What Nigerians think of the USA. Paul in Abuja.
Answers What do you think of the United States? · see how other cities answered →
Stopped on a street in Abuja and asked what he makes of the United States, a young Nigerian man starts by refusing the question as too broad, then answers it three ways: politics, inflation and rap.
“It all depends what aspect of the US you want me to talk about,” Paul says. “The US is a big country and we all know about the US.” Told he can generalise, he is careful to mark where his knowledge comes from: “We’ve not been to the US, we only see news about the US on the media.”
On power: “We know US to be a very big state. And they control most of the affairs in the world. And more like they have the power right now.” On the economy, unprompted: “The rate of inflation right now in the US is really bad.”
On politics he asks a question rather than making a claim, and flags his own uncertainty while doing it. “Why do the past presidents keep coming back? I’ve never heard about the liberals winning, it’s always the conservatives. I may not really know much, but I think it’s only one party that wins all the time. So I think we should do something different.”
And then the part he clearly has opinions about. “Entertainment is top notch. I like Ye, I like Jay-Z, I like music. I like rap.” Also Coldplay, also Eminem, and a long pause trying to place Obie Trice.
He is not a musician himself. He does interior design.
Filmed by WalkwithGod in Abuja for a weekly We Them Media and poidh bounty.