Headline

Why We Wrote World Bank Over FG’s Proposed $800 Million Loan — Activist Reveals

Published

3 years ago

May 13, 2023

Mallam Hamzat Lawal, the Chief Executive Officer of Connected Development (CODE), has revealed why his organisation and another civic establishment, BudgIT, wrote the World Bank concerning the $ 800 million loan sought by the Nigerian government.

The Federal Government had in April announced its plan to secure the World Bank loan to be disbursed to about 50 million vulnerable Nigerians or 10 million households as part of its fuel

The move caused outrage in the country, considering the mounting debt profile of the Buhari administration.

Speaking on Hard Copy, an interview programme on Channels Television, Mallam Lawal noted that the government’s decision not to carry along other stakeholders was in bad taste.

”It was a shock. It was surprising that there was little dialogue between civil society, government, and even other partners on specifically what this money would be achieved with.

”It created that very toxic environment in the digital and mainstream media space, and that’s why, as civic organisations, we (CODE and BudgIT) jointly reached out to the World Bank just trying to understand what the money will be used for.

”I think the National Assembly must rise to the occasion because if they grant that approval today, the World Bank will disburse. The National Assembly should use its powers to call for a public hearing.

”It would also help to ensure that all the grey areas are answered and Nigerians can understand specifically what this money would be used for.
I don’t expect them to expedite action and approve this $800 million loan.”

Speaking on whether the loan is necessary, Mallam Lawal said: “Taking a loan is not a bad thing, but what do we do with this loan? People are poor. We also need to be clear that people that were in the middle class in 2019 are now poor.

”Because, when you look at the impact of COVID-19, recession, and even inflation that we are experiencing, so, yes, we need to support poor people, but my worry is how do we go about it so there are no leakages.

”We have poor people, it is not their doing that they are poor. And as a government, as people, we must care for these poor people.

”The Conditional Cash Transfer scheme was largely successful, and people benefitted from it because it actually increased enrollment in schools. But, when you talk about COVID, the government failed.

”Up till now, they cannot tell us what they did with the COVID money and who benefitted from it.

”That’s why for me, it is about closing these gaps and leakages beyond collecting $800 million. It is only $800 million that we know about, but there are other interventions, and loans that government would collect and have been collecting that are not in the public domain.

”So, it is how do we put in place mechanisms that curbs corruption and those leakages and these monies won’t end up in personal pockets.”

He advised that the Open Government Partnership platform can be explored to ensure transparency in government spending.

His words: ”We have the Open Government Partnership that brings together civil society, media, and government, and it is being co-chaired by government and civil society.

”It’s just for us to have this robust conversation and even for the government to agree, and then we set a timeline. This is not rocket science. This is public money given to you based on public trust.

”Today, most government data are not public, and most of the ones public, are not measurable. This must change, because, no how good a government policy is, if the Nigerian people don’t buy into it, it will never be successful.”

VANGUARD

Headline

Russia Insists Ukraine Must Cede Land Or Face Continued Military Push

Published

21 hours ago

November 27, 2025

Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that he would end his Ukraine offensive if Kyiv withdrew from territory Moscow claims at its own — otherwise his army would take it by force.

The Russian army has been slowly but steadily grinding through eastern Ukraine in costly battles against outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian forces.

Washington has meanwhile renewed its push to end the nearly four-year war, putting forward a surprise plan that it hopes to finalise through upcoming talks with Moscow and Kyiv.

“If Ukrainian forces leave the territories they hold, then we will stop combat operations,” Putin said during a visit to Kyrgyzstan. “If they don’t, then we will achieve it by military means.”

Russia controls around one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory. The issue of occupied land, which Kyiv has said it will never cede, is among the biggest stumbling blocks in the peace process.

Another important issue in the talks are Western security guarantees for Ukraine, which Kyiv says are needed to prevent Moscow from invading again in the future.

Washington’s original plan — drafted without input from Ukraine’s European allies — would have seen Kyiv withdraw from its eastern Donetsk region and the United States de facto recognise the Donetsk, Crimea and Lugansk regions as Russian.

The US pared back the original plan over the weekend following criticism from Kyiv and Europe, but has not yet released the new version.

Putin, who has seen the new plan, said it could be a negotiation starter.

“Overall, we agree that it could form the basis for future agreements,” he said of the latest draft, which the US is thought to have shortened to about 20 points.

