The Guinness World Records has officially announced Hilda Baci, alongside fast-moving consumer goods brand Gino, as the holders of the new record of the largest serving of Nigerian-style jollof rice. Last Friday, Baci, who in 2023 claimed the record for the world’s longest cooking marathon—93 hours and 11 minutes—attempted to set this new record. By noon, Eko Hotels’ car park B was already overflowing with a jubilant crowd. The mood was tangibly festive as a contingent of celebrities and internet personalities—including Funke Akindele, Enioluwa, and Veekee James—filed onto the stage one after the other to support Baci and energize the crowd; many more public personalities were present amongst the crowd. By late afternoon, however, it became clear that Baci and the 10 other chefs in red overalls assisting her would need to do more than prepare the 4,000kg of rice, 500 cartons of tomato paste, 600kg of onions, and 168kg of goat meat, to set the record. As Hilda and her acolytes stirred the contents of the red swimming-pool-sized pot with giant wooden spatulas, dense, dark clouds drifted overhead threatening a downpour. The rain eventually held back but even then they were not yet in the clear.
Moments after the pot of ready jollof rice was hoisted onto a crane to measure its weight, amid jubilant cheers from the famished crowd, it collapsed under its own weight, only stopping short of spilling its contents. Soon after, the tension of that moment entirely dissipated, giving way to a celebratory atmosphere. Baci and her team worked hard to distribute the food which had taken some nine hours to prepare. Portions were packed into coolers using long, shovel-sized spoons. Smaller portions were also distributed to the crowd and members of “the local community,” as the official post from Guinness World Records reports.
Online reactions to Baci’s new record run the gamut from praise and commendations to cynicism and outright contempt. Which makes an interesting case, when we consider that in 2023 when Baci broke the record for the longest cooking marathon, the public reaction was overwhelmingly positive. She went from modest acclaim to nationwide fame, becoming something of a national mascot for culinary excellence in the country. This time, by contrast, the criticism lobbed at her appears to be on par with the amount of praise she has earned, so much so that the whole thing has come to resemble a brawl between warring factions.
On one end of the critical spectrum are bad-faith critics, many of whom attended the event only to make negative reviews that appear carefully contrived to provoke outrage. Videos in this category abound on TikTok and X. They follow a similar format: the “critic” brandishes the plate of the jollof for the camera, slowly eats a spoonful before contorting their face in disgust. Geh Geh, a social media influencer who has increasingly gained infamy for misogyny-addled rhetoric belongs in this camp, although his line of attack was slightly different. In a widely circulated video that’s at once inane and confounding, he delivers a meandering spiel berating Baci for attempting the record. “You’re giving too much attention, energy, and money, to things wey no really dey important to this society. What is this your Guinness World Record contributing to society? This your record and Big Brother Naija na the same thing, diverting the attention of the youth into things wey no really dey important” he says.
“My advice to you,” he continues “if you want to be successful, I expect you, with this so much money you are wasting on things like this, use that money to open eat-and-go eatery where the homeless and poor can easily come and eat without paying.” Set aside the open contempt and misogynistic undertones in his rant. What is particularly confusing about it is how reductive his definition of what counts as a meaningful contribution to society.. Baci’s latest GWR inserted Nigeria in the global conversation, and this time for positive reasons. Hundreds of jobs were created directly and indirectly by Hilda, her team, and Gino, to bring the project to life. Thousands were fed, in and out of the event. But more than this, Hilda’s record, like many others, has inspired many to dream of the biggest and most outlandish of their goals.
Some other critics have expressed misgivings such as the optics of a perceived vanity project in a country mired in a litany of problems, specifically the worsening hunger crisis. Those on this end of the divide contend that the money funneled into Baci’s second world record could have been directed towards a better cause. The most common rebuttal to this line of thought is that welfare is the job of the government. While this is true it is admittedly also not out of place for individuals and the private sector to step in and assist the government in supporting citizens, especially in perilous times. The role played by the Feminist Coalition and similar groups during the #EndSARS protests make a perfect example.
That said, being disappointed about the missed opportunities Baci could have taken advantage of as opposed to yet another Guinness World Record is different from nailing her to the cross for it. Not only is it an entitled position, it’s a hypocritical one. A common refrain among her critics is that Baci’s second GWR attempt is ultimately an effort towards advancing her career, and bolstering her fame as opposed to an attempt towards effecting social change. But when did advancing one’s career become a crime? At this point it would help to pause and reflect on all the effort, all the strategizing, all the overtures you make towards career advancement, run a similar calculation for your contributions to society, and weigh them against each other. Odds are that the former by far outweighs the latter.
Make no mistake, contributing to altruistic endeavors is a standard we all ought to aspire towards but how many are held to this standard? Sure, it would have been great if Baci had executed a project with more imagination, something with far-reaching social consequences. But if you’re seething or convulsing at a woman putting in great effort and planning to set a Guinness World Record—which spawned roughly 20,000 plates of free food by the way—then perhaps you’re due for a moment of self-reflection.
