Nigeria Needs to Eliminate Corruption before Joining BRICS!

Hello everybody and welcome to Geopolitical Trends, where truth matters. Very excited to be with you guys because I got this interesting topic about Nigeria. I've been following what's going on in Africa, uh, and I didn't see this coming, even though I did know there was a conversation back then when Nigeria starts whispering and BRICS didn't want to— like We're gonna have to think about this. So, but today I'm gonna kind of break it down for you, provide you my own insight, the way I see it for me personally. You are entitled to your opinions, of course. Then we just go from there. I'll answer one question or two towards the end. But first, let me see who is here. First of all, I want to say, oh my gosh, look who's here! Osiris, thank you so much for the coffee! You just bought me coffee. Osiris is the one that buys me coffee every day. Has been doing this for the last 2 and a half months or 3 months almost. Thank you so much, Osiris, and good to see you here live. So cool, good to see you. Why, hey, good to see you. Name, name, look where this gentleman from, from Nigeria. So good to see you here. John Smith in New Zealand, good to see you as always. Chanel as always. Francis Tango, uh, good to see you. And I have Bola J. Ayola, good to see you. Yanis Demetsi, good to see you. Very, very excited to be with you guys. All right, let me, uh, let me get in into— before I, before I start all this, I hope you guys enjoyed the conversation I had last night with Adjunct Professor Warwick Powell. So very, very informative guy. I look forward to having him again for our next conversation. Now remember to join me tomorrow for my conversation with the giant Bandari about India. So I'll have the, uh, conversation with the giant around 20:00 tomorrow. So I look forward to having you joining me there, guys. Now let's talk about the topic today. What are we going to be sort of addressing today? Just to put it in perspective as, as to what it means if Nigeria will be if Nigeria is accepted. We don't know yet, so, and this is what we're going to get into. So Nigeria has reiterated, in other words, repeated its intentions that it wants to join BRICS. Now, the conversation started, of course, last February, officially through its foreign minister, or Minister of Foreign Affairs, that is. His name is Yusuf Togar. He's the one who disclosed to the media that Oh, we are looking, uh, to send our paperwork or application, that is, to join, uh, uh, BRICS. Of course, it's a process. But here is the key question you need to ask yourself, you know: was Nigeria ever invited? Because you have to compare this to Saudi Arabia, you have to compare this to Argentina, which, which is gone, by the way. You have to compare this to Egypt, and so forth. Now, that doesn't mean they have been ignored. What— no, it's just process different. Like I always say, context matters. So, and for us to think about this, and this is what I'm going to be addressing, uh, today, is how this is going to impact, uh, BRICS moving forward. So we need to ask the key fundamental questions, and the key fundamental questions are this: and I already prepared them for you guys. This is with the hypothetical that, uh, uh, like I put in the question, what impact Nigeria will have on BRICS if admitted? And I put if for a reason. Second question, will corruption— because Nigeria is known for corruption, and by the way guys, we are not pointing fingers at Nigeria, most countries do We have corruption right here in Washington, in our system. It just— it's a subtle— it's done differently. In Nigeria, it's known for this too. And this is one of, by the way, the hindrance to the country, because if you only know how rich Nigeria is as far as natural resources, and you wonder why there is so much poverty in that country. So, so the question is, will corruption hinder its effort once admitted? Third question is Is this, hypothetically, is this the last straw that broke the camel's back regarding Western imperialism in Africa? Why am I asking this question to begin with? I'm asking this question because of what just took place in Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso with France being kicked out. Now here is the interesting aspect: with all this taking place You will believe it or not that Germany now is interested in, in sort of elaborating or moving its relationship with Niger. Germany, of course, we can't forget the German history in Africa. We can't forget Belgium history in Africa. We can't forget the UK, of course, even the US to a degree. So we can't forget all this, and the Dutch for that matter. No. And this is why we need to ask that question, and it will make more sense for us to put it in perspective. Uh, it's whether— like, one of, uh, I remember one of the viewers put a comment. I remember, uh, a name, Pam, or Pamela, that is, put the question— not the question, rather the statement is that the hopes is that she wrote, and I quote, we hope Nigeria gets it, but for the good of the people though, not the elites. And, and it's fair, it's fair to say. And