Popularly known as White Naija Girl, Ibukun Afolabi, from Hungary tells ARUKAINO UMUKORO
why she decided to hawk sachet water on the streets of Lagos Can you give a brief background of yourself?
My husband gave me a Nigerian (Yoruba) name, ‘Ibukun,’ which means ‘blessing.’ I am originally from Hungary. I live in the United Kingdom at the moment. In 2008, I came to the UK, where I met my husband, Gbenga Afolabi of MagnumN3. I studied Business and Management. I also hold degrees in German and French languages. When I first came to the UK, I could not speak English, so I had to start learning it from the beginning.
In 2012, I decided to start a blog, the whitenaijagirl.com, soon after I got married. Initially, I wanted to write a book, but my husband advised me to start a blog instead so I could reach more people. I started to write about my experiences as a ‘Nigerian’ wife. Soon, many people — men and women – in relationships with Nigerians started to contact me, asking different questions. The blog became
quite successful. Finally, I visited Nigeria in the middle of October last year. I stayed for a month. It was during that period that the video of me selling sachet water was shot. Was your visit to Nigeria in October your first
trip to the country?
Yes it was. But here in the UK, I have had
contacts with a lot of Nigerians. The church I
attend in the UK is predominantly a Nigerian
church. I have always been inspired by Nigerians and their way of living. I love the
culture, food and their attitude to life. I also love
it that Nigerians take education seriously. My
husband is a film-maker and I produce most of
his films. When we came to Nigeria; that was
when I noticed how hard people in Nigeria are working and how much they needed to struggle
on a daily basis to earn a living.


