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(Nigeria) The Edo State Government has opened more temporary fixed posts in the metropolis, in addition to the already existing fixed and mobile centres across the state, to ensure that every eligible person for the second dose vaccination is inoculated against the virus. The state’s COVID-19 Incident Manager, Dr Andrew Obi, who disclosed this to journalists in Benin City, said the action is a part of efforts by the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration to contain the pandemic and ensure the safety of citizens. The Incident Manager said the posts are sited within the Benin Airport, Government House, Police Clinic, State Secretariat, Edo State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Four Mechanised Brigade and the Office of the Department of State Security. The Incident Manager, who reiterated the need for residents to continue to comply with preventive protocols against the spread of the virus, said Edo was recording remarkable success in the management of the pandemic. Acc

*Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State (Nigeria) Governor Hope Uzodimma has  inaugurated the Imo State version of the Steering Committee on Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus, NG-CARES. The NG-CARES is an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria with assistance from the World Bank to mitigate the effect of COVID- 19 on the rural economy using CSDP, Fadama and Bank of Industry platforms. The programme is aimed at restoring the livelihoods of the poor and vulnerable, maintaining food security and facilitating the recovery of Small and mMedium Enterprises (SME's). This Federal Government programme implemented across the 36 states of the federation, with states encouraged to domesticate it. On Tuesday,   Governor Uzodimma inaugurated the Committee with members drawn from critical ministries and agencies of Government to drive the programme. The Commissioner for Finance and Coordinating Economy, Dr Doris Anite   serves as the State Focal Person and Cha

*Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta (Nigeria) Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, has called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to fully operationalise the National Health Act to curb the high rate of maternal and neonatal mortality in the country. Okowa made the call at the inauguration of Asaba Specialist Hospital, which was performed by his Adamawa State counterpart, Alhaji Ahmadu Fintiri, in Asaba. He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for operationalising the National Health Act, but remarked that it was being implemented in part contrary to the full content and letters of the act as passed by the national assembly. According to him, when fully operationalised, half of the funds would be utilised in providing free treatment to the vulnerable group thereby reducing prevailing high maternal and neonatal mortality rate which has become an embarrassment to the country. The governor disclosed that in Delta, his administration, in 2017, operationalised its Contributory Healt

(Nigeria) The Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative, alongside the Akwa Ibom State Government, Wednesday, held the groundbreaking and flagged off construction of the Akwa Ibom State University Teaching Hospital at a ceremony in the state. The construction of the Akwa Ibom State University Teaching is being supported by a N5billion ASR Africa Health Infrastructure Grant for which N2.5billion was disbursed immediately to commence construction. The ASR Africa Initiative was established by African industrialist, philanthropist and founder of Nigeria’s BUA Group, Abdul Rabiu, and seeks to support sustainable development initiatives in health, education and social development within Nigeria and the rest of Africa through its annual $100 million ‘Africa Fund for Social Development and Renewal.’ Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom, on the occasion, thanked the ASR Africa initiative and its Chairman, Abdul   Rabiu for the gesture and promised to ensure the grant is put to good use. “We ar

Wife of Enugu State Governor, Mrs Monica Ugwuanyi, administering vaccine on child (Nigeria) The wife of Enugu State Governor, Mrs Monica Ugwuanyi, has tasked mothers to always ensure they take proper record of their children’s #immunization, for effective administration of vaccines on them for healthy living. Mrs Ugwuanyi gave the advice during the flag off of the 2021 Maternal, New Born and Child Health Week, MNCHW and Modified Integrated Medical Outreach Programme, MIMOP, held on Monday, at Uwani Health Centre, Enugu South Local Government Area of the state. The Enugu First Lady noted that some mothers do forget the scheduled date for immunization of their children, stressing that proper record keeping is essential and a sure way to effectively immunize the kids. “One advice I want to give is this; let’s have a small bag where you keep your children’s cards. You will also put in the bag everything concerning the child that you need in the hospital so that even when you are not

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo SAN, tours smartcard manufacturing facility, SecureID, in Lagos State, Nigeria.  (Nigeria) It's the first in sub-Saharan Africa and one of the three such cutting-edge facilities on the continent, with top prime global certifications for smart card manufacturing and it is based in Lagos, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, relished yesterday afternoon while touring SecureID company's premises, and affirmed Nigeria's extremely bright economic future, which he said cannot be aborted despite current challenges.   According to him, "The economic future of our nation is extremely bright. Yes, we have challenges today and they may look daunting. But let me assure you that these issues will be resolved. The march of this nation to its manifest destiny as Africa’s leading economic power will not be aborted. We are more than able to overcome."        An impressed Osinbajo said the Buhari administration in "following the recommendation of