by the way, it was an interesting comment that I saved it for you guys. She wrote, and I quote, we hope Nigeria gets it, but for the good of the people though, and the country needs to have good honest leaders whose desire is to serve the people and country with best interest for both. And Britain needs to give Nigeria back all the relics of the Benin culture. It's long been a saying that the British museums is— are full, uh, with artifacts thanks, uh, thanks to its once diplomats from around the world. And she said, I saw few things myself, end of quote. So in other words, British has stolen all that stuff and put them into their museum. So anyway, now I was thinking, by the way, I think somebody put a comment about, uh, some of you want to keep history and geography, others didn't. And I know it was some little confusion there. I do bear the responsibility of that as well. It's because the way I worded the survey questions. So it's not on you guys, it's on me, and I take the responsibility for it. It was a little confusing, uh, and, and, and I intend to share this with you because I want to have your input into this. You know, I didn't want it to be unilateral decisions. I can make decisions, but at the same time, we are in community, that, that your, your, your opinion matters to me. So I'm going to share with you quickly before I'll dive into the, uh, the percent— the, uh, the topic here. And, uh, here is the screen because I need to show you this, and I'm gonna rephrase the question once again later on, and, and I'll put it for you. So, uh, it shows that— I know you can't see it clearly here, guys, because the screen, the numbers. Uh, let me raise it up a little bit. So what it shows is 51% said yes, no, uh, 29% said no, and 21% said I don't care. So probably the confusion is in the question, because I did say whether you guys want me to keep the geography and history. And if we are to go with this, that means Yes, but others saying no. And anyway, it's confusing and it's my, my, my issue. It's my fault. I'm gonna fix it by rephrasing this survey and I will greatly appreciate your input later on. So for now, here is what I'm gonna do. I am not gonna do the headlines even though some have asked for that. I'm gonna do only geography today and move on forward with what we need to do. So All right, let's do geography, a little bit about Niger— oh, Nigeria. I'm sorry, Nigeria, not Niger, Nigeria. So let me share the link with you, and of course I'll give credit to World Atlas because that's where I get the map from, like you always know, guys. Here's the map here for Nigeria. Here it is. So Nigeria, uh, it's a Western— West African nation, of course, located in the northern and eastern hemispheres of the Earth. It is bordered by 4 countries. Those countries are— you have Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Benin to the north. On the northeast and east and west respectively. Nigeria also has a coastline of the Gulf of Guinea. So in other words, those four countries—Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and Benin—all of them surround sort of closer to Nigeria. Now, one thing that I found interesting, beside of course Nigeria being the most populous country, uh, uh, within OPEC, uh, within OPEC. Uh, Nigeria has around 221 million inhabitants. Yeah, 221 million inhabitants, located of course, as I mentioned earlier, on the Gulf of Guinea on African western coast. Nigeria covers an area of about 924,000 square kilometers. Abuja, which what you're looking at at the map, is the official capital since 1991, and that city in itself has a population of about 1 million people. So English, believe it or not, English language is Nigeria's official language, although many local languages such as Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, and Ijaw are also spoken. Those are considered the dialect in the country. So this is what's interesting about, uh, uh, Nigeria geographically. So now, as I mentioned, I am not going to do history today. I'm just gonna get into the topic till I square up this issue here of whether you guys want this or not. And because history— I, I, I, I know one comment someone said that, uh, uh, you know, uh, I better not do history because I don't cover full history, so it might give the wrong information and so forth. Well, I always say this for the record, whatever I share with you is a snapshot only, because I will have— I will need hours and hours to cover a history of any part of the world. I do— all I do is I share snippets for you, with you rather, and provide you the link for you guys to go and do the reading if you are interested. So, and this is what I intend to do, uh, moving forward, but I will put it again for vote with a clear question. And again, I bear my responsibility for the confusion. So, uh, now the analysis that I'm going to share with you, uh, I'm deriving it also from an article that I read that was written by— and I give credit to the author— by Shindo Okafor. Wrote an article about this one here, but I've been following on this I'm aware of it, uh, but I also liked what I read in the