Nigeria

By Sabiu Abdullahi

Reports reaching the Daily Reality have shown that Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, a prominent figure in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and representative of Anambra South, has passed away in London, United Kingdom.

Sources close to the matter revealed that Senator Ubah’s demise occurred just 48 hours after his arrival in the city, at a local hotel. 

The news of his passing was confirmed through a group chat of senators, who have since begun paying tributes to their late colleague.

This devastating incident comes on the heels of a significant donation made by his campaign council to the APC in Anambra State, totaling N71 million, with Senator Ubah personally contributing N50 million. 

The donation was part of his commitment to bolstering the party’s presence and effectiveness in the region.

As the news of his passing continues to unfold, the Senate has yet to issue an official statement.

Further details surrounding the circumstances of Senator Ubah’s death are still emerging.

By Isah Kamisu Madachi

The ubiquitous use of social media and other online platforms, marking the advent of the digital era facilitated by technological advancements, has revolutionised the Nigerian economy and labour market. The longstanding tradition of obtaining certificates and waiting for office work is declining, leading to a paradigm shift in the Nigerian certificate-based economy from valuing certificates to emphasising skills, akin to the trend in developed countries. It is silently moving from your paper to what you can offer. 

While I was not born in the 1970s and 80s, I believe it was difficult, if not impossible, to find someone with a certificate from a Nigerian institution engaged in skilled trades such as carpentry, tiling, wiring, and plumbing. During that period, when a certificate was earned, the expectation was to be employed by the government or a private organisation. However, the contemporary scenario is different, as it is common to find individuals with higher degree qualifications still actively engaged in such work. The emphasis on the value of practical skills is evident almost everywhere, including social media, classrooms, public lectures and capacity-building seminars.

Drawing from my sociology background, I am engaged in various activities such as YouTubing, blogging, essay writing, and video editing. A friend of mine, a law graduate, works with a radio station because of his oratory prowess. My mentor, who graduated years before I joined the university, now works with a leading newspaper in Nigeria because of his ability to write well. It is a common misconception among Nigerians to equate education or skill with certificates.

As a student, I have witnessed how things have changed. An internationally respected lecturer from my department who also worked in the same profession in the United States of America for many years remarked that nobody had ever inquired to see his certificate for the time he spent there. He only lists his certifications and compliments them with the knowledge and skills attached.

This shift from certificate-based to skill-based education is affecting the Nigerian education system because, despite the evolving changes in this endeavour, it seems to have found it difficult to adapt to the new reality. In schools, the focus is still highly on the certificates and theoretical aspects of the courses offered instead of skills. This continues to create discrepancies between what the job market needs and what schools produce.

Seeing overwhelming numbers of unemployed Nigerian graduates roaming the streets led frustrated Nigerian youth to conclude that school is a scam, chanting the famous “school na scam” phrase. This conclusion descended on even those who have yet to experience the reality of life after graduation. Gradually, it has become popular to the extent that overwhelming youth in Nigeria today choose to behave as if they just come to school to acquire the certificate but to learn nothing, despite the seemingly irrelevance of the certificate in the job market. 

To adapt to the changing global trend, Nigeria requires education reform to address the production of half-baked graduates, which is a consequence of the unfavourable learning conditions created by underfunding education. Many experts have raised alarms about the outdated nature of the Nigerian education curriculum, pointing out its mismatch with the needs of the Nigerian labour market. Effective reforms are necessary to address these issues.

Isah Kamisu Madachi, a fresh sociology graduate, writes from Katagum L.G.A, Bauchi State, and can be reached via isahkamisumadachi@gmail.com.

By Lawan Bukar Maigana

When asked about the Boko Haram bloodbath in Maiduguri between 2012 and 2014, my mind reflects on the gory scenes of manslaughter, unrest, indescribable fear, hopelessness, mourning, massive burials, decaying bodies on the streets, roadblocks, military presence, economic downturns, and many other paroxysms of agony that still traumatize me from time to time, especially when I remember the productive people and opportunities I have lost.

This is to remind our fellow youths what life would be like if the enemies within and outside succeeded in mobilizing innocent young people to collapse Nigeria under the guise of protesting against government policies they perceive as unfriendly to their well-being. If people eat once daily now and move freely in some areas within the country, chances are that some would spend days and nights hungry and unable to move freely even within their vicinities if the protest held as planned. I would never wish this for my enemies, let alone my loved ones.

