On Monday, the Brazilian Supreme Court was reported to have approved the ruling of a judge in Brazil banning Brazilians from making use of the Elon Musk’s microblog site, X. Elon Musk has been in running battle with Brazilian authorities over the latter’s allegation that the former has used his online platform to spread falsehoods against the government. In the past, falsehood used to be countered with truth. Today, views and opinions adjudged to be false by authorities in liberal democracies are not countered, they are criminally indicted. It is a matter of poetic irony that on the same day that the Brazilian Supreme Court reportedly issued the order criminalizing inconvenient speech, the Nigerian government arraigned 10 citizens who participated in the ‘end bad governance’ protests on a charge of treason. Treason carries a death penalty. So, the Nigerian government’s response to a politically inconvenient protest is to seek the court’s order to hang the protesters. Some in the Brazilian government are bracing up to arrest and prosecute Elon Musk for providing a platform that is adjudged to enable false information. Now, be careful. False information could mean any statement that does not agree with the official information.

It is also interesting that the US government, that self-acclaimed undertaker of democratization, has not made any statement condemning the threatened prosecution of an American for free speech or the Nigeria’s government prosecution of protesters. The administration in Washington has even expressed its delight to have the microblog X scrambled and Elon Musk prosecuted. It is not because it is busy that the Biden-Kamala administration has not bothered to react to many of these threats against free speech. It is a principled and strategic silence.

The Biden-Harris administration seems to have some problems with free speech. Many high officials of that administration have called for the arrest and prosecution of Elon Musk. Although, they continue to use X to promote their views about social and economic affairs, they do not hide their dislike of Elon Musk for buying the microblog site and the removing the restrictions against dangerous and false information. Before Musk, President Trump was yanked off the site for posts unaccepted to the influential liberals who controlled the site. The reality of the most powerful man in history having his voice suppressed alarmed many conservatives who had complained that many conservatives were blocked from expressing their views on the excuse of extremism. Elon Musk removed that ideological filter. This is why he now represents a threat to society. Kamara Harris, the Vice President and the Democratic Party’s candidate for the November presidential election has not hidden her opposition to Elon Musk and his X. Professor Robert Reich, a leading liberal and former Clinton Secretary of Commerce, notably called for the arrest of Elon Musk for promoting views that he considers dangerous and enable extremist opinion on his microblog.

Why is the US government less concerned about assaults against free speech across the world? This is unlike it. The US government is notorious for its propensity to intervene across the world in purported defense of democratic right. Is free speech no longer a fundamental democratic right? Or is democracy no longer that important? Why is the government not bothered about threats by political authorities in notable western democracies against free speech? My view is that this change is evidence that the US government is in pursuit of something more important than freedom of speech. For instance, the US government’s official communication shows that protecting transgenders, and promoting gender transition are more important concerns than protecting free speech. It has taken drastic actions against countries that are reported to criminalize homosexual relations or are denying official recognition to transgender interests. It looks like many in western government consider free speech the real enemy to fight.

The irony is that free speech, together with the right to life and the right to freedom of opinion, is the most basic democratic right. So, the demise of free speech is in many ways the demise of democracy. This knowledge is basic in public understanding of democracy. If the US government do not care about it, it suggests that something is going on. We need to know what it is. Is democracy no longer important? Are we now in a post-democracy era in human history?

After the first tenure of Mr. Donald Trump as the President of the United States of America, there arose a cottage industry of democracy pessimism. Many political scientists wrote books about the end of democracy. The three most notable of the books of this new genre are ‘How Democracy Ends’ by David Runciman,  ‘How Democracies Die: What History Reveal About Our Future’ by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, and Crises of Democracy by Adam Przeworski. There was so much glib talk about how democracy ends and the such. In 2020 Biden defeated Trump and we did not see any such frenzy again. It looked like the threat to democracy was no more. Trump was that singular threat that provoked the rise of the literature of the end of democracy. But was Trump really a threat to democracy? Or was a narrative crafted by resentment and hatred for Mr. Trump and what he represents?

Just a little point about the literature of the ‘How Democracy Dies’ epidemics. In Runciman’s view, three events announce the end of democracy. Democracy ends when a coup uproots the foundations of a democratic regime. It is usually quick, violent and unannounced. In the past, coups against democracy involved “tanks surrounded the city overnight and soldiers were sent to seize communication points, including the radio and television stations and post office”. Anyone in Africa who is above 30 years is familiar with these situations. Today, coup don’t come unannounced and quick. They creep in through multiple ways unnoticed when strong leaders erode the guardrails. As Runciman wisely puts it, “some coups need to make clear that democracy is over to succeed, and some coups need to pretend that democracy is still intact”. 

Another way democracy comes to an end is through a catastrophic event. Catastrophe drains us of civic energy and imposes an urgency that may lead to the dismantling of the democratic state. Runciman quotes Eliane Scarry in her book, Thermo-nuclear Monarchy: Choosing between Democracy and Doom, that “Nuclear weapons undo governments and undo anything that could be meant by democracy”. He references Hannah Arendt’s powerful insight that modern democracy entrenches mindlessness which often leads to failure to preempt disasters. So democracy can end when it confronts a disaster that requires more than democratic habits. To choose to avoid either doom or democracy, many people will choose democracy.

Technology can also upend democracy. It does so when it drains democratic politics of its civic character and the moral authenticity and replaces it with plastic machination. Runciman quotes Ghandi to argue that “Representative democracy was wholly artificial. It had become a thrall to machines. It operated through the party machine, the bureaucratic machine, the money machine. Citizens were passive consumers of their own political destiny. We press a button and we expect government to respond. It is no surprise that we are disappointed. What we get instead is cheap promises and outright lies”. The implication of ‘technological takeover’ of politics is that politics become boring and boorish. It has no truth, soul or authenticity. Network replaces neighborhood; and majority rule is replaced by the rule of the few who are technological adroit.

Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt write about the lessons of history about how democracy dies. Their main thesis is that democracy dies when elected officials turn around and undermine democracy. “Blatant dictatorship- in the form of fascism, communism or military rule- has disappeared across the world. Military coups and other violent seizures of power are rare. Most countries hold regular elections. Democracy still dies but by a different means”. Adam Przeworski sees the crisis of democracy as sign that democracy would “gradually and scrumptiously deteriorate”. The key point is that deterioration is usually seen as the handiwork of rightwing conservatives, extremists who would destroy freedom. But is that really how it is turning out?

These books on how democracy ends or dies always use Trump as the signal figure who prefigures these threats. The COVID 19 pandemic further etched in black on white canvas the ‘evil’ that Trump posed to democracy. Trump seemed to have doubted the efficacy of modern science. He allegedly assembled and platformed assorted pseudo-scientists and extremists who questioned venerable personages like Dr. Fauci and the bureaucrats at the World Health Organization (WHO) and disputed their prescribed modalities and vaccines for the virus. Let us forget for a moment that Dr. Fauci and his venerable colleagues have walked back on tens of what they said were scientifically proven about the virus. Today, some of the so-called conspiracies from Trump-like scientists have now being accepted by mainstream scientific sources as authentic.

Now that Trump is back to fight for the presidency with a message that challenges the liberal global coalition that calls the shot in international public policy, the noble men and women of Davos, the real undertakers of whatever remains of the ‘Washington Consensus’, are once again, chanting ‘Trump is a threat to democracy’. The way the anti-Trump elites paint a scary picture of the end of democracy if Trump gets a second term as US President, you would assume we never had a Trump first term. Trump definitely threatened to end many things important to the global elites , like the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and cozied up to dictators like Putin and Kim Jong of North Korea. But he did not throw political opponents into prison. He did not abolish any of the constitutional rights of the US citizens? He did not use state power to expel elected representatives from Congress. He did not enact decrees in place of laws passed by Congress. He did none of these. Yet Trump represents the most credible threat against democracy.

Anyone who studies American constitutional law would argue that, arguably, President Obama, the posterchild of democracy, issued more executive orders that threatened liberties of American citizens than President Trump. Some of these executive actions were successfully challenged at the Supreme Court. Obama’s regulatory state was more incursive than Trump’s in many ways. Yet, Trump continues to represent the archetypical threat to democracy. Maybe he is. But that would be construing democracy in a tendentious manner. 

Trump may be odd and weird as democrats claim. But Trump is not the President of Brazil where a judge has banned Brazilians from expressing themselves through the X platform. A few weeks ago, the founder of Telegram was arrested in Paris and is undergoing criminal prosecution for what appears to be trumped up charge that belies the truth that government officials are angry at the platform for not censoring what they consider misinformation and disinformation. A few weeks ago, a top official of the EU fired a warning against Elon Musk to stop his proposed interview with President Trump on his X platform to avoid serious consequences. This was a barely concealed attempt to censor a political viewpoint from a man running for the US Presidency. Apart from constituting a veiled election interference, the threat betrays a mindset that is poised against some perspectives considered as ‘dangerous’ to society. What makes these perspectives dangerous in the mind of the ruling elites in the west is that they are frontally opposed to some dominant liberal projects. Think about the war in Ukraine. It is reasonable to think that the west should support Ukraine to defeat Russia. It is also reasonable to argue against continuing the war against Russia. None of these views constitutes a real threat to democracy.

The global liberal elites have constructed democracy to mean some important agenda that override the basic rights and freedoms that are traditionally associated with the democracy. Some political theorists are wondering whether democracies needs to accord tolerance to those who oppose the ‘democratic’ life. This has always been an issue in establishing the coherence of liberal theory. But it is now being implemented as a programmatic shutting down of ideas and viewpoints that contradict the ideas and viewpoints of dominant liberals. Take for example, views about homosexuality or transgender. Some western countries have enacted laws that  criminalize failure to address transgenders by their preferred pronouns. The renowned writer, J.K. Rowling, is threatened with criminal prosecution by Scottish authorities for refusing to accept that transwomen are women. The Vice President of Google startled many when he defended the IT company’s overt manipulation of its algorithm to block certain facts from public search by saying that accuracy is not as important as the project.

There is no doubt that the left in the west have problem with the traditional concept of democracy to include the necessity for freedom of opinion and expression. They have problem with constitutional democracy if it means that the people may elect those who do not accept their comprehensive moral doctrines. This century’s leading political philosopher, John Rawls, propounded a theory of justice that is based on the liberal faith that civil society can have reasoned coexistence with those who reject the liberal canons. He argued that this is feasible though the overlapping consensus in which liberal and non-liberals can bracket their comprehensive moral doctrines and engage contractarian views on the basis of public reason. In his book, The Law of the Peoples, he showed how to build a just and peaceful social order through such epistemic abstinence.

The possibility of an overlapping consensus has been one of the core faiths of modern political liberalism. It is not based on forceful repressing of a viewpoint considered wrong or false, but the construction of a public good accessible from all divergent reasonable comprehensive doctrines. This means that a platform like X should allow divergent, even incommensurable, perspectives without suppressing any. But modern left liberals do not believe this anymore. They are clamoring for stronger censorship for fear of the presumed damage that unregulated free speech could cause. But the lesson of history is clear: on the whole there is more harm with suppression of speech and control of channels of expression by a person or group of persons than by expression or falsehood or hate speech. Yes, some speeches could be dangerous. But freedom of speech should be continually protected. Democracy, properly understood prioritizes self-determination over safety, of the city or of the ideology. It we no longer believe in this prioritization, then we should become China.