article, and I'm going to point out some aspects of it, uh, regarding, uh, why, uh, uh, is it or is it not a good idea for Nigeria to be a part of BRICS? Well, before I do that, I'm going to ask you the question. In your opinion, based on the knowledge you have, whatever knowledge you possess, Do you believe, in your opinion, Nigeria should be, or should BRICS admit Nigeria to its ranks? Just leave me a comment, an answer on the chat box, yes or no, straightforward. If you will be kind, then just do that, because I need to know your inputs and your thinking as to how you see it, you know, and, and as we move forward into the conversation. Well, like I mentioned at the beginning, Nigeria through its foreign minister, or Minister of Foreign Affairs, his name is Yusuf, uh, Togar, did disclose to the media that Nigeria is looking to send its application to join BRICS. Now here is what happened few months ago, to my knowledge, that some application has been submitted to the point that BRICS decided to bypass it. That's why during last summit in— when was the last— where was the last summit of BRICS? Can anybody type in, in a chat box? Because those are basic information that you guys need to understand when we talk about a place like BRICS, an institution like that, or a club or, or a bloc. You should, you should be familiar with its history. Where was the— where was the last summit of BRICS? So, Hosseir is great. You say no to the first question, shouldn't be in BRICS. Uh, uh, Themen Charakter, you said yes. John Smith, you said yes. Army with Harmony, you say yes. Queen Anne, you said yes. So majority of you so far. Wong KC, you say yes. Get black with me. You say no. Okay, that's very interesting. Why is interesting? Because it shows that there is that division that exists among the, the thinking. I know it's a small sample here, it's just us here in the community, guys, but if you are to ask on a larger scale, let's say hypothetically we do a survey around the world, do you think BRICS will admit Nigeria. Yeah, we might see the same split. Half might say yes, half might say no, and, and that will be the, uh, the, uh, the idea of it. Uh, this year, Mark Up, yes, he was in South Africa. Youth Promo, South Africa. Uh, Queen Anne in December, South Africa. It was in August, by the way. August. Yeah, yeah, you guys got it, you guys got it. He was in South Africa, the last summit of BRICS. The next one is going to be in Russia, and South Africa is going to turn the, uh, uh, the chairmanship to Russians for this. And this is why the timing of this very crucial. Why is this? Is because the foreign minister of Nigeria His name is, uh, Yusuf Tugar. That was during his interview with Sputnik, a Russian media outlet. That's what he asked, because as I said, the next summit is going to be in Russia. And what he said, and I quote, we intend to do it, meaning submitting the application. Like I said before, Nigeria runs a deliberate democratic, deliberative democratic system. So there tends to be a lot of engagement with different interest groups, different internal bodies before such action is taken. End of quote. This is what Tugar said. Well, of course, like I mentioned last time, the conversation started in 200— in 2023, because during the summit of BRICS in South Africa because at that time the vice president of Nigeria attended as an observer. So it was significant because that's usually how the process starts, but they have to go through the, the process and all this. So, and to understand all this, like the foreign minister saying, and I quote, you have to understand one thing: Nigeria is not the sort of country that succumbs to pressure. We have been single-minded since our inception, since we became independent. In what year Nigeria became independent, by the way? I don't want to disclose this to you to find that, uh, and, and just type in the year, uh, in the chat box. We joined the Non-Aligned Movement. We do what we feel is right for us as a country. We are not dictated by anyone, end of quote. Well, I have to push back against this statement. This statement is nothing but consumption of ink. You are saying it to just sound like you are independent when in reality you're not— your country, that is. So I'm gonna tell you why, why that is the case. But let me see first why you're— oh, GH, GH, you got it. Uh, Q7E, you got it as well. 1960. That's when independence— why am I pushing back against this statement? You all know what happened with ECOWAS, right? You remember what ECOWAS was about to do? What was ECOWAS planning on doing? ECOWAS, the Economic, uh, ECOWAS, the Economic Cooperation of West African Nations. What was he planning to do a few months ago? Can anybody type in, in the chat box? I did a video for you guys about that. So you should remember, in your— what was ECOWAS planning to do? Now they reversed the course. You got it, Camp 35, you got it. Invade Niger. Uh, uh, yeah, indeed, indeed. Now the reverse. Well, on whose behalf was ECOWAS going to do the invasion? Of course France, Western imperialism. So now when you read a statement like this, and to me it