BBN star, Khafi to face a misconduct hearing in London (Details)

Khafi Kareem, a Big Brother Naija pepper dam housemate, and reality TV celebrity is presently facing a misconduct hearing at the Met Police Empress Building in West London for her participation in the 2019 Big Brother Naija reality program.

According to the Metropolitan Police, she appeared on the reality show “without authorization.”

PC Khafilat Kareem reportedly requested an unpaid leave in 2019 to appear on the Nigerian reality television show, which she described as an opportunity to promote the Met on a worldwide level.

However, line managers believed it was not in the best interests of the officer. Anne Studd Oc, for the Met Police, said;

“Having seen the UK episodes of the show, concerns were raised. But, PC Kareem said Naija was not like the UK version, she saw it as a chance to promote the Met on an international basis. Looking at the website and information provided, Ch Supt Gwillim concluded it was not in the best interests of the Met or the officer and it would put her in a compromising situation. He explained the rationale and stressed she was not to take part in the show. Gwillim’s impression was that PC Kareem was disappointed but understood. She took the period of unpaid leave”.

PC Khafilat Kareem did not attend or go on the Big Brother Naija without the permission of the authority back in 2019, she was only asked not to take part in any other shows, auditions, or interviews.

PC Khafilat Kareem reportedly contacted Deputy Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist on June 30th and later called him to alert him that she had traveled to Lagos to participate in the BBN show.

Mr Twist told the tribunal in west London that he had “never been faced with these circumstances before” and thought it was “very odd” that a PC would contact someone of his status on a weekend.

Mr. Twist said:

“I got the impression she was phoning hoping I would change the decision. I got the fact she was in Nigeria I got the strong sense she was going to do it, but she did not say as much.”

Mr. Twist added that his primary concern was PC Kareem’s mental health because the MET police have no authority over the BBN show.

“I was worried about her mental health, we have no ability to support or intervene in the Big Brother house. We had no idea what security was in place around the Big Brother house and something awful could happen there or she could be targeted as a serving constable. Over the years a number of people who come out of the Big Brother house are reported in the media to have suffered mental health issues. Knowing the UK version, this is something we wouldn’t want a serving officer appearing on.”

PC Khafilat Kareem became upset at the inaccurate articles about her that were spreading online and she wanted to tell her own side of the story. She later went to see a psychologist due to the tribunal hearing and the adverse media attention.

She was offered to go on Good Morning Britain, according to the tribunal, but was cautioned not to undertake any unauthorized media interviews.