President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed that the Federal Government (FG) would continue to vigorously pursue the repatriation of looted Nigeria’s artefacts from abroad, including 1,130 Benin Bronzes in Germany’s public museums.

The President gave the assurance on Friday, 29^th April 2022 in Abuja while receiving the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, accompanied by members of the Royal Court of Benin and the Board of Trustees of the Benin Royal Museum.

His Royal Majesty was reportedly at State House to thank the President on the recent return of two important Benin Bronzes to its original place of abode by the University of Cambridge and the University of Aberdeen, both in the United Kingdom, after 125 years.

Speaking on the return of the artefacts, President Buhari expressed delight that it had brought immense goodwill and acclaim to Nigeria, the ancient Benin Kingdom as well as happiness to the Oba of Benin.

The President noted that while it was widely acknowledged around the world that some of the best ancient arts belong to Nigeria, including those from Benin, Ife, Nok and Igbo-Ukwu, many of these beautiful works were illicitly taken away, particularly during the colonial period.

Affirming that these great cultural and artistic works are records of history, the President vowed that Nigeria could not permit them to become properties of others, adding his administration had made it an important task to ensure the return of the artefacts.

The President, therefore, assured the renowned royal father that the FG would continue in this great cause with his support and that of other traditional rulers.

‘‘In furtherance to these efforts, an agreement between Nigeria and Germany is currently being prepared. When concluded, it will signify the return to Nigeria by Germany of all the 1,130 Benin Bronzes in Germany’s public museums. This will be a monumental achievement.

‘‘Furthermore, on the 7th of this month, the Glasgow City Council agreed to return 17 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria. The legal issues are in the process of being sorted out.

‘‘Other success stories include the return by the Netherlands in October 2020 of a 600-year-old Ife Terracotta; the return in April 2021 of a bronze piece from Mexico; as well as the repatriation in November 2021 of two Benin Bronzes and an Ife Bronze head from the Metropolitan Museum, New York’’ the President said.

He further announced that because of the determined efforts of the present administration, Nigeria was now regarded to be in the forefront globally in the struggle to repatriate illicitly-exported artefacts back to their countries of origin.

The President acknowledged the efforts of officials of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments currently working with the Oxford University, the Great North Museum of Newcastle University, Rhode Island School and numerous other places on the modalities for the return of Nigerian antiquities, particularly the Benin Bronzes.

He expressed optimism that with careful planning and management, Nigeria could generate revenue from the repatriated antiquities. ‘‘We look forward to a future when these returned antiquities and our arts and culture shall be deployed in generating revenue for the nation”.

He equally stated, ‘‘I am glad to hear that the Ministry of Information and Culture and the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) are already working towards this by reaching out to other nations and cultural institutions on travelling exhibitions to showcase the rich culture of Nigeria through these antiquities.

‘‘This can happen if officials in charge of these priceless artefacts take due care to maintain and preserve the treasures in good condition at all times.’’ he landed.

The Oba of Benin informed the President that his Royal Court had concluded plans with the NCMM to establish an ultramodern international standard Benin Royal Museum to house the Benin Bronzes and other artefacts for the purpose of preserving history, tourism and education.

‘‘We want to reassure Mr. President that the Royal Court of Benin and NCMM are working closely to ensure safe custody, preservation and enhancement of these Benin bronzes and artefacts not only for their cultural and economic benefits, but more importantly towards the promotion of the tourism industry in Nigeria.’’ he disclosed.

The Royal Majesty reassured Nigerians that the Benin Bronzes and artefacts represent the country’s cultural heritage in particular and Africa in general, saying ‘‘we hold these objects in trust as the original owners in conjunction with NCMM for the benefit of all.’’

Speaking at the occasion, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed affirmed that Nigeria would continue to assert its rights over all its antiquities around the world.

He added that the country would not hesitate to implore nations, institutions, men and women of goodwill to see the unfairness in the affairs of one body holding on to the cultural property fashioned by the genius of another.

As a concerned Nigerian, I have for the umpteenth time, clamoured for the compelling need to see that these stolen artefacts, in their entirety are duly and aptly returned to the country.

I think the call in question is apparently yielding fruit. However, the concerned authorities shouldn’t hesitate to play the needed politics, as they arise, in regard to the quest of seeing an era when all the artefacts would return to their origin places.

