It’s disheartening to link success of actresses to sex’ – Toyin Abraham fumes after Ruggedman’s tweet

Toyin Abraham, Nollywood star, has warned critics to quit attributing the success of actresses to their “sexual prowess with men”, saying it is “disparaging”.

The movie star was reacting to a tweet wherein Michael ‘Ruggedman’ Stephens, a rapper, wondered why women in the country’s movie industry are “doing better than men”.

“My male actors in Nollywood, what’s going on? It’s just the females that are buying cars and building houses left and right. I wanted to come into Nollywood but at this rate, I’m not coming again,” the rapper had written in a now-deleted post.

Earlier, Destiny Etiko, an actress, had acquired a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado Jeep worth millions but critics soon alleged that she had been in an affair with a married man who bankrolled her and funded her luxury life.

This had followed after Ehi Ogbebor, an interior decorator, also denied claims of feeding off MC Oluomo, Lagos chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), for the success of her business.

But taking to her Instagram page on Monday, Abraham stated that a lot of actresses in Nollywood make legitimate money.

“I saw the social media post made by respected rapper, Ruggedman about women making more money and doing well better than men. I read between the lines and saw what Ruggedman implied,” the actress said.

“It is a little bit sad that many people on social media leeched on it with many derogatory comments about women especially those of us in Nollywood. It is important that I put this out there.

“Many women make money and make good money legitimately. I know actresses who charge 2 million, 3 million, and 5 million in this Nollywood. I get paid in millions of naira for gigs.

“As a matter of fact, I just paid for a very good car worth millions of Naira and at the same time I know a lot of men in Nollywood who are doing extraordinarily well and paid in millions.”

She cited the success of stars like Nancy Isime, Kehinde Bankole, Inidima Okojie, Sharon Ooja, and Bisola Aiyeola.

According to her, women deserve the success they have as much as men without having it attributed to sexuality.

“The fact that most men choose not to make noise on social media does not mean that they are second class citizens in this industry. We need to stop attributing every woman’s success to her sexual prowess with men,” she added.

“Women deserve the success as much as men without attributing it to sexuality. Nollywood women like Bimbo Ademoye, Nancy Isime, Kehinde Bankole, Inidima Okojie, Sharon Ooja, Bisola Aiyeola, are getting paid in millions.

“Even scriptwriters that are not in the limelight are getting paid in millions. It is disparaging to put the successes of these women within the box of their sexuality. A lot of women are doing great things legitimately.

“I am one of them and so also are many other women in other industries, not just the entertainment industry.

A woman is more than the sum total of her sexuality.”