It is evident that many of the new liberal lefts have abandoned this naive faith in the priority of democracy in pursuit of the project of establishing a social order that protect their substantive vision of the good. To implement this, the need to take out those who oppose their project. They are willing to abandon democracy to protect the emerging woke and radical agenda. This is like the former communists who railed against democracy because the freedom that liberal democracy offers are superficial. As some of them argued, the right of man in a bourgeois society is just an illusory right. Today’s ‘neo-Marxist’ in the guise of the liberal extreme left argue that freedom of speech undermines real freedoms. For these extreme left ideologues, democracy is not as important as the project. Just as the Google exec put it, ‘The project is more important than accuracy”.

Free speech and freedom of expression are cornerstones of democracy. They are the engine of innovation. There are obvious dangers that ignorant and provocative speeches pose to society. These dangers are preventable and manageable through legal and social measures that do not require the suppression of speech. The presumption is that the most potent threat to democracy comes from the extreme right who resents the democratic way and values. These fascists elements are the killers of democracy. So reads the literature of ‘how democracy ends’. But the true situation is different. Trump and his right-wingers may not be the most potent threat to democracy. That dishonor now belongs to the radical left.

Today, democracy is dying in the West. Surprisingly, it is dying at the hands of the radical left. This truth is not captured in the literature of How Democracy Dies. That literature needs an update. It is the extreme left (not the extreme right) that is (really) killing democracy.

• Action a betrayal , says NLC

On the day Dangote Refinery commenced the supply of petrol with a promise to make the product available in the market in 48 hours, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited filling stations adjusted their meters to reflect new prices.

This action was amid a long-running scarcity of the product across the country.

There was no word from the national oil company on the new price regime.

The company only later in the day denied issuing a city-by-city price template which was circulating on social media.

Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) spokesman Ukadike Chinedu said NNPCL had not officially informed members about the price increase.

He said depot owners and marketers were awaiting further directives from the company.

Experts, however, gave reasons the oil giant might have effected the price change.

Petrol which sold for N568 at NNPCL filling stations in Lagos went for N855 per litre.

In Abuja where it sold for N617, the oil firm’s filling stations moved the price to N897.

The upward review came after NNPCL at the weekend admitted owing suppliers $6 billion, as a result of which they were reluctant to make the product available to them.

The company warned that the situation could result in its inability to make the product available to Nigerians.

The firm’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Umar Ajiya previously said the NNPCL was taking care of the shortfall in the supply system and was selling petrol at half the landing cost.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) rejected the new price.

It called for its immediate reversal.

NLC President Joe Ajaero in a statement described the increase as a “betrayal” after the Federal Government promised no pump price hike as a condition for the N70,000 minimum wage.

Other marketers jacked up prices to N897 per litre following NNPCL’s adjustment – by over 30 per cent.

The Minister of State (Petroleum) Heineken Lokpobiri denied that the Federal Government directed NNPCL to peg fuel prices at N1,000.

His media adviser Nnemaka Okafor described the reports as “blatantly false and malicious claims regarding petroleum pricing directive.”

“The Ministry of Petroleum Resources does not, and will not, interfere in the internal decisions of NNPCL, including pricing matters,” he said.

Some stakeholders said the increase was unavoidable.

They believe it will help alleviate the subsidy burden on both the Federal Government and the NNPCL.

An oil and gas consultant, Henry Adigun, said while the price increase was a step towards addressing the subsidy issue, it did not resolve the need for total deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector.

“Unless market prices align with international product prices, NNPCL will remain the sole importer,” Adigun said.

He welcomed the commencement of petrol production by Dangote Refinery but noted that supply would hinge on favourable market conditions.

‘Subsidy would have grown to N10t by the end of the year’

Managing Director of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf, urged Nigerians to show understanding with the Federal Government in this “difficult period”.

According to him, the government was subsidising every litre of petrol with about N500 while the product sold for between N610 to N700.

He warned that subsidy payment would have risen to between N8 trillion and N10 trillion at the end of the year should the country continue on that trajectory.

Yusuf said: “The subsidy figure rose to this level because of the depreciation of the naira as all the petroleum products consumed locally are imported.

“Secondly, the price of the products locally and the West African sub-region had widened and it is sold at an equivalent of between N1300 to N1500 per litre.

“The incentive for smuggling is very high and with our huge porous border and waterways largely unmanned there is little or nothing those entrusted with that duty can do.

“In this scenario, the government was not only subsidising her citizens but the whole of the West African sub-region up to the Central African Republic.

“This is part of the dilemma the government is faced with.”

To him, there is a possibility the government will be subsidising petrol to an extent with the new price of N855 per litre.

Yusuf said: “This must be a tipping point for the government as it was almost going bankrupt. This much the NNPC admitted with the over $6 billion debt.

“The situation in which we have found ourselves is not palatable to either citizens or the private sector because of the high cost of operation.”

He expressed optimism that Dangote Refinery and others in the pipeline will help the government ensure the pump price does not go beyond this.

Yusuf called on the government to roll out fiscal policies that would enable citizens to transit to other energy uses such as CNG, LPG, renewable energy solutions and wind power.

