Yesufu made the remarks in a post on her X handle while reacting to the controversy surrounding comments by First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, who recently encouraged Nigerian women to consider businesses such as akara frying and roasted corn vending as viable means of livelihood.
Her reaction also followed a post by former presidential aide and Ambassador-designate to Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua, Reno Omokri, who shared a video of himself buying roadside roasted corn in Istanbul, Turkey, and argued that owning a roadside food business is preferable to unemployment.
"You bought roadside corn in a country that values life and you are comparing it to Nigeria where kidnappers demand N50 million and above as ransom!" she wrote.
The activist further argued that roadside traders and hawkers in Nigeria frequently face harassment by authorities despite efforts to earn legitimate livelihoods.
"Nigeria where roadside vendors and hawkers are arrested and chased on a daily basis," she added.
Yesufu also criticised what she described as inequalities in access to essential public services, contending that quality education and healthcare remain largely dependent on financial capacity.
"Same Nigeria where quality education is dependent on how rich your parents are! Where quality healthcare services are very expensive!" she stated.
Expressing her frustration with the comparison, Yesufu concluded by accusing those making such arguments of ignoring the country's realities.
The exchange is the latest in a growing social media debate over the First Lady's remarks, with supporters arguing that small businesses offer pathways to self-reliance and critics insisting that government should prioritise creating a safer environment and expanding economic opportunities before promoting informal enterprises as solutions to unemployment.