Economy
Nigeria—No be Juju be this?
By Prince Charles Dickson PhD
This is not just primitive rural superstition; [juju] is practised by all kinds of people, from illiterate herd boys to multi-degreed university professors. If you don’t understand the power of this belief, you will never truly grasp the rich albeit often incomprehensible spirituality of Africa. Lawrence Anthony, The Elephant Whisperer.
Nobody respects the law of Nigeria. Judges don’t. Police don’t. Lawyers don’t. Politicians don’t. Citizens don’t. Why? Because there are no consequences. Those who fear the laws are the downtrodden who have no godfathers. That is why stealing a goat is more dangerous than stealing billions. Nigeria is a country of absurdities. J. S. Okutepa. (SAN)
No be juju be this…
So, wetin be or what is juju?
juju; plural noun: jujus.
A charm or fetish, especially of a type used by some West African peoples. Supernatural power attributed to a charm or fetish. “Juju and witchcraft”.
Juju, an object that has been deliberately infused with magical power or the magical power itself; it also can refer to the belief system involving the use of juju. Juju is practised in West African countries such as Nigeria, Benin, Togo, and Ghana, although its assumptions are shared by most African people.
Juju comes from the traditional African religion popularly known as voodoo. Juju refers specifically to objects used in conjunction with spells or curses, and like any practice or belief, it can be manipulated to create power over people.
Witches and juju things are absolutely fascinating—they can fly on broomsticks, do magic spells with their wands and stir up incredible potions in their cauldrons. They can ask for and do the unimaginable. In Nigeria, it is just about the unthinkable things they can and cannot do or are held liable for doing or not allowing to happen.
The Harry Potter books for example have made witches (and wizards) really cool recently – who wouldn’t want to be as smart as Hermione Granger, as brave as Ginny Weasley or play Quidditch as well as Cho Chang? However, in Nigeria, it is about child rights abuse and killings.
This admonition is not about juju or witchcraft but it is about juju and the witchcraft ‘worrying’ Nigeria. Kindly follow me for the next few paragraphs and then we can share thoughts.
Almost eight years and the government could not get one refinery working at full capacity, providing employment and serving Nigerians in a land blessed with the resources. A nation of all typologies of expertise in the oil sector and still cannot simply have an agreement on whether there is subsidy or not and what to do with it—no be juju be that!
Police follow PHCN abi DisCo officials to disconnect electricity from another police station. Meanwhile, DisCo is indebted to the Water Board and the Water Board is indebted to local contractors that supply purifying chemicals and the contractors cannot pay local tax because they are indebted to the local electrician who repairs household electronics destroyed as a result of terrible electricity current supplied to homes. We have changed names, balkanized the utility company, privatized it, funded it yet the energy problem persists, it is one hellish vicious cycle—No be juju be that!
How many times have you seen policemen wear protective gloves, or collect forensic evidence? Do we have a data bank? A country of different data capture for NIN, another for driver’s licence, another for BVN, even another set of data for ‘unavailable’ Nigerian passports (printed in another country). Yet, there’s ‘no-go-to’ data bank, wait…have you seen a desktop in a local police station, not-to-talk of a laptop, apart from the ‘big boys’—No be juju be that!
We close factories to build places of worship and then pray for jobs, every national celebration has an interdenominational service and Juma’at prayers as accompaniment, yet we are a religiously wicked people. Every Christian with his personal juju-man, and every Muslim her own ‘boka-man’. We do interfaith prayers at official events, meetings and steal afterwards, and then do thanksgiving; saying ‘na God ooo’—No be juju be that!
A government official builds a hospital and calls it world-class, and yet he goes to another country for healthcare. They commission schools they describe as world-class and yet they are kids, are schooling in puppet colleges in other climes. They live in villages and build castles in the US, and beg these dudes for aid and loans—no be juju be that!
We are venting on power relations across balance of the geographical spread called Nigeria. In other words, we want power to go the South, the North has had its share, we are talking Muslim-Muslim ticket, and can’t say Christian-Christian ticket. No one is talking about the Ogboni-Krishna ticket.
