The following story is not a joke… or maybe it is. In any case, there is an opening for the post of a House Help. And at the moment, Nigerians are all over Twitter marketing themselves for the position.
What is interesting is that even though the vacancy only became available on Wednesday February 6th, it has already garnered interests from thousands of young people who cannot wait for the amazing opportunities that supposedly come with it.
So, what is it that is so fascinating about this House Help position?
As you may have imagined, the whole thing happened on Naija Twitter where a man named Alaba Otukoya advertised the job.
According to Mr Otukoya’s advertisement, the job is based in one of Lagos’ most exclusive/deluxe neighbourhoods — Banana Island. Successful candidates would be paid the sum of N250,000 per month, enjoy flexible working hours, and even get to occasionally travel abroad with the family. Now, how nice is that!
But there is a caveat — applicants must posses a number of skills, and most importantly be graduates.
“House help on Banana Island wanted. Pay 250k a month. You are allowed to go home 6pm on Saturdays and come back before 6pm on Sundays. You must have a kind heart towards children and be ready to travel oversees with the Family. GRADUATES ONLY… Dm…”
Nigerians jumped on the offer, albeit for the fun
Somebody actually said he has an M.Sc. in Cleaning and Utility Management, as well as a PhD. in Child Care, Toy Symbiosis, and Poo Extraction. Tell you what, Nairametrics thought about sending someone over to the National University Commission to find out more about these courses, but then we figured maybe it’s not necessary after all. After all, the fact that it is on Naija Twitter means that it is true, right?! Lol.
I have a MSC in cleaning and utility management studies with a PhD in child care, toy symbiosis and poo extraction. I have over 25 years wealth of experience including an industrial training experience with my iya agba Nilu oyo. I'm equally fluent in nursery rhyme language.
— Tohba 🇳🇬 🇬🇭 (@oluwatohba) February 6, 2019
Someone else said he is twenty years old, but has thirty years of experience in the House Help business. And you can’t even blame the young man for lying. After all, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do, right?
https://twitter.com/jojo_omoti/status/1093176771070095360
Another young man said a friend of his, who currently works in a tier-1 Nigerian bank, is interested in the House Help job and seriously considering resigning their bank job. What a career move!
My friend that works in GTB wants to resign to grab this opportunity. Moving from the banking industry to the househelp industry is something that is shameful naa. What should I advise him??
— Olona 1 (@ys_olona) February 6, 2019
Think you’ve seen all the funniest comments yet? Well, not so fast. This young man said it has always been his dream to be a Help Help. Maybe he deserves this job after all.
Being a house help has been my childhood dream. Give me the chance to actualize my dream sir. Kindly open your DM sir
— 20.10.20 (@nameismartins) February 6, 2019
Meanwhile, some have some misgivings about the job. But trust the ladies to quickly calculate the salaries and show how much any successful applicant would be worth in just a few years on the job! What is pride?!
https://twitter.com/oriaku/status/1093138554052583425
Jokes asides, some might have taken it seriously
Although majority of the comments were made out of joke for the funny situation, there is every possibility that some people may have actually applied for the position. After all, unemployment is one of Nigeria’s biggest problems.
Latest figures published by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, shows that unemployment rate in the country stands at 23.1%, with some 20.9 million Nigerians out of jobs.