He said: “We need to subsidise this so that people can move away from fossil fuel. Again government do not have any choice now but to adopt an effective logistics and transportation strategy to ensure that products get to the people on time unlike now where it takes between one to two weeks to get petroleum products to other cities across the country due to the collapse of the railway and rusted pipelines.

“All these no doubt increase the cost. I will only appeal to Nigerians to be a little more patient as the government is no doubt on the right track to grow the economy.”

Black marketers in Abuja sold petrol in 10-litre containers for N13,000.

Despite the hike, retail outlets recorded endless queues that increased transport fares.

Kubwa bus stop to Byazhin Across that was N300 by tricycle rose to N500.

Kubwa to Berger which was previously N600 soared to N800 while Kubwa to Nyanya which was N800 rose to N1,000.

NLC demands reversal

NLC said it felt betrayed by the Federal Government following the latest increase in the pump price of petrol.

In a statement by Ajaero, the Labour Centre urged the government to reverse the increase in prices.

Ajaero said the organs of the NLC would meet in the coming days and decide on its next move.

He said: “We are filled with a deep sense of betrayal as the Federal Government clandestinely increases the pump price of PMS.

“One of the reasons for accepting N70,000 as the national minimum wage was the understanding that the pump price of PMS would not be increased even as we knew that N70,000 was not sufficient.

“We recall vividly when Mr President gave us the devil’s alternatives to choose from: either N250,000 as minimum wage (subject to the rise of the pump price between N1,500 and N2,000) and N70,000 (at old pms rates), we opted for the latter because we could not bring ourselves to accept further punishment on Nigerians.

“But here we are, barely one month after and with the government yet to commence payment of the new national minimum wage, confronted by a reality we cannot explain.

“It is both traumatic and nightmarish.

“Yet, when we told the government that its approach to resolving the fuel subsidy contradictions was patently faulty and would not last, its front-row cheerleaders sneered at us, saying we did not understand basic economics.”

A repentant female Boko Haram member, who underwent deradicalisation and resettled in Mafa Local Government Area of Borno, Fatima Musa, has said she regrets shredding into pieces her National Certificate in Education.

Musa made this known in Maiduguri on Tuesday during a community dialogue on understanding, tolerance and peaceful coexistence organised for the repentants and community leaders of Mafa.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the dialogue was organised by a community-based NGO, Allamin Foundation with support from the British Government under the UKaid.

Musa, who was deradicalised with other repentant women by the foundation, said many of them joined the insurgency at a young age after they were misled.

“We were misled as young people through the use of religion and later discovered that we went the wrong way after we were deradicalised by the foundation.

”We met with clerics who put us on the right track regarding Islam. We are now mature and more knowledgeable on Islam and the teachings of the Holy Prophet that promote peace and tolerance.

“I regret tearing my NCE certificate up when I made the mistake of accepting the twisted ideology that Western education was Haram.

“One of my prayers for now is to reach out to my father, who is now in a neighbouring country to beg for his forgiveness for joining the sect against his wish,” she said.

Also speaking at the dialogue, another deradicalised female, who identified herself as Bintu, pleaded for forgiveness from the people of Mafa and urged for support to the foundation to reach out to more women and men in the bush.

Bintu pointed out that a few cases of some repentants returning to the bush had to do with stigma and harassment by some people, telling them that they were doomed for hellfire fire in spite of their repentance.

“If you keep telling people they are doomed, they’ll say since there’s no forgiveness, they had better go back and continue.

“Some of the surrendered have easy money and others loot in the bush. They are struggling for survival with other citizens in their communities.

“Such repentants need to be encouraged to start a new life to sustain it,” Bintu said.

Some residents of Mafa who also spoke at the meeting, urged the government to do more on the deradicalisation and resettlement process through more empowerment support to victims and those that repented in line with transitional Justice.

The leader of the Civilian Joint Task Force in Mafa, Babagana Butu, said members now include some of the repentant insurgents.

”We patrol the area together. We provided them with farmlands to cultivate like everyone as part of the reintegration process.

“We want the government to also remember them in its empowerment programmes to enable them to sustain themselves and their families as well as contribute positively to the society,” Butu said.

In her remarks, the Executive Director of the foundation, Hajiya Hamsatu Allamin, said the dialogue was organised to discuss issues arising from the reintegration process and the way forward regarding challenges faced.

A lecture on Islamic ruling on peace, reconciliation and peaceful co-existence was delivered by a Consultant and Peace Mediator, Shiekh Ali Mustapha.

NAN

THE story of the Canada-based Nigerian woman who took hate to a supersonic level by threatening to poison the Yoruba and Bini people trended last week. The woman, speaking in pidgin English, said: “It is time to start poisoning the Yorubas and the Benin. Put poison in all your foods at work. Put poison in all your water so that you all will begin dying one after the other…. I will put them in all your foods. If I go to work tomorrow, I will put it (poison) in Yoruba people’s food. Go and tell the government that I’m in Canada, I’m in Ontario. Hurry up, go fast.”

Though there have been claims that the name might have been an impersonation, so far no one has come forward to disclaim the name and photo so it is fair to believe that the identity of the villain is as published.

The dispatch with which the identity of the woman was unmasked is commendable. It is also commendable that Nigerians across ethnicities and fault lines closed ranks to condemn the heinous statement in no unmistakable terms. That is one of the surest ways of ensuring that such fringe beliefs are never mainstreamed. We sure have our differences and grievances, but going to the extent of threatening to poison anyone, not to talk of a group of people, is heinous.

One of the dangers of stereotyping is that all members of the targeted group are presumed to be guilty by association. These include those who may actually be soldiering against various forms of injustice and xenophobia within the targeted in-group and those possibly solidarising with Ms. Suunberger’s grievances or married from her ethnic stock. Ms Sunnberger said Igbophobia by the said groups was what animated her hate.  

