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.”