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The Bellwether State What Ekiti State Can Tell Us About the 2023 Election

July 6, 2022

‘A Symbol of Hope’ 120 Years After It Was Stolen, Germany Is Returning Ngonnso’ to Cameroon

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Latest

The Bellwether State What Ekiti State Can Tell Us About the 2023 Election

July 6, 2022

‘A Symbol of Hope’ 120 Years After It Was Stolen, Germany Is Returning Ngonnso’ to Cameroon

July 5, 2022

The Road to 2023 2023 Election Updates

July 5, 2022

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Today in 1998, MKO Abiola died at the age of 60. #

Today in 1998, MKO Abiola died at the age of 60. #RxHistory⏳

On 7 July 1998, Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, also called MKO Abiola, died under controversial circumstances.

He was a businessman, publisher, and aristocrat, who ran for the Nigerian presidency on 12 June 1993. Said to be the freest and fairest election in the history of Nigerian democracy, the June 12 election was annulled by the preceding military president, Ibrahim Babangida, paving the way for Sani Abacha to seize power.

MKO Abiola declared himself president in 1994 and was jailed for treason.

He died on the day he was due out of jail, a month after the death of Abacha. While the official autopsy claimed that he died of natural causes, popular speculation about the cause of his death include torture at the hands of the Nigerian military and poisoning by emissaries of the American government.

MKO Abiola is considered a symbol of Nigerian democracy.

Read more about Abiola by clicking the link in our bio.
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📝: Adams Adeosun x Ugonna Eronini
📷: MKO Abiola. Guardian NG.

Does what happens in Ekiti stay in Ekiti? #OnSite⚡

Ekiti State is the first of two states in Nigeria that conduct governorship elections before the federal elections but how well do elections in Ekiti influence or predict presidential voting results?

On June 18, residents of Ekiti State pulled up at various polling units to vote for a new governor. Former governor Peter Fayose of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and incumbent governor Kayode Fayemi of the All Progressives Congress (APC) backed two governorship candidates: Biodun Oyebanji (APC) and Bisi Kolawole (PDP). Former PDP governor Segun Oni also entered the race as a candidate for the Social Democratic Party (SDP), heightening the rivalry between the longtime political adversaries. APC's Biodun Oyebanji, who was Governor Fayemi's immediate past secretary to the state government, won the election, making it the first time Ekiti’s voters have elected an APC candidate as their state governor twice in a row.

In our latest online essay, political analyst, Kunle Adewumi argues that the timing of the Ekiti election makes it an important indicator of how the general election cycle unfolds. He also asks whether Ekiti’s election can predict with certainty how Nigerians will vote in 2023.

What do you think? Let us know in our comments. Read the full essay by clicking the link in our bio.
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📝: Kunle Adewumi
📷: Governor-Elect Biodun Oyebanji [centre] waves in Ado-Ekiti, after the Independent National Electoral Commission confirms his victory at the Ekiti State governorship election. 22 June 2022. BiodunOyebanji / Twitter.

Today in 1967, the Nigerian federal military advan

Today in 1967, the Nigerian federal military advanced into Biafra, igniting the Biafran War. #RxHistory⏳

In the early hours of 06 July 1967, the Nigerian Civil War, also called the Biafran War, began with the invasion of the secessionist state of Biafra by Nigerian troops.

The civil war came on the heels of a series of coups and countercoups, which resulted from the corruption and social distress in the First Republic of Nigeria. On 15 January 1966, Major Emmanuel Ifeajuna led a coup which saw the death of important northern leaders including the prime minister and premier of the Northern Region.

A successful countercoup that put General Yakubu Gowon in power later in the year brought about an anti-Igbo pogrom in which 80,000–100,000 Igbo people were killed in five months, forcing almost two million Igbos living in the North at the time to escape back to the Eastern Region.

The Eastern Region governor, Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu, declared the independence of the Republic of Biafra on 30 May 1967 to protect Igbo people from victimization by the Northerner-dominated Nigerian government.

Nigeria’s invasion of Biafra today in 1967 lasted till the surrender of Biafra on 15 January 1970 and had casualties in the millions.

