Chioma Nnani: Olajumoke and the Curious Case of Emergency CSR

So, earlier this month (February), it came out that TY Bello (one of Nigeria's foremost photographers) did a photo-shoot with UK-based musician, Tinie Tempah. She probably does jobs like this all the time, but on this occasion in question, a previously unknown bread-seller walked in/by. That was the beginning.

The in-between (of the story) is somewhere on the internet; try Google, CNN archives. Yes, seriously.

Where we are now is that Olajumoke (that's the name of the former bread-seller) is now the toast of a lot of organisations that wouldn't have touched her with a tent-pole … actually, they didn't touch her or even breathe in her direction prior to TY Bello's intervention. Among other frankly ridiculous stunts (there's no other name to call it), is that she's been made the face of Stanbic Bank. Now, bearing in mind that Stanbic Bank and a lot of other Nigerian banks do not (at the time of writing this) have any real workable schemes for people who are currently in Olajumoke's previous position, I have to wonder.

I learned that CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility – was a way (or a series of ways) in which organisations could show that they gave a hoot about the community in which they operated, or other communities; give a human face to a corporate body, so to speak. However, more often than not it turns out to be a cynical, look-at-me photo-op that's supposed to make them look good in their company brochures. Kinda like how some Nigerian celebrities say they've launched a foundation, then on their birthdays they go look for the most impoverished-looking children in the most poverty-stricken neighbourhood they can find, toss them some biscuits and unhealthy fizzy/sugary drinks, while taking the most incredible photos. The said photos then show up all over social media. I am not knocking the visibility of anyone's charity in itself. It's just that some of these things are not sustainable; they're not intended to be. The way that some of these celebrities do not do anything for the subjects of their charity till a 'special event' (birthday, Xmas or Easter) is the same way that banks and other financial institutions have continued to ignore others who are in the position that Olajumoke used to be.

I find it very strange that people, who have probably never tasted the bread that Olajumoke used to sell, think there's anything socially responsible about putting her face on posters to advertise their products. I mean, the bread she used to sell is not exactly what you find at Shoprite. Some people claim she's an ambassador for the bank – the same way that some Nigerian celebrities are ambassadors for telecommunications firms. Some others say that her two children were given scholarships by the bank. But I haven't heard anything about the extension of these scholarships to any other bread-sellers. What about loans and grants? No. Because they would be considered too much of a financial risk – which, on paper, does make sense.

When Kanye West had a mini-meltdown on Twitter last week, asking Mark Zuckerberg to invest £1billion dollars in his ideas, someone at Access Bank thought it was clever to tweet him, asking him to get in touch – they were willing to listen to his ideas. Yet, I wonder how many ideas of 'regular Nigerians' they have listened to, before shredding them.

I hope that Olajumoke has good managers who won't let everybody use her till she turns into something reminiscent of a washed-up previous X-factor winner. And I hope that banks and other organisations start giving a hoot about people and business-owners, even in the absence of cameras. 

 

Chioma Nnani is an award-winning author, who also contributes to business, lifestyle and literary publications. One of Africa's most fearless storytellers, she is a two-time UK BEFFTA (Black Entertainment Film Fashion Television and Arts) Award nominee, who consults for businesses, shuttles between Lagos and Abuja, can be reached at @ChiomaNnani and blogs at www.fearlessstoryteller.com