was very, very problematic in a sense that we have to, you have to understand one thing, Nigeria is not the sort of country that succumbs to pressure. Well, wait a minute, wait a minute. ECOWAS, which was at the time headed by none other than Tinubu. Let me see if I can find— yeah, none other than this guy here. Not this guy president, we give him the proper respect. It doesn't matter, you know, corrupted or not, doesn't matter. When somebody has a title, you give him the proper title. No, it was him that decided to— can sort of wanted to convince the members to go ahead and invade Niger. Then they realized, wait a minute, Mali and Burkina Faso, and even Algeria was about to send its own troops in support of those three countries against the ECOWAS. So with something like this makes you wonder, you as BRICS, an entity, do you want to have a country like that? Now don't misjudge, guys. We're not talking about Nigerian people. You all know this. The problem in Nigeria is that the corruption is so massive inside the government. I'll start with this guy here. And again, not just Nigeria, look around the world for that matter. So, so, and this is why when you have a country that is marred by corruption because it's massive, is it to the benefit of BRICS? To invite such thing. This was from demonstrations in Lagos, I think one of the largest cities there. Yeah, say no to corruption. It's massive. And here is the sad part about Nigeria. The sad part is that Nigeria is rich in natural resources. So apart, apart from oil, because it's an OPEC member, apart from, uh, OPEC, Nigeria's other natural resources includes natural gas, tin, iron ore, tin, coal, limestone, niobium, lead, zinc, and arable land. All of this because when oil was discovered in Nigeria— which, by the way, does anybody know what year it was discovered? Who is, uh, someone there from Nigeria? Do you know what year oil was discovered in Nigeria? Let me just see, guys, because it has a lot. It's a major oil producer in Africa, in addition to Angola and so forth. So, and this is why 1959— you close, you close, you close, Name Name. 1956, that's when it was. 1956, that's when it was. So So the idea— and it was, by the way, discovered in the area of Oloyberri, to those who know. If I— I don't have the map here anymore. And even with this map, I looked it up already, but I didn't see that particular location there. Oloyberri. That's— anyway, that's where it was discovered. And here is my point in all this. Why Nigeria is one of those— it's going to be for and against being in BRICS and not being in BRICS. Being in BRICS will make perfect sense. Why? Because Nigeria is an oil producer, part of OPEC. And can you imagine, with Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Russia, what they all have in common? What all those three countries have in common? Can anybody type in chat box, please? And I don't assume, that's why I'm asking the questions. I don't like to assume, I like to ask the question. So what do they have in common? Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Russia? Oil. Abbas Bangora, you got it. Abbas Bangora. And I'm sure you guys know this, I just don't like to assume. That's why I asked question. So if you add Nigeria to that and you consider— listen carefully— you consider between the two largest, uh, countries in BRICS as far as population, China and India, now you add Nigeria with about over 200 million people, you all see where this is headed. That's on the positive side. Then you add to that when those transactions will be conducted in some other denomination beside the US dollar. That's one. As a matter of fact, even Nigeria now is calling for the transactions— I don't know if you guys know about it or not— Nigeria is calling for the transactions in some other, other denomination or other currency beside the dollar. So, and this is why I asked the question at the beginning, Is this the last straw that broke the camel's back regarding Western imperialism in Africa? Because that represents this kind of reflection of it. We already saw what Burkina Faso, what Niger, what Mali did— kicked out the French, and now Niger kicked out the US. Yeah, they basically kicked out the US. We're done with you here, please leave our country. So for Nigeria, given the massive corruption and the influence of the foreign entities and foreign oil companies, that begs the question— and this is what I'm saying, two sides of it, both sides to it— BRICS will have to think very carefully moving forward. I've always perceived the, the, the, the the progress or the movement forward of BRICS in terms of understanding the strategic realities of what type of countries you want to admit. There are those now saying, you know, why is BRICS interested in the United Arab Emirates? Get rid of that because it's allied with the West. How about bringing Indonesia? Or Malaysia instead, or Iraq for that matter. Iraq is a massive oil producer. See what I'm getting at? I'm trying to provide you guys, uh, uh, the framework of what the arguments about this, uh, uh, for Nigeria, whether it will be an addition or additional