The month has been challenging as it is exciting in the HumAngle newsroom.
As the world struggles to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, media attention has been on how humanity can re-order itself to operate in a new world defined by the virus.
In addition, HumAngle has served its esteemed readers information on other forms of crises enveloping Nigeria and other parts of Africa.
The reports highlighted the on-going war on terror in Nigeria’s Northeast, the criminal attacks on communities in the Northwest, challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, humanitarian crises, among others.
Some of these reports have attracted commendations and condemnations, sometimes threats, from different quarters depending on how the messages affect parties. Most important, however, is that the reports are widening conversations about how best to govern Nigeria and Africa.
Some reports that we consider milestones for the month are as follows:
ISWAP improvised Grad Rocket Launcher Poses New Threat To Civilians, Troops
On Thursday, April 30, the Islamic State in West Africa Province shared a picture of a camouflage painted pickup truck fitted with four Grad 122mm unguided rocket launcher tubes mounted at the rear of the vehicle. The report highlights how the acquisition of the equipment threatens efforts by the Nigerian military to rout the terrorists in the Northeast
Inside The War Front: Nigerian Army Take Out 10 Major Boko Haram Operational Bases
An independent assessment of battles in the Lake Chad Basin and Sambisa Forest locations revealed major gains at the war front by the Nigeria led Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).
COVID-19: How Non-Essential Workers Get Lockdown Exemption In Abuja
By simply parting with money, some residents of Abuja got passes to circumvent the stay-at-home order for non-essential workers ㅡ and investigation by HumAngle indicates strongly that these tags originated from the city’s Police Command.
COVID -19: Infodemic Challenges the War Against The Pandemic in Nigeria
Infodemic, a term coined by World Health Organisation (WHO) to describe the deluge of misinformation at a time of pandemics, continues to diffuse on social media and its perils negatively influence users behaviour in disregarding measures aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus in Nigeria.
Major Takeaways From the Shekau’s New Audio
The leader of Jama’atu Ahlussunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, Abubakar Shekau, has released a new audio saying the audio of him weeping is an old clip recorded in Ramadan five years ago.
Insights: The Cameroonian Perception Of Boko Haram
The abduction of seven French nationals, including four children, in the Far North Region of Cameroon on Tuesday, February 19, 2013, by some armed persons believed to belong to the extremist Islamist movement, Boko Haram, brought into focus the Cameroonian connection/origins of the terrorist group that has been wreaking havoc in many parts of Northern Nigeria.
What Is The Future For Borno’s Out-of-School Children?
There is a growing concern over the number of out-of-school children and the education system in Borno State, the epicentre of violent insurgency by Boko Haram and its splinter group, Islamic West Africa Province since 2009.
Almajirai in Kano’s Colony of Affliction
The Kano State Orientation Camp of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) situated in Karaye, Karaye Local Government Area, was recently “dressed up” as an isolation centre for COVID-19 patients. But with the Almajirai becoming the unsurprising official punching bag of governors in Northern Nigeria in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the centre has been turned into a colony for the stray, helpless street children.
How Rinji, UNIJOS Student, Was Tortured, Left For Dead For An Hour By Soldiers
After it came to light that one of its operatives in Plateau State had killed a 20-year-old boy early in May, the Nigerian Army declared the next day that the soldier only fired because he had mistaken the victim for a fleeing crime suspect.
Leaders of Bandit Groups in Northwest Agree to Unite, Escalate Attacks On Communities
In what seems to signal the full collapse of the shaky detente between non-indoctrinated armed groups and some state governments in the northwest of Nigeria, the leaders of five gangs of bandits operating in the axis of Katsina and Zamfara states rose from a meeting on May 5, 2020, and resolved to end factionalism and unite to fight as one.
Poor Disposal Of PPEs Will Increase Plastic Pollution, Experts Warn
While the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 has advised Nigerians to wear face masks and that frontline healthcare workers put on protective gears against the virus infection, little attention is being paid to the disposal of the materials after use. However, environment experts warn that the poor disposal of the items will worsen the plastic waste crisis in the country.
Hostile Cults And Violent Gangs Ripping Lagos Apart
At the peak of the lockdown against the spread of COVID-19, Lagos was literally brought on its knees by the activities of violent, criminal gangs. Reports emerged of increased criminal activities across Lagos State and parts of its next door neighbour Ogun State. The situation was so intense that citizens resorted to the social media to express their frustrations and seek help from the police.
53 Years After, Young Nigerians Want To Know What Happened in Biafra
Fifty-three years after the Nigerian civil war fought from July, 1967 to January 1970, young Nigerians want to know what happened to enable the country to make progress.
Examining The Europeanisation Of Security In The Sahel
The German Parliament on Thursday, May 14, debated an extension for the German Bundeswehr (Armed Forces) deployment in Western Africa Sahel region to support Anti-Terror and security missions.
The Federal Cabinet had proposed an extension of Bundeswehr participation in the European Union’s training mission and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).
How Sierra Leonean Sand Miners Are Challenging the Sea to a Duel
Among the Pidgin English speaking urban communities of West African there is a saying that serves as a warning against exuberant rascality: “trouble dey sleep, nyanga come wake am.” This translates to: “trouble is on a self-elected retreat but pride comes upon it with a provocation.”
Along the coastal beaches in Sierra Leone’s Western Area Peninsula, sand miners are effectively acting out the seemingly inconsiderate role of provoking a likely environmental wreck on society with their illicit activities.
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