It is true that we all indulge in stereotyping others in various degrees – even among family members. This often stems from a basic cognitive need to categorise, simplify, and process the complex world around us. However, when it is weaponised as Ms Sunnberger did and (others like her also do across the country), it becomes a basis for social bias, prejudice, discrimination and in its extreme form a call for genocide. One of the dangers of this extreme form of response to perceived persecution is that it unwittingly provides a justification for the actions of the bigoted souls in the in-groups she inveighed against. 

The outburst from Ms Sunnberger, as condemnable as it is, however merely masks a more fundamental problem:

On February 2, 2012, the late Professor Abdul Rauf Mustapha (then of Oxford University) and I were invited by the Institute of Security Studies in Pretoria, South Africa, to be guest speakers on the theme, “The Threat of Boko Haram and the Challenges to Peace, Security and Unity of Nigeria”. Boko Haram, which got radicalised in 2009, had upped its terroristic activity when its suicide bomber attacked the United Nations headquarters in Abuja on August 26, 2011, killing at least 21 people and wounding scores. It was a hot topic across the world at that time. In Nigeria at that time, the mere mention of the group’s name instilled fears in the minds of most people such that the name of the group was mentioned mostly in hush-hush. Professor Mustapha was asked to provide the historical explanation for the emergence of the group, while I was asked to provide a theoretical framework for understanding the group and what it represented.

In my paper, I reviewed the various theories used at that time to explain the Boko Haram phenomenon – the poverty argument, the poor governance explanation, the frustration-aggression hypothesis (among others) as well as the various conspiracy theories about the group. I argued that each was incapable of offering a comprehensive explanation of the Boko Haram phenomenon. My contention was that a more comprehensive explanation was the crisis in our nation-building, which I argued, feeds into the crisis of underdevelopment to create an existential crisis for many Nigerians and groups within the country.  I further argued: “For many young people, a way of resolving the consequent sense of alienation is to retreat from the Nigeria project and construct meanings in chosen primordial identities – often with the Nigerian state as the enemy. In this sense, actions we rightly see as heinous are normal, even heroic, to them. The fact that many communities in which such people live know them but are not giving them away to the authorities could mean that the de-Nigerianisation process is perhaps more pervasive than we think.” 

I concluded by arguing that unless the crisis in the country’s nation building process is effectively resolved, any solution thrown to the country’s myriad problems would quickly become part of the problems. This part of my thesis seemed vindicated when many netizens took on Abike Dabiri Erewa, the CEO of the Nigerians in Diapora Commission, NIDCOM, who was able to unveil the identity of the woman in the genocidal video within a few hours of its going viral. They asked her why she did not show a similar promptness of action with those who weaponised ethnicity in Lagos or led the #IgboMustGo on X (formerly Twitter). The truth is that even if these set of people were apprehended with the same speed she displayed in unmasking Ms. Sunnberger, there would still be groups who would complain that people from other out-groups had done similar or worse things and were let to go scot free or given a mere slap on the wrist. This is one of the reasons our problems are rarely comprehensively resolved. They merely mutate. 

The point is that the process of individuals and groups de-linking from the Nigerian state (what I called de-Nigerianisation) has been ongoing and predated the APC-led Federal Government that started in 2015. The tragedy is that the crisis in our nation-building process and the consequent de-Nigerianisation seem to have become accelerated under them.

How do we deal with characters like Amaka Sunnberger and her likes? Here I would make a distinction between hate speech and genocidal speech or what Americans would call ‘fighting words’ – words that, when uttered, could inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace. In the latter case, it is important that the law should take its course to protect all groups within the society. Given the general distrust of government, it is crucial that a taxonomy of what constitutes genocidal speech is developed and the appropriate punishment to be meted to offenders clearly spelt out. This must not only be implemented irrespective of who is involved but also seen to be so done. 

Once anyone falls foul of such and goes free or is given a mere slap on the wrist, it becomes more difficult for the government to enforce such laws in other instances without undermining its own legitimacy in the process.  

It is with government’s efforts to control hate-speech – speeches that merely provoke and insult others- that the government is more vulnerable. This is in large part because of the morbid distrust of governments across the world but especially in our types of societies.  It will not only be suspected of bias but also of harbouring a hidden agenda of using such as a pretext to muzzle free speech. While there is unanimity in condemning Ms. Sunnberger’s genocidal speech (several Igbo groups also distanced themselves from her speech and none has so far come to her defence), it would have been different if she merely used insulting words. In many jurisdictions, hate speech remains protected speech, even if they are called low speech. One of the problems in Nigerian government’s efforts to control hate speech is the tendency to conflate this with genocidal speeches (fighting words). Different strategies are often needed in fighting the two speech forms.

A related question raised by the ‘Ms. Sunnberger affair’ is how do we win back Nigerians who have de-linked or are de-linking from the Nigerian state – whether they are #EndSars protesters, #EndBadGovernance agitators or avowed separatists?  There are no magic bullets for this. But the government being conscious of the fact that nation-building is the DELIBERATE use of state instruments to create a sense of oneness and loyalty to the state by the diverse groups that make up the nation-state, is one bold step.

Quite often the use of intimidation and strong arm tactics to silence such groups not only make heroes and heroines of their leaders but also exacerbates the sense of alienation from the state by their members. The government should prioritise resolving the crisis in the country’s nation-building process and winning the minds and hearts of as many of the ‘de-Nigerianising Nigerians’ as possible. Without this, any solution thrown at any of the country’s numerous problems, (no matter how well-intentioned), will quickly become part of the problems.

