Online Reporter
Cyan Boujee, real name Honour Zuma, has revealed that her trip to Russia for the Alabuga Start programme raised red flags about the initiative’s operations.
The DJ and social media sensation was among several prominent influencers who travelled to Russia for the campaign and who have faced public backlash after the department of international relations & co-operation (Dirco) issued an alert about jobs promoted on social media, citing the dangers of human trafficking and slave-like conditions abroad. The matter is under investigation.
In a candid reflection shared in her recent YouTube post, Cyan shared a voice message she sent to her publicist in which she raised concerns about the programme based in a special economic zone in Tatarstan targeting women aged 18-22.
“More than anything, I’m worried about the kids. I’m worried so much about the kids because when I interviewed them most of them were not happy, especially with the answers they had to give on camera,” she said.
Cyan said there was “dodgy stuff” that made her uncomfortable while they were filming the promotional video, including that they were smoking while filming.
“When I asked one of them how things were going, if she was happy with her accommodation and if her roommates were being nice to her, she just cried. I was in disbelief because she was not happy. We had to wait for so long for her to calm down so she could lie and say everything was good.
“I told them that if they were going to work with other influencers, they had to be legit.
“I hope this is really legit because some of the questions I had to ask were ‘is it true that when you have a disease or fall pregnant you are kicked out, you have to book for your own flight?’
“So they had to say ‘no’ but apparently it’s really true. I’m so frustrated. But I hope everything will be OK with time.” — Times
