News
Trump’s Hold Unto Power After Defeat, a Case for Nigeria
By Joel Popoola
Defeated and discredited, humiliated and humbled, Donald Trump continues to deny the clear result of last week’s US presidential election, which he lost by over five million votes, and refuses to concede to his challenger, Joe Biden.
Instead he’s been using the media he controls – his Twitter account – to broadcast allegations of vote-rigging, corruption and ballot stuffing for which he has produced no evidence.
His foreign minister has publicly implied Trump will remain in office regardless of the result.
His defence minister has been fired for apparently refusing to deploy the army on US streets.
If this was happening in Africa, Goodluck Jonathan would already be on a plane on the way to mediate!
But it is happening in America, a nation Nigeria is supposed to look to as a democratic role model.
As Nigerians, we must ask ourselves, could this happen here? Sadly, the answer is yes.
Even by Donald Trump’s standards, the idea that he will be able to remain in power remains far-fetched. He will leave the White House on January 20, 2021. But he will leave a legacy of chaos and mistrust behind.
Donald Trump’s ability to get away with this behaviour stems from an existing lack of public trust in political and public institutions, fuelled by his use of social media.
And historically, these institutions – in America as in Nigeria – have not helped themselves. People are right to be sceptical of their politicians and their government. They have done plenty for people to be sceptical of.
American broadcasters have cut away from President Trump’s baseless claims of electoral corruption. But these allegations continue to be spread far and wide by devout supporters on social media, discrediting the entire democratic process with every share.
It is entirely possible that a Nigerian Donald Trump could lose an election, but remain in office by using social media to exploit longstanding mistrust of our political protests.
Which is why it is critical that we take steps to build trust between electors and elected and in faith in the integrity of our democratic process.
Recent events in Nigeria have once again ignited calls for greater regulation of social media – which I believe are no more feasible than desirable and more likely to end in protests than end protests.
As we have seen in the recent #EndSARS protests, digitally savvy young Nigerians are perfectly adept at using VPN to circumvent internet shutdowns and digital currency to fundraise. They will find a way around any online obstacle you put in their way, at great cost to your credibility.
More important, a social media crackdown will do nothing to stop fake news is being spread by a Head of State themselves. If we cannot trust official channels, who can we trust?
Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and YouTube have proved themselves completely inadequate at preventing their platforms being used for the purposes of political propaganda. And with good reason – they were never designed for such purposes. Mark Zuckerberg set up Facebook to rate the appearances of pretty girls he went to university with!
At the digital democracy campaign I lead, we believe the answer is a new more appropriate social media platforms, based on trust and transparency.
A better lesson to learn from the #EndSARS protests is to consider how protesters themselves frequently flagged inaccurate online information, even when it supported their cause. They realised that the most important thing was that information associated with them was credible. Trust matters.
This is one of the reasons we created Rate Your Leader, a free app which puts voters in direct person to person contact with their local leaders and enables them to start the dialogue that leads to trust – as well as allowing them to signal to their own networks that they think the information they have received is honest and truthful. No spin, no distortion, no lies – just one on one dialogue, publically rated for accuracy and credibility.
Rate Your Leader also allows local representatives to get a real-time insight into the things that matter most to the people who elect them – and how to address them.
A social media crackdown will not prevent us from finding our own Donald Trump trespassing in Aso Villa.
The answer instead is taking advantage of social media to communicate and engage better, between different beliefs, different backgrounds and different generations and to build trust between people and politicians.
Joel Popoola is a Nigerian tech entrepreneur, digital democracy campaigner and is creator of the Rate You Leader app. You can reach Joel on Twitter @JOPopoola
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as the winner of the just concluded Ondo State governorship election, held on Saturday, November 16, 2024.
The Returning Officer for the election Olayemi Akinwumi, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University, Lokoja, Kogi State declared Aiyedatiwa winner of the election on Sunday, extending the governor’s stay at the Government House in Alagbaka, Akure.
Governor Aiyedatiwa polled 366,781 votes to defeat his closest rival and a former deputy governor of the state Ajayi Agboola who flew the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag. He scored 117,845 votes, more than twice lower than the APC candidate.
“That Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa of the APC having satisfied the requirement of the law is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” the returning officer said at exactly 2:30 pm at the INEC collation centre in Akure.
The declaration came hours after the collation of results for the election began in the early hours of Sunday. Although the collation centre went on breaks, the APC took a commanding lead with over 200,000 votes ahead of the PDP.
The final results showed that the APC won the election in a landslide, clearing all 18 local government areas.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
There is no gainsaying the fact that everyone desirous of making impact in life must live a life of purpose. This is where knowledge and information come to play. It is these knowledge and information that will set an individual apart from his contemporaries.
I strongly believe, if one is not informed, they are ill-informed, and when they are ill-informed, they can’t perform well in any given endeavour. This is because information leads to reformation and transformation. We can therefore, confidently say that information leads to formation because everyone is a product of what they know.
