We’ve been noticing a trend in Nollywood where it seems like the darkest political secrets of Lagos are being brought to light. In the Netflix series, Shantytown, we saw an influential politician in charge of prostitution rings, thugs and drug trafficking; frighteningly similar to the Commander-in-Chief of the agbado army.
On April 7, 2023, a movie titled Gangs of Lagos was released that gave insight into how thugs in Isale-Eko, Lagos, are used during Nigerian elections. However, there has been outrage from the Lagos state government recently over a scene that portrayed the Eyo masquerade as a villain.
The Isale Eko Descendants Union released a statement on April 12, 2023, saying the movie defamed Isale Eko and the Eyo masquerade. On the same day, the Lagos state government called the film a total abomination derogating Yoruba culture.
What’s amusing is that the Lagos state government is paying more attention to the “misinterpretation” of the Eyo masquerade than violence during elections which was the movie’s focal point.
Is the government intentionally turning a blind eye to the message Gangs of Lagos tried to pass, or is the outrage from them performative because Nollywood is hitting too close to home this time?
What else happened this week?
NUPENG Raises Red Flag Over Fuel Subsidy Removal
When it comes to Nigeria, problem no dey finish. On January 5, 2023, the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning reminded us again that by mid-2023, the federal government would cease fuel subsidies. This means we’ll pay up to three times more than the current fuel price.
However, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) is warning the federal government that it may be over its head as our local refineries still aren’t operating fully. As a result, the removal of fuel subsidy might have negative economic impacts on Nigerians that the government is unprepared for.
Hopefully, the government will work towards this and put the right structures in place to ensure that when fuel subsidies are finally removed, we won’t be plunged into multidimensional suffering.
Video of the week
Question of the week
Nigeria’s president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was listed on the Times 100 most influential list of 2023. On a scale of “this is a win for Nigeria” to “everyone is on drugs”; what do you think about this?
Ehen one more thing…
There was an unfortunate accident on April 13, 2023, where a seven-story building collapsed in Banana Island, Lagos. Here’s everything to know about the tragedy.
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