Above all, knowing full well that lack of maintenance culture has hitherto been the Nigeria’s prime challenge, the relevant authorities are equally expected to go extra mile in ensuring that the returned artefacts are given a rightful place by the owners as well as channelled towards boosting the country’s tourism industry, which is fast deteriorating.

The Egyptian tech ecosystem is blossoming in many key areas where fintech has been at the helm. Logistics, last mile transportation, B2B etc. Some of the tech firms have grown big enough not only to make groundbreaking investments in other companies but also to acquire some of them – even outside the African continent.

Swvl, an Egyptian startup that provides shared bus transportation services for intercity and intracity trips, which recently expanded into Turkey with the acquisition of Volt Lines, a B2B transportation-as-a-service operator, has made a giant leap into the UK.

Swvl announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire UK-based mobility startup, Zeelo for $100 million.

Zeelo is the UK’s largest smart bus platform and technology scale-up, measured by bookings. Headquartered in London with over 160 employees, an R&D team in Spain and live operations in the UK, South Africa and the US, it was founded in 2016 by Sam Ryan, Barney Williams and Dani Ruiz. Zeelo is a smart bus platform for organizations, serving large businesses and independent schools and moving nearly 150,000 riders each month across the world.

Zeelo’s services model includes a driving accreditation school, contracted fleets, and proprietary technology including a SaaS platform and multiple customer apps, which leverage smart GPS route optimization and ride-sharing software.

Mostafa Kandil, Swvl Founder and CEO, said Swvl was founded on the belief that accessible transportation is essential to unlocking economic opportunity. This has been demonstrated by the company’s expansion into new markets around the world.

“Swvl and Zeelo share a vision and mission to provide reliable transportation that gets riders where they need to go in an affordable, safe, and environmentally-friendly manner. With an impressive suite of turnkey TaaS and SaaS solutions and an established footprint in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and the United States, Zeelo rapidly advances our leading market position as a provider of technology-enabled mass transit solutions on a global scale,” he said.

The acquisition builds on Swvl’s recent acquisitions of controlling stakes in Shotl and Viapool, and the pending acquisition of door2door. Swvl’s distinct shared-mobility transport product has made it attractive around the world, propelling increasing adoption in distant markets with peculiar transport systems like the US and the UK.

Zeelo Founder and CEO, Sam Ryan, described the Swvl transport system as revolutionary, adding that it has the capacity to change the dependency on cars and taxis.

“Swvl is revolutionizing the mass transit industry and we are thrilled to join forces with them on this next phase of Zeelo’s journey to firmly establish smart bus transport as the best-in-class shared mobility solution that takes account of all income levels and the needs of ordinary, every-day travelers. Bus transport done well with tech can take us beyond our dependency on cars and taxis which are not suitable for commutes from non-urban areas.

“We look forward to bringing Swvl insights from Zeelo’s strategic pivot during the global pandemic and we’ve been impressed by Swvl’s fast growth in challenging markets. We are excited to leverage their global experience as we embark on a shared journey to develop safe, affordable, and low emission mass transportation options, and expand economic opportunity for the people who need it most through our mobility solution. Especially shift workers, professionals and students living in transport-poor areas in the developed markets,” he said.

Bus-sharing transport services are rapidly growing in Africa as it is peculiar to the continent’s socio-economic culture. While Swvl leads the pack, other startups like the Nigerian-based Treepz and Transtura, are breaking grounds with their growth records. With the growing interest in the bus-sharing transport product outside Africa, these startups will have larger markets to expand.

Ancelotti’s men put on a quintessential performance on Saturday as they overcame Espanyol to ensure they claimed the domestic league for the record-breaking thirty-fifth time in its 91st treasure hunt.

Goals from Rodrygo, Asensio and Benzema were enough to put the seal on Madrid’s five-star season run as the white outfit clinched the prestigious title with four games still in the bag.

It’s been all sides of a fantastic run for Madrid as they’ve succeeded in making great achievements for almost the entirety of the 2021-22 season.

Few weeks ago, rivals, Barcelona, though with their backs to the wall, had somewhat of a chance to overturn a 12-point lead at the top of the table. With Madrid slumping to a 4-0 defeat in the most recent El Clasico, Ancelotti and his men were very much on Xavi and co’s radar. But Real were able to do what they do best when it comes to highly important moments like this.