*Jideofor Adibe is Professor of Political Science at Nasarawa State University, Keffi.

International football returns across Europe this week, less than eight weeks after Spain edged out England in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin.

AFP Sport picks out five storylines to follow around the continent ahead of two rounds of fixtures over six days starting Thursday:

Will Spain pick up where they left off?

Spain are on a high after their magnificent triumph at the Euros and their gold medal success at the Olympics.

Luis de la Fuente’s side are quickly back in action and have another title to defend, having won the last edition of the Nations League. La Roja are in Group 4 of League A and begin with an awkward double-header, a trip to Serbia being followed by a meeting with Switzerland in Geneva. Denmark complete the group.

Their squad does not feature the injured Alvaro Morata, Unai Simon or Mikel Merino, who all played in the Euros final, but wing stars Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams are involved. There are also new faces in Oscar Mingueza, the ex-Barcelona right-back now at Celta Vigo, and Valencia midfielder Pepelu.

“We will keep fighting and trying to go as far as possible in every competition,” insisted De la Fuente.

England start post-Southgate era

After missing out on Euros glory, England begin a new era with Gareth Southgate having stepped down.

He has been replaced on an interim basis by Lee Carsley, the England Under-21 coach. Carsley, 50, is for now only in charge for this double-header of Nations League matches, as England play Ireland in Dublin and host Finland at Wembley.

The English Football Association are buying themselves time as they search for a permanent successor to Southgate, with 2026 World Cup qualifying not beginning until next March.

But a good start may see them keep faith in Carsley for the rest of the Nations League campaign, in which England also play Greece after being relegated from the top-tier League A following the last edition.

Carsley’s first squad is missing the injured Jude Bellingham, but there are call-ups for the uncapped quartet of Noni Madueke, Morgan Gibbs-White, Tino Livramento and Angel Gomes.

Ronaldo plays on

Cristiano Ronaldo endured a disappointing Euro 2024, failing to score in five matches as Portugal went out in the quarter-finals. Many thought the 39-year-old might then accept it was time to retire, but coach Roberto Martinez has continued to back the former Real Madrid striker, naming him in the latest squad.

“When the time comes, I’ll move on,” Ronaldo, of Saudi club Al-Nassr, insisted on Monday after teaming up with the squad to play Croatia and Scotland at home.

Portugal will also come up against Poland in Group 1 of League A, as they aim to win the Nations League for the second time after triumphing in 2019.

An injury to Paris Saint-Germain striker Goncalo Ramos means Ronaldo is likely to play from the start.

New, or not so new, faces

There are other nations beyond England starting afresh under a new coach.

Ireland’s meeting with England will be the first game for their new Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrimsson. Aged 57, the former Jamaica boss was appointed in July and will also lead the team in World Cup qualifying.

Wales are also under new management after failing to reach the Euros, with Craig Bellamy having replaced Rob Page.

Sweden play their first competitive matches under new coach Jon Dahl Tomasson, the ex-Denmark forward. Mircea Lucescu, now 79, has returned for a second stint in charge of Romania, 38 years after ending his first spell.

Trying to follow the format

This is the fourth edition of the Nations League, but the format has not got any simpler. New this time is the introduction of quarter-finals next March, involving the top two from each group in League A. The four-team finals will take place next June.

Teams finishing third in League A, and second in League B, will face off in relegation/promotion play-offs, with identical play-offs between Leagues B and C.

There is an impact on World Cup qualifying too.

The 12 group winners in European qualifying will go to the World Cup, with another four places going to winners of play-offs featuring the 12 runners-up plus the four highest-ranked teams in the Nations League who have not otherwise made it.

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© Agence France-Presse

I spent the last weekend of August in Kano on a film project, and thankfully, there was enough time left to tour the sprawling metropolis. This was my fourth and most intensive visit. I first went in 1995; but it was a transit stop as I headed out to Katsina as soon as I landed at the airport. I returned in 2001 and 2006 to organise public events for the banks I worked for then, but there was no time for sightseeing. This time, I was eager to see the city.

We arrived around 7pm on Thursday from Abuja on Rano Air, a regional airline founded three years ago by the petroleum and cooking gas magnate, Alhaji A. A. Rano, a Kano indigene. The following day, Friday, August 30, started with a visit to a hospital built and donated by another prominent indigene and former minister of finance, Shamsuddeen Usman, to the people. It was a humbling experience.

Established in 2010 as a community health centre, the facility has since grown into a major health provider, offering an assortment of services, especially to women and children. Aminu Sudawa, the health centre’s management committee chairperson and Magdalene Madaki, the midwife supervisor, gave us detailed briefings on how helpful this facility has been to the poor, as we toured the complex. About 250 to 300 deliveries are recorded every month in addition to over 50 outpatients that come in every day for treatment. Known as Gidauniyar Alheri Community Health Centre, it is located in Garangamawa Ward, Gwale LGA of Kano. All its services to the people are provided free.

Three years ago, the hospital went into partnership and collaboration with the French charity, Medicins Sans Frontiers (Doctors without Borders), and this has helped to boost the medical treatment of women and children, with great benefits, including addressing the challenge of maternal and neonatal mortality in Kano. Madaki is actually a staff of MSF on secondment to the facility. The collaboration with Doctors Without Borders has also assisted in offering family planning services, care of the newborn and capacity building to the staff of the hospital. Not far away from the health facility is the Gidauniyar Alheri Microfinance Bank, also established by the former minister, to provide banking services to the people and help expand financial inclusion and entrepreneurship in the community.

