Miss Truth is a clapback lady

Nigeria’s citizens are dying because of food

Dec 23, 2024

Good morning, Big Brains. After what seemed like an eternity, my leave has finally ended. Shout out to Chigor for holding things down. I want to be an oversharer and spill everything I’ve been up to, but I think today’s newsletter has more interesting details than whatever I have to share.

- Margaret

Word count: ~ 1, 000
Reading time ~ 4 mins

This Week’s Big Question: ”Are you confident about Nigeria getting better in 2025?” Share your responses with us, and if we think they’re fun enough, we’ll feature them in the newsletter :) so be on the lookout.

Let’s get into the news you missed during the weekend:

Hungry Nigerians are losing their lives
Naira has no New Year resolution

The Big Deal

Hungry Nigerians are losing their lives

Earlier this year, the New York Times released a report that double tasked as a little PSA to the world, informing it of Nigeria’s worst economic crisis yet, and some interesting set of people (read Tinubu and crew) got triggered by it. Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Information and Strategy, even went as far as saying that the report was “all gloom and doom” and far from the reality of Nigerians. This is not the “gotcha” moment we’ve been waiting for, but the truth (unfortunately) has a nasty way of showing up. This time, three stampedes in different locations in the country have proven that Nigeria is, in fact, facing its worst economic crisis (and probably worst leadership) yet.

On Wednesday, December 18, the news of a stampede that led to the death of 35 children took us all by surprise, and it wasn’t the pleasant kind. That surprise turned to rage when it became clear that the stampede was caused by a disturbingly long line of hungry Nigerians who were hoping to get free food, scholarships and other prizes at a charity event in Ibadan.

On Saturday, December 21, another set of vulnerable Nigerians who left their homes in Okija, Anambra, to get free rice was met with another stampede. The death count had risen to 22 as of yesterday.

On the same day, a similar tragedy at a Catholic church in Abuja killed 10 people, including four children.

Why is this a big deal?

We’ll start with three words to explain why this is a big deal - this is disturbing! If that’s all we say on this topic, it’s enough.

In one week, three charity-related events have led to the loss of lives of over 50 Nigerians, including children. Unfortunately, nothing describes the current state of Nigeria like these events. If we all needed a reminder that the economy has gone to complete shit, this is it.

In one year, fuel prices have gone through the roof, food has become a luxury, and daily commuting has become almost impossible to afford. Yet, nothing has changed. It’s still the same old policies (that the economy has proven to be unprepared for) and the same promise of a better Nigeria.

It makes you wonder what the new year is going to bring. Happy tides or renewed shege?

Naira has no New Year resolution

We love a consistent currency, and if there’s one thing the naira is good at, it’s consistently losing the fight against the dollar. Word on the street is it’s keeping that same energy as we step into 2025.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) just dropped its Business Expectation Survey Report for November 2024, and it shows that businesses are already predicting the naira will keep depreciating this month and for the first three months of next year. Interestingly, though, they believe there’s hope for the naira to recover by mid-2025—an optimistic plot twist that’s still hard to picture.

In the report, the CBN noted that while businesses were generally optimistic about the economy, they weren’t exactly thrilled with their current realities, as access to credit, financial conditions, and the volume of total orders all dampened their outlook.

But if you think businesses are being extra with their pessimism, regular Nigerians are far less hopeful. In its Consumer Expectation Survey Report, the CBN revealed that households are bracing for higher transportation costs, rent, cars, housing, and medical expenses this month. Although over half of respondents believe the prices of some household items might drop slightly, the general vibe isn’t exactly cheery.

The naira’s consistency in falling is unmatched, but at this point, we’re all rooting for a miracle. God help us in 2025.

The Big Picks

Tinubu Cancels Official Events, Mourns Victims Of ‘Avoidable’ Stampedes: President Bola Tinubu has cancelled his official events in Lagos after multiple stampedes broke out during food distribution in Abuja and Anambra State.

FG Lifts Ban On Mining In Zamfara After Five Years: The Federal Government has ended the five-year ban on mining in Zamfara State.