Exclusive News
by Aderonke Bello
“Ronkus, check this Instagram link and knock yourself out with laughter,” was the message I received on WhatsApp from a US-based friend. I visited the link, laughed so hard, surfed the page, loved what I saw and, I pressed the follow button – it was @tundeednut on IG.
I am not so much into Instagram, the packaged and mostly filtered shenanigans, however, Tunde Ednut came across as a loyalist, smart and intelligent personality, imperfect and annoying sometimes, using instagram for good, as far as I am know.
World over, these days, many people want to show off what they do not have, to impress who they either know, or would ever get to meet in real life. Some on the other hand, have been sent into depression because of social media pressure and ‘do it for the gram’ lifestyle. This is a trend that needs to stop.
Some celebrities engage in giveaways from time to time – a young boy was helped back to school by AY comedian few years ago and many other gestures alike. Using social media for good, Ednut’s account has gulped millions of Naira from advertisement, some of which he gave back to the society, targeting the youths. Ednut has helped a lot of unknown persons rise to quick stardom and ensures they sustain the momentum of fame, for example, I got to know about Shatta Bandle, Mr Macaroni and some comedy skit actors through his page.
To my utmost surprise he gave a large percentage of his 2019 income to a top fan – cash worth over a million naira, no wonder his last birthday was celebrated globally and parties were hosted on his behalf, I am yet to see a Nigerian celebrity, record such feat. Occasionally, he tasks some of his followers to support vulnerable youths, sometimes students who need extra funds to survive in school, unlike his contemporary.
Social media has a lot of positives, including negatives where some unsuspecting young girls have been lured into prostitution, trafficking and slavery under the guise of modelling and job agencies. It is the job of parents and advocates to keep preaching the dangers surrounding of social media exposure.
We should all make extra efforts to engage in social good, as we all know, a lot of people now have direct or third-party access to the internet. Stay safe and abstain from cyber bullying.
Aderonke Bello is a Nigerian Journalist and social commentator, she writes from Abuja
