Ife Ogunfuwa
The top trending search term on Google in Nigeria over the past 30 days is ‘Independence Day’ followed by ‘#EndSARS’.
According to a statement by Google on Wednesday, state election results were also among the top trending Google searches in Nigeria this month.
It added that the top searches were also linked to the most asked questions, which concerned a leading activist, Aisha Yesufu, the whereabouts of the President, Major General, Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and the winner of Big Brother Nigeria.
October 1 marked Nigeria’s 60th anniversary of its independence from Great Britain but the celebration turned into a series of protests across the country’s major cities as people expressed their anger over corruption and increase to petrol and electricity prices.
Also, online protest on #EndSARS gained momentum, which transitioned into street protests, in which Nigerian youths across the country demanded a shutdown of an allegedly brutal police department.
Google said, “Protests continued throughout October as the #EndSARS campaign gained momentum. The campaign called for the disbanding of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a unit of the Nigerian Police.
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“After SARS was disbanded, protests have continued over police brutality and other issues. As the protests dominated news headlines, online interest grew. As a result, “end sars” was the second most searched term for the month.
“Staying with politics, “ondo election result” was the third most popular term for the month. The poll saw Oluwarotimi Akeredolu re-elected as governor of Ondo state. Despite heavy criticism from opposition parties, Akeredolu won by a significant margin.”
Other topics trending in October, according to Google, included actress Eniola Badmus, who was falsely rumoured to have been shot during the #EndSARS protests; activist Aisha Yesufu, who has been at the centre of the protests; and rapper Lil Frosh, who was arrested in early October for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, Gift Camille.
The tech company said Yesufu also featured among the most asked questions for the month, topping the list.
Nigerians were also keen to know where President Muhammadu Buhari was as he waited days before addressing Nigerians on the protest, before finally urging citizens to spurn the protestors’ efforts, Google stated.
The global tech company stated that Nigerians also took to Google to find out who the winner of BBN 2020 was, asked practical questions on tracking stolen mobile phones and to find out who ‘Anonymous’ was.
According to Google, the top ten trending questions for October 2020 are: Who is Aisha Yesufu? Where is Buhari now? Who is the winner of BBN 2020? Where is Tinubu now? How to track a stolen phone? Who is Anonymous? Who is Tompolo? How to prepare jollof rice? Who is leading in Ondo election? Who is DJ Switch?
