Lawmaker urges community projects for even devt

The lawmaker representing Lagos East Senatorial District, Senator ‘Gbenga Ashafa, has urged political leaders in the country to embark on community projects to ensure even development in Nigeria.

Ashafa spoke while inaugurating a water project for residents of Tinubu Estate, Odo-Nla, Ikorodu North area of Lagos, a statement said on Monday.

The motorised borehole was among several other consistuency projects of the federal lawmaker.

The senator, while acknowledging the importance of water to humankind, emphasised the importance of the project to the community.

He added, “We have been able to provide 30 boreholes, installed in various communities across the senatorial district. We have also had some other constituency projects for the benefit of communities.”

Ashafa, who promised to empower some artisans in the area through a weekly empowerment programme, urged residents to cultivate maintenance culture.

Students on FG scholarship begging for food in Russia

Failure by the Federal Government to pay allowances of 322 Nigerian students on scholarship in Russia forces them into begging and illegal jobs, TEMITAYO FAMUTIMI reports

When Moyosore Ojuri lost her father at age 11, her world practically came crashing. Her father had promised to give her the best of education. Although he was not a millionaire, the man had struggled to enrol her in one of the top private secondary schools in Lagos.

But with the death, her mother, a retired civil servant, could not pay her tuition when due. Luckily, the authorities of her school recognised the young lady’s academic exploits and gave her family the concession to pay her tuition in installments. Even with that, her mother had difficulty doing so as she occasionally ran into debts.

However, on completion of her secondary education in 2010, Ojuri passed the West African Senior School Certificate Examination, obtaining six distinctions and two credits. But accessing university education did not come that easy, due to lack of funds. Fortunately for her, in 2012 she came across the Bilateral Education Agreement Scholarship Awards advertised by the Federal Scholarship Board through the Federal Ministry of Education and grabbed the opportunity.

Ribadu picks PDP Adamawa gov election form

Mallam Nuhu Ribadu

The 2011 presidential candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, on Monday picked up the Peoples Democratic Party’s Expression of Interest form to contest for the governorship of Adamawa State.

Ribadu, who defected to the ruling PDP recently, said he had applied to the national leadership of the party for a waiver to contest the party’s governorship primary in Adamawa.

The PDP form was picked for the former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission by his political associate, Alhaji Ahmidu Mahmoud.

Mahmoud, who spoke with journalists after he paid N11m for the form, said Ribadu was ready for the party’s primary and that he was confident of getting the waiver.

He said, “I’m here on behalf of Ribadu to purchase the nomination form in order to enable him contest the governorship primary in Adamwa State.

“We have commenced the process of getting waiver. The waiver clause in the party’s constitution was not inserted because of him.

Tambuwal set to dump PDP for APC

Speaker, House of Representatives, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal

There are strong indications that the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, will soon defect to the All Progressives Congress.

Our correspondent learnt in Abuja on Monday that the Speaker was set to dump the Peoples Democratic Party for the APC after a nationwide consultation.

Tambuwal’s spokesperson, Imam Imam, said the nationwide consultation would determine whether the Speaker would contest the Presidency or the Sokoto State governorship election in 2015.

Imam, who spoke with our correspondent on the telephone, said that the Speaker was still consulting on the 2015 presidency and the defection to the APC.

Obi denies coordinating Jonathan’s group

Former Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, has denied a report that he is the coordinator of the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria, a campaign group canvassing support for the re-election bid of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The Media Aide to Obi, Mr. Valentine Obienyem, in a press release emailed to journalists on Monday, said contrary to the reports credited to the National Chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance, Chief Victor Umeh, the former governor was not even a member of TAN.

Obienyem said that the rally organised by TAN, a non- governmental organisation, in Anambra State on Saturday was not even a political event, but a platform used to tell President Goodluck Jonathan that he has done well for the South-East.

Ebola: Two Lagos doctors, nurse, woman discharged

Four more people who had been undergoing treatment for the Ebola Virus Disease were on Monday discharged from the Lagos treatment centre after being certified free.

The Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, made this known in a statement that was issued on Monday after   Natural Solutions Foundation, the manufacturers of Nano Silver,claimed that the drug was the only one capable of curing the deadly   virus.

Chukwu said in the statement by   his Special Assistant on Media and Communication, Mr. Dan Nwomeh, that the four discharged persons   comprised two male medical doctors, a female nurse and a female patient.

He explained that the three medical personnel participated in the treatment of the Liberian-American, Patrick Sawyer, who was the first person to die of the disease in Nigeria.

Dora Akunyili for burial August 28

The formal burial rites for the former Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili, will start on Monday, August 25 with a night of tributes in Abuja at the International Conference Centre.

According to the programme of events released to the press by her husband, Dr. Chike Akunyili, there will be a mass on Tuesday, August 26, at Our Lady Queen of Nigeria Cathedral, Garki.

The burial train will move on Wednesday, August 26, to Enugu where she spent a good part of her life for a burial mass at the Holy Ghost Cathedral.