(Nigeria)  Presidential Steering Committee, PSC, on Covid-19, has said that the audiovisual clip of the former National Coordinator of Presidential Task Force, PTF, on Covid-19 in circulating on the social media, was an old video and has nothing to do with the recent guidelines released  by the Federal Government Director, Information, Office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey, in a statement on Tuesday, said, “PSC states unequivocally that the recently released Implementation Guidelines is a reissue of the guidelines published on April 27, 2020, and not new as being speculated but to reinforce existing provisions of the COVID-19 Health Protection Regulations, 2021 to serve as a reminder that COVID-19 is still virulent. “The Presidential Steering Committee urges the public to disregard the old video of PTF circulating on the social media and to comply with Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions on COVID-19 in all their activities to avoid a surge as being exp

(Nigeria) The Federal Government has reintroduced Covid-19 restrictions across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT. It also reintroduced fresh restrictions on mass gatherings, insisting that it must henceforth be 50 percent capacity. Curfew is now from midnight to 4am until further notice. This new directive is to take effect by midnight of Tuesday, a member of the Presidential Steering Committee, PSC, on Covid-19, Dr Mukhtar Mohammed, said. Mohammed, who is the Head of Technical Secretariat of the PSC, made the announcement while briefing reporters on Monday in Abuja. It explained that the measure followed the number of cases and fatalities currently being recorded in Turkey, India and Brazil. It was gathered that with the restrictions imposed, mass gatherings in public spaces have been restricted to 50 people at any given time. Also, access to government institutions would also be denied to anyone not wearing a face mask while government meetings and tr

(Nigeria) The Senate, on Tuesday, urged President Muhammadu Buhari, to provide a five-year post COVID-19 special intervention programme for Nigerians living with various types of disabilities.   This was just as it urged the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, through the NIRSAL Micro Finance Bank, to provide   Special Loan facilities to Persons with Disabilities through the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities. The Chamber also called on security agencies to retain and convert personnel who became disabled in the course of discharging their duties than retiring them. In addition, it also urged the Federal Civil Service Commission, FCSC, and Boards of Parastatals to give special consideration to Persons with Disability during recruitment exercise to give effect to the Legislative intent of the Discrimination against Persons with Disability (Prohibition Act, 2018). These formed part of the resolutions reached after the upper chamber considered a motion titled, “Urgent nee

(Nigeria) Nigeria Association of Women Journalists, NAWOJ, has joined the rest of the world to mark World Malaria Day being observed on April 25 of every year, as it called for urgent need for the Federal Government to develop a strong political will towards eliminating malaria in the country. NAWAOJ in a statement on Sunday by its National President, Ladi Bala and National Secretary, Helen Udofa, said, “According to the 2019 World Malaria Report, Nigeria had the highest number of global malaria cases (25% of global malaria cases) in 2018 and accounted for the highest number of deaths (24% of global malaria deaths). “This alarming figure is unacceptable and stresses that with this year’s theme: "Zero Malaria, Draw the Line Against Malaria" is an indication that malaria is preventable, therefore every malaria death is unacceptable. “It notes that as a country that bears the brunt of malaria burden, Nigeria should therefore be leading the cause to stamp out malaria by 203

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN (Nigeria) Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, has urged the United States to lend its weight to the call for a just global transition to zero emissions, lead the effort to ensure easy access to COVID-19 vaccine by all countries, and generally reset its foreign policy agenda with the African continent in ways that bring about economic prosperity, increased security, and improved governance. Osinbajo expressed these views today in a speech delivered virtually at the 2021 Johns Hopkins University’s African Studies Programme Conference on the theme “Africa-US Re-engagement: A New Foreign Policy Agenda”. The conference was organized by the School of Advanced International Studies, SAIS, of the university. According to the VP, “the United States and Africa should work together to tackle climate change and moderate global warming including through an energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies.   African countries have made commitments in thi

Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State with a delegation of the national body of resident doctors at Aba lodge on Thursday. (Nigeria) Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State has said that his administration will provide the needed funds for the accreditation of Departments at the Abia State University Teaching Hospital, ABSUTH, study the Act of the National Association of Resident Doctors for domestication as well as maintain regular payment of salaries of Resident Doctors in the state. Governor Ikpeazu who disclosed this while receiving a delegation of the national body of resident doctors at his, Aba Lodge explained that despite the fact that the issue of salary arrears predates his administration, he was determined to tackle it and offset it gradually as resources improve noting that since inception, his administration has remained willing and committed to the improvement of ABSUTH and the general health sector of the state. He explained that several healthcare frameworks were roll

*President Muhammadu Buhari (Nigeria) Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has filed a lawsuit against President Muhammadu Buhari over “his failure to probe allegations that N3,836,685,213.13 of public funds meant for the Federal Ministry of Health, teaching hospitals, medical centres, and National Food Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, are missing, mismanaged, diverted or stolen, as documented in the recently released 2018 audited report by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation.” The suit is coming in the wake of the controversy over Buhari’s travel to London for a “routine” medical check-up at a time the country’s resident doctors are on strike over unpaid salaries, upward review of hazard allowances, and COVID-19 care incentives, leaving millions of poor Nigerians without access to medical treatment. In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/433/2021 filed last week at the Federal High Court in Abuja, SERAP is seeking: “an order of mandamus directing

