A revealing exchange between activist Omoyele Sowore and a Fulani herder carrying a fortune in cash has crystallized a national dilemma: deep-seated public mistrust in institutions and the human cost of economic exclusion. The incident, recounted by Sowore from his 2018 presidential campaign travels, saw a herder explain that he was moving with his child and roughly 1,000 cows while physically carrying over 40 million naira. When Sowore suggested using a bank, the man's response was blunt and telling: "The banker is a thief. I don't want them to take my money." This vignette, shared widely on social media, points to a failure to integrate vast segments of the population into the formal economy. For the herder, the immense risk of traveling with cash was preferable to the perceived risk of financial institutions. From Activist to Presidential Candidate The story gains weight coming from Omoyele Sowore, a longstanding figure in Nigeri...
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