With Sevilla and the likes contesting in the backdrop, Madrid weren’t going to put their necessities on the back burner. Now off a stinging 4-0 loss to Barça, Madrid have taken their fate in their hands and have gotten all wins in their league games since the infamous defeat. Bernabeu’s residents have also advanced a step further into the semi-finals of the Champions League, where they currently have a decent stand against Manchester City, with just a goal behind in a 4-3 stumble at the Etihad.

Perhaps all this happening on the back of Karim Benzema, the Frenchman has been a classic this season and is highly backed to win the Ballon D’or. Registering his name on the score sheet again today, Benzema had been in the front seat of Los Blancos’ rollercoaster ride, showing incredible performances in the Champions League and other competitions.

Madrid take on Guardiola’s City next in the UCL on Wednesday where they’ll look to defeat The Citizens to advance to a stage they last reached in the Ronaldo era.

President Muhammadu Buhari, Thursday, 28th April 2022, advised those planning to rig the 2023 general elections to perish the thought, vowing to use every legitimate means to protect the votes of Nigerians.

The President made this known at an Iftar gathering with members of the Diplomatic Corps at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

He said. ‘‘Those planning to rig the forthcoming elections should think twice because I intend to resolutely protect and defend the sacred will of the Nigerian people, to be expressed through the ballot box.’’

Buhari, who equally cautioned against foreign interference in the forthcoming elections, stated, ‘‘As you are all aware, the tenure of this Administration ends on 29th May, 2023. Typical of election years all over the world, the tempo of political activities is often high.

‘‘That is the nature of democracy. I am committed to bequeathing a stronger culture of credible elections to Nigeria than I met.

‘‘As Nigeria goes through this trajectory, I urge our friends in the global community, represented by you the Diplomatic Corps, to adopt a positive role that reinforces the doctrine of respect for our internal affairs and respect for facts and devoid of preconceived notions and bias.’’

Addressing the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the President called for greater consideration for humanitarian conditions in the affected areas in the ongoing mayhem, warning the conflict would get worse if an immediate resolution is not found.

‘‘The war has lasted too long, cost so much and hurt too many people, well beyond the immediate theatres. The rest of the world is progressively facing the impact of the conflict and this will certainly get worse if an immediate resolution is not found, not least in the area of food security.”

The President welcomed the recent initiative of United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Gutteres, to visit Moscow and Kyiv, commending his efforts in search of a ceasefire, as a prelude to other enduring solutions.

‘‘The United Nations must continue to actively lead the way for engagements that could ultimately unlock peace through diplomacy,’’ he said.

The President urged the world, especially the Muslim community, to use the solemn and rewarding month of Ramadan, and especially the then last days of the fast, to intensify prayers for de-escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and for the return of peace to the world.

He apprised members of the international community on some of the critical issues that were currently on the front burner of his Administration’s agenda and spirited efforts in handling them.

‘‘We continue to make steady progress on the daunting tasks of combating insecurity; fighting corruption; diversifying the economy; promoting good governance; and containing the COVID-19 pandemic.

‘‘Despite the many challenges we faced, and continue to face, we have instituted measures to plug leakages, improve the economy and enhance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

‘‘These include: Renewal of vital infrastructure, including rail and roads; Implementation of the N2.3 trillion Economic Sustainability Plan to create jobs and provide support to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises; and Launch of the National Development Plan (2021-2025) to spur economic growth, leverage science, technology and innovation.

‘‘Other measures include: Establishment of the Office of the Senior Special Adviser to the President on SDGs with the responsibility for ensuring coherence between development policies, plans and strategies;,

‘‘Launch, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme, of the Nigeria Sustainable Development Goals Implementation Plan (2020-2030), to prioritise and mainstream the SDGs into their medium and long-term development policies and plans.” he landed.

In regard to the impending 2023 general elections in Nigeria, President Buhari may have spoken well on how his administration intends to protect the people’s votes via safeguarding the ballot boxes, but it doesn’t stop at that.

He is requested by all concerned to walk the talk. This can only be possible if he carries out all modalities to ensure that every relevant authority as regards the elections is truly involved in the awaited national ritual.

Hence, he must go the extra mile towards ensuring that only the needful is done as the journey progresses.