Sadly, we are stuck with if the President is from here the Vice must be from there in the only nation with the aberrations such as South-South, North East, North West, South East and too many juju-like political expediency laced necessities such as federal character, catchment area, indigene and non-indigene, educationally disadvantaged; still no way, In fact, historically, we have no history so we cannot agree on who is at fault or what the solution is—No be juju be that!
Who remembers in 2015, the Witches and Wizards Association of Nigeria (WITZAN) announced that it had endorsed Goodluck Jonathan as its candidate for the 2015 presidential election.
“We just held a meeting of witches in Kogi State where it was revealed to me that Jonathan would win the presidential election. He has the support of all witches to continue in office,” said a certain Dr Iboi, the President of the association.
Well, we can see that WITZAN’s pick ended up not winning the race. The following year, WITZAN made a cry for help, as the association released a statement for Nigerians to stop persecuting them, we are waiting for them towards 2023—no be juju be that!
Last week in the news, brother and mother colluded to murder a sibling. Another son attempted to kill his mother. Young lads ate their ‘poo’ in public and in the same week, three lads, the oldest being 20, beheaded the girlfriend of one of them, all for money ritual. A trend that has seen a scary rise in the last two years, and being the pretentious people that we are, acting like it’s new, only a few years back it was ‘panties stealing’ and till date, nobody has been arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and jailed—no be juju be that!
Our Federal Road Safety Corps Officers only work during the day and close by 5:00 pm and the roads can be left unsafe at night. Nigerians cannot be ‘de-jujulized’ by praying, by big grammar, by protests, the juju has to be engaged, the gatekeepers of power and resources in Nigeria are not up to 5000 but their juju is strong and is holding the nation down.
It is a sad reality that 2023 really does not offer much if we refuse to address the witchcraft that has beset the motherland if we refuse to see that all is not well and keep behaving like a bewitched people, a big storm is not far away, and if we don’t act, the disaster that looms—Only time will tell.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
New independent research has revealed that the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, Meta, contributes about $820 million to the Nigerian economy every year.
In the new report titled Nigeria’s Digital Economy, conducted by Public First, it was discovered that about 14 million Nigerian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) used Meta’s apps like Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, Meta AI, and Threads, to start and grow their businesses in 2025, contributing $2 billion to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and delivering an estimated $640 million in productivity gains through more efficient instant messaging.
Business Post gathered from the study released in Abuja on Thursday that the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) is set to add about $22 billion to Nigeria’s DGP by 2035.
It was observed that virtually all Nigerian businesses surveyed confessed that Meta’s platforms have expanded their customer reach, with the company’s platforms functioning as essential digital infrastructure connecting Nigerian entrepreneurs to customers, markets, and new economic opportunities.
WhatsApp is Nigeria’s gateway to AI
WhatsApp is playing a central role in connecting Nigerians to AI and new economic opportunities across the region. The platform serves as Nigerians’ primary AI surface — reflecting the wider regional pattern where 93 per cent of Meta AI prompts in Sub-Saharan Africa are made via WhatsApp — demonstrating how AI adoption in Nigeria is happening through the tools people already use every day.
“Nigeria is one of the most dynamic, entrepreneurial and digitally engaged markets in the world — and this research makes clear the scale of what is possible when Nigerian ambition meets the right digital tools.
“From a tailor in Lagos reaching customers across the country through Instagram, to a small business owner in Kano taking orders on WhatsApp, to a creator in Abuja building a global audience on Facebook — Meta’s platforms are removing the traditional barriers to growth and unlocking real economic opportunity,” the Director of Public Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa at Meta, Balkissa Ide Siddo, said.
The fact that 80 per cent of Nigerians say access to reliable internet has improved compared to a decade ago speaks to the progress already made, and with continued investment in connectivity, smart policy that supports innovation, and the rise of open-source AI built for and by Africans, Nigeria is exceptionally well positioned to lead the continent’s next decade of digital growth. We are proud to be a long-term partner in that journey,” Ide Siddo added.
