🛀🏽 Tyranny olympics
When we started this newsletter in 2019, it was to tell the news with as lighthearted a tone as possible. It was never that difficult because regardless of how scary some of it was (Boko Haram, for instance), the Nigerian government always did something laughable. Since then, their antics have become frightening. I am now genuinely afraid.
In Today's issue
Nigeria gets funds to improve maritime transportation
No Nigerian state is safe, says private security company PR24
People's Gazette says Malami and Buhari might be in the process of withdrawing Nigerian's right to freedom
Twitter banned indefinitely, other social media and video services might have to get a license.
This week in money
Looking for a job? Chipper cash— Africa’s* 'most valuable startup'— might be hiring soon.
*This initially described Chipper Cash as Nigeria’s most valuable startup. Apologies for the error
The presidency announced that the N200 billion set aside for the CBN and Ministry of Finance housing project is ready for disbursement.
The FG said the scheme would support about 1.5 million families to acquire low-cost houses through a mortgage or rent-to-own.
The fund, first approved in Sept 2020, was set up to fast-track construction of 300,000 homes across Nigeria and is projected to create 1.5 million jobs in 5 years.
CBN is dispersing the housing loans under the condition that the lenders will pay back in </= 3 years at an interest rate of 5% per annum.
The project is in partnership with Family Homes Fund Limited and part of the FG's Economic Sustainability program.
Nigeria got a transport grant.
The FG will receive US$750,000 from the African Import-Export Bank (AFREXIM) and the Nigerian Export-Import Bank to improve inland waterways, particularly on the Benue-Niger river.
This grant is part of AFREXIM and NEXIM’s Regional Sealink Project, created to improve maritime transport structures in West Africa.
Mr Abubakar Abba Bello, Managing Director of NEXIM, said that this would enhance Nigeria's trade attractiveness and increase trade possibilities across the ECOWAS region.
No indication of when the money is scheduled to drop.
How to reduce the cost of governance: Akeredolu vs El-Rufai, Hope Uzodinma
Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu proposed that the Senate should be scrapped to reduce government spending. He said that the National Assembly should be a part-time gig. All in all, the government spends too much money on govt personnel.
El-Rufai proposes that states should not pay above their tax revenues.
The Kaduna state governor, who recently proposed that the FG increase national fuel price, said we should "Let us use our oil revenue for capital expenditure and pay salaries through taxes".
Remember: El-Rufai recently triggered a state-wide strike when he abruptly sacked workers over 50, who claim to have not been paid salaries for over a year. They were allegedly fired with no compensation or pension.
Hope Uzodinma cut staff salaries by over 80% at the peak of the COVID crisis. But, when they asked him to reverse it, he said no. He, too, claimed it was to cut government costs.
Insurgency
A private security company also confirmed what we know: Adamawa, Borno, Yobe are the "Most Dangerous states”.
According to a new travel advisory compiled by a private security company, PR24, 14 Nigerian states: Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Delta, Benue, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba, and Zamfara are high-risk travel areas.
PR24 believes Nigeria as a whole is in shambles. They consider Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Cross River, Edo, Ekiti, Kano, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Rivers, and the Abuja to be "Medium Risk". Lagos, they said, is "okay, but stay vigilant."
In summary: nowhere in Nigeria is safe.
Niger
Days after the Greenfield students were released by their abductors, “unknown bandits” kidnapped dozens of children in an Islamic school in Niger.
The Niger state government said that about 200 children were missing, although they hadn't confirmed the exact number yet.
Bandit middleman Sheik Ahmad Gumi reacting to the 200 children abducted, said that the government should "engage with the bandit groups" and use the not-so-bad ones to fight the awful ones.
FG intensifies security in the South-South.
Amid concerns over possible human rights abuses and extra-judicial killings in Northern Nigeria, Nigerian security agencies have begun a “major offensive” in the southeast.
The Cable reports that President Buhari has given the security agencies the marching order to curtail rising crime rates in southern Nigeria (read more in our mid-week newsletter, 'What is happening in Imo?')
Buhari has also ordered the military and police to "shoot" anyone or group of people with guns "on sight".
Zamfara:
The government has instructed the state police to obey the presidential order to shoot people seen with AK-47 or any weapons. They said only those approved by law/security agencies are allowed to carry guns.
The govt has promised to support the security agencies as needed.
Meanwhile, The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps, Brig. Gen Shuaibu Ibrahim says Corps can be mobilised to war.
Twitter Banned "indefinitely"
The Nigerian FG announced on Friday that they are outrightly banning Twitter until further notice. The ban came days after Twitter deleted a post where Buhari referenced the civil war in describing how he intends to punish groups blamed for attacks on government buildings.
His tweet: "Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand".
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, cited the persistent use of the platform to spread and illicit activities as the purpose of the ban.
The Minister said the Federal Government has also directed the National Broadcasting Commission to issue licensing criteria for all social media and over-the-top media platforms (like YouTube, Netflix, etc.). Implying that they’ll be cut off if they don’t get government-issued licenses.
Social Media regulation via a Social Media Bill was first proposed in 2016.
The FG claimed then that the bill would aid “Protection from Internet Falsehoods and Manipulations″.
So far, all Telcos seem to have shut Twitter off. As a result, most people in Nigeria are currently tweeting via a VPN.
On Saturday, Attorney-General Abubakar Malami said anyone accessing the platform via a VPN is “breaking the law” but did not state what law they’re violating.
We will publish a mid-week update to cover how this news develops if anything changes.
Malami and Buhari plotting dictatorship?
People's Gazette reports that President Muhammadu Buhari is in the process of declaring a "state of emergency" across Nigeria.
According to the report, PG reporters have a "secret memo" where Attorney-General Abubakar Malami was advised by the president to declare a state of emergency and suspend the fundamental rights of all Nigerians according to Chapter IV of the Constitution.
The report allegedly said that the country's insecurity is now so dire that "democratic techniques are no longer favourable".
Malami, however, denied the claims. Instead, he urged Nigerians to "disregard the media report as fabrications". He says he is a "true democrat" and would never do anything like that.
Things we didn't get into
ECOWAS has suspended Mali for last week's coup. They said the authorities must stick to a timetable to return to democracy (PremiumTimes)
FRSC thinks that the solution to road accidents is that civilians should get bicycles (PremiumTimes)
Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, has dissolved the State Executive Council with immediate effect. His special adviser disclosed that the Secretary to the State, State Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff, members of the state commission and others, were also relieved of their appointments. (Channels).
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What you need to know about VPN privacy and security protection: The countries that will give your data to your government if asked and those that won’t
Revolution 101: Hong Kong protests