Nigerian skit maker Sunshine dies after surgery complications

Popular Nigerian content creator and skit maker, Esther Thomas, widely known as Sunshine, has died following complications from fibroid surgery.

Her death was confirmed by family members in a statement posted on her Instagram page on Saturday. According to the family, Sunshine passed away on Friday, January 9, 2026, after an unsuccessful surgical procedure.

“We the family of Esther Thomas (A.K.A Sunshine), with pain in our hearts, regret to announce the sudden demise of our beloved sister and daughter, who passed away on January 9, 2026, after an unsuccessful surgery,” the statement read.

The family disclosed that Sunshine had been battling fibroid and was operated on but did not survive the complications that followed. Arrangements for her burial, they said, are currently ongoing.

Reacting to her death, fellow content creator Chidera Madu shared a detailed account of Sunshine’s medical ordeal in a Facebook post. He said she first complained of stomach pain on December 28, 2025, which worsened over time and was later diagnosed as fibroid.

According to Madu, Sunshine was initially admitted to Orchid General Hospital, where she was reportedly placed on pain relief medication due to an ongoing doctors’ strike — a development he said the family was unaware of at the time.

He explained that on January 2, after noticing the absence of doctors on duty, he decided to move her to another hospital for further treatment, using scan results already obtained from the first facility.

Madu added that doctors at the second hospital later advised surgery as her condition deteriorated. Although the surgery was described as successful, Sunshine reportedly developed complications afterwards and died.

“The doctor said the surgery went well, but she later developed complications that led to her death,” he said.