US ‘to send’ untested Ebola drug to Liberia

Liberia has said it will receive doses of an experimental Ebola drug to treat infected doctors in the West African country.

A statement, published on the Liberian presidency’s website on Monday, said the United States had approved a request from Liberia’s President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to ship the medicine, ZMapp, after a direct appeal to US President Barack Obama on Friday.

However, a spokesperson for the US Health and Human Services (HHS) Department said US authorities had simply assisted in connecting the Liberian government with the drug’s manufacturer.

“Since the drug was shipped for use outside the US, appropriate export procedures had to be followed,” the HHS spokesperson said, adding the drug company had worked directly with the Liberian government.

The Liberian statement said the head of the WHO, Margaret Chan, had authorised the dispatch of additional doses of the experimental drug to Liberia to support the treatment of affected doctors. Those doses will be delivered by a WHO expert this week.

2015 won’t break up Nigeria – Jonathan

 

President Goodluck Jonathan
| credits: File copy

President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday said contrary to the predictions of those he described as doomsday prophets, the 2015 general elections would not break up the country.

The President the elections next year would rather strengthen the country and make it stands stronger.

Jonathan gave the assurance while declaring open a conference organised by the Interfaith Initiative For Peace, in Abuja.

The conference with the theme, “The imperative of interfaith understanding and cooperation for responsible politics” was co-initiated by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III; and the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan.

The President said he was aware of some prophesies indicating that Nigeria would catch fire as a result of the aftermath of the 2015 general elections.

He said the predictions would not come to pass because his administration would continue to conduct transparent, free and fair elections.

Court adjourns alleged fraud suit against Adenuga

Court adjourns alleged fraud suit against Adenuga

ASUU wants socialist state, genuine workers’ party

ASUU logo
| credits: File copy

Officials of the Academic Staff Union of Universities are advocating for a socialist state in Nigeria, noting that only ‘a socialist welfare state’ could solve the country’s social and economic problems.

At a press conference on Monday after its National Executive Council meeting in Calabar, Cross River State, the union also said it would push for the formation of a genuine people’s workers party that will meet the challenges of forging the building of a free Nigeria.

The National President of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Isa, who read the position of the union, argued that the socialist welfare state will creatively reconstruct Nigeria’s economic and political institutions to serve the welfare needs of the populace.

The meeting was attended by the national officers of the union, past presidents of ASUU, including, Prof. Assisi Asobie; Dr. Oladipo Fashina; Dr. Sule-Kano Abdullahi, and Chairman of ASUU, University of Calabar branch, Dr. Charles Okpiliya, among others.

Ebola: Jonathan summons govs as another nurse tests positive

President Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has summoned all the 36 state governors and their health commissioners   to an urgent meeting on the outbreak of the Ebola Virus disease in the country.

Jonathan, who made this known during a conference organised by the Interfaith Initiative For Peace in Abuja on Monday, said it was “unfortunate that one mad man” brought the virus to Nigeria.

Before he spoke, the Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, had disclosed at a news   conference that Nigeria had recorded another   Ebola case, the 10th so far.

The case involves   a nurse, who is one of the health workers that managed Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian-American in a Lagos hospital that brought the deadly virus to Nigeria on July 20. He died on July 25 and is the first known Ebola index case in the country.

The matron of the Lagos hospital   died last week at the Infectious Diseases Hospital, Yaba, Lagos where the   seven other   known Ebola cases are being managed by experts.

The meeting between Jonathan, governors and health commissioners   will hold at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday.

Ebola: NSA warned health ministry before Sawyer’s visit

| credits: AFP

Indications have emerged that the Office of the National Security Adviser warned the Office of the Minister of Health of the grave implications of the Ebola virus to national security and the need for steps to be taken 10 days before the infamous visit of the Liberian, Patrick Sawyer, to Lagos.

The NSA office in a letter dated July 10, 2014 alerted to the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, to the need to follow a guideline against the Ebola virus, which according to the letter, was at the ‘doorstep of the country.’

It was stated in the letter with ref. no. NSA/A/208/C, signed by a senior officer in the NSA’s office, Brig. Gen. TT Waya (retd.), that the guideline was meant to provide a working plan to guide the health ministry to take proactive steps to combat any possible outbreak of the disease in Nigeria.

How Lagos nursing mother contracted Ebola virus – Doctor

| credits: Photo: Samson Folarin

A medical doctor has revealed how a nursing mother contracted the deadly Ebola virus at a Lagos hospital.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the woman was the patient who visited the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation staff clinic on Muri Okunola Street in the Victoria Island area of Lagos.

NNPC had issued a press statement on Friday, saying that the clinic would be shut due to a suspected case of Ebola reported in the clinic.

Our correspondent gathered from the source, who had a first-hand information of the incident, that the nursing mother had first visited the First Consultant Medical Centre, Obalende.

He said, “The lady attended ante-natal at First Consultant prior to the arrival of the Liberian, Mr. Patrick Sawyer. She was delivered of her baby at the hospital after which she was discharged.