Philanthropy is increasingly playing an important role in filling the gaps left by the failure of the state to fulfil its obligations to the people. In the last few years, I have written extensively on the good works of philanthropic organisations like Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation; The HOW Foundation and Inoyo-Toro Foundation. The newest among them, the Shamsudeen Usman Foundation (SUF), to be formally launched on September 26 in Abuja, was established by Usman’s children as a tribute and honour to their father. It will focus on education with specific offerings on AI and its deployment in the classroom. SUF will complement the works of the Gidauniyar Alheri Foundation whose main focus is health, education and enterprise.

Kano is a massive commercial centre with a huge population (18 million-20 million); over 100 markets and malls; hundreds of mosques and many wealthy men. We visited Kano Central Mosque, a prominent landmark and worship place that can accommodate up to 50,000 worshippers. It is situated in the city centre near the emir’s palace and features a blend of traditional and modern Islamic architecture. It was built in the 15th century but has undergone several expansions and renovations.

The three markets we visited were the GSM market where telephones and phone accessories are sold; Kantin Kwari market, renowned as one of the nation’s biggest textile depots and Kurmi market, established around the 15th century; it is the oldest in the state and is a go-to place for books and traditional medicines. Kano state has 44 LGAs, the highest in the country, but it appears to be a one-city state, just like Rivers and Lagos. You rarely hear of any other town in this state apart from Kano.

Kano is made up of the city, which is the original and ancient town that has been around for centuries and was once surrounded by high walls; and several settlements such as Fagge, Tarauni, Sharada, Sabongari, Bompai, etc. Inside the city are old traditional buildings and narrow winding roads, many of them going back for centuries.

Since the mode of transportation in those days was horses, camels and donkeys, there was no need for wide roads. Sabon Gari was initially created for non-indigenes but has since become a cosmopolitan area with wide, tree-lined roads and modern buildings. That’s where we had lunch Saturday afternoon at a nice restaurant called Igwe’s Palace. What a name!

My most memorable outing was the visit to the Emir of Kano, Muhammad Sanusi II, and one of the city’s business tycoons, 96-year-old Dr. Aminu Dantata. We also visited the Kano Museum which is rich in history and culture. Known as Gidan Makama Museum, it was built in the 15th century as the emir’s palace. The museum contains artefacts and exhibits on Kano’s history and culture. Many thanks to Nura Aminu, the museum’s tour guide, for showing us around. A jolly good fellow!

The current palace is a massive compound, a small city on its own, with schools and a hospital inside. I first visited the palace in 2001 as part of the management team of a bank. Alhaji Ado Bayero (1930-2014) was on the throne. Today, his nephew, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, with the regnal name, Muhammad Sanusi II, is the emir. We were led to the palace by Dr Usman who, incidentally, had taught the emir microeconomics in his final year at ABU in 1981.

Since then, the two men have enjoyed each other’s affection immensely, and the emir seems to have followed in Dr Usman’s footsteps in his professional journey. Dr Usman was an executive director at Union Bank and UBA, and later the chief executive of NAL Merchant Bank (now Sterling Bank) before he was appointed a deputy governor of the CBN in 1999. Sanusi was general manager at UBA; executive director and later chief executive of First Bank, before he was appointed CBN governor in 2009. Both men were also students of Kings College, Lagos, at different times.

The emir holds Dr Usman in high esteem and spoke glowingly of his attributes as a man of character, integrity and uprightness. ‘’In the 43 years that I have known Dr Usman since 1981 when he returned from the London School of Economics and Politics to take up a faculty position in the department of economics at ABU, and taught me in my final year, till today, I have never heard his name being associated with a whiff of scandal or corrupt activities. He has never been invited to the EFCC or police station for interrogation or anything,” the emir told me Saturday evening.

By now, Usman has excused himself from the meeting to catch another appointment, leaving us with the emir alone. Sanusi was resplendent and noble in his robe. His face fresh, he sounded ebullient and happy; relaxed, calm and eloquent as usual. I congratulated him on his return to the throne and reminded him of the few times I have met him in Lagos after he was dethroned in March 2020. I then asked him to speak on his memoir which he’s already written, but not yet published, and his contributions to another book that would be launched in September.

The emir is one of the co-authors of a book edited by Dr Usman that will be publicly presented in Abuja on September 26. Titled, ‘’Public Policy and Agent Interests: Perspectives from the Emerging World’’, the book is a unique publication on both the impetus for and impediments to growth and development in emerging economies. It provides a fascinating and penetrating insight into the workings of government and the boardroom, in terms of policy formulation and implementation, economic management as well as the overall growth paradigm in the developing world, with Nigeria as a case study. In the book, Sanusi provides detailed explanations of the intrigues, power play and scandal that led to his ouster as CBN governor in 2013 and emir of Kano in 2020. The book is simply unputdownable!

With all its commercial activities, Kano requires huge investments in road infrastructure. Its road network is in a pathetically bad shape. With an IGR of N43.3 billion in 2022, Kano is underperforming comparator states like Kaduna (N77.1 billion in 2022), Rivers (N172.8 billion in 2022) and Lagos (N651 billion in 2022). Even Akwa Ibom with very little commercial activities grossed N35 billion that same year. Kano government should do better in revenue generation and invest heavily in revamping roads and creating economic opportunities for the huge number of its young people.

We returned to Abuja Sunday afternoon, filled with both exciting memories of the visit and regrets for the slow death of domestic tourism due to rising insecurity. The 1980s and 1990s were full of fun as we crisscrossed this vast nation, observing the change in weather, vegetation and cultures as we moved from region to region. Those days are now a distant memory as kidnappers, bandits and terrorists now prowl our highways.

