By C. J. De Mel, Jadetimes News
The Nigerian police are investigating the murder of a popular transgender TikToker known as "Abuja Area Mama." Her lifeless body, bruised, was found Thursday along a highway in Abuja. She was known to have had a large following on social media, through which she narrated most of her problems as a transgender woman and, at the same time, being a sex worker. She often referred to herself as Ifeanyi but never revealed her full identity.
Abuja Area Mama was a leading voice in a very conservative society such as Nigeria, a country where LGBTQ+ people were minimized and targeted. She came out last year, saying that she had been attacked and was living in fear of her life. In Nigeria, just like in many other African countries, same-sex relationships have been criminalized, with the threat of discrimination and violence being part of everyday life for so many LGBTQ+ Nigerians.
Abuja Area Mama, in her final post on Instagram, indicated she would be visiting her boyfriend Wednesday. A few hours later, her lifeless body was found along the Katampe-Mabushi expressway, Banex, Wuse II, Abuja. According to the police, the deceased was described as a man dressed in woman's attire and with no means of identification. The police boss in Abuja ordered a full, but discreet investigation.
This wasn't the first time Abuja Area Mama was attacked; in September, she recounted in a video how she was stabbed by an unknown assailant. But she didn't let the danger thwart her online presence: On TikTok, she described herself as "the number one Abuja cross-dresser and queen of the street," and said she wanted to teach and reflect real life.
The news of her death spread like wildfire, causing outrage on social media. Many people were appalled by the reported persecution of LGBTQ+ people in Nigeria. Mass arrest and detention of LGBTQ+ people are common in Nigeria, especially within the northern states, notwithstanding constitutional provisions that guarantee freedom from discrimination and the right to a private life. A local journalist, Martins Ifijeh, told X: "Taking laws into your hand because you don't like another person's sexual orientation is the worst form of inhumanity.