In a viral video, the acclaimed leader and organizer of the planned nationwide August protest, Comr. Murtala Garba said that he had withdrawn from the planned protest after realizing that some unpatriotic power mongers and anti-peace agents were financing it at the expense of peace and unity of the nation.

He said, “Everybody knows that we are pro-North and are always ready to stand for the region’s interest. We started planning for the protest during the Ramadan period when we went to the market to shop and realized that the price of a bag of sugar had unbelievably increased. That was when we realized that the removal of subsidy by this government would predictably lead to a high cost of living, so we started criticizing it on various social media platforms across Africa. We started getting support from Nigerian diasporans, largely from America, China, and other Arab countries.”

The activist confessed that a high-profile individual from the southern part of Nigeria had invited him and fifty-two individuals to Port Harcourt for a meeting on the planned nationwide August protest.

“We spent a day in Port Harcourt and then moved to Delta State, where we spent six days. We planned for the peaceful protest to take place across the 36 states of the federation, but they started telling us that they only wanted us to do it in selected states of the North comprising Kaduna, Abuja, and Jos because they trusted us. They went on to tell us that they wanted us to block roads, adding that they would link us up. That got me thinking about those youths who are better than us in the country, yet we don’t know them.

“Honestly, they gave us money, and we collected it, returned to our region, and some of our elders started talking to us about it and succeeded in convincing us to suspend the protest, not because we are happy with the government’s policies but because of its foreseen consequences considering the forces behind it.”

Mr. Garba did not list the names of the people who invited him to Port Harcourt, perhaps out of fear of the unknown. However, he concluded by asking the government to heed the calls to reconsider the fuel subsidy removal, mentioning that some powerful Nigerians are planning to topple the government.

“They revealed the total number of police and other security forces in the Villa and promised to provide adequate manpower to support them and overwhelm the security forces. The protest is shaky and cruel to the nation. Therefore, I distance myself from it.”

Those of us from Maiduguri will never want to experience the taste of war. Some people wish for Nigeria to go to war, forgetting that no West African country can accept us as refugees if we break due to our overwhelming population that surpasses half of the entire population of West Africa.

Politics aside, I am disappointed that a former Minister called Barr. Solomon Dalung is shamelessly offering to lead the protest despite coming from a fragile state where ethno-religious crises claim lives from time to time, depriving the state of peace and unity. I am sure his declaration is insincere, exploiting the present economic hardship for political relevance in the sight of the masses.

Coming to the North, those Kano TikTok influencers are ignorant of the protest they were calling for because they seem to be unaware that Kano remains the only state in the North where people enjoy relative peace despite the power tussle going on between Emir Sanusi (enthroned) and Emir Bayero (dethroned). Businesses are going about smoothly, and farmers access their farmlands fearlessly, unlike Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, and Borno, where farmers write their wills every day before going to their farms.

Recently, a few energetic guys came to me saying people like me should lead the protest, given our influence on young people in our various states. I allowed them to land, and I asked if they knew who planned the protest, why the protest, and what it aimed to achieve. They couldn’t answer me, looking sorry and confused. Unfortunately, a lot of young people are like that. They don’t even know what they are protesting against and are used and dumped by enemies within.

Some readers may ask about the solution to the economic hardship facing Nigerians since we unapologetically condemn the planned protest and urge like-minded individuals to shun it.

In my opinion, the solution is near, as our Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries will soon start operations. This will reduce the cost of production and transportation, thereby lowering commodity prices by default. The inflation is caused mainly by transportation, which costs marketers twice the purchasing amount.

Therefore, I kindly call on the government to expedite the realization of the refinery projects and commence operations as soon as possible. This is the only realistic and achievable approach to ameliorating living standards in the country.

Lawan Bukar Maigana wrote via lawanbukarmaigana@gmail.com.

By Uzair Adam Meta

Meta removed approximately 63,000 Instagram accounts in Nigeria that attempted to engage in financial sextortion scams, mostly targeting adult men in the United States.

Nigerian online fraudsters, known as “Yahoo boys”, are notorious for scams that range from passing themselves off as people in financial need or Nigerian princes offering an outstanding return on an investment.

Meta, in a statement on Wednesday, said the removed accounts included a smaller coordinated network of around 2,500 that were linked to a group of around 20 individuals.

“They targeted primarily adult men in the U.S. and used fake accounts to mask their identities,” Meta said.

In sexual extortion, or “sextortion”, people are threatened with the release of compromising photos, either real or faked, if they do not pay to stop them.

