INEC office set ablaze in Akwa Ibom

 

The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom state has been set ablaze.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, confirmed the incident in a statement released on Sunday.

The office was set ablaze by unidentified persons in the early hours of Sunday, May 2nd, 2021.

Part of the statement read: “The resident electoral commissioner of Akwa Ibom state. Barr. Mike Igini confirmed that our office in Essien Udim LGA has been set ablaze.

“The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday. Our security guard on duty was unhurt but the destruction to the building and properties were extensive.

“Items destroyed include; 345 ballot boxes, 135 voting cubicles, megaphones, water tanks and office furniture.

“The police have commenced investigation. The recent attack on our facility after we have just concluded the inventory of electoral materials nationwide in readiness for the 2023 election is worrisome.”

The commission warned that these attacks could cause a delay in the commission’s preparation for 2023 general election if not checked.

“If unchecked these attacks may constitute a setback for the commission preparations including the ongoing conversion of voting points to polling units, the continuous registration of voters (CVR) exercise and the conduct of polls,” the statement added.

 The commission promised to leave no stone unturned to recover from the incident in Akwa Ibom state and prepare for electoral activities.

 

NEWS : Boko Haram forcefully converting Nigerians to Islam in Niger – Fani Kayode alleges

 

Femi Fani-Kayode, a former minister of aviation has alleged that Boko Haram is currently forcefully converting Nigerians to Islam.

Fani-Kayode in a video shared on His Twitter page on Sunday showed how the terrorists gathered residents of a community praying in Islam.

According to the former minister, the Boko Haram insurgents are forcefully converting Nigerians to Islam.

His tweet read: “Boko Haram and ISWA forcefully converting people to Islam in the parts of Niger State that they have captured, conquered, occupied and flown their flag.

“This is happening just two hours from Abuja! I warned you!”

Few days ago, Boko Haram hoisted its flag in Niger State, in Shiroro a local government area that houses one of Nigeria’s largest power stations, and is only about 2 kilometres from Abuja, the nation’s capital.

 

NEWS : Nigerian man swallows N360m worth of cocaine for N750,000 reward

 

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) intercepted a suspected drug trafficker, Chigbogu Obiora, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos.

Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi in a statement disclosed that Obiora excreted 97 wraps of cocaine worth N360 million.

The 47-year-old trafficker was nabbed on Sunday, April, 25 during the inward clearance of Ethiopian Airline.

Obiora arrived in Lagos onboard the airline from Entebbe, Uganda via Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia.

MMIA Commander, Ahmadu Garba said Obiora was taken for body machine scan and the result was positive for ingestion of substances.

The suspect was promptly moved to the NDLEA excretion and observation facility.

Garba said barely an hour after, Obiora excreted 31 wraps of cocaine weighing 500 grammes and another 47 wraps (750 grammes) in the evening of the same day.

The next day, 19 wraps (300 grammes) were excreted, bringing the total to 97 wraps (1.55kg).

The NDLEA spokesman said that under interrogation, Obiora claimed he was promised $1,500 to move the drug.

“I opted for the ‘deal’ because I needed money. I did it so that I will be capable of feeding my family”, he was quoted as saying.

“I was living in Madagascar but due to the COVID-19 and the lockdown in the country, I cannot return to my place of work.

“I have never met the real owner of the drug. I don’t know him, they contacted me on the phone and asked if I can do the business,’’ Obiora claimed.

COVID-19 vaccine : Active cases drop as NCDC discharges 215 patients

 

The active cases of COVID-19 have dropped to 7,731 as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, discharged 215 patients.

The health agency made the announcement on Sunday night via a post on its verified Facebook page.

NCDC also confirmed 35 fresh cases of the virus in 5 states and the FCT.

The new cases bring the total number of recorded infections so far to 164,719.

No fewer than 2,062 persons have died due to complications from the disease while about 154,926 patients have been successfully treated and discharged.

The post reads: “35 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria;

Lagos-18
Rivers-7
Oyo-6
FCT-2
Ekiti-1
Kaduna-1

164,719 confirmed
154,926 discharged
2,062 deaths

Today’s report includes:

“Data from Oyo State recorded on the 24th and 25th of April, 2021.

“215 community recoveries in Oyo State managed in line with guidelines”.

COVID-19 vaccine : FG warns of fake vaccines in circulation as NCDC confirms new cases

 

The Federal Government has again warned Nigerians against patronising fake COVID-19 vaccines said to be in circulation in the country.

Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, gave the warning on Monday while speaking at the weekly briefing of the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19.

The Minister also revealed that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, is currently working towards initiatives to test and authorize more vaccines for use in Nigeria.

He said: “Due to warnings by international police organisations of the high rate of fake COVID-19 vaccines said to be in circulation, and reports of risks of adverse events reported after vaccination, Nigeria will not accept vaccines from private and unverified sources.

