Vera Anyim, the woman whose testimony at Dunamis International Gospel Centre stirred controversy, is now appealing to Nigerians for assistance in finding safe housing.

In a video posted on social media, Anyim stated that she needs a secure accommodation, adding that her current abode is risky and insecure.

She also expressed concerns about her safety, especially after becoming a public figure.

Anyim, who described herself as “now a celebrity,” voiced her worries about being a target in her current residence.

Her words: “I want to say to Nigerians, you know this thing that happened is a thing of joy, I never dreamed of it, it came this moment, I never dream of being a celebrity.

“It just came all of a sudden. I never prepared for it. I want to use this medium to urge us to assist me with accommodation because I am not buoyant now to rent a house. Where I am staying now is risky and insecure. It is a very open place and everybody has already known I am a celebrity.

“When I left Abuja, some people in my compound didn’t know what was happening, but I was there, and so many of them have heard what was going on. Some have said they are waiting for me. My brother, who stays with me, told me that people gathered, all waiting for me.

“That is why I am voicing out, asking for assistance to enable me to get a place I can stay so that my life can be safe. As I’m talking to you, I’m just hiding myself so that people will not come and misbehave at my side.

“So, please, if there is any way you can help me for me to get accommodation where I can be secured as a human being, intelligent people know what I am talking about.

“I don’t need to move or stay anyhow. If you don’t mind, you can assist me. Nothing is too small.”

Chinese tech giant ByteDance has said it has no plans to sell TikTok after a new US law put it on a deadline to divest from the hugely popular video platform or have it banned in the United States.

US lawmakers set the nine-month deadline on national security grounds, alleging that TikTok can be used by the Chinese government for espionage and propaganda as long as it is owned by ByteDance.

The Information, a tech-focused US news site, reported that ByteDance was looking at scenarios for selling TikTok without the powerful secret algorithm that recommends videos to its more than one billion users around the world.

ByteDance denied it was considering a sale.

“Foreign media reports about ByteDance exploring the sale of TikTok are untrue,” the company posted Thursday on Toutiao, a Chinese-language platform it owns.

“ByteDance does not have any plans to sell TikTok.”

TikTok has been a political and diplomatic hot potato for years, first finding itself in the crosshairs of former president Donald Trump’s administration, which tried unsuccessfully to ban it.

It has forcefully denied any link to the Chinese government and said it has not and will not share US user data with Beijing.

TikTok says it has also spent around $1.5 billion on “Project Texas”, under which US user data would be stored in the United States.

Its critics say the data is only part of the problem, and that the TikTok recommendation algorithm — the “secret sauce” for its success — must also be disconnected from ByteDance.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has said the company will take the fight against the new law to the courts, but some experts believe that for the US Supreme Court, national security considerations could outweigh free speech protection.

The estimated valuations of TikTok are in the tens of billions of dollars, and any forced sale would present major complications.

Among those with deep enough pockets, US tech giants such as Instagram-parent Meta or Google would likely be blocked from buying the app over competition concerns.

Further, many investors consider TikTok’s recommendation algorithm to be its most valuable feature.

But any sale of such technology by a Chinese company would require approval from Beijing, which designated such algorithms as protected technology following Trump’s attempt to ban TikTok in 2020.

Beijing has so far vocally opposed any forced sale of TikTok, saying it will take all necessary measures to protect Chinese companies.

While TikTok is a global phenomenon, it represents a small fraction of ByteDance’s revenue, according to analysts and investors.

ByteDance has enjoyed explosive growth in recent years, becoming one of the most valuable companies in the world. Its international investors, including US firms General Atlantic and SIG as well as Japan’s SoftBank, have stakes worth billions.

“TikTok US is a very small part of the overall business. It is an exciting part of the story, for sure, but… relative to the overall size, it’s a very small part,” ByteDance investor Mitchell Green, of US-based Lead Edge Capital, told CNBC television last month.

“If it was kicked out of the US, we would not sell.”

AFP

The plan by telecommunication operators in Nigeria to hike tariffs for data and voice calls appears not to have gone down well with Nigerians, warning that any move to further impoverish them would be resisted.

The planned resistance is coming on the heels of a joint statement released yesterday, by the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) and the Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON).

The bodies urged the Federal Government to consider a price hike after 11 years freeze.


According to the joint statement, the associations argued that the telecommunications sector is the only industry that has not adjusted prices despite rising inflation and high cost of doing business which they attributed to regulations that restrict them from setting appropriate prices.

“ALTON and ATCON respectfully reiterate that telecommunications infrastructure development requires substantial investments in network expansion, maintenance, and technology upgrades,” the statement stated.

But in a swift reaction, the Association of Telephone, Cable TV and Internet Subscribers of Nigeria (ATCIS) and the National Association of Telecommunication Subscribers (NATCOMS),condemned the move to increase service prices, saying they strongly oppose any price hike.

ATCIS President, Sina Bilesanmi, who took a more confrontational stance argued that Nigerians are already struggling financially and any further pressure on their earnings was capable of impoverishing them.

Bilesanmi reiterated the importance of subscriber involvement in such decisions, alluding to earlier promises from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to involve them in such decision making process.

Also commenting, NATCOMS President, Mr. Adeolu Ogunbanjo, warned against any form of excessive price hike.


Ogunbanjo while acknowledging the economic challenges faced by operators advocated for a minimal increase as against oner that would create a hole in the pockets of consumers.

A cross section of Nigerians kicked against the hike in voice and data tariffs describing the move as inhuman and insensitive to the plight of Nigerians.

A boutique owner at Surulere, Mrs Ada Nnamdi, told Daily Sun that network has been terrible in her area in recent time, saying “I am not even enjoying making calls, as network has not been steady. Let them give us quality service,”.

A 100 level student at the Lagos State University (LASU), Ayomide Tunde, said: ”increasing tariff at this time we are is just inhuman. Things have become so expensive lately, especially food stuffs. I can barely eat three times in a day. If not that I cannot do without data because I need it for research, I would have ignored it,”

For Miss Tunde, she appealed to government to stop telecoms operators from increasing tariff because they are still making huge profit despite the harsh operating environment.

A respondent who pleaded anonymity said: “Telecoms have been increasing tariff without us knowing.How do you explain the fact that I bought 3GB of data which cannot last for a month? But, three years ago, I used one GB of data for a whole month. Operators have been stealing from us,”.


The Telcos added that: “Despite the adverse economic headwinds, the telecommunications industry remains the only industry yet to review its general service pricing framework upward in the last 11 years, primarily due to regulatory constraints.

ATCON and ALTON call upon the government to facilitate a constructive dialogue with industry stakeholders to address pricing challenges and establish a framework that balances consumers’ affordability with operators’ financial viability,”

The operators also called for government action to address telecommunications industry challenges such as taxation, regulations, right of way (RoW), charges, inadequate power supply, and infrastructure vandalism.

They also asked the government to implement legislation that designates telecommunications infrastructure as critical national infrastructure.

“Telecommunications infrastructure undisputedly plays a pivotal role in Nigeria’s national security and socioeconomic growth, especially as the country currently contends with multiple security challenges that require urgent and immediate actions in response to these threats.

Attacks on cell towers, fibre optic cables, and other critical assets disrupt telecommunications services and result in significant financial losses for operators,”.


They urged the government to prioritise the security of telecommunications infrastructure and collaborate with law enforcement agencies to strengthen security protocols and successfully resist sabotage and vandalism.