Kenyan Firm Refutes Claims of Blocking Late Nigerian TikToker’s Return Home

Teleperformance Kenya, a subcontractor for TikTok, has denied allegations that it prevented Nigerian content moderator Ladi Olubunmi from traveling home before her death.
According to ABC News, Olubunmi’s decomposing body was discovered in her apartment last week, three days after she had allegedly passed away.
Speaking to The Associated Press on Wednesday, the company stated that it did not reject her request for leave.
Reports from international media outlets suggested that Olubunmi’s colleagues claimed she had expressed exhaustion and was eager to return to Nigeria before her death.
Although entitled to an annual return ticket to Nigeria, Olubunmi’s colleagues alleged that she was denied leave due to concerns over her work permit.
They claimed she repeatedly pleaded with her managers for permission to travel home but was unsuccessful—a claim Teleperformance Kenya dismissed as “baseless and untrue.”
Olubunmi had reportedly moved to Kenya in 2022 to work as a TikTok content moderator under Teleperformance, a French outsourcing firm contracted by the social media platform.
According to ABC News on Wednesday, technology workers in Kenya held a vigil in honor of Ladi Olubunmi, mourning the loss of their colleague.
During the event, content moderators and data labelers working for global tech companies raised concerns about poor working conditions, which they believe may have contributed to her death.
As reported by The Associated Press (AP), Kauna Malgwi, a friend of the deceased, alleged that over 100 Nigerians employed by Teleperformance Kenya lack valid work permits, preventing them from traveling home.
More than 100 Nigerians working under Teleperformance have been without work permits for the past two years. Despite having an annual return ticket benefit, they have been unable to travel home,” Malgwi claimed.
When PUNCH Metro reached out on Wednesday, the spokesperson for the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abdulrahman Balogun, did not respond to calls or inquiries regarding the commission’s actions on the matter.
This is not the first time a Nigerian has died under mysterious circumstances in Kenya. In July 2021, two Nigerians lost their lives at a house party under unclear circumstances.
One reportedly fell from the 7th floor of the Skyhorse Apartment in Kilimani, dying instantly, while the other allegedly collapsed on the kitchen floor and was later pronounced dead.