Actress and content creator Oluwabukunmi Adeaga-Ilori, better known by her stage name as Kiekie, has disclosed that while filming a short video in Lagos, a group of thugs confronted her and demanded ₦1 million.
At the Creative Powerhouse Summit’s second panel, Kiekie talked about the experience.
She said: “So I shot, and I was feeling cool with myself, you know. I thought maybe it’s love and light. By the time I finished the video shoot, I said, let me be going home. That’s how they blocked the garage. So we started to negotiate the exit plan. So we started from one million. I said, ‘one million, that’s on the high side’.
“After going back and forth, I begged them, begged them, I used my mommy to beg them, used my daddy to beg them, I ended up paying something around 700,000. Yes, for a one-minute video. I looked around me and I saw almost 200 people, and I was asking, what is going on? For Ileya, I shot this content where I went to Kara, somewhere after Berger. I literally had to pull up with security.
“To be able to shoot a two-minute content, and at the end of the day, I still spent close to 500,000. What that money did was to make me feel safe and to shoot in time. I’ve been in situations where equipment are being seized. I remember I was on a set in Abeokuta, plus actor, plus producer, plus director, all of us started fighting. Even me I started fighting, but I stood at back of Mr Macaroni because he’s big.
“If we can create a saner environment, it would even help productivity. I got home on that day and I was watching that video, and I said, ‘ah, there’s one part I needed to reshoot.’ Reshoot? Ah, no, that one won’t work, they can shoot me in the process.”
The behavior of thugs and their problematic actions pose serious threats to safety and peace. Such behavior not only endangers individuals but also undermines the stability of communities. It is essential for authorities and communities to work together to address these issues, promote lawfulness, and foster an environment where everyone can feel secure and protected.