AI and Nigeria’s next growth frontier
The research highlights the transformative potential of artificial intelligence for Nigeria’s economy and innovation ecosystem.
SMEs are reaching new customers across Nigeria
For Nigerian small businesses, Meta’s platforms have become a primary sales and discovery channel. 81 per cent of online businesses surveyed said Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp have expanded their customer base beyond their local geography — reducing customer acquisition costs and giving a business in Kano access to the same advertising and commerce tools available to businesses in Lagos, London or New York.
“Nigeria’s digital transformation is creating new opportunities for businesses, creators and consumers alike. The findings show that Meta’s platforms are helping Nigerian firms grow across formal and informal sectors, supporting entrepreneurship and strengthening participation in one of the world’s most rapidly expanding digital economies.
“With the right combination of infrastructure, platform access and open-source AI, the upside for Nigeria is significant,” a Director at Public First, Alison Neyle, stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian energy giant, Oando Plc, says it is reporting rising revenues as global crude buyers increasingly turn away from the volatile Middle East in search of safer supply sources.
According to the chief executive of Oando, Mr Wale Tinubu, the crisis around the Strait of Hormuz has damaged the Gulf region’s long-standing reputation as the world’s safest and most reliable oil-producing hub, leading to demand elsewhere.
Speaking in a recent interview on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda, Mr Tinubu disclosed that Oando is already benefiting financially from the geopolitical tensions.
“We are certainly getting a windfall increase in our revenues,” Mr Tinubu said.
According to him, mounting security concerns around the Strait of Hormuz have forced buyers to reconsider their dependence on Middle Eastern crude. The waterway accounts for around 20 per cent of global crude and liquified natural gas (LNG) flows, mostly to Asian markets.
“The Middle Eastern premium you got from being a stable environment to produce hydrocarbons has been shattered,” he added.
The conflict is rapidly reshaping global energy trade flows, with African producers, particularly Nigeria, emerging as alternative suppliers at a time of heightened uncertainty in the Gulf.
Indonesia recently took in some Nigeria crude to cushion against the impact that disruptions are having on fuel supplies.
Mr Tinubu said Oando is rolling out a seven-well drilling campaign aiming to add 10,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.
Oando is also looking to raise up to $750 million to execute a 100-well onshore drilling campaign, aiming to triple its oil and gas output from 32,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to nearly 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
According to Mr Tinubu, global supply shocks have created highly favourable conditions for securing financing and expanding operations to meet supply gaps.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian billionaire investor, Mr Femi Otedola, has announced plans to invest $100 million in the Dangote Refinery, which plans to list later this year.
Mr Otedola disclosed this on Wednesday after leading a delegation of top executives from First HoldCo on a visit to the Dangote refinery.
“On a personal note, I’ve appealed to him (Aliko Dangote). I’ve been here with him 25 times, so my compensation is he’s going to allocate to me shares worth $100 million in the private placement,” the billionaire said.
Mr Otedola had previously denied that he had any stake or funded the construction of a 650,000 barrels per day facility.
The announcement marks his next big move after increasing his stake in First Holdco as well as buying a $10 million property in London.
Mr Dangote last year said the refinery could sell up to 10 per cent stake in the listing, which is valued at about $5 billion. It is aiming for a valuation of up to $50 billion for Dangote refinery.
The billionaire is planning to make the IPO a cross-border listing to enable the refinery to draw investments from domestic and international investors.
Mr Dangote, this week, said the IPO is designed to democratise wealth creation and give Africans direct access to participate in the continent’s industrial transformation.
On his part, Mr Dangote, president of the Dangote Group, says the company is targeting a private placement of about $2 billion for the refinery.
While the actual date for the IPO is yet to be announced, Mr Otedola’s early investment indicates value and could spur other high-net-worth individuals to show interest.
Mr Otedola, an ally of Mr Dangote, led top executives of First HoldCo on a tour of the refinery and the fertiliser plants in the Lekki free trade zone area.
The team also visited key project sites such as the jetty, a facility built by Dangote industries to receive large vessels.
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