Can’t trust an Agbaya
The 2025 budget has passed its second reading
Good morning, Big Brains. Nigeria frustrated me so much on Tuesday and Wednesday, I woke up this morning still pretty mad. Don’t be surprised when you hear that I’ve japad. I can’t even deal.
- Chigor
Word count: ~ 1, 000
Reading time ~ 4 mins
Let’s get into today’s edition:
The 2025 budget has passed its second reading
Nigeria wants crypto influencers to watch their backs
The Big Deal
The 2025 budget has passed its second reading
The only thing worse than having one Agbaya in charge of your affairs is putting two Agbayas in charge. Unfortunately for Nigerians, they have that in the Federal Government and the current National Assembly.
So by now, you probably already know that on Wednesday, December 18, Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented the country’s 2025 budget to the National Assembly. What you may not have heard is that on Thursday, December 19, the budget passed the first and second readings at the Senate and is now in the committee stage.
Why is this a big deal?
Ordinarily, the swift movement of the budget to its third legislative stage 24 hours after it was presented could be interpreted as efficiency on the part of the lawmakers, but because of how chummy the 10th Assembly is with the Tinubu administration, this speedy movement deserves to be questioned.
How chummy are they with the President? For starters, when Tinubu walked into the Senate Chamber on Wednesday to present the budget, the lawmakers, led by the Chief agbaya (Senate President, Godswill Apkabio), started chanting “on your mandate we shall stand!” (a pro Tinubu song ) even before he had a chance to start the presentation.
This is not the first time that Nigerian lawmakers have displayed their bromance with the Presidency; in fact, they’ve done this so much that they’ve been tagged a rubber stamp assembly— those calling them by that name might actually not be wrong and we have a couple more examples to prove it.
In October 2023, when Tinubu nominated ten Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs), he included about four persons loyal to him (including two card carrying members of the APC). Nigerians pointed out how wrong it was that an impartial position should be occupied by people with clear interest and bias, the Senate ignored every reasonable concern and approved the nominees anyway.
In March 2024, the National Assembly hurriedly approved the FCT 2024 budget worth ₦1.2 trillion, three legislative days after it was sent to them by President Tinubu.
More recently in October 2024, the National Assembly passed a bill legalising the change of the country’s national anthem, within the one week that they received it from the President.
We are not saying the President and the National Assembly should always be at each other’s throats but the legislature is supposed to checkmate the executive in order to ensure accountability and good governance but instead, what Nigerians have seem to be fans who would do anything the President asks.
This is bad for Nigeria’s democracy, growth, and overall prosperity as a country but what do we know
Nigeria wants crypto influencers to watch their backs
Big Brains, this second part of today’s edition of the newsletter is mostly a reminder from the Nigerian Exchange and Securities Commission (SEC).
In September 2024, the SEC drafted an amendment to its Digital Assets (DA) Rules, a law which regulates cryptocurrency in Nigeria. Recently, on Monday, December 16, they republished the draft amendment on their website for the public.
You should probably dance for joy if you’re a crypto enthusiast because this update will make things easier and safer for you. The new law, which will take effect from June 30, 2025, requires crypto platforms and Virtual Assets Service Provider (VASP) to register and get a license from the SEC before broadcasting their services to the general public either on Tv, radio, newspapers, or on social media.
More specifically, the law wants crypto influencers promoting digital assets or services to inform their communities that they’re being paid to do so before they begin. Flouting of this particular law could amount to a 3 year jail term or a ₦10 million fine.
The new law also requires influencers to ensure that any VASP, platform, or service that they promote on their communities are registered and licensed by SEC.
Why is this important?
Cryptocurrency has become such a big deal in Nigeria that the country is ranked top of different crypto market indexes.
But it has also unfortunately become known in the crypto world for scams. In 2021 for instance, Israeli Blockchain Analytics firm, Whitestream released a study showing Nigeria was “turning into a den of cryptocurrency scams.” This new SEC law, if properly implemented will help clear this bad reputation in the international community.
The law is also especially important because a lot of the time, fraudulent platforms carry out their scams by using celebrities and crypto influencers with huge following as bait. With the clause specifically asking them to inform their followers when they make sponsored posts, the law will at least help to sanitize the crypto space in Nigeria.
This Week’s Big Question
“What is your favourite Christmas memory?”
Sammy’s response– “I need light.”
You can also share your response here, and if it’s as interesting as Rolake’s, we’ll feature it in the next edition.
The Big Picks
35 Minors Confirmed Dead In Ibadan Stampede, Ooni’s Ex-Wife Arrested: Former wife of the Ooni of Ife has been arrested after 35 minors were confirmed dead in a funfair organized by her
US Diplomats Arrive Syria To Meet Victorious Rebels: US envoys are currently in Syria to have formal talks with the new rulers of Syria following the end of the country’s long civil war.
If you enjoyed this edition of the newsletter, don’t forget to subscribe and share. You can also leave feedback for us in the comments or by filling out this form.