(Nigeria) Conference of Nigeria Political Parties, CNPP, has urged Nigerian electorate to get ready to reject any presidential candidate, presented by any political party, who has unresolved corruption allegations against them in 2023. The umbrella body of all registered political parties and political associations also insisted that all persons seeking to be President must be medically certified and his or her medical test made public. The CNPP in a statement by its Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu said “This has become necessary if the country can win the war against corruption and reduce the amount of foreign exchange wasted on medical tourism by sick Presidents. “We have noted with dismay how some persons who are yet to legally clear their names of graft allegations as well as those with rumoured terminal ailments have been engaging in clandestine political consultations ahead of the 2023 presidential election. “If Nigeria's rating on the global corruption index wo

*Senate President, Ahmad Lawan (Nigeria) President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, on Wednesday, said that for Nigeria to provide ‘herd immunity’ for its over two hundred million population, efforts must be made by the Federal Government to collaborate with international bodies to develop and produce a vaccine for the purpose. According to Lawan, the project to develop a vaccine must deploy resources specifically meant to provide the needed environment for Nigerian scientists resident abroad to come up with a vaccine that would serve not only Nigeria’s population, but of other developing countries. The Senate President made this known during the Public Presentation of a Research Work on the Legislative Efforts and Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic by the Young Parliamentarians Forum in collaboration with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy in Abuja. In his address, Lawan recalled the efforts by the National Assembly and State Assemblies in coming up with legislative interventio

(Nigeria) The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has said that the routine overseas medical checkup embarked by President Muhammadu Buhari was a direct indictment of his Presidency over its failure to fix our healthcare system, which had been wrecked by his administration. PDP in a statement on Tuesday, said “It is indeed worrisome that under President Buhari,   even the hitherto highly rated State House Clinic, has become so moribund that it cannot provide a simple medical checkup service for Mr. President. “While the PDP has nothing against where any person, including President Buhari, seeks his or her medical services, our party is worried that the Buhari   Presidency is taking no decisive steps to fix our health care system, ostensibly because Mr. President can afford overseas medical treatment at tax payers’ expense. “The PDP is disturbed that while Mr. President jets out for medical treatment in well-equipped hospitals abroad, our hospitals and medical personnel are in very sor

President Muhammadu Buhari (Nigeria) President Muhammadu Buhari will proceed to London, the United Kingdom on Tuesday for a routine medical check-up. Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in a statement on Monday, said “The President meets with Security Chiefs first in the morning, after which he embarks on the journey. “He is due back in the country during the second week of April, 2021.”

Imo State Governor,  Hope Uzodimma (centre) addressing Newsmen during the Flag-Off Ceremony of Enrollment of Vulnerable Persons into basic Health Care Provision Fund Scheme with Deputy Governor, Prof Placid Njoku (left), Acting Chief Judge, Justice Ijeoma Agugua (right) and others at Owerri Municipal Council Headquarters, Owerri.  (Nigeria) Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, has flagged-off the enrollment of vulnerable persons in the state into the federal government’s Basic Healthcare Provision Fund Scheme. The scheme will offer a refreshing insurance that will allow the poor people, especially the less privileged, to have access to quality healthcare delivery irrespective of their status in the society. Performing the flag-off ceremony at the Owerri Municipal Council Headquarters on Monday, the Governor said effecting the enrollment of vulnerable persons in the Health Insurance Scheme is a laudable health innovation that centres on comprehensive healthcare of the vulnerable.

The suspect, Sukurat Olajoke (Nigeria) A 35-year-old woman, Sukurat Olajoke, was arrested on Saturday at about 8:30 p.m. by men of the Ogun State police command for killing her own one-month-old baby, and dumping the corpse in the Ogun River. Policemen attached to the Enugada Divisional Headquarters, Abeokuta, who was on routine patrol with the Divisional Police Officer, Baba Hamzat, had seen the woman throwing something suspicious into the river. Her suspicious behaviour after throwing the object into the river attracted the policemen who quickly apprehended her for questioning. On interrogation, Olajoke, who said she lives at Agboole Alakoye area of Igbo Ora in Oyo State, confessed that what she threw into the river was the corpse of her one-month-old baby, whom she killed out of frustration. The DPO later engaged the service of local divers, who helped in recovering the corpse of the child, which was later deposited at the General Hospital mortuary.   According to her, the

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu state with friends visit indigent patients in the state (Nigeria) The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Enugu State chapter has commended the Association of Nsukka Professors and friends of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for keeping faith with the governor’s long-held tradition of celebrating his birthday, by paying huge hospital bills of discharged indigent patients in the state and other humanitarian gestures, on behalf of the governor. The Nsukka Professors in collaboration with friends ofUgwuanyi, voluntarily paid hospital bills of discharged indigent patients in both federal and state-owned health institutions in Enugu State as well as faith-based organizations, totaling over N27.3 million, to commemorate the governor’s 57th birthday. According to the President of Association of Nsukka Professors, Prof Osita Okanya, the association and friends of the governor paid N16,950,000 medical bills of discharged indigent patients in University of Nige