US negotiator Steve Witkoff was expected in Moscow next week to discuss the revised document, Putin said.

US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is meanwhile due to visit Kyiv later this week, Ukraine’s top presidential aide Andriy Yermak said.

– ‘Little can be done’ –

In his remarks Thursday, Putin repeated the claim that Russia had encircled the Ukrainian army in Pokrovsk and Myrnograd in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region — the most fiercely embattled area and a key target for Moscow’s forces.

“Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov are completely surrounded,” he said, using the Russian names for the cities.

Moscow was also advancing in Vovchansk and Siversk, as well as approaching the important logistic hub of Guliaipole, he added.

The Russian offensive “is practically impossible to hold back, so there is little that can be done about it”, Putin said.

Ukraine has denied Pokrovsk and Myrnograd are encircled, insisting its forces continue to hold the enemy along the front line.

Putin also questioned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s legitimacy and said signing any agreement with him would be legally “almost impossible” at the moment, a suggestion that has drawn groans from Kyiv and its allies.

According to data analysed by AFP from the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russian forces have conquered an average of 467 square kilometres (180 square miles) each month in 2025 — a step up from 2024.

Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the worst armed conflict in Europe since World War II.

The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people and forced millions to flee their homes.

Headline

Morocco Jails French Rapper Maes For Kidnapping Bid

Published

2 days ago

November 26, 2025

Editor

A Moroccan court has sentenced French rapper Maes to seven years in prison on charges including the formation of a criminal gang and attempted kidnapping, local reports said Wednesday.

Maes, who has roots in Morocco and whose real name is Walid Georgey, was arrested upon landing in Morocco in January after fleeing the United Arab Emirates, where he feared he could be extradited to France, the reports said.

French authorities had issued an international arrest warrant for him over a separate criminal case.

He appeared in court late Tuesday and was found guilty of “forming a criminal organisation, attempted abduction and unlawful confinement” of a rival in Morocco, news website TelQuel reported.

The rapper with over a billion views on his YouTube channel was accused of tasking a gang and hitmen with killing the rival, but the plot was foiled, TelQuel added.

Maes has denied all charges, with his lawyers calling the case “empty” and “arguing that no evidence linked him to the other defendants”, TelQuel added.

Ten other people were sentenced as part of the case, with terms ranging from one to 10 years, according to news website Media24.

AFP was unable to independently verify the reports as prosecutors were not immediately reachable for comment.

In 2020, when Maes was one of France’s most-streamed rappers, he fell victim to extortion attempts in his native Sevran, a suburb north of Paris, according to reports.

He retaliated by opening fire with weapons he had at home, leading to a shootout. He then fled to Dubai with his family, according to an interview with French YouTube channel LEGEND.

Following the killing of his manager in 2022, he was suspected of ordering reprisals against those he believed were behind the murder, according to reports.

AFP

Headline

UK Court Clears Comedy Writer Of Harassing Transgender Woman

Published

2 days ago

November 26, 2025

Editor

A London court on Tuesday cleared Emmy award-winning comedy writer Graham Linehan of harassing a transgender activist online but found him guilty of criminal damage to their mobile phone.

Linehan, who co-created the popular 1990s sitcom “Father Ted” but has more recently become well-known for his gender critical views, had been accused of sending Sophia Brooks “abusive and vindictive” messages on social media.

He was also charged with criminal damage after deliberately knocking a phone out of Brooks’s hand as they filmed him on the sidelines of a London conference.

Ruling on the case, District Judge Briony Clarke said she was not convinced Linehan’s conduct “was oppressive and unacceptable beyond merely unattractive, annoying or irritating”.

Clarke also concluded Brooks was not “as alarmed and distressed as they portrayed themself to be”.

But convicting Linehan of criminal damage, the judge ruled he was “angry and fed up” and did not use “reasonable force” when the phone was taken from Brooks.

Clarke fined him £500 ($655) and ordered him to pay costs of £650 and a statutory surcharge of £200.

The Irish writer, who also co-created the popular sitcoms “Black Books” and “The IT Crowd”, became embroiled in a free speech row in Britain earlier this year over his anti-transgender stance.

It followed his arrest at London’s Heathrow Airport by armed police over accusations of inciting violence with his X posts insulting transgender people.

The arrest sparked a backlash and claims of state overreach, including from US tech billionaire Elon Musk. But in October, UK prosecutors said they would take “no further action” in that case.

AFP