Nigeria Bans Fiery Protest Song Criticizing Tinubu

Nigeria Bans Protest Song by Eedris Abdulkareem Targeting President Tinubu

A new song by legendary hip-hop musician Eedris Abdulkareem, “Tell Your Papa,” has been barred from airing in Nigeria due to the government’s criticism of President Bola Tinubu and suspected violations of broadcast laws. The song “Tell Your Papa,” which was released and swiftly went popular on Nigerian social media, criticizes President Tinubu’s leadership and highlights the difficult living circumstances that many Nigerians endure. To the president’s son, Seyi Tinubu, Abdulkareem addresses him in the song’s lyrics, pleading with him to tell his father that “people are dying” due to hunger, insecurity, and overall economic misery.

The National Broadcasting Commission All broadcast stations were instructed by Nigeria’s National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which oversees radio and television programming, not to play the song. The NBC claims that Tell Your Papa has “inappropriate” and “objectionable” information that violates the nation’s broadcasting code’s requirements for public decency.

The public’s dissatisfaction with Nigeria’s economic and security circumstances is growing at the time of this action. President Tinubu has carried out extensive economic reforms since assuming office in May 2023, one of which was the elimination of the long-standing fuel subsidy. Inflation has been around 30% for more than a year as a result of the fuel price surge that followed the government’s argument that the subsidy was no longer sustainable. Many Nigerians have been forced to cut back on their daily meal intake due to the skyrocketing costs of basic foods.

A persistent worry of a revival by the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast and tales of frequent kidnappings further raise security concerns. Seyi Tinubu is urged by Abdulkareem in the song to travel by road rather than by private aircraft in order to encounter these realities. The artist and government have previously clashed. Abdulkareem’s 2003 song, Nigeria Jaga Jaga, also denounced the corruption and inefficiency of the administration. Despite its underground success, it was also prohibited from airing. Abdulkareem’s statement still has resonance among disgruntled individuals even after the government defended its decisions and implemented a cash transfer scheme meant to protect 15 million homes.

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Source: BBC NEWS