An Abuja-based NGO, the Society for Rule of Law in Nigeria (SRLN), has raised alarm over the alleged poor treatment of workers at SaharaReporters. The group claimed that editorial staff of the online news platform are treated like slaves, earning stipends per story published without any formal employment letters.
The organisation accused the founder of SaharaReporters, Omoyele Sowore, of living lavishly while underpaying his staff. According to SRLN, reporters who risk their lives daily to gather stories are paid peanuts, even as Sowore reportedly spends over ₦200 million yearly on his child’s school fees.
In a statement signed by its Coordinator, Dr. Chima Ubeku, after a Sunday meeting in Abuja, SRLN described the situation as inhumane. The group lamented that staff members are not given proper employment terms, but instead work on a “per story” payment basis without monthly salaries.
The NGO also found it ironic that while Sowore openly campaigns for Nigerian policemen to earn not less than ₦500,000 monthly, his own journalists remain underpaid and without benefits. It called on the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to urgently intervene and protect SaharaReporters workers from what it described as modern-day slavery.