What was the inspiration behind the video of
you selling pure water and drinks on the streets
of Lagos?
It is because I saw these people doing this
every day for a living. And I wondered why
they had to live like that in a rich country like Nigeria. That ‘pure’ water video was done
because I wanted to experience what Nigerians
are going through, to empathise with them and
to go through what they are going through. I
realised that it is really hard. And I wanted
people to know about this. In the UK, when you have a child, you get child benefits. In Nigeria,
there is nothing like that. It is difficult for the
women hawking ‘pure’ water. It is really a
difficult job. I wanted to raise awareness about
their plight. These people need help from the
government. They don’t have to risk their lives on the road doing such a job. That was
purely my inspiration. It was a great
experience, I felt their struggle, because it was
hot, you could see me sweating. The load was
very heavy. At the beginning, I could not take
off the bowl from my head. It was hurting my head even though I had the scarf on. I am
planning other projects to raise more
awareness about the difficulties every day
people face. For me, what I did (selling pure
water) was not so extraordinary. What is
extraordinary is that people are doing this job daily for a living.
That thing (bowl of sachet, bottled water and
drinks) on my head felt so heavy and I only
carried it for less than an hour. But those people
who do it for a living actually do that for about
eight to 10 hours a day. They are the real heroes, not me. I did it for less than an hour
because we attracted a little too much attention
so we could not carry on. And that was at the
time the police were really after people selling
on the streets. So, we were a little cautious so
as not to get into trouble. Were you scared at any point?
No, I was not scared. People only gathered
there because it was something different, they
do not see a white lady doing that every day.
Two female hawkers gave me and a friend their
goods to sell for that period. They were very nice. We gave the two ladies all of the money
that we earned on that day. How much did you make?
I even told my husband that we made so much
money that I might just change my career from
film-making to hawking sachet water. We sold
all the sachet water in the container quickly,
then people started buying the bottled water as well. I could not remember the exact total
amount we made but I think it was between N2,
000 and N3,000 in approximately 20 minutes. Tell us about your Nigerian family?
I met my husband in 2011, and we got married
in 2012. We have two children, a boy and a girl.
My husband is from Osogbo in Osun State. My
children have been there. They live in Nigeria at
the moment. They have been in Nigeria since October with my mother-in-law, their
grandmother, because I want to ensure my
children know where they are from and for
them to have a rich mind. Currently they are
getting some education from their grandmother.
My four-year-old son attends school in Lagos and speaks Yoruba fluently. My daughter is 19
months old and she has been in Nigeria for only
a few months. But she is obviously still little and
does not speak the language much. I want them
to know about their culture. How do you feel that some Nigerians don’t
know much about their culture?
I am a little bit disappointed about that, because
Nigeria has such a wonderful culture; the family
ties are so strong and they care about each
other. It is just so beautiful. And when I see some Nigerians who don’t want to learn their
language or about their own culture, it is such a
shame. We should encourage our children to
speak our local languages and to know a lot
about our culture and people. Although I think
things are changing for the better now. I know some people who wanted their children to learn
English only, but now they are getting teachers
to teach their children Yoruba. You seem to have a strong affinity for Nigeria. Is
it because you are married to a Nigerian?
Yes, it is partly so, but also because I want my
children to be proud of me as well. When I show
pride and respect for the Nigerian culture, I
believe my children would follow my footsteps. I find it enormously important to embrace the
culture because it is so colourful. What makes Nigerian culture different from
others, like in Hungary and the rest of Europe?
Hungary is a very small country, it is next to
Austria, and we are quite westernised. There is
not so much difference between English and
Hungarian cultures. One of the things I always like to emphasise is the family ties. In Nigeria,
the family is important, they are so close to
each other, and somehow that is fading away in
Western cultures. I want my children to come
back to me when I grow older. I love that bit so
much. If you were to come back in the next life, would
you want to be born a Nigerian?
Yes, why not, because I believe that Nigeria is
getting better. Many Nigerians complain about hard life in the
country. What do you have to say to Nigerians
who want their children to study abroad?
To be honest with you, there is nothing wrong
with getting a good education abroad, but we
always need to try and give something back to places where it is really needed, and Nigeria is
that place. It is okay if you want your children to
school in the UK or wherever, but you always
need to make sure they bring something back
that can help make Nigeria better. I believe that
even in Nigeria, there are good schools. What kind of Nigerian music do you like?
I love Olamide’s music so much. My son likes
his songs too. I also like Yemi Alade, as well as
Lola Savage, an up-and-coming singer. Even
though I criticised Wizkid for some certain
issues recently, I also enjoy his songs. I’m happy he is achieving a lot of things for himself
and making Nigeria proud. What kind of Nigeria food and drink do you like?
I love malt drink and Nigerian stew. My husband
taught me how to use palm oil to make stew
and I love it. What are some funny and weird things about
Nigerians?
This is a bit funny in some cases: no matter how
bad a situation is, Nigerians would say, “It is
well.” Sometimes, it sounds crazy, even when
the situation is horrible. So, sometimes, when my husband says, “It is well,” I would just
say, “Do you know what? Just don’t say
anything!” But it is amazing though, I love the
positive attitude. Please narrate one funny story or culture shock
you experienced for the first time with
Nigerians?
When I first met my husband, this was a culture
shock: I sneezed when we were watching
television, and instead of my husband saying, “Bless you,” he said, “A ha!” I sneezed
again, and he said the same thing again. And I
was like, you should be saying “Bless you,”
and he was like “A ha?” Also, I thought it
was funny the first time I noticed how some
Nigerians would point to a direction with their lips, even when the place is close by, instead of
pointing their arms towards the direction. They
would say, “It is there,” and point with their
lips. It is funny. What do you think about Nollywood?
The movies are great. I would like to be a part
of it. Kunle Afolayan is one director I admire and
respect. Can you speak Pidgin English?
No, I don’t because I want to learn English
very well. But currently, I am learning Yoruba
and can understand and speak a few words like
the greetings, as well as statements like, “E ku
ise (well done), disciplinary ones like; “Sho fe je gba” (Do you want to be flogged?) and so on.



SOURCE: punchng.com/made-n3000-hawking-water-20-minutes-white-naija-girl/

God bless her kind heart.!she must have recorded that kind of sales because of her looks and skin colour.hawking is not an easy job..may God make a better way for those doing it.nevertheless there's dignity in labour...

God bless her hustle N ours too

Lalasticlala

As harden and unserious as i am, i read the whole epistle and smiled.

But sister hope you won't escape if the money disappear.

Cause if epileptic light situation, 145/litre, NDA, fulani herdsmen, scarcity of tomato hit you, i nor sure ur oyinbo mind go fit carry am.

.