Nigeria's heavy-handed Twitter ban in 2021 provides a sobering case study of the unintended harms of knee-jerk social media regulation.
The statistics speak for themselves - Nigeria lost an estimated $500 million to $1 billion over the nearly 7-month ban. Daily losses reached as high as $6 million, with the shutdown severely impacting small businesses dependent on Twitter for commerce and customer engagement.
Given these stark economic impacts, Bola Tinubu would be wise to carefully weigh the wider costs of any proposals to regulate social media. While combating misinformation is a worthy aim, Nigeria's experience shows such efforts can easily go too far and incur harms that outweigh the benefits.
Of course,…
Bola Tinubu claims that social media has become a major issue in society and must be regulated. Tinubu, speaking through his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, at a recent event in Lagos, emphasized the importance…
Police have rescued a Nigerian baby who was abducted and sold on the black market for approximately $1,800 by a maid in Lagos.
The kidnapping occurred early Saturday when Ruth Okezie, the domestic worker, vanished from the child's home in Shomolu around 2 a.m. Okezie came from Anambra State and was hired through an agency.
Okezie was discovered in Ikorodu without the baby after the family issued a social media alert. She admitted to selling the infant for 800,000 naira ($…
On Monday morning, police fired gunshots to disperse angry crowds in Minna, Nigeria, protesting rising food prices. What started as a women-led roadblock turned into a massive protest against the rising cost of living.
Around 7 a.m., women obstructed the busy Minna-Bida Road at the Kpakungu roundabout, expressing their dissatisfaction with the rising cost of basic foods. Men soon joined the crowd, halting all traffic in defiance of police.
As tensions rose, police…
In one of the most recent mass kidnappings, heavily armed bandits kidnapped at least 55 wedding guests in Katsina State, northwest Nigeria.
The victims were riding in a crowded open canter truck after attending a wedding in Damari, Sabuwa Local Government Area, on Thursday night. Around 9 p.m., gunmen intercepted the vehicle and hijacked it on the road.
Some riders escaped the chaos by jumping from the moving vehicle. However, the vast majority of them were kidnapped and…
In a brazen raid near an Abuja military facility, heavily armed kidnappers abducted a top Nigerian housing official.
Aondo Ver, a Federal Housing Authority (FHA) director, was taken from his home in the Pambara New Extension neighborhood around 12:30 a.m. on Thursday.
To gain access to the area, the gunmen cut through barbed wire fencing that was only 200 meters away from a military checkpoint and base. They were able to escape into nearby bushes alongside the…
The Labour Party suspended British-Nigerian MP Kate Osamor after she accused Israel of genocide on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day.
Osamor, who represents Edmonton, sparked outrage after claiming in her newsletter that Gaza should be included on the list of "recent genocides." She made the controversial remarks while holding a photo of herself signing the Holocaust Educational Trust's commemorative book in Westminster.
"Tomorrow is Holocaust Memorial Day…
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has explained recent subscriber complaints regarding barred SIM cards. Many users' lines have been deactivated despite having linked their National Identification Numbers (NINs) as required.
Efosa Idehen, NCC Director of Compliance, believes that duplicated NINs are to blame in many cases. He claimed that some third-party agents illegally register SIM cards under the same NIN for multiple subscribers.
…
After decades chasing the American Dream, Nigerian immigrant Pastor Joseph Ibironke's life took a tragic turn, leaving him despondent and homeless.
Ibironke left his banking career in Nigeria in the 1980s in search of better opportunities abroad. He established a successful electronics company in California and raised a family of six children.
However, his life turned into a nightmare when he developed a mysterious illness after an intimate encounter with his…
A Catholic priest in western Kenya is recovering after being viciously attacked for allegedly having an affair with a married woman.
The incident took place on Saturday evening in Majengo village, Vihiga County. According to local reports, angry residents confronted the pastor at a local lodging while he was having an intimate encounter with the wife of another man.
In response, the mob cut off the pastor's hands and legs before fleeing the scene. Police…
The recent death of a 60-year-old church elder in a Kenyan guesthouse has sparked speculation after the woman he was with vanished.
The man was found dead in a room at a Kapsoit guesthouse in Belgut, Kericho County, on Wednesday night. He had checked in with a 19-year-old woman, who initially reported finding him dead but has since vanished.
According to area police chief Charles Kibati, the deceased had no visible wounds. However, investigators discovered a used condom next to…
Former President Donald Trump cruised to a commanding victory in the Iowa Republican caucuses on Monday night, defeating his closest challenger by approximately 30 percentage points.
With 95% of the votes counted, Trump received more than 50% of the vote, outperforming polls and crossing a critical threshold. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came in second, closely followed by former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the fourth-place…
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India - Rajeev Chandrashekhar, the nation's deputy minister of information technology, is the subject of an investigation by Kerala police for reportedly inciting…
Deadly Explosion rock a Jehovah's Witnesses Convention As Multiple Injuries and fatalities Recorded!
Kochi, India - On Sunday, October 29, 2023, a Jehovah's Witness gathering in the Indian state of Kerala was rocked by multiple explosions that resulted in at least two fatalities and…
According to his campaign group, officers harassed and arrested Labor Party Presidential Candidate Peter Obi in London.
In a statement released to the media on Wednesday, Mr Obi's campaign office stated that the event occurred at Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom.
Immigration authorities representing the foreign nation allegedly brought the LP candidate to the corner.
According to Diran Onifade, spokeswoman for the Obi-Datti Campaign Council, officials…