asset, if I may say, to BRICS or it will be a hindrance. So now there is a reason also as to why this conversation is, is spurring now from the foreign minister as to Nigeria, an OPEC member that could— the possibility of becoming, uh, uh, be admitted rather to BRICS. The way you have to think about it, you have to think about it in terms of the where the next meeting is going to be. It's going to be in Russia. And if you think about what Russia has now with Nigeria, because Russia and Nigeria are looking to cooperate on the nuclear projects. Now we ask the another basic question. Could it be that Nigeria asked Russia for this favor? Can you sort of, uh, uh, uh, consider us as a member of BRICS? So, because when you think about it, both countries, Russia and Nigeria— Russia's expansion in Africa is growing. It's already in the three countries Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger. Russia's presence is going to be there militarily to now help them out, fight certain groups. But also don't forget China's presence in Africa. And as a matter of fact, for Nigeria, if, if only that corruption can be controlled or eliminated, of course. And you all know, by the way, I can say it here, you all know Uh, to me, what, what if somebody gets corrupt, uh, get caught in corruption, what the punishment is. So, you know, I don't shy away from saying that. You know why? You know, it's not I'm heartless guy. No, no, no, no, no, no. It's because that's what had to happen. Because once you become in a position of power representing the interest of the people, corruption shouldn't be happening.. And if you get caught, you should be punished the way I suggest. Of course, it's just my own opinion. Some will disagree with it, and that's fine. So, so now we go back to Nigeria and Russia, this partnership or cooperation in the nuclear project, because Nigeria has also some good natural resources. And if Nigeria becomes part of BRICS and pushing the West out completely, Nigeria can forge better relationships with its three neighbors: Burkina Faso, Mali, and, uh, uh, Niger. What does Niger have? Uranium. What does Burkina Faso have? Also natural resources. You go— you guys see the idea what I'm getting at. So, and this is why you are seeing Uh, for example, the Russian, uh, Rosatom, which is, uh, uh, uh, funded by the government, it's a big, big energy company, uh, and the Nigerian Atomic Energy, they are now in talks regarding expediting the process of cooperation. So, so, and this is what I'm, I'm saying to you, BRICS will have to really think carefully and strategically. Because still, I, I had some conversation with some individuals that saying to me, you know what, they could have considered, for example, Iraq, for example, Malaysia, Indonesia. I don't see Indonesia and Malaysia. As a matter of fact, Australia is very concerned about where the economy of Malaysia is going because it's going up. Same thing with Malaysia. So when it makes perfect sense— but again, I am not inside the club. I don't advise them. I don't— if I'm— I'm sure they have qualified advisors there and people who know their things, whatever. And, and I'm just looking from outside in. The way I see it is I see it with the strategy. And this is why I have to think in terms of, uh, there are even those who even went as far as saying, why you swap out India for another country, for Indonesia, so you don't have to change about the I. Yeah, it's easier said than done. It's because you have to understand there is process and protocol and so forth. India, we can't deny this, that India is a founding member. So And I still, by the way, I've been looking into— I've been looking into the process of how a country can be removed. I couldn't find anything yet, so I'm, I'm a little bit surprised, but I'm gonna keep digging. I'm gonna keep digging till I, uh— I know some people I can reach out to, they can help me out with that, because it has to be a process by which— because if a member is undermining the group, what's the point? What's the point? You can't— if you are— you think about it, guys, in, in sport or, or military or whatever, when you have a team and you have some members that is a dead weight, what do you do with the person like that? You give him or her the option: either get it together or get out. Simple as that. It's the same thing. And this is where I see one of those challenges that the BRICS is going to have to face. And the reason being, because where BRICS is headed, it goes parallel with the changing on the global landscape. We are moving into the multipolar setting. You consider yourself lucky to be alive to witness this before your own eyes. So, so we moving into that multipolar, uh, multipolar order And if BRICS as block is growing while the EU is going down, why Europe is deindustrializing, why Australia is synced in, New Zealand soon to be, Japan and South Korea and Philippines, we don't know where they are, and even for us here in the United States, the economy is going down. With all this, BRICS will have to think strategically as to what kind of member it wants to invite in. Because