By Maria Famakinwa

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The major reason for engaging domestic workers is to help their employers with activities such as babysitting, shopping, laundry, housework, preparing meals, and running errands. This is also to enable employers to have more time to rest, have less stress, and elongate their lives. However, with the recent cases of domestic staff killing their employees across the country, one could say that the essence of engaging domestic workers has become a deadly adventure as reported cases of how they snuff lives out of their bosses have proven that many of these domestic staff are on a killing spree.

Early last month came the shocking news of the killing of Aribemchukwu, a daughter of Justice Rita Ajumogobia, by one of the domestic workers she employed a week before her tragic murder. The killer in an attempt to cover his tracks dragged her body outside the gate of her Lagos home before the investigation revealed the truth which was not denied. Nigerians are still grappling with the sad news of the gruesome murder of Aribemchukwu when a similar case was reported in Ekiti State of the murder of former Deputy Vice Chancellor of Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Prof Femi Olaofe.

According to a statement by the Police in the state, Prof Olaofe’s security guard, Abdul Opotu, connived with other criminals to kill the 79-year-old he was employed to care for. In the same August, another domestic worker, Kayode Ajiro, was arrested and paraded by the Kwara state police for killing his boss, Chief Abraham Babatunde. Ajiro, who was employed as a driver confessed to killing his boss and dragging his lifeless body into the toilet to create the impression that he had accidentally fallen.

Another gruesome mother of a middle-aged woman, Mrs Debbie Olakunbi Monsurat Adene (Nee Oyeneye) in her room at Oda Road, Akure, Ondo State capital, was reported in the same August. According to reports, two of the woman’s domestic staff confessed to killing their boss after being arrested and interrogated by the State police. They confessed that they killed her to steal the money she was sprayed on her 54th birthday which was five days after her tragic end. The list of innocent Nigerians killed by their domestic staff is endless as this also reminded us of the heart-wrenching story of how Kehinde Fatinoye, a former employee of the Central Bank of Nigeria, his wife, Bukola, a former staff of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, and their only son, were murdered on New Year Day last year by their driver, Lekan Adekanbi, who said he killed the victims because the couple refused to increase his salary and grant his loan request to buy a motorcycle.

Citizens who spoke with The Hope warned against employing unfamiliar domestic staff especially those who could not be traced.

A civil servant, Mrs Oluremi Ayandola, who described domestic helpers as mostly pretenders added that they are out to unleash mayhem and cause sorrow and pain for their employers as she narrated her ordeal, “I had complications after I gave birth to my second child in the year 2018 and I was advised medically to rest for six months. I had no choice but to engage the service of a house help. I discussed with a friend who helped me to get a 20-year-old girl from Pleateu State with the agreement that she would learn hairdressing skills which I must be responsible for and also pay her N80,000 per year. After two months, I observed that my money was missing but I was not too sure of the amount, I told my husband and he said that I should not ask my house help since I was not too sure of the amount. My money kept missing until when she was caught. That fateful day, my husband dropped N10,000 and I only took N1,200 from it and kept the remaining.

“I was surprised that when I got there the second day to make money, I saw N2,300. I asked her but she denied taking my money. I had to go and check another purse to get money because I wanted to buy gas but I was shocked that the N6,500 I kept there could not be found which my house help also denied knowledge of. I went to where I registered her to learn hairdressing skills to make inquiries about her and I was told that she had two boys whom she gave money to. I arrested the two boys who were from her state and they confessed that she gave them money to keep for her and also revealed that she also gave them my wristwatch to sell and keep the money. I collected my wristwatch and handed over the girl to the woman who brought her for me. Since then, I made up my mind never to have any domestic staff. They are insatiable and everyone must be very careful, ” she warned

A trader, and mother of three, Mrs Omolola Ibunkunolu, explained that she single-handedly raised her children without the help of a domestic staff for the fear of exposing her family to danger and fear of having her husband snatched by a female housekeeper.

She said: “Domestic workers, especially the females are terrible pain in the neck. Instead of being helpers to you as the name implies, they become your worst nightmare. I haven’t experienced anyone of them, but I learned and took my decision not to engage any domestic worker from my sister’s encounter.

“My sister’s children were morally corrupted by her house help. This girl taught the children how to watch pornographic videos on their phones. She involved the kids in so many unprintable acts. By the time my sister found out, it was late because her two children, a boy and a girl, were committing incestuous acts right under her nose and she didn’t know because she trusted her house help, and took her as a member of the family. Even when she laid off the worker, the damage caused to the children was already irreparable. It took lots of counseling, therapy, and prayers before her children were revived. I didn’t have to be a victim before making my decision. Right from that moment I saw the consequences of hiring a house help, and I took my decision never to hire a house help. Especially when I read about some of them poisoning their employees, and eloping with the children of their employees among other evils, I need no seer to tell me that homes with domestic helpers can be likened to putting fire under the roof and sleeping off.”

A public servant, Mr Edward Oni, who also described domestic helpers as domestic problems however hinted that few of them are good. He said: “I don’t support the idea of engaging the service of a house help but when my wife insisted, I allowed her. Fortunately for her, she was lucky to get a very good one by name Gift whom many thought was a family member. “She was very supportive, trustworthy, and hardworking. She spent five years with us and left for her village when her father died. After she left, we employed two domestic helpers. We had to send them away because of their bad attitudes. One of them was fond of bringing different boys into the house when we were out. The community reported her to us and we let her go. The second one was good at stealing and lying which could be a bad influence to kids if allowed to stay.

“Since then, we have been managing to cope. Though adding the stress of survival to house chores and taking care of the kids can be demanding, I will advise that people should learn to cope rather than employ deadly house chores. Sometimes, the house boy/girl that you think cannot hurt a fly may turn out to be a devil incarnate. The scariest part of it is that some house helps connive with kidnappers and pretend to be seeking employment only to act as informants to their groups and kidnap any member of the family who may not be released until a ransom is paid, that is if such is lucky not to be killed,” he warned.

A security expert, Mr Femi Olaniyan, who warned people against hiring domestic staff however stressed that if one cannot do without them, they should do the necessary profiling and involve the security agents before bringing them into the house.

He said: “As part of security step to safeguard homes, intending employers must carry out a thorough background check before employing unknown persons as domestic aides. Employers must undertake proper vetting of their domestic servants, there had been serious concerns about the insidiously wicked activities of domestic servants, as many had been reported to have conspired with outsiders to rob, kill, and do wicked things to their house owners and bosses. Many who take up domestic work are doing so due to the harsh economic situation and will stop at nothing to survive even if it is to hurt their employers. The only solution to the problem is for those interested in employing domestic staff to involve security experts otherwise, the killing of employers by their domestic staff will continue,” he warned.