President Bola Tinubu and Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Tuesday in Beijing, China, announced the elevation of Nigeria-China ties to that of a comprehensive strategic partnership.

The leaders also agreed to build a high-level Nigeria-China community with a shared future.

This was the outcome of talks between the two leaders during President Tinubu’s official visit to China.

President Tinubu’s official visit precedes his participation in the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, scheduled to hold from September 4-6, 2024.

''This is an important visit for Nigeria and the rest of Africa, as I arrive in my capacity as the Chairman of ECOWAS. I thank you for the high-level of honour accorded to us.

''Relations between China and Nigeria have indeed lasted for over half a century and should be further strengthened to advance our trade and economic development programmes.

''Nigeria holds great potential as the country with the largest population in Africa and is the biggest economy with a very young population that can drive economic growth and cross-sectoral programmes.

''We have upgraded the relationship to more than what is just strategic -- but a comprehensive developmental partnership.

''This comprehensive strategic partnership should result in robust development, stability, and security in the West African sub-region. This is very crucial,” President Tinubu said.

On economic reforms in Nigeria, President Tinubu told his Chinese counterpart that his administration remains committed to sustainable growth through the effective implementation of ongoing economic reforms.

''We believe that President Xi has demonstrably reformed the Chinese economy, and our reform programme in Nigeria is on a similar course. I am a reformer with verifiable antecedents.

''We have recognized the need to reform our economy, and we are doing so diligently across tax and tariff reviews, to various other segments of our nation's economy.

''Trading and investment partners will have easy access to bring in their investments and seamlessly take their resources out,'' the President stated.

In his remarks, President Xi noted the strong mutual understanding between Nigeria and China since the establishment of diplomatic ties over the past 50 years.

''We have found the path of seeking collective strength, through unity, and win-win cooperation.

''China and Nigeria, as major developing countries, strengthening strategic coordination, will inject fresh impetus to China-Africa relations in the new era and spearhead common progress among Global South countries,'' President Xi said.

According to the Chinese leader, the 2024 FOCAC Summit provides an opportunity to reflect on mutual friendships and advance the consolidation of China-Africa relations.

He pledged that China and Nigeria would continue to work closely within the FOCAC framework as a model of cooperation between nations.

During the meeting, both presidents witnessed the signing of several Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) on various areas of mutual interest:

(1) Cooperation plan between Nigeria and China on jointly promoting the Belt and Road Initiative

(2) Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the peaceful application of Nuclear Energy

(3) Memorandum of Understanding on strengthening cooperation on Human Resource Development under the Global Development Initiative

(4) Memorandum of Understanding on Media Exchange and Cooperation

(5) Memorandum of Understanding between China Media Group and the Nigerian Television Authority

Earlier, on Monday in Beijing, President Tinubu visited the China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), during which he acknowledged the company's role as a reliable partner in Nigeria's infrastructure development programme, commending its ongoing railway projects in the country.

''It is equally very important that we give assurances to the Nigerian people across our local communities that the Ibadan-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano railway segments will be completed and done to the satisfaction of Nigeria and West Africa at large.

''We will support your investment in solid minerals and other ventures in Nigeria. I am here to assure you that Nigeria is ready to do business with you,'' the President said during a meeting with the Chairman of CRCC, Mr. Dai Hegen, following a tour of the CRCC and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) office in Beijing.

Mr. Hegen informed the President that CRCC has been involved in Nigeria for 43 years, implementing over 300 projects and training over 100,000 local workers.

''The Abuja-Kaduna Railway and Lagos-Ibadan Railway have transported approximately 9 million passengers and 180 tonnes of cargo. The Lagos blue line has transported over 1.6 million passengers,'' he said.

In a separate engagement, President Tinubu visited Huawei Technologies' Beijing Research Centre, where the company announced the launch of DigiTruck, a mobile ICT classroom aimed at enhancing digital literacy in underserved Nigerian communities.

During the President's meeting with Huawei's leadership, led by Mr. Liang Hua, Chairman of the Board of Directors, the company said the initiative would operate in 10 states annually, training at least 3,000 students each year.

Acknowledging the ongoing efforts by Nigeria's Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy to train 3 million technical talents (3MTT) and equip the country's young population with the skills necessary for present and future economic opportunities, Huawei's leadership said the DigiTruck initiative will complement the programme.

Mr. Hua praised the President's Renewed Hope Agenda for identifying digital technology as a critical driver of economic growth.

"This is very encouraging for us. Huawei is fully prepared to offer its ICT expertise and become a reliable partner of the Nigerian government to support the country in achieving its policy objectives and furthering its digital, intelligent, and low-carbon development."

Also speaking, Mr. Chris Lu, Chief Executive Officer of Huawei Nigeria, expressed support for Nigeria's National Talent Export Programme (NATEP), an initiative that seeks to position Nigeria as a hub for talent outsourcing in Africa.

"In the future, we hope to continuously develop the NOC and expand its capacity so that it can meet the requirements of more African markets, thus facilitating more Nigerian technology talents in serving more overseas' markets and helping to achieve the goal of NATEP," Mr. Lu said

During the tour of the Huawei Research Centre’s exhibition hall, President Tinubu and his delegation were introduced to Huawei's latest innovations in e-government, smart education, smart grid, and solar power, demonstrating their potential to enhance public services, digital governance, and Nigeria's inclusive development agenda.

As part of the efforts to achieve the aforementioned goals, Huawei also plans to establish a joint PV test lab with Nigeria's Rural Electrification Agency (REA).

Chief Ajuri Ngelale

Special Adviser to the President

(Media & Publicity)