Africa has a rich and diverse cultural heritage, kept alive in many ways, including through events that have a place in the calendar due to their cultural vibrancy. In Nigeria, the Osun-Osogbo Festival is a major annual celebration that has been practiced for centuries.
Related stories: Video - Calabar carnival in Nigeria defies financial woes
A British hostage was killed in a military operation in Nigeria on Wednesday which released six other hostages, the Italian foreign ministry said.
Two kidnappers were killed and one Italian hostage was gravely wounded in the operation conducted by the Nigerian army, the ministry said.
The seven oil workers were captured on a ship off the Nigerian coast.
Related story: Seven dead, 100 kidnapped after attack in northern Nigeria
Polish diplomat, and former ambassador to Zimbabwe and Malawi, Jan Wieliński has spoken to TVP World about the Polish students held captive in Nigeria, as well as Russia’s growing influence on the region.
Confirming that the students were safe and in good health, Wieliński said that they were currently under guard in a hotel in Abuja, the country’s capital, but that he fully expected their release in the imminent future.
“I think in the next couple of days, when the process of verification is completed, they will be released,” said Wieliński. Continuing, he said he did not envisage they, or their lecturer, to have met with any harm and fully anticipated their safe return to Poland.
The six students from the University of Warsaw and their lecturer were arrested in the northern city of Kano following mass demonstrations sparked by Nigeria’s economic crisis. Such gatherings have been banned and a curfew put in place as President Bola Tinubu seeks to quell the unrest.
“There was a curfew and they decided to go and photograph an anti-government demonstration with their phones,” said Wieliński, confirming that this was the reason for their detainment. “I don’t know whether it is true or not, but my source told me that the security forces have photographs which were taken by the students.”
However, Wieliński rejected the accusation that the students had been carrying Russian flags. “It’s simply impossible,” he said.
Nigeria has been plunged into chaos as a result of Tinubu’s painful macroeconomic reforms, but Wielińśki says that the country’s premier has had little choice given the direction he has been given by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
“They have had to cut oil and food subsidies, and many members of society are unhappy,” he said, “but in my opinion the Tinubu government have had no choice… It is the only way they can improve their economy.”
Questioned as to Russia’s looming shadow, Wieliński warned that Western aid had simply ceased being attractive to many African countries. This, he emphasized, was not due to the colonial past, but because of the Western tendency to attach political and humanitarian conditions to loans.
“We want to give the money loans, but in accordance with a certain pattern of observing human rights or introducing the democratic reforms,” said Wieliński. “Many African leaders, especially those who have military leaders, like in Mali or Niger, don’t like to be dictated... Russia and China, they don’t place conditions on loans.”
Yet while Russia continues to meddle in African affairs due to the vast natural resources on offer, Wieliński does not foresee Nigeria as being one of the nations to fall under its influence. “I don’t think President Tinubu will allow Russia to do anything more than act diplomatically and economically in Nigeria,” he said. “I don’t think we should be afraid that Nigeria will go Russian.”
Related story: Nigeria arrests seven Polish nationals for raising Russian flags at protests
The 21-year-old joins The Magpies after relegating with Sheffield United last season where he made 21 league appearances, averaging 38 minutes of football per game.
He signs for Eddie Howe’s side as they look to bolster their attack after dealing with multiple injuries to Aleksandar Isak and Callum Wilson last season.
Osula plays largely as a centre-forward, but can also play as a winger due to the blistering pace possesses. Speaking at his unveiling, he revealed how delighted he was to join the club.
“I’m very happy to be here. It’s a big club, a great club, so I’m very happy for the opportunity to join Newcastle United. It’s a great opportunity, and as soon as I heard about Newcastle’s interest, I knew I had to take the chance to join this club if it came. It has come, and I’m really happy to be here,” the Danish attacker said in quotes revealed by Newcastle’s website.
Osula was born in Denmark to a Danish mother and a Nigerian father and moved to England at a young age. He was called up to a training camp for the Denmark U19s in February 2022 and has gone on to make five appearances for their youth team since then. He is eligible to play for England and the Super Eagles of Nigeria in the future.
At least 20 people were killed when a wooden boat caught fire and exploded on a river in Nigeria's coastal state of Bayelsa on Wednesday, a police spokesperson said.
The boat was carrying traders taking goods to coastal communities, Bayelsa police spokesperson Musa Muhammed said on Thursday.
Traders make weekly trips between coastal settlements and the state capital Yenagoa.
At least 200 people were reported killed in boat accidents in Nigeria last year, with authorities regularly blaming overcrowding and poor maintenance.
By Tife Owolabi, Reuters
Related stories: Drowning of Nollywood start forces industry to look at safety
Eight dead, several missing after ferry capsizes in Nigeria
