Many Nigerians have lost hope in the country. They expect the country to fail and crumble. In fact, they await sad information about the country everyday. To them, every bad thing that happens in Nigeria is expected but the good ones are suspicious. They believe nothing good happens in Nigerian government unless the leaders want to push an agenda. And so, when news of the rescue of the Kankara boys came in, many Nigerians received it with disdain.

When information about the kidnap of hundreds of students of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara Katsina State, which took place on 11 December, 2020, filtered in, the country was thrown into mourning. People, once again, remembered how incompetent the government is and called on the leaders to act fast and rescue the children. Protests were held, especially by Katsina residents, to demand for answers from the government.

 During the heat of the matter, information filtered in that the military has located the hideouts of the kidnappers and engaged them in gun fire exchange. When Nigerians did not hear anything more regarding this, they felt they were lied to by the military. However, confirmed news of the boys’ rescue came in on Thursday, 15 December 2020. But, surprisingly, it did not receive expected jubilation.

The rescue of the Kankara boys was greeted with suspicion. All of a sudden, the wind shifted from #BringBackourBoys to #OurBoysAreBack . The sudden turn of events was unexpected. But this suddenness isn’t the only problem here. The truth is that many Nigerians became suspicious of the government, believing there were more to the stories than meets the eye.

Some people first believed the news was fake and, when it was confirmed, they began to wonder how possible it is to rescue hostages from kidnapper’s den, especially when Boko Haram is involved. Even though the government insisted that Boko Haram was not involved in the kidnapping, Nigerians refused to believe them. So, instead of rejoicing that the boys are back, Nigerians asked for clarifications.

You might be surprised to learn that many Nigerians believe the kidnap was a hoax. While some said no kidnapping took place, others believed the government organised with the kidnappers to carry out the operation. The reason the government will engage in such a ludicrous act, according to them, is to fund insurgency, to loot public coffers, and to appear competent before the international community. It is quite alarming to see the sudden change in the behaviours of many people, who initially acted as if they wanted the boys rescued at all cost. But their behaviour pointed to one thing: they believed these boys will not and cannot be rescued.

The major thing that shocked Nigerians and caused them to doubt any kidnap happened was the fastness of the rescue. According to a friend of mine, Nigerian government is never fast in anything, so how come they acted fast here? Another person said top government officials want to prove their capability in order to restore their lost glory; hence they kidnapped those children and released them almost immediately to look professional and competent. So, whether the government acted in good faith or not does not influence the attitude of people like this. As far as they are concerned, the government has failed and will continue to fail in everything.

Note that the reaction of people towards this rescue is not because they are not happy the kidnapped boys have been rescued. For instance, if you accuse any of them of being a sadist, he will quickly remind you that he is happy the children are safe but that he is not happy they were kidnapped in the first place. If you ask him whether he would have still accused the government of staging a kidnap if these boys were not rescued on time or even at all, believe me, he will have no direct answer to provide.

Some insist the government was wrong to have negotiated with kidnappers instead of bringing them to book but they would want the government to do the same thing for them if they find themselves in Kankara boys’ condition. Others believe the government is supporting insurgency by using Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association as the mediator during the negotiation process without specifically saying why. Most of the grievances and criticisms that follow the Kankara Boy’s Rescue do not hold water but Nigerians cling so hard to them. These and many more point to one important fact: Nigerians no longer believe in Nigeria.

As the second wave of COVID-19 hits the world, every country is fast developing measures to contain the spread of the disease. While the United States is banking on the newly approved vaccines to keep people safe, Europe is going back under keys.

The approval of the Pfizer BioNtech and Moderna vaccines offers hope of limiting the contagion of the pandemic, and a path to reopening of economies. Meanwhile, the surge in COVID-19 cases is presenting a challenge that is forcing governments to go back to the safety measures applied in the wake of the outbreak against the choice of keeping businesses running. And it comes at a time when Britain is confronting another challenge – Brexit.

The United Kingdom was the first country in Europe to administer the Pfizer vaccines, with millions of doses ordered to keep the economy from being shuttered once again. But the reality trumped the plan, forcing the government to choose lives over businesses.

On Monday, the discovery of a new strain of COVID-19, which spreads faster than others, was announced in the UK. England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty confirmed it in a statement yesterday.

“As a result of the rapid spread of the new variant, preliminary modeling data and rapidly rising incidences rates in the South East, the New emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (NERVTAG) now consider that the new strain can spread more quickly,” Whitty said.

Following this discovery, the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced tier 4 lockdown that will be broadly equivalent to November lockdown. The restriction will affect parts of Southern Britain that includes London, and will cancel the Christmas for UK residents.

“It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you that we cannot proceed with Christmas as planned,” Johnson said.

On Sunday, the number of cases recorded in the UK surged to 35,928, resulting in 326 deaths. The rapid increase in the past seven days confirms the fears for a new strain and sends alarm across Europe. Italy, Germany, Netherlands etc. have announced flight restrictions and imposed lockdowns.

The UK is still reeling on the after effects of its recession, and the new phase of restriction is coming amidst Brexit negotiations that will have a serious impact on its economy. With less than two weeks before Britain says final goodbye to the EU, the global health crisis is stimulating a fresh situation that may stand between Britain and the EU bloc.

Both sides are on a race to safeguard almost a trillion dollars worth of trade from tariffs and quotas. Britain has been in a status quo transition period since it left Europe on January 31, and has till the end of the year to seal a deal.

The back and forth rhythm of the talks has been based on the EU’s demand for fishing right on British waters and creating a level playing ground and fair competition rules for both sides.

In October, the negotiation hung mainly on Britain’s attempt to renege on the Northern Ireland protocol, which includes keeping the border open between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which was part of the agreement reached between Johnson’s government and Brussels last year.

As both sides moved on, the issue of migration keeps creeping in now then. The EU bloc has had it hard reaching an agreement on bailout funds due to issues relating to coronavirus restrictions, as each member state has a peculiar plan that seems offensive to the other.

While it seems that both the EU and UK’s citizens’ concern now is centered on their quashed Christmas, the newly discovered COVID-19 strain may likely prompt another migration-based demand on the negotiation table that will affect everyone.

British health minister Matt Hancock said the EU has been making unreasonable demands hindering a deal.

“We want these talks to reach a positive conclusion, of course everybody wants a deal,” he told Sky News. “Unfortunately, the EU have put in some unreasonable demands … they do not respect the result of the referendum … I am sure a deal can be done but obviously it needs movement on the side EU.”

Britain’s economic future hangs squarely on its ability to negotiate a great Brexit deal and contain the spread of coronavirus.

Presently, vaccines are falling short of the answer; the speed of the inoculation does not match the contagious speed of the virus. London has been left reeling on the choice of lockdown it has never been a fan of, but Brexit poses economic threat that is proportionately as dangerous to the UK as the pandemic.