The Daily Reality gathered that investigation showed that the majority of the scammers’ attempts were unsuccessful and although mostly targeting adults, there were also attempts against minors, which Meta reported to the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children in the U.S.

The company said it had used a combination of new technical signals developed to help identify sex extortion.

Nigeria’s scammers became known as “419 scams” after the section of the national penal code that dealt – ineffectively – with fraud.

As economic hardships worsen in the country of more than 200 million people, online scams have grown, with those behind them operating from university dormitories, shanty suburbs or affluent neighbourhoods.

Meta said some accounts were providing tips for conducting scams.

“Their efforts included offering to sell scripts and guides to use when scamming people, and sharing links to collections of photos to use when populating fake accounts,” it said.

By Abdulaziz Isah Bagwai

After the Asr prayer on a rainy Monday, Jummai, who was pregnant, was sweeping her courtyard when her daughter Laure returned from the river, where she went to fetch the water they would use for the chores. “Assalamu alaikum,” Laure greeted as she entered the house and poured the water she fetched in a rubber bucket into a large pot.

Jummai, an all-female mother of five, had prayed endlessly during the day and night for a male child, and since the miracle of this pregnancy, her prayers have doubled. She’d often wake up in the middle of the night to remind God of her prayers and to jokingly remind Him that He’d promised to answer good prayers. Hers was.

One night in September, Jummai began her labour with low and intensifying moans that woke Baban Laure, her husband, whose sleeping groans filled the noiseless room. “What’s happening? Are you well?” He inquired in a low, creaking tune. She couldn’t answer him, but in her moans, he understood she was calling God for aid into her large tummy, and when he grabbed his torchlight, he saw that she was holding the belly tightly.

Baban Laure rushed to his neighbour, Rakiya, a traditional birth attendant. Upon their arrival, Rakiya confirmed that it was labour, but the condition was beyond her basic skills; hence, he should take his wife to the primary health care facility in Bagwai.

Amidst preparation, Jummai continued to bleed, and Baban Laure suggested that “if not for the bleeding, we could manage to wait until the morning when the staff of our health post come.” Baban Laure suggested this to Rakiya, who was engrossed in controlling the seemingly unending bleeding. Baban Laure said they could only travel to Bagwai on bikes that night of misery because the only person who had a car wasn’t in town.

Jummai gave birth to a beautiful baby boy at around 4:00 a.m., whom she was unable to see immediately until the day broke. “Where’s my baby?” She asked. But the strolling tears in Rakiya’s eyes told her everything. The baby is dead, she understood, with a bit of desperation in her face. When the birth attendant was telling Rakiya to report on time in emergency cases like this because the baby died as a result of oxygen starvation, which was, of course, due to the excess blood she had lost, she understood that her baby was a boy. Before Rakiya arrived at her bed to calm the tears that formed rivers in her eyes, she lay there stranded, unconscious, and was admitted for two weeks!

What is behind the pause of Kwajale Comprehensive Health Center’s construction project?

Had this project been completed and launched today, there would’ve been a 24-hour medical service in this village, which could’ve saved the life of Jummai’s baby boy that she had wished and prayed for. 

“This project has put light on many faces in Kwajale, for it was initiated when our clinic and the services we rendered were insufficient for the community,” said Saifullahi, a healthcare worker at Kwajale Primary Health Post.

“When the construction started, we were assured that it wouldn’t take long to be completed, and we agreed to their assertion because they worked with an enthusiastic speed,” Saifullahi continued.

Who are the contractors?

It was a federal government project awarded in 2007 by the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) to Mathan Nigeria Limited. This indigenous engineering company had quietly touched the lives of Nigerians long before it got caught in the eye of the storm because an April 2nd, 2012, Premium Times report stated that “Abandoned N37 billion health centre projects rot away nationwide.” However, “the contractor Mathan Nigeria Limited is insisting on a variation of the original contract sum.”

However, on October 24th, 2023, Platform Times reported that “After 16 years, ALGON disburses equipment to [an] abandoned hospital in Ogun [State].” Although this report might’ve meant ALGON was on another different project with a different contractor, the report continued to read, “The equipment, which was part of a federal government project awarded in 2007, was delivered to the health centre on Monday by a contractor, Mathan Nigeria Limited.”

Why the failed project in Kwajale is different

“We’re a little bit far from Bagwai [town], and we do not have good roads; referred patients suffer a lot [in the day, not to mention at night, and even in the dry season, speak less of the rainy season] along the way.” Malam Umar, a community member, lamented.

