No gree for anybody

Nigerian youths are not stopping their #EndBadGovernance protest till FG folds

Jul 22, 2024

Yay, another Monday morning! Good morning, Big Brains. We can’t scrap Miss Monday off the calendar so we might as well pretend we love her. Anyways, your daily dose of smarts is here and it's hot. Don’t forget to share with a friend!

- Margaret

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This Week’s Big Question - “If you could witness any event in history, what would it be and why?” Share your responses with us and if we think it’s fun enough, we’ll feature it in the newsletter :) so be on the lookout.

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

Nigerian youths insist on #EndBadGovernance protest
Meta fined $220 million for data privacy breach and unfair practices in Nigeria
Uganda's president says anti-corruption protesters are “playing with fire”

The Big Deal

Nigerian youths insist on #EndBadGovernance protest

Like that coworker who gets charged up when they see you putting on your A game, it seems Nigerian youths have been inspired by the protests in Kenya. What started as a hashtag on social media is starting to evolve into a real-life protest scheduled to be held in August.

The government is currently trying to stop the protests before they even start. The Special Adviser Information and Strategy to President Tinubu shared on X that “the malcontents planning to stage nationwide protests are supporters of Peter Obi, the failed presidential candidate of the Labour Party”. But the Arewa Youths from the Northern part of Nigeria have made it clear that the protest is not inspired by political rivalry and they will still hit the streets to protest against the president’s anti-people policies on August 1.

“We wish to make it clear that the protest becomes necessary considering the insecurity that spirals upward coupled with incessant food and fuel crisis, unemployment and high cost of living bedevilling our region in particular and the country in general.”

They also added that the only way to stop the protests is to reverse the policies that have increased “gruesome hunger and multidimensional poverty in the land.”

Why is this a big deal?

The events surrounding the protests in Kenya have been identical to what happened during the #EndSARS protests in 2020. Like Kenya, several #EndSARS protesters were killed, injured and detained. On October 10, 2020, the protest ended on an unexpected note when the military opened fire on innocent protesters and reportedly erased every evidence of the inhumane action.

Given that this happened during the administration of Muhammadu Buhari, a member of the ruling party, there’s no assurance that the planned #EndBadGovernance would not have a similar end. The efforts of the government to reduce the intended protest to a frivolous action inspired by political envy rather than a response to the hardship in the country are also very telling in their stance on the protest.

Meta fined $220 million for data privacy breach and unfair practices in Nigeria

Every Nigerian and their mom started the year with a common mantra: no gree for anybody. This mantra is being repeated less than it was in January but Nigerians are still not greeing, not even for the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp—Meta.

What’s tea?

The federal government recently handed the company a $220 million fine. The reason? FG played detective for 38 months and found out that Meta had been breaching the data privacy of Nigerians, treating Nigerian users with discrimination, and abusing its market power.

The investigations, which were conducted by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), started in May 2021 and ended in December 2023.

According to the findings, Meta has been transferring the data of Nigerian users across borders without consent, and pushing users into agreeing to questionable privacy policies. Even with multiple chances to explain, Meta’s defences didn’t move any of the regulatory bodies.

The FCCPC has made it clear that Meta’s actions violate Nigerian law and if the company intends to keep operating in Nigeria, it will be required to respect Nigerian users' data rights, stop unauthorized data transfers, and end discriminatory practices.

The FCCPC added that this hefty fine should serve as a little reminder that even tech giants must play by the rules. “Meta must comply with our laws, stop exploiting Nigerian consumers, and cease any market abuse,” they said.

Uganda's president says anti-corruption protesters are “playing with fire”

Like Nigerian youths, Ugandans are also getting ready to protest against government corruption.

While President Tinubu has remained lowkey unbothered by the protest plans, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda has put out a public warning stating that Ugandans are "playing with fire" if they proceed with the protests.

"We are busy creating wealth... and you here want to disturb us. You are playing with fire because we cannot allow you to disturb us," he stated.

Museveni, who has ruled Uganda since 1986, is often criticised for his authoritarian style even though his supporters argue he has brought stability to the country. He also accused some protest organizers of collaborating with foreigners to cause unrest, without providing specific details.

The police have already denied permission for the march, which is scheduled for Tuesday when parliament opens. But like Nigerian youths, Ugandan youths are also unfazed. Protest leader Louez Aloikin Opolose told AFP that they would go ahead with the demonstration. "We don't need police permission to carry out a peaceful demonstration. It is our constitutional right.”

The Big Picks

Biden Drops Out Of US 2024 Election Race, Endorses Harris: Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he is dropping out of the US presidential election and is endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party’s new nominee. This surprising decision changes the 2024 race for the White House.

58 More Trafficked Nigerians Rescued In Ghana – NIDCOM: Another group of 58 Nigerian women and children have been rescued from human traffickers in Ghana, according to the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM).

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