Mary Njoku Challenges ‘Gold Digger’ Label Often Used Against Women

Nollywood actress, Mary Remmy Njoku has asked what people would call 17 men who enjoy the wealth of a successful man and are described as his “boys” instead of being branded gold diggers.

Njoku, in a social media post, spoke to the tendency to condemn women for taking advantage of the benevolence of wealthy men.

“If a woman is a gold digger for taking advantage of a rich man’s generosity, then what do we call the 17 men eating his food, wearing what he bought and enjoying his money and calling themselves his boys?” she asked.

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The actress gave the example of a man identified as Emeka who she said returned home after becoming successful and had 17 grown men constantly around him.

The men eat his food, wear the clothes he bought, get their bills paid and enjoy his money, but the relationship is called “brotherhood”, “networking” and “loyalty.”

Njoku argues that the same yardstick is not used when a woman stays close to a rich man and enjoys his generosity.

“The double standard is not that people love money. We are giving a respectable name to the behavior when men profit from being near wealth. “Then we give it a dirty one when women do the same thing,” she wrote.

Men, women, friends, relatives and employees can all be attracted to people who have wealth or position which can make their life easier, she said.