Politics
PRESENTATION BY PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU, GCFR OF THE 2025 BUDGET OF RESTORATION: SECURING PEACE, REBUILDING PROSPERITY TO A JOINT SESSION OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ON WEDNESDAY 18TH DECEMBER, 2024
AI-Generated videos mocking Donald Trumpand his top team have continued to go viral amid a deepening trade war between the US and China.
New footage shows Trump, senior adviser Elon Musk and JD Vance working on a production line making trainers in a thinly veiled slight at the White House‘s hopes to bring back manufacturing to the US.
Chinese accounts have been promoting the video and photos ridiculing the so-called ‘US Manufacturing Revival Plan’ in light of the Chinese Communist Party vowing they would ‘fight to the end’ in a tariff war.
Despite a 90-day pause in implementing increased tariffs on other nations, Trump has continued to focus his fire on Beijing, further hiking the rate on Chinese imports to 125 per cent.
Should the economic stand-off continue, the Nike shoes featured in the video may skyrocket in price, according to experts.
At the moment, 62 per cent of the shoes sold in the United States are imported from China, with other nations like Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and India providing the rest.
Just one per cent of shoes are produced domestically, with figures from the sneaker industry – worth $70billion annually – left frustrated.
Devlin Carter, the founder of luxury firm SIA collective – which manufactures shoes mostly in China – told NBC News: ‘These are ridiculous tariffs that make no sense.
The footage shows Trump, senior adviser Elon Musk and JD Vance working on a production line
At the moment, 62 per cent of the shoes sold in the United States are imported from China
Just one per cent of shoes are produced domestically, with figures from the sneaker industry – worth $70billion annually – left frustrated
‘Small businesses like mine have to pay these tariffs, and it’s not a small thing. It’s a lot. So there’s no way to see this as something that’s good — for anybody.
‘And it’s all unnecessary.’
Economist Peter Schiff said last week: ‘Nike won’t build factories in the US to make sneakers. That would add more cost than the 40 per cent tariffs.
‘Plus, they need to stay competitive selling to customers in other countries that don’t impose tariffs. The result will be fewer sneakers sold in the US at much higher prices.’
Pepper Harward, chief executive officer of Oka Brands, which has a factory in the state of Georgia, told Footwear News: ‘The footwear ecosystem doesn’t really exist here.
‘Everybody’s interested in U.S. manufacturing but very few people are fully committed to it or have solid justifications for making investments there.
Chris Rogers, head of supply chain research at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said it could take a ‘couple of years’ at the minimum to move supply chains back to the US from abroad.
Economist Peter Schiff said last week: ‘Nike won’t build factories in the US to make sneakers. That would add more cost than the 40 per cent tariffs’
China is a key trading partner with a large manufacturing industry, producing inexpensive goods for American consumers
Other AI-generated videos related to the trade war have also been seen millions of times in both China and Western countries.
One popular one portrayed a glum picture of life in a re-industrialised America, with obese factory workers stitching cheap clothes.
China is a key trading partner with a large manufacturing industry, producing inexpensive goods for American consumers.
Trump’s tariffs come at a difficult time for China’s sluggish economy, with firms now scrambling to adjust their supply chains and officials concerned that any profits made selling goods to the US will be completely wiped out.
They have remained bullish in public, however, with China’s foreign ministry saying thery do not ‘fear’ further tariff threats.
‘The US cause doesn’t win the support of the people and will end in failure,’ a ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, said at a press conference.
Beijing’s commerce ministry said: ‘We hope the US will meet China halfway, and, based on the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, properly resolve differences through dialogue and consultation.’
Trump’s tariffs come at a difficult time for China’s sluggish economy, with firms now scrambling to adjust their supply chains
But Trump is seemingly insistent on refusing to budge over his tariff strategy with Beijing.
‘At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realise that the days of ripping off the USA and other countries is no longer sustainable or acceptable,’ he said.
China ‘wants to make a deal, they just don’t know how quite to go about it,’ he added.
‘They’re proud people. President Xi [Jinping] is a proud man. I know him very well. They don’t know quite how to go about it but they’ll figure it out.’
Politics
INEC Chairman Advocates Stronger Regional Collaboration, As ECONEC’s General Assembly Begins in Gambia
By Nathaniel Gana
Thursday 10th April 2025
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has called for stronger ties and deeper collaboration among Election Management Bodies (EMBs) in the West African sub-region. According to him, working more closely together is key to deepening democratic governance across the region.
Prof. Yakubu made this call on Thursday 10th April 2025 in Banjul, capital of the Republic of Gambia, where he is attending the Extraordinary General Assembly of the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC).
Among other items listed on the agenda, member countries will review and adopt a revised draft of the ECONEC statutes at the meeting. One of the significant proposals for consideration at the meeting is the creation of Africa’s first-ever electoral resource-sharing database, an innovative move aimed at boosting collaboration and capacity-building across the continent.
Speaking to his fellow electoral commissioners, Prof. Yakubu, who previously served as president of the ECONEC Steering Committee, expressed gratitude for the support he received during his tenure. He also took a moment to honour past members of the Network who contributed to strengthening democratic institutions not just in their home countries but across Africa. He praised the current leadership for their commitment and dedication in keeping the Network active and relevant.
Looking back on ECONEC’s 2017 meeting in Sierra Leone, Prof. Yakubu recalled how he had proudly announced that every country in the sub-region was under democratic rule. Sadly, he observed, that was no longer the case. He regretted that today, four countries in the region are no longer practicing democracy. Notwithastanding, Prof. Yakubu remains optimistic and expressed the hope that democracy would soon return to the affected nations.
He also informed the Assembly that he was attending the ECONEC meeting for the final time as Chairman of INEC, because his tenure ends later this year. He thanked his colleagues and the Network as a whole for their unwavering support and collaboration over the years, urging them to continue upholding the values of electoral integrity and regional unity.
Several EMB heads also added their voices to the call for deeper regional collaboration. In their individual remarks, they applauded ECONEC for its continued technical support to their respective countries and its vital role in sustaining democratic governance across West Africa.
The Extraordinary General Assembly drew together the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the EMBs from the Republic of Benin, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
While in Banjul, Prof. Yakubu is also scheduled to join the current ECONEC President, Mr. Konneh Mohamed Kenewui of Sierra Leone, for a series of visits to key stakeholders, including the government of The Gambia as part of ECONEC’s Needs Assessment Mission ahead of the country’s presidential election in 2026.
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