“A few weeks later, Mr. Sawyer came around and was attended to by health workers. He was first treated for malaria, then typhoid, before there was high index of suspicion. He tested positive for Ebola and died.

“Then the woman, who gave birth at the hospital came back to the hospital for her baby’s immunisation. The nurses who attended to Sawyer also attended to her.

“When she visited the place again last week, she discovered the place had been shut down for proper fumigation as a means of control against Ebola.”

He said the nursing mother decided to visit a neighbouring clinic which was the NNPC clinic.

He said it was there she began her treatment after she fell ill.

“She was first treated for Malaria. However, after some medical tests, there was a high suspicion of Ebola haemorrhagic fever.

“On Friday, the Lagos State’s emergency response team on Ebola virus came around and took her to the Infectious Diseases Hospital,” he added.

Our correspondent learnt that the yet-to-be-identified mother and her baby, who were taken away from the hospital on Friday, had been quarantined.

Confirming the report, the Medical Officer of Health, Iru-Victoria Island Local Council Development Area, Dr. Wale Akeredolu, said the patient tested positive to the Ebola virus after a second test was conducted on her.

He confirmed the incident at a sensitisation programme organised for residents of the Eti-Osa Local Government Area by the council on Monday.

He added, “The baby has also been quarantined to see if after the incubation period of two to 21 days, she would manifest the symptoms of Ebola.”

The council boss, Abayomi Daramola, appealed to residents not to shirk their responsibilities on the pretext of running away from the virus.

He said, “This is a trying time in Nigeria. But the presence of Ebola does not mean people should run away from their responsibilities. The public apprehension is what can even spread the disease faster. So, people should just follow personal hygiene, use sanitisers and wash their hands regularly.”

Passenger slumps, dies at Lagos airport 

There was confusion at the Arrival Hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Monday, as a passenger slumped and died.

Sources at the airport told our correspondent that the passenger slumped in front of the Port Health Services office, while waiting to collect his vaccination card, usually known as Yellow Card.

Some staff and passengers fled the scene following the man’s collapse, as they feared he was infected with the deadly Ebola Virus Disease.

His body was covered with an orange-coloured cloth and left unattended to by the office. However, the area was barricaded to forestall people coming there, as people were redirected to pass other routes.

Our correspondent gathered that the dead man was supposed to fly to Ghana for medical check-up when he suddenly collapsed at the airport and died.

Council boss opposes Ebola hospital

Chairman, Kuje Area Council, Shaban Tete, on Monday objected to the choice of the Kuje General Hospital as the treatment centre for Ebola, arguing that the decision has triggered tension in the area.

Tete suggested to the government to consider setting up of a specialist centre for the management of the viral disease.

The council chairman, who raised the objection during a stakeholders meeting on Ebola management, in Abuja, convened by the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, said he was not comfortable with the choice of the hospital for the treatment of Ebola.

“We in Kuje are in trouble. This issue is a deadly virus,” he said.

Obviously irked by his comments, the minister told the council boss not to rebel against a decision taken in the best interest of the FCT.

Mohammed said, “You see chairman of Kuje, I am not going to scold you for intransigence but I will tell you that you are operating from a point of ignorance. We cannot seat down here with experts from all over the world to import a disease to Kuje.

U.S. ratchets up Ebola response, officials on high alert

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By Patricia Zengerle and Julie Steenhuysen

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) - The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told lawmakers on Thursday he has activated the agency's emergency operation center at the highest response level to fight the worst Ebola outbreak in history.

Dr Thomas Frieden testified at an emergency hearing that the CDC has more than 200 staff members in Atlanta working on the outbreak, and will soon have more than 50 disease experts in West Africa.

Frieden said he was "confident there will not be a large Ebola outbreak in the United States." However, he said it was possible that people who have traveled to West Africa might bring the virus back home with them, and even spread it to some healthcare workers and family members.

Frieden said it is not clear whether experimental treatments that were given to two infected U.S. aid workers will ultimately be effective. The two are now being cared for at Emory University in Georgia.

Robin Williams Dead of Apparent Suicide at 63

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Robin Williams, the manic comic who morphed from TV's Mork from Ork to Oscar-winning glory, is dead of an apparent suicide. He was 63.

Emergency personnel were called to Williams's home in Tiburon, California, at 11:55 a.m. local time, per the Marin County Sheriff's Office.

Williams was found unconscious and pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities are investigating the death, and an autopsy is forthcoming, but initial evidence points to "a suicide due to asphyxia," according to Marin Sheriff's Lt. Keith Boyd.

In a brief statement, publicist Mara Buxbaum said Williams had been "battling severe depression of late. This is a tragic and sudden loss. The family respectfully asks for their privacy as they grieve during this very difficult time."

"This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend," said Williams's wife, Susan Schneider.

"While the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken. On behalf of Robin's family, we are asking for privacy during our time of profound grief. As he is remembered, it is our hope the focus will not be on Robin's death, but on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions."