Tunde Onakoya offers to sponsor education of 11-year-old girl in viral child labour video

• Nigerian chess player and coach Tunde Onakoya offered to sponsor the education of an 11-year-old girl who was featured in a viral video highlighting child labour
• Sharing his own childhood struggles, Onakoya’s gesture has been met with gratitude, as many commend his kindness and emphasize the importance of compassion and education
• The video, originally shared by activist Adetoun Onojobi, called out a woman for taking her daughter along to clean people’s compounds early in the morning
• Following widespread criticism, Onojobi later apologized for the misunderstanding and offered compensation to the woman

Popular Nigerian chess player and coach Tunde Onakoya has responded to a viral video showing a woman being scolded for bringing her 11-year-old daughter to her early morning cleaning job in Lagos.

The video, posted by activist Adetoun Onojobi, showed the girl accompanying her mother to work at dawn, sparking concerns about the child's welfare and education.

Onakoya, who holds the Guinness World Record for the longest marathon chess game, reacted to the video by recalling his struggles growing up.

He stated, 

"Extremely cruel to humiliate a mother in front of her daughter like this. My mother used to sweep people's houses and gutters... The poverty that pushes one to hide their labour in the dark is a painful one."

Onakoya emphasised the need for compassion, stating, 

"Yes, that child should not be working. But more than outrage, what she and her mother deserve is compassion. The only humane response is to help." 

He generously offered to take full responsibility for the girl's education through university.

“If no one has done this already, I would like to take full responsibility for the girl’s education through university. I hope this eases their burden in some way. These are incredibly hard times.

Our Privilege blinds us in ways we’ll never truly understand.”

This development comes after Adetoun Onajobi apologised for the misunderstanding surrounding the video and compensated the woman. 

Onakoya’s act of kindness has been widely praised, with many netizens expressing gratitude for his compassion and generosity.

Reactions trail Tunde Onakoya's post

Here are some reactions below, 

@dear_umami wrote: “Someone who dropped out of medical school because his parents couldn't afford it is now sponsoring a child. This kind of story fills your heart with joyyy red bless.”

@anna_chichi wrote: “May God bless you Tunde for this kind act

Please send me a dm when you see this comment.”

@jerrytonwealth wrote: “What was intended to bring us shame would cause us to jubilate and dance in the open!”

@majele_rachsel wrote: “The poverty that pushes one to hide their labour in the dark, is a painful one A king..”

@amysious_buks wrote: “Many of us can relate cos we fellowed our mothers to hustle for our younger ones., God bless us to make our mum happy.”

@omaticha1010 wrote: “Whatever your good.. s meant to disgrace you, God will turn around for

From my perspective, I can only see God's sovereignty. everyone played their role in this entire situation, God will use us how he will use us.. the person who did the video has been destined afore time to do that video, whether she delivered excellently or not is out of the question, Tunde was supposed to see this video and make this commitment, if he didn't, someone else will. It's all the orchestration of the almighty Crod. He will use whatsoever method to bring his plan to bear,

So let's all relax, And also learn, even when you want to point out something. As much as possible, Do it with love,”

@bellsbeautyy wrote: “You see GOD!!! GOD is s00000e goodddddddddd.”

@tenderhat2 wrote: “Please let's not be too hard on justadetoun, God needed someone to push thru she just fortunate/unfortunate to be the one,”

@mrsdebs wrote: “May we never let our privilege blind us to the struggles of others or make us believe we would make better decisions without walking in their shoes. May we always show compassion and kindness to those around us.”

@okm_herbal wrote: ‘After the rain comes sunshine, May God continue to bless you Sir Tunde.”

@she_is_anjolaoluwa wrote: “I worked for 16 years in my mother's salon and I started weaving people's hair at age 7, I still have pictures of this, For me it was a thing of pride to be able to help her out as she struggled through life. I would do anything to ease her pain and make her happy, Fortunately those experiences helped me become who I am today. I work so hard so my children would not have to feel burdened with my responsibilities. Life truly is mysterious. Let's be compassionate because you don't know what people are going through.”

@llouismoss wrote: “Let's be honest. This happens everywhere. If your parents never use you do hard work you be Angel.”

@HRH_bankeoniru wrote “Adetoun has been a clout chaser since forever. 

Only individuals with mental health issues share their charitable acts online for public recognition. Help should be a private matter between the giver and their higher power. Only the divine is aware of the kind of support some people provide discreetly.

This girl is supporting her mother and  nothing wrong with that. What she did to that woman  breaks my heart. She doesn’t know her story, her pains, her sorrow and She Embarrassed her for the sake of views! She makes her cry. This unfortunate Adetoun does not know why the “caged bed sings”

International Women's Day: Falz partners with AltSchool Africa to offer 20 tech scholarships

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that Nigerian rapper and songwriter Folarin Falana, also known as Falz, collaborated with AltSchool Africa to offer 20 full scholarships to women. 

The scholarships cover full tuition for tech courses, including Engineering, Product, and Data, providing women with the opportunity to pursue their passion. 

The scholarship program is announced in celebration of International Women's Day, and has sparked reactions among fans.