Knowledge acquisition is one of the best things that can happen to anyone. People with knowledge are revered, and highly respected. Having knowledge is like having money. People from all walks of life will seek you.
There are different kinds of knowledge, and they include Revealed Knowledge, which comes from those who wrote the Bible and Intuitive Knowledge, which comes from the mind. It is the ability to gain knowledge without conscious reason or explanation.
Others are Empirical Knowledge, which is information gained through observation, experimentation, and direct experience, rather than through theoretical reason or intuition; Authoritative Knowledge, which is the knowledge a man has because of his expertise in a particular field; and finally but not the least, Rational Knowledge, which is a form of knowledge that uses reasoning and philosophy to understand the world.
From this illustration, a decisive mind can see that knowledge is priceless. Knowledge is like education. It can provide security and access. Even the Book of life says in Proverbs 4:13, “your education is your life, guard it very well”; and in Hosea 4:6 that “my people perish for lack of knowledge”.
From my personal experience in life, apart from death, one of the greatest levelers of all time is education. This is because the child of a certified pauper can become a man of means tomorrow if properly educated. That explains why children from humble backgrounds ought to take their education very seriously, especially if they don’t have affluence.
On a personal note, I come from a very humble background, my late parents didn’t have the opportunity of acquiring a decent education, but they knew the value of education and endeavored to give me and my siblings a decent education. In retrospect, when I look back and see some of my contemporaries whose parents couldn’t give them a decent education, I bless my late parents because education has exposed me to lots of opportunities in the United States, and the global world in addition to granting me an audience with the high and mighty in society.
Sometimes, when I look at my modest achievement, I’m deeply humbled because I know it is the grace of God. Who am I to author two amazing trailblazers’ books, get featured and profiled by the New York Times, engage in high level conversation with leaders of thought and captains of industries. Apart from the grace of God, intentional seeking of knowledge, and wise counsel from mentors and strategically positioning myself have been some of the cornerstone to my success.
Imagine if my late parents didn’t give me a decent education and opportunity of travelling to the United States, most of these opportunities and exposure wouldn’t have been readily available.
When one is decently enlightened, educated and informed about life, their level of reasoning and understanding differ from an ordinary man. If one desires to go far in life, one must seek knowledge.
It is your knowledge that sets you apart from others.
According to Dr. Yomi Garnett, an accomplished Ghostwriter, “If you are a man of great knowledge, people will have great respect for you. If you are a man of great wisdom, people will have great reverence for you. And if you are a man of both, great knowledge and great wisdom, you will be the most eminent of men. But in real terms, people don’t care how much you know, or how much wisdom you have, unless they know how much you care.”
The moral of this quote is that despite the knowledge and information at one’s disposal, if one lacks empathy, their knowledge, experience and whatever they have mean nothing.
The importance of knowledge cannot be overemphasized. In our contemporary society, a fast way of attracting opportunities is by showcasing the knowledge at one’s disposal. It is so sad that many people don’t take time to read, research and learn new trends applicable in their industry, and in the world generally and as such, they find it difficult to fit in and grow.
It is instructive to note that when you seek knowledge, opportunities will seek for you. A major reason people are poor is simply because they are not solving problems and to solve problems, one ought to have understanding. Do you know that if you don’t have money, the reason is often because you are not solving a problem, or you are not solving enough problems, or you are not solving the right problem or you are not solving problems for the right people. Generally, we make money because we have something unique to offer to the world. Therefore, to solve problems, one must have knowledge and information.
We currently live in an age of technological, where skills, talent and creativity are in high demand. Any progressive being that desires to go far must be intentional in seeking knowledge. Successful acquisition of knowledge, information and understanding can lead to discernment and wisdom.
In conclusion, as you journey towards life, if you want to make an impact, seek opportunities, and earn more money, do yourself a favour by endeavoring to seek knowledge, wisdom, and information. You can’t get these by sitting on your sofa or staying in your comfort zone.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design Your and Unleash Your Destiny. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Daniel Bwala as Special Adviser, Media and Public Communications (State House).
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, announced this in a statement, on Thursday.
A former aide of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Bwala worked actively for his former principal who lost to Tinubu.
However, after the elections, he worked his way into the camp of Tinubu, sparking controversy.
Onanuga also announced the appointments of three directors-general of various agencies.
They are:
(1) Mr. Olawale Olopade — Director-General, National Sports Commission
(2) Dr. Abisoye Fagade — Director-General, National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism
(3) Dr. Adebowale Adedokun — Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement
Olopade, the new Director-General of the National Sports Commission, is a sports administrator with many years of experience in the sector.
He served as commissioner of youth and sports in Ogun state and was chairman of the local organising committee of the 2024 National Sports Festival.
The new Director-General of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, Dr. Abisoye Fagade is a marketing communication professional. He is the founder and managing director of Sodium Brand Solutions.
Adedokun, the new helmsman of the Bureau of Public Procurement, was the director of Research/Training and Strategic Planning at the bureau before his appointment.
Daily Trust