“We’ve been given classes to continue with our activities because the building meant for the primary health post has been under renovation for years now, but no progress has been made yet,” said Malama Aisha, the head of Kwajale Health Post.

“A non-governmental organisation (NGO), the United Nigerian Youth Forum (UNYF), has urged the Department of State Services (DSS), the police, other security agencies, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe the contractor handling the construction of health centres across the country. The forum accused the contractor, Mathan Nigeria Limited, of abandoning the N57 billion contract, which the forum said had led to the deaths of many Nigerians.” Leadership news report.

Ali Muhammed, the UNYF’s spokesperson, alleged that the contractor’s negligence had caused the deaths of hundreds of expectant mothers who ought to have safely delivered their babies at the health facilities if the projects had been completed on time.

For 17 years now, the remedy for the continued pain like Jummai’s in Kwajale is still uncalled for; no medical condition is manageable at night in Kwajale, their bad roads are yet the same, and patients still suffer along the bicycle-and-motorcycle-only road.

By Uzair Adam Imam

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially signed the North West Development Commission Bill into law.

The Daily Reality reports that the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, announced this to journalists on Tuesday during a meeting at his office in the National Assembly Complex in Abuja.

As the sponsor of the bill, Senator Barau expressed his gratitude to the President for recognizing the challenges faced by the people of the Northwest zone and enacting the bill into law.

Sen. Barau said, “Mr President has signed the North West Development Commission Bill into law. It is a body that is going to assist the development of the zone.

“Today is the happiest day of our lives. We have been praying that this commission be established. Now is the time to enhance the wellbeing and development of the North West zone.

“This means that the President has the political will to develop this country. I call on Nigerians to be patient with the President.

“He has done well for us and we appreciate what he has done. This means that he is a leader to trust,” he stated.

Your Excellency Sir,

Northern Nigeria has been enmeshed in two major crises for about a decade and a half. The first was Boko Haram, born and bred in the North East. From their confrontation with the police to the execution of their leader, Boko Haram grew to become a terror group unprecedented in Nigeria’s history. The most unfortunate thing is that Boko Haram associated themselves with Islam even though most of their heinous attacks were targeted at Muslims.

The failure of Goodluck Jonathan’s government to end the Boko Haram insurgency led to a consensus among Nigerians to disallow him from getting a second shot at the presidency. He lost the 2015 election to your friend and party member, General Muhammadu Buhari. 

Throughout his campaign for the presidency, Buhari promised to end the scourge of Boko Haram and return normalcy to the North East. What he ignored, but he was not supposed to ignore, given his security background, was another crisis rearing its ugly head in the North West. 

Non-Fulani Nigerians were setting up cattle farms in city suburbs and gradually establishing themselves in the cattle farming business, which the Fulani were known for. This did not go down well with some Fulani, who began to form groups to attack such farms and rustle the cows. Anyone who resisted was killed. Since such non-Fulani cattle farmers were relatively small in number, it was soon over with them, and cattle rustling was extended to fellow Fulani, most of whom were law-abiding.

In no time, cattle rustling turned into banditry and kidnapping. Armed chair analysts with little knowledge of what was on the ground began to create conspiracy theories. Some blamed it on Niger Delta militants. Others said it was foreigners from sister West African countries. 

As of 2015, when President Buhari assumed office, the crisis could easily be nipped in the bud. A handful of cattle rustlers/bandits could easily be identified, arrested and punished. Unfortunately, Buhari did not do it either because he was not being correctly briefed or because he was out of sympathy for his kinsmen, who were the culprits.

In October 2016, some governors, notably of Zamfara and Katsina, invited the bandits’ leaders for a peace agreement. That was after they had killed countless numbers of innocent citizens. The villagers in the two states were told to accept the criminals as their brothers or face the wrath of the state. They had no choice.

The peace accord did not last long before the bandits resumed their crimes, which worsened by the day. Banditry continued to thrive under the Buhari administration, and in 2019, he directed the Governors of the affected states to dialogue with the bandits. The governor of my state of Katsina, looking vividly frustrated, told the bandits before press cameras that he was meeting them at the directive of Mr. President. 

A few months after the 2019 accord, Masari told the world that the bandits had reneged on the peace pact. According to him, they were not people to be trusted.