it's not about just becoming big and huge, it's about becoming efficient. That is where it's going to be for BRICS. You still have to be dealing with India, because when you have that weight— now I know the arguments, and I've been reading some comments that, you know, as negative and nasty as they are, they are free to express their opinion. But I don't shy away from saying the truth. Just because India has a large population, it doesn't translate to progress. You look at where the economy is right now. I know people inside India. As a matter of fact, one of the individuals who helps me out with my thumbnails is from India, educated, has a degree in graphic design, and can have an opportunity employment-wise. So where is this policies of the Prime Minister Modi that have not translated into action by elevating people like the individual who does my thumbnails? Wonderful guys, very bright. And that's just one example. I'm, I'm just talking the big picture here. So the idea of just because you have a large population, it doesn't translate. You compare it, of course, to what China did with its 700 million poor people, that raised them out of poverty. That's a different story. And this is what I'm saying. Nigeria has over 200 million people, it's rich in oil, and yet majority lives in poverty. How come? I used to have a professor, uh, His first name was Igor, if I recall. Communication professor way back in my undergraduate, was from Lagos. Wonderful guys, bright guy. And I used to ask him— I was aware of it back then— he used to ask, you know, how come Nigeria, with all the oil and poverty, is massive? What's going on? Oh, he said, David, it has to do with corruption, massive corruption. And I said, what, can they rein in that corruption? I mean, they have to be laws in place, they have to be— what? Oh, he said, it's so massive. Anybody gets in possession of power, end up— and that's why I never trusted this guy, even when he was the mayor back then, before he ran into office. And I'm not saying he's a bad guy, that's not what I'm saying. I am talking about policies here. I am talking about governance. So I never trusted him. Why? Is because when he took that possession of the ECOWAS, invading, wanted to invade Niger, I knew right there he— whose interest he was serving. So of course we're not going to judge a whole country just because this guy. But wait a minute, when you're the president The buck stops with you. That's like our case. That's like Australia's case. Japan, South Korea, Philippines, Britain, Germany— you got the idea, guys. That's when I see the problem. So, and again, till they get rid of the corruption one way or another, and, and they can deal with it in their own way according to their laws and traditions and so forth. But if you are to see massive demonstrations and people— those are average people, those are not government employees, by the way. And by the way, those demonstrations took— that's a few years ago. I just had to use the picture for it to let you know. Till they do that, BRICS will be shooting itself in the foot, dragging in another entity— or a country for that matter— that its progress might be hindered. Because when you become a bloc, you're gonna have to think about your credibility. This is why back then— when I say back then, when I was a kid— I used to have conversation with some of my family members in Europe about the European Union when it created and so forth, and And the idea of it— even there are some European countries who were against it. They didn't want it. They want to stay independent. And now they regret being even part of it. I do foresee the same problems for BRICS if they keep bringing just whomever. Just because you have massive oil, it does not translate to a good policy. And they're gonna have to be careful with that. But like I said earlier, we cannot ignore the sort of an added asset Nigeria could be because of its oil reserves. Well, someone will make the same arguments that could apply to Iraq, okay, that could apply to Malaysia. Malaysia might not have as massive oil resources, but it does have some. Its economy, its large population, its large market. Same thing for Indonesia, you know, being already an ASEAN member. You can just see where— and, and all I'm thinking about here, I'm putting my geopolitical analyst hat and thinking in terms of you have to look for the, for the weak spots, what could trigger the downfall of an entity. You know, you look at it right now in the EU Europe is moving into some direction. I ain't gonna come back from it because that will be a new era. And the new era we are talking about here, we're talking about the multipolar order by which the EU will become irrelevant. Of course, not next year, not the year after, but it will happen. At the same time, you look at where ASEAN is. With the assumption, like I always say, ASEAN gets its act together regarding certain members inside, and you all know who am I referring to here. So BRICS is in no different, is in no different position, that is. So BRICS will have to think also the idea of, uh, of, of the countries that decided to add Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, And I think, whatever, Eritrea or Ethiopia, one of those countries. Argentina was supposed to be, but it's gone. Maybe later on. On the other hand, BRICS cannot be counting on something like this. This is why they have to understand the stability of a system in a country. I mean, are you gonna see regime change in Saudi Arabia? Are you gonna see a regime change in Iran, in Egypt? No, most likely not. That's my point. So this is what BRICS needs to consider and think through before now the next summit. And, and I'll be of course, uh, uh, doing, uh, an analysis on it when that time comes, uh, but I'm already seeing the signs. I'm seeing the signs now. The idea that Nigeria announced this publicly, it tells me that it doesn't care whether the West likes it or not, because Nigeria almost made a mistake with the ECOWAS decision that was pushed by Tinubu, by this guy, Nigerian president. Speaking of him, by the way, I do have a link for you later on about his, uh, background, uh, if you are interested in reading up a little bit on it. Let me just see here if I can— yeah, it was an article about him when, uh, when he was the, uh, mayor of Lagos and so forth, uh, mayor between 1999 and 2007. So he's about 72 years old, something like that. I'll, I'll post the link for you guys later on so you can, uh, you, you can see it. But, but that's my point. This is what I wanted to highlight to you. The idea is now it's a question mark whether Nigeria will be admitted or not. If you ask me my personal opinion, I'll say no. It's because I know what a system like this, that is corrupt— corruption is so massive, what it's going to end up doing to a bloc that is trying to move away from the division that exists inside. Make no mistake, there's already division inside BRICS, or especially when it comes down to the currency. India already made it clear that they were not bound by that policy as far as a unified currency. Now, there are those who are saying, well, India has to look after its own interest. I am not saying otherwise. On the other hand, if you can be a team player, then get out. Simple as that. And this is what I intend to address tomorrow with my guest Jayant Bhandari. It's because also the idea of where this hype about the economy, India being a superpower— well, hold on a second. Let's not inflate, uh, things when they are not. You know, if you look at where poverty is, where things are, where the infrastructure is, and so forth. And like I gave you the example of the individual who does my thumbnails that is graduated, educated in India, but the government is not providing enough jobs for individual— someone like him with his educational background. So where is this? So I, I'll question, what did Modi achieve in the last 7 years? I know there are those who really lash out at me. I don't like India, I hate India. Hate is a negative emotion, and I don't have that in me. I don't hate anybody. I don't— it's a negative emotion. You don't want— never ever, guys, never ever let Hate get inside, it'll eat you alive inside. Don't, don't. Always positive, thank you. But I won't shy away from saying the truth because I'll question what did Modi, Prime Minister Modi, did for India for the last 7 years. Nothing but promoting the nationalist mindset. I mean, I saw some disturbing videos about, uh, targeting Muslims and so I'll talk about this tomorrow. For now, suffice it to say that if we are to think in terms of the BRICS growing collectively, you know, all countries will have to play their parts into that. And before you invite a country like Nigeria, you're going to have to really, really assess and have straightforward conversations. And because any, any deadweight will drag you down. You all know this. This is nothing new that, that you are not aware of. So, so this is where I see it going. And again, I will be watching, keeping my eyes open for the upcoming summit in Russia. It will be very interesting. What I will be looking for is where the global stage is going to be at that time, or the global order rather, not stage, global order, especially when it comes down to the financial aspects. And whether— I know, I'm aware that there are about almost 30 countries wants to join bricks. But again, if I were given the opportunity to advise— and I am sure they have qualified advisors— if I were given the opportunity to advise, I would say, you know, slow down, slow down. There is a reason for all that. All right, guys, I am gonna take a question or two from you because I have to head out to the other studio because today we're doing locals on the other channel. I will be doing that with Elizabeth. If you guys want to join me there, uh, we will be over there. So, uh, all right. Uh, by the way, uh, remember to join me tomorrow. Uh, I don't know if I still have the link for that or not. Let me see if I can— guys can put it for you. Uh, no, I don't. Let me get it for you. And I had some hiccup yesterday with the, with the streaming. It was like so surprising. I was like, what the heck is happening? But it worked anyway. Let me see