Daily Post, a Kenyan-based news publication, her colleagues are accusing the company of her death, citing the company’s toxic work culture as the cause of her death.
One of her colleagues, who spoke to the newspaper under the condition of anonymity, revealed that Teleperformance denied Olubunmi, who has been a staff member of the organisation since 2022, her leave days and work permit.
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According to the colleague, Olubunmi had been pleading with her managers to grant her permission to travel to her home country. Instead of hearkening to her pleas, they recorded and laughed at her while she was crying.
“The deceased is a Nigerian national working as a TikTok content moderator since 2022. As per the contract, she is entitled to a return ticket every year, but she went home only once after begging and crying to the management,” the colleague said.
“We are blaming Teleperformance because they denied her leave days and a work permit, so she couldn’t go home. She went to the managers crying, but they were videoing her and laughing at her.
“She didn’t have a work permit, like most Nigerian workers, hence they denied her the chance to go home after so many attempts.”
The colleague added that the company failed to check up on her when she was absent from work on Wednesday, and it was only when a colleague visited her apartment on Friday that she was discovered dead.
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In a video, CNN journalist Larry Madowo noted that her family said she had not returned to Nigeria, her home country, since she started working at Teleperformance in 2022.
The Guardian sent an email to Teleperformance on Tuesday morning, but it has not been responded to at press time.
FG REACTS
The Federal Government has called for a thorough investigation into the mysterious death of a Nigerian TikTok content moderator, Ladi Olubunmi, in Kenya.
The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, on Thursday, urged Kenyan authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding Olubunmi’s death, which has sparked concerns over the treatment of Nigerians working abroad.
In a statement issued by NiDCOM’s Media and Public Relations Unit, Dabiri-Erewa expressed concern over the situation, emphasizing the need for stronger labour laws to protect Nigerians working overseas.
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She stated,
“Proper labour mobility laws in Nigeria would safeguard the rights and well-being of Nigerians employed abroad, ensuring proper documentation, monitoring, and support systems.”
The NiDCOM chairman also extended condolences to Olubunmi’s family, friends, and colleagues, while stressing the need for mental health support and oversight mechanisms for Nigerians working internationally.
Dabiri-Erewa also advised Nigerians working abroad to engage only with reputable employers and remain informed about their rights and available support structures.
This tragic incident follows a series of unexplained deaths involving Nigerians in Kenya.
In July 2021, two Nigerians died under suspicious circumstances at a house party in Nairobi, raising concerns over the safety of Nigerian expatriates in the country.