“In addition to scaling up vaccination, we scaled up surveillance at our points of entry to reduce the risk of importation of coronavirus variants said to be more contagious and virulent”.

These variants are suspected to be behind the surging COVID-19 cases in Asia and the Americas.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, on Monday night, confirmed 37 fresh cases of COVID-19 in six states.

This brings the total number of recorded cases in the country to 164,756, with 2,062 fatalities, while about 154,963 have been successfully treated and discharged.

 

COVID-19 vaccine : Brain drain ‘killing’ healthcare sector in Nigeria – Medical expert

 

A Consultant Urologist Surgeon at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Prof. Nuhu Dakum has said that brain drain in the medical sector is detrimental to the development of the sector.

He stressed that medical brain drain had created loss of skilled manpower to train incoming doctors and other health care workers in the sector.

Dakum stated this while delivering a paper at the opening ceremony of the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) 2021 National Executive Council meeting in Jos.

The programme is entitled “Brain Drain and its effect on Medical Education in Nigeria.“

Dakum said that brain drain in the medical sector was getting worse and detrimental to medical education.

He said the development had created a generational gap in the sector.

“A generational gap has been created as the top is heavy and the bottom light. This means that we have more consultants and fewer resident doctors who are the main workforce.

“Brain drain has also created an inefficient health care system due to insufficient manpower resulting in poor health care outcome,” he said.

Dakum said that the factors responsible for brain drain in the sector should be addressed urgently to avoid a total collapse of the medical system in the country,

He also called for increased funding in the sector.

Also speaking, a Consultant Public Health Physician at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Prof. Ayuba Zoakah, said that the country’s healthcare system was optimal.

Zoakah who was the guest lecturer, in a paper on “Healthcare Delivery in the Face of Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases”, maintained that the healthcare system should be strengthened in the era of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.

Zoakah attributed the rise to emerging and re-emerging diseases to possible factors such as the human demography changes, increased susceptibility to infection due to immunosuppression, stress/lifestyle and nutritional changes.

He called for improvement of funding in the sector and health care service delivery.

Earlier, the President of MDCAN, Prof. Kenneth Ozoilo, in his welcome address said that the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the fore the deficiencies in the Nigerian health sector as a result of underfunding and years of neglect.

Ozoilo added that the NEC meeting would provide an avenue to chart a path forward for the medical profession and the health sector.

 

COVID-19 vaccine : Physician reveals lifestyles that could affect one’s kidney

 

A physician, Dr. Olukunle Teemi has charged Nigerians to be watchful of their lifestyle and what they eat as such may contribute to gradual killing of the kidney and will eventually lead to kidney disease.

The medical professional who gave this charge Tuesday morning in a chat with  noted that failure to have a lifestyle change may be attributed to the current realities in the country, but also advocated that with determination, lifestyle could be achieved as moderation is the key.

He revealed that insufficient water intake can lead to less blood flow to the kidneys because the kidney just like other parts of the body needs enough water.

“If there is less blood flow, your blood becomes thick, hindering the ability to remove toxins from your body. Of course, you know that passing out urine is a way of removing toxins from your body and you need enough water to achieve this. Another benefit of drinking water a lot is that it’ll make you lose weight faster.”

Dr. Teemi stated that eating of food that contains too much protein can increase the risk of kidney disease, adding that those on diet have to take note of this.

“I know we all need painkillers sometimes. Some conditions can be so painful that you will have to resort to painkiller. That is okay, but some people actually make it a habit to take it all the time to reduce swelling, fever, and control pain. Sadly, painkillers or analgesics are bad for the kidneys.

“Sugar consumption is also another enemy of the kidney because it can lead to decreased kidney functioning. A lot of people are guilty of this. Avoid sugary drinks to keep your kidney healthy.”

According to him, “emptying the bowel is always a good means of evacuating waste products from the body system and not emptying the bowel when pressed is an invitation to kidney failure which may begin unnoticed but with time can get worse.

“Ingestion of too much salt is another area where people have to watch out for. Most men are guilty of this because they are never satisfied with the amount of salt in their meal.

“Consuming too much salt on a regular basis is bad for your health. Our kidneys break down 95% of sodium from the food we eat. This means that high salt intake makes the kidneys to work harder just to remove the salt. This can in turn lead to poor kidney functioning and increased water retention.”

He also maintained that other lifestyles that also affect the kidney include smoking and alcohol consumption.

“Smoking is bad for your health including your organs such as the kidneys. This can also lead to hypertension which leads to reduced blood flow in the kidneys.

“Excessive drinking of alcoholic beverages can eventually kill the kidneys and cause harm to health.”

 recalls that recently, a female comedienne, Mercy Mmesoma Obi Nnadi, aka Ada Jesus lost her life as a result of complications from kidney disease which was alleged not to have been properly managed.