here. Uh, okay, it's— yeah, here is the link, guys. I'm gonna, I'm gonna put it in the chat box for you first of all, and if— and I'll put it on If you will be kind, just share it with others. This is for tomorrow at 8:00— at 20:00 hours. So that's when it will be. Uh, once again, for those who wanted to support the channel on link on, uh, PayPal, here is the link for that one. Uh, and I am very grateful to you guys. By the way, I need to say thank you to, uh an indiv— recent individuals that just, uh, all right, let me see here, because it's the right things to do. And I know some don't like it because I take time for that, but hey, I will not, I will not waver from that. I also want to thank, uh, uh, all the all the channel, uh, members and the members on Buy Me a Coffee. And so for all of you guys, I wanna— I'm very, very grateful. Yeah, I just want to give a shout out to Stephen Wong. Thank you so much for your PayPal support. It really means a lot to me, and I, I'm very grateful. And also thank Maurice Griffith and Raj Sharma. No, Rasharma, that's payment I made to him. So, uh, Dongmi Su, thank you. Nathan Jackson and Danny Chu, John Deere, Robert Denny, Paul Mogar, Dominguez, once again, and Nathaniel Jackson once again, twice. Anmir Akbar. So thank you all for really supporting the channel. And for those who wants to uh, support the channel through the Buy Me a Coffee. Here is the link, the first one for the channel and second one for the Asia trip. Speaking of Asia trip, I am working— believe it or not, I wish I can show you, but, uh, here I am working on the visa application without disclosing which country that is because there are countries that requires visa for that. So Anyway, let me think, let me take a question or two, guys, before I'll, I'll sign off here. Uh, Timeline Dunkley, good to see you as always. Will Mexico be in BRICS? Uh, hard to tell because here's the thing, we already seen what's going on right now with BYD having the vehicles, the EVs in Mexico.. And what the US already is planning on doing by imposing 100% tariffs. Mexico is tied with the North, North Treaty, North, uh, uh, NAFTA, uh, the North America Free Trade Agreement. And now, will this be a problem for it? Possibly. But remember, last time, uh, Mexico mentioned this, the US threatened to invade it, send, send the, the military. Which was ludicrous. That's not something you say, and it's not a joke. You don't joke like that, even though the president or whomever said, oh, I was just joking. No, no, no, no, no, no. That's stupidity, because words tends to turn into policies. And second, we won't be able to anyway. So I don't see that, uh, I don't see that at this time, uh, because the, uh, the NAFTA part of it, that will be the hindrance to it. And it would be nice because Mexico is a big market also, one of the only three large markets in, in, in Latin America— Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico. Not in that order, but, uh, all right, let me see another question here before I sign off. Uh, Y YT: David, where does your garlic come from? I know what you asking this. Do you guys know the story of the garlic? Can anybody type in in the chat box? That's so funny. Type in in the chat box, what is the story with the garlic, if anybody knows. And I'll tell you where mine come from, by the way. So that's so clever of you, YT. You know, let me see, let me see what you guys did type in. What's the story of the garlic? Does anybody know? Spy garlic. John Smith, you're right. Some idiot American politician saying that garlic, Chinese garlic, is a national security. How idiotic. How pathetic, how stupid. It's embarrassing, really embarrassing to have some— somebody saying something like that. So, and yes, I do buy Chinese, uh, garlic sometime. That depends. Again, if I go to the farm, I get the locals. If I'm not, I go to Whole Foods, I'll get the Chinese market there. So, so that's where I get it from. It's a It's just, uh, it's ludicrous. It's ludicrous. So thank you for the question. Uh, let me say thank you so quick here to those who put the Super Sticker. Anna Kiblis, thank you so much for your continued support. It means a lot to me, and I am very grateful to you. Uh, AA82, thank you so much for your Super Sticker. You wrote, Nigeria is a failed state, genocidal killing Uh, Biafrans in the South, please do show on Biafran war Nigeria government sponsors. I won't say that last term, but you guys can read it. I see your arguments, I see your argument there, and I am aware of some issues regarding, uh, something like that. Of course, to me it's more concentrated on the government's corruption. That is where I keep my focus mainly on. Thank you so much for your super sticker, uh, Aisha Imam. Thank you so much for your Super Sticker, truly and greatly appreciate it. So, all right guys, I hope you find this very informative. Remember to join me tomorrow for the live stream, uh, for my interview with Jayant Bahandari, and I look forward to seeing you next time. As always, remember, geopolitics impact your daily life in more ways than one. Till next time, guys, bye-bye.