To learn more about the Biafran war, click the link in our bio.
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📝: Adams Adeosun and Ugonna Eronini
📷: 1) Ojukwu, as military governor of Biafra, inspecting some of his troops in 1968. Trinity Mirror / Mirrorpix /Alamy

2) Nigerian federal troops during an operation against Biafran forces near the town of Ore, Nigeria, in 1967. Unknown Photographer.

3) Locals in south east Nigeria in 1968 during the peak of the Biafra war. AP-PHOTO/RJS/STF/KURT STRUMPF

4) Biafra Leader, Lt. Col. Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, at his desk, circa 1967-1970. GETTY IMAGES

Germany is returning Ngonnso’ to Cameroon 120 ye

Germany is returning Ngonnso’ to Cameroon 120 years after it was stolen. #RxNews📡

The Ngonnso’ statue is a female goddess statue that was stolen from the ancient Nso’ Kingdom in northwestern Cameroon. It was brought to Germany in 1903 and donated to the Ethnological Museum in Berlin by German colonial officer, Kurt von Pavel.

On 27 June, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation (Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz ((SPK))—a German government organization that manages 27 German museums and cultural organizations—announced that it will return the statue to Cameroon as calls for the restitution of stolen artefacts in the possession of former colonial forces continue to gain momentum.

Cameroon was a colony of Germany from 1884 to 1916. In a statement by SPK, the president of the foundation, Hermann Parzinger, said: ‘The decision makes it clear that the question of returning collection items from colonial contexts is not just a question of a context of injustice. The special – especially spiritual – significance of an object for its society of origin can justify its return.’

Read more about the return by clicking the link in our bio.
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📝: Tomisin Awosika, Junior Editor
📷: 1) The Ngonnso’ statue. LEGIDEON NEWS

2) Cameroonian cultural activist, Sylvie Njobati, at the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, Germany, where the Ngonnso’ statue is housed. Marc Sebastian Eils.

3) The Ngonnso’ statue at the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, Germany. Bring Back Ngonnso / Twitter.

Today in 1962, Algeria declared independence from

Today in 1962, Algeria declared independence from France. #RxHistory⏳

On 5 July 1962, Algeria achieved independence from France after a seven-year-long war—one of the longest and most brutal independence wars in Africa. More than 100,000 Algerian and 10,000 French soldiers were killed, along with thousands of Algerian and European civilians.

The war was fought between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front. It started in November 1954 and was characterized by guerrilla warfare, sexual abuse, and the use of torture. The war ended more than 130 years of French colonial rule in Algeria.

During the war, Algerian women played a significant role. More than 10,000 women actively participated in the war. Although a large portion of these women served in non-military roles as nurses, cooks, and laundresses, around 2% of them served as soldiers.

Did you know that revolutionary philosopher, Frantz Fanon, fought in the Algerian war of independence? During the war, Fanon worked as a psychiatrist at a French hospital in Algeria. He later quit his job and joined Algeria’s anti-colonial struggle. He published a series of essays and books on decolonization and the Algerian revolution.

Read more about Algeria’s independence by clicking the link in our bio.
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📝: Ibukun Olokode and Ugonna Eronini
📷: A man waves the Algerian flag along with other demonstrators during a protest in Algeria’s capital, Algiers. 25 October 2019. Ramzi Boudina / REUTERS

Today in 1975, Cape Verde declared independence fr

Today in 1975, Cape Verde declared independence from Portugal. #RxHistory⏳

On 5 July 1975, Cape Verde achieved full independence, and Aristides Pereira became its first president with Pedro Pires as prime minister.

Until 1879, when they were split into different territories, Cape Verde was administrated jointly with Guinea-Bissau by Portugal. The island nation, alongside Guinea-Bissau, was recognized as an ‘overseas province’ during the African decolonization movements of the 1950s and its people were granted full Portuguese citizenship in 1961.

Unsatisfied by their new status, Cape Verdeans and Bissau-Guineans united to demand for complete independence and a joint nationalist movement, led by Amílcar Cabral, was born.

Read more about the Cape Verde’s independence in today’s newsletter which goes out at 6 p.m. (WAT). Sign up at the link in our bio.
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📝: Adams Adeosun and Ugonna Eronini
📷: Amilcar Cabral. Unknown Photographer

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