A lady has generated mixed reactions on social media after expressing her opinion on modern-day activism in a viral video where she also referenced popular figures VDM and Harrison.
In the clip, she introduced a phrase she called “Almajiri activism,” which she used to describe individuals who advocate for the underprivileged while allegedly gaining from their struggles.
She claimed that some activists capitalize on issues like poverty, insecurity, and economic hardship to attract attention, build influence, and earn money.
According to her, although activism may start with sincere intentions, it can, over time, turn into a means of personal gain and public visibility.
Read her words below:
“Who is this? And who is this? The same person? Good. Who is this? And who is this? The same person? Good. So activism pays and nobody told me.
Guys, let’s talk about Almajiri activism. To start with, what does that word mean? I’ll tell you.
Almajiri activism is a metaphor I coined to mean people who campaign for the less privileged while benefiting from their struggle.
They use societal problems like poverty or insecurity as a facade to gain clout, resources, or moral authority they wouldn’t openly ask for. So you can call it performative activism. These acts of advocacy can be as little as soliciting for help for the sick to as big as controlling huge donor funds for NGOs.
I’ll be dissecting this topic under two exhibits. Exhibit one, I will discuss individual activists like them. Exhibit two, I’ll discuss NGOs and foundations like Tony Elumelu’s foundation and the organisations associated with the Makoko Floating School.
I will need you to please follow me closely. If not, you might get lost. Let’s get into it.
Exhibit one. So VDM rose from content creation into activism and built a large platform around public accountability. Though critics have accused him of becoming increasingly involved in personal feuds and selective activism.
In December 2024, VDM publicly claimed that his NGO’s website and account had been hacked with about 180 million allegedly diverted and only 20 million left.
He said a suspect had been arrested and the app was shut down for security reasons. But the claim quickly drew scepticism, especially after the police said they knew nothing about any formal case.
VDM later backtracked saying no money was actually missing and that the whole thing was a stunt to expose how people quickly jump into conclusions.
Since his influence as an activist, his lifestyle has visibly changed. Travel, leisure and indulgence in things he could not previously afford before advocacy.
This is an observatory statement, not an accusatory one. The main point here is that his success has created an incentive structure where public call-outs and online vigilantism are increasingly seen as a viable content niche. Because people used to see this, now they see this and they’re thinking, oh we might as well.
That’s why you have his mimics trying to capture the same algorithm. You have very fair man, very bold man, very dark woman. You have many social justice content creators that have shifted from comedy or lifestyle to vigilante content. They look for a trending scandal, not necessarily to solve it, but to create engagement which would translate to Facebook and YouTube ad revenue. And mind you, everyone going into this niche has an agenda because there have been allegations of some Facebook human rights bloggers charging victims to post their appeals, taking costs from public donations or being compromised to attack or protect certain parties, showing you how advocacy has quietly become a business.
Harrison, a human rights activist known for his involvement in anti-kidnapping work, got into trouble late 2025 over allegations of syphoning part of ransom money meant for a kidnapped couple.
Some might get it wrong and think this conversation is centred on these two people. No, many of these advocates start off genuinely but they are hungry too, financially unstable and often without any clear source of livelihood sustaining them. Yet advocacy suddenly affords them comfort, mobility and status.
My central thesis is that when advocacy becomes someone’s primary means of survival, it stops being just a moral calling and starts functioning like a career powered by sympathy, outrage and constant crisis.
The advocate’s life improves alongside the suffering they spotlight. And Nigerians, we have a role to play in this.
We often elevate activists into celebrity status. Once someone is perceived as bold or fearless, scrutiny reduces. When the need for accountability rises, supporters dismiss criticism as witch hunts and begin to attack whistleblowers.
This emotion, this need to be loyal and stand for a person and not a cause, which is the very reason for the activist role in the first place, cuts across all issues in Nigeria.
But I digress. At the end, what I’m saying is that these advocates could ask people for moneyfor themselves, but shame and ridicule make that difficult.
So instead, they axe through the poor. Poverty becomes a proxy. Suffering becomes a script.
This is how well-meaning advocates slowly slide into our Almajiri activism…”