A point of note in the peace accords of 2016 and 2019 was that none of the bandit leaders were citizens of any foreign country. They were all Nigerians, and all of them were Fulani. This invalidates the false belief that the bandits are foreigners or were from another tribe in the south. Most of those hardened criminal lords are still moving about unscathed in villages and forests of Katsina, Zamfara, Kaduna, Sokoto and Niger states. They have been granting press interviews and meeting people like Sheikh Ahmad Gummi, which proves that the government is very aware of their locations and identities. 

I cannot speak for other Nigerians. But for me as a person, I voted for you in the 2023 elections for two reasons. One. You are a Muslim. A Muslim is just as a leader and nice as a companion. If all Muslim leaders were to rule according to the teachings of Islam, even their enemies would beg Muslims to stand for elections, so they vote them to power. Two. Neither you nor your running mate are Fulani. With this, some of us believe Buhari’s sympathy for his kinsmen would not be there.

You are entering your second year, and banditry is only worsening. What struck me most about your approach to banditry are the latest revelations by a young Islamic scholar, Sheikh Munir Adam Koza. According to Sheikh Koza, he was among the many young influential Islamic scholars invited for a meeting by some defence officials of your government. With financial reward, they were requested to propagate the following in their preachings.

1. That banditry by Fulani groups is justified because Fulani people have been subjected to neglect and injustice over a long period.

2. Call on the government to dialogue with bandits and give them political appointments.

3. That the current Governors of Zamfara and Katsina are wrong to have set up security outfits to confront bandits.

Sheikh Koza, who expressed his disagreement at the first meeting, was not invited to subsequent meetings.

The fact that Islamic scholars are actively preaching the above items testifies to the veracity of Sheikh Koza’s statements.

The first question I raised when I saw the video clip was whether you are aware of this action taken by your appointees. It would be a monumental mistake to say since the insecurity is taking place in the North, you have now appointed Northerners to solve “their” own problem.  Nigerians voted for you, not Ribadu, Badaru, Matawalle or any of those. You are thus accountable to Nigerians, and before God for any action your government takes.

With all the due respect of a loyal citizen, I would like to call on your Excellency to come clean about this action allegedly taken by officials of your government. Taking appropriate action against the said Government officials would go a long way toward consolidating the confidence ordinary citizens like me have in your government. 

Most importantly, we want an end to banditry. It can be ended, Mr. President.

Prof. Abdussamad Umar Jibia wrote via aujibia@gmail.com.

By Abdullahi Mukhtar Algasgaini 

The leadership of the House of Representatives, led by Speaker Abbas Tajudeen, Ph.D., paid a familiarisation tour to the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Company in Lagos on Saturday. 

The familiarisation visit, which was at the invitation of the Dangote Group, was initially planned to take place jointly with the leadership of the Senate on June 3, 2024.

However, the leadership of the National Assembly had to put the visit on hold to meet with the leadership of the organised labour on the strike it embarked on at the time. 

The Senate leadership has since embarked on the visit separately, while the House leadership has slated July 20 for its own. 

The House leadership arrived in Lagos on Friday ahead of the familiarisation visit. Speaking when the leadership was conducted around the facility by the President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Speaker Abbas noted that the tour was part of the continuous efforts to understand and support key industries within our nation’s economy. 

“The purpose of this visit is to provide the House Leadership and the relevant oil and gas committees with an in-depth understanding of the nature, scope, and activities of the Dangote Refinery. This initiative aligns with our legislative agenda, which aims to support the President’s Renewed Hope agenda, focusing on economic transformation, growth, and development. 

“This familiarisation tour underscores our commitment to engaging with and supporting critical sectors that drive our economy. Also, this visit provides valuable insights that will inform our legislative measures and decisions. 

“We remain dedicated to fostering an environment conducive to economic growth and development, ensuring that our legislative actions align with the broader goals of national progress as articulated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR.  

He said, “We are acutely aware of the challenges facing the private sector in Nigeria, including regulatory hurdles, infrastructure deficits, and access to finance. The House of Representatives is committed to addressing these issues and improving the ease of doing business in our country. 

“We are working diligently to create a more business-friendly environment through legislative reforms that streamline processes, reduce bureaucracy, and enhance transparency. Our goal is to make Nigeria an attractive destination for both local and international investors. 

“Together, we can drive Nigeria forward, harnessing the full potential of our resources and talents. I look forward to continued collaboration and a prosperous future for our great nation.” 

He said the Dangote refinery “symbolizes not only the strength and potential of Nigerian industry but also the dedication and vision of one of our most esteemed business leaders, Mr. Aliko Dangote.

