Nigerian actress, singer and reality TV star, Bisola Aiyeola, has defended her decision to bar her teenage daughter, Leyla from using mobile phones.
Bisola said she refused to allow Leyla, who celebrated her 15th birthday on June 12, 2024 to use a phone since she started school, and it will remain like that until the girl reaches 16 years.
The former Big Brother Naija contestant made the revelation during a recent episode of “Mums Next Door” with reality star, Maria Chike Benjamin, where she also addressed the criticism she faces over her parenting style.
The mother of one affirmed that she stands by her decision despite criticism on social media and noted that her child can access a laptop for schoolwork and communicate with friends via Zoom.
Bisola also recalled when she discovered that Leyla had created a smart chat account on her laptop, which led to extending the phone ban by another year.
She said: “Yes, I have been judged by my parenting skills. So, my daughter turned 15 this year and still doesn’t have a phone. I have been pretty strict with that part of her life, and she begged. I told her she wouldn’t have a phone till she was 16, so she still had one more year to go. And people have been asking me, like, what if there is an emergency?
“Wouldn’t she be behind her pairs and all, but she has a laptop for school work? If her friends need to talk to her, they can call her on Zoom. Sometimes, people feel like I am overdoing it, or I am trying to be overprotective, and I am like, well, that’s your business.
“There was a time I found out she opened a smart chat account on a laptop, and I was like, how? I disciplined her, which made me extend her phone usage by a year because she was supposed to get it this year at 15.”