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Friday, November 27, 2020

"Resistance against tyranny is not only a right, it is a duty for oppressed people to carry out!" –  Bobi Wine (Ugandan Politician)

Dear Active Citizen,

How are you coping?

Nigeria hit her second recession in 5 years...hmm.

Prices of consumables have skyrocketed, the Naira is on life support.

Fuel nko? The price of that one is rising like garri that has been soaked in water and to crown it all,

These are challenging times, no doubt, but if there's one thing we know about you, it is that you are strong. We are with you; our resolve to build a Nigeria that works for all, unwavering!

Hang in there champ, we'll get through this together! 💪

#NMCG2020

BudgIT, EiE Nigeria and Paradigm Initiative (PIN) hosted the 4th bi-annual

New Media, Citizens and Governance Conference (NMCG)

 which held virtually on

Thursday, November 26, 2020,

with the theme New Media and Voice: People, Action & Hashtags.

In the opening plenary,

‘Yemi Adamolekun

(Executive Director, EiE) spoke on the role new media plays especially at a time when clampdown on dissenting voices is prevalent. In the same vein, BudgIT's Principal Lead,

Gabriel Okeowo

and PIN's Executive Director,

‘Gbenga Sesan

reiterated the importance of harnessing the positives of new media for advocacy and citizens' active participation in governance. 

We also had speakers from 5 countries, some of whom were: Ayeni Adekunle, Bertha Tobias (Namibia), Debo Adedayo (Mr Macaroni), Grace Githaiga (Kenya), Jonathan Rozen (USA), Rigobert Kenmogne (Cameroon), Rinu Oduala.

Missed this insightful event? We've got you covered.

Catch up!

Watch this space for #NMCG2022!

The Clampdown Continues…

Mene mene tekel upharsin.

Can you read the handwriting on the wall like Daniel in the Bible?

From seizing passports to indiscriminate arrests, the desperation to stifle dissenting voices intensifies each day. The latest target was the website of Feminist Coalition, one of the leading supporters of the #EndSARS campaign, which is currently inaccessible in Nigeria except through the use of a Virtual Private Network (VPN),

If this can be done when it is clearly illegal, imagine what would be done if the #SocialMediaBill becomes law.

Do you see why we must continue to speak up?

They can't silence all of us. We are not called the soro soke generation for anything. Our voices must be heard!

Who says petitions don't work? They're wrong!

In a deliberation which took place on

Monday, November 23, 2020,

the UK parliament called on the British government to immediately commence an investigation into human rights abuses based on an e-petition.

A total of

220,330 people had signed the e-petition for the investigation into human rights abuses by the Nigerian government and security agencies on citizens.

This was in reference to the #EndSARS protests held across Nigeria last month and the attack on peaceful and unarmed protesters by the military at Lekki toll gate.

In the petition, the people accused the Nigerian government and security officials of human rights abuses and extrajudicial killings. It also demanded the UK government considers imposing sanctions on officials who are found culpable. These sanctions range from visa bans to assets freezing.

This is what you get from a system that works. The good news is that we can include this in our legislative process at the Nigeria National Assembly. What do you have to do? Tell your Reps what you want. Contact them via

shineyoureye.org

Have a great weekend!The EiE Nigeria Team