“However, the journey does not end here. There is always more we can do together to bolster our economy. I encourage Dangote Group to continue exploring avenues to complement government initiatives. By investing in renewable energy, enhancing corporate social responsibility programs, and fostering innovation through research and development, Dangote can further solidify its role as a key player in our economic landscape.” 

The Speaker was in company of the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu; House Leader, Hon. Julius Ihonvbere; Chief Whip, Hon. Usman Bello Kumo; Deputy House Leader, Hon. Abdullahi Ibrahim Halims; Deputy Whip, Hon. Adewumi Onanuga; Minority Leader, Hon. Kingsley Chinda; Minority Whip, Hon. Ali Isa; Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Aliyu Sani Madaki, and Deputy Minority Whip, Hon. George Ozodinobi. 

Also in the delegation were the chairmen of relevant oil and gas committees and their deputies.

By Uzair Adam Imam

The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has expressed concern over the severe economic hardship currently affecting Nigeria and has cautioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu about the potential collapse of the nation. 

Comrade Jamilu Aliyu Charanchi, the National Coordinator of CNG, voiced these concerns during a press briefing in Abuja, warning that the situation “portends imminent danger.”

Charanchi emphasized the importance of addressing the escalating hardship that has permeated every segment of Nigerian society, noting that life has become highly unbearable for the majority of citizens. 

He stressed that the CNG felt obligated to bring this alarming danger to President Tinubu’s attention, pointing to the potential for a massive revolt against the government.

Charanchi also criticized former President Muhammadu Buhari and President Tinubu for worsening the country’s economic situation, making life even more difficult for the vast majority of Nigerians, especially the poor.

He stated, “The suffering of Nigerians is palpable across every stratum. The CNG holds the present and previous governments responsible for creating this dire situation for Nigerians.”

He stated that the current economic indices and data from the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicate that 133 million Nigerians are living in multidimensional poverty, with 20 million people, mostly young and within the productive age bracket, either completely unemployed or underemployed. 

Charanchi highlighted the growing disillusionment among the populace with the government’s economic policies and institutions, which poses a significant danger to the country.

He noted that inflation has had severe economic consequences, including substantial investment losses, business disruptions, increased poverty, and unemployment. 

He added that the insecurity has led to displacement, loss of lives and properties, and psychological trauma, adding, “The widespread hardship has eroded trust in the current government and threatens national unity, peace, and security.”

Charanchi pointed out that overall inflation has risen to 34.19% from 22.41%, a 52.6% increase, while food inflation has surged from 24.82% to 40.66%, a 64% increase within a year—the highest recorded in decades. 

He also criticized the significant rise in electricity tariffs, despite no improvement in power supply, noting that the electricity tariff has increased by an average of ₦71.59 to ₦225, a rise of over 200% for band A. Nigeria has experienced multiple national power grid collapses in the past six months, including the most recent on July 6, 2024. 

Charanchi also criticized the government’s recent announcement to distribute 880,020 bags of rice nationwide to alleviate hardship, stating that these measures are inadequate to address mass hunger affecting millions of Nigerians. 

He added that the president’s cosmetic measures are insufficient to contain the anger of the people, particularly when they are faced with economic hardships, massive hunger, and rampant poverty, while the political class lives in opulence.

By Ishaka Mohammed

The Da’wah Institute (DIN) has launched an online quiz for Nigerian Muslims to deepen their understanding of Islam and win cash prizes and laptops.

According to the Institute’s director of digital media, Teslim Adeyemo, 20 winners will emerge, with the least prizewinner receiving N50,000. Part of the statement details the prizes as follows:

“Awards await the top 20 performers as follows: 1st place (laptop + N500,000), 2nd place (laptop + N350,000), 3rd place (laptop + N150,000), 4th – 10th places (N100,000 each), and 11th – 20th places (N50,000 each).”

The top ten winners will be invited in person to the prize-giving at the Islamic Education Trust (IET) headquarters in Minna, the Niger State capital, while the rest of the winners will join virtually.

The maiden “Know Your Deen Online Quiz” is scheduled for August 25, 2024 and will be based on a book titled “Authenticity of the Qur’an: A concise analysis of arguments regarding the divine authorship and authenticity of the Muslim sacred scripture.”

Interested Muslim residents in Nigeria can register for free at https://dawahinstitute.org/online-quiz-registration/ before August 15 and download the electronic (PDF) version of the book, which has fewer than 100 pages.

The Da’wah Institute (DIN) is the research and public enlightenment department of the Islamic Education Trust (IET), a non-governmental organisation established in Nigeria in 1969.