Our Reporter

All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu on Monday commiserated with Premier Lotto Chairman Chief Kessington Adebutu over the death of one of his wives, Mrs. Rosemary Adebutu.

Mrs. Adebutu died in Lagos at the weekend.

In a passionate letter to the billionaire lotto magnate on Monday, the former Lagos State governor prayed that God grant Adebutu and those left behind by the deceased the strength to live on after her.

The letter released by his Media Office and signed by Mr. Tunde Rahman in Lagos quoted Tinubu as saying: “I’m deeply saddened by the news of the passing of your beloved wife, Mrs. Rosemary Adebutu. By way of this letter, please accept my heartfelt condolences.

“The passing of our loved ones is always painful and difficult to live with. We must, however, take such developments as the will of God and accept it in good faith.

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“Please take solace in the memories of the time you spent together with your wife and the fact that she lived a good life devoted to the service of God and humanity.

Our thoughts are with you at this moment. We will always remember you in our prayers.

“I pray that God Almighty imbue you with that unsurpassable strength to live through this difficult moment.

“While praying that God grant the deceased eternal rest, we also beseech Him to also give all those that Mrs. Adebutu left behind the fortitude to bear this sudden loss.”

By Moses Emorinken, Abuja

Non-functional oxygen plants will soon be reactivated to meet increasing needs, Minister of State for Health, Dr Olorunnimbe Mamora, said on Monday.

Speaking during the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 briefing in Abuja, he said the number of active cases has increased.

According to him, as of Monday, there were 18,699 active cases on treatment, with many needing oxygen.

“The report that many of those who died reported late for treatment at the approved centres because they were referred late from private facilities is alarming.

“We, therefore, urge healthcare practitioners to promptly send all suspected cases for testing and when positive, refer them to isolation centres for treatment.

“Attempting to treat suspected or confirmed cases not only exposes the health workers to the risk of infection but also denies the patient early access to effective treatment in an approved treatment centre.

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“The plan regarding the activation of oxygen availability in the states is on course to repair non-functional oxygen plants.”

He urged Nigerians to avoid crowded places and to remain safety-conscious.

Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, said the Federal Government would begin the deployment of rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kits for COVID-19 in five hospitals in Abuja next week.

RDTs typically give test results within 30 minutes of use, unlike laboratory PCR machines that can take between 24 to 72 hours to diagnose covid-19 samples.

He said that the initiative, which is hinged on the successful use of RDTs in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camps, will be extended to other states by February.

Speaking during the briefing, he said no state is spared of the virus because the deployment of the RDTs in NYSC camps also showed that every state had its share of infection.

He said: “We used RDTs in the NYSC camps. Testing people coming from different states, we found positive individuals that reported to NYSC from every single state in Nigeria.

“There is no state that is spared of this virus. We would have been surprised if there were.”

 

 

 

By Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

University lecturers on Monday expressed their readiness to resume academic activities next Monday as directed by the National Universities Commission (NUC).

The lecturers, however, asked the Federal Government to guarantee their health and safety and that of students amid the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) President, Prof Biodun Ogunyemi, said assessments done by its branches suggested that university authorities have not done enough to ensure a safe learning environment.

He said: “We have no objection to the resumption of universities. ASUU has suspended its strike and our members are ready to work.

“However, the health and safety of our members as well as our students must be guaranteed.

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“I hope the government will work it out together with the university authorities to ensure that this second wave of COVID-19 does not affect the health and safety of the university communities.

“We ask the government to do what they did in the aviation industry: let them evaluate the level of preparedness and let them tell Nigerians that with what they have seen they can guarantee that if the students return, if lecturers have classes, there will be no adverse consequences.”

Many of the branches at the weekend said it was unsafe for universities to reopen.

By Sanni Onogu, Abuja

The Senate has sustained a query against the Ministry of Health over an alleged mismanagement of N4.6 billion meant to fight the Ebola virus disease in Nigeria in 2014.

The query is contained in the 2015 Auditor General’s report currently being considered by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts.

The committee, chaired by Matthew Urhoghide, said it had no choice but to sustain the query against the ministry after it failed to respond to series of invitations meant to give it an opportunity to state how it spent the money.

Urhoghide said: “We have written letters to them. But till now, they have refused to appear before the committee, thus giving credence to the observation of the Auditor General of the Federation.”

The query reads: “Following the sudden outbreak of the Ebola scourge/disease in Nigeria and the determination of the Federal Government to contain and control the spread of the disease, a total sum of N4,887,079,750.00 was released to control the Ebola disease.

“The sum of N1,992,548,500.00 was released on August 11, 2014, while the balance of N2,894,531,250.00 was released on November 4, 2014. The funds were said to be kept in a commercial bank Account Number 0122391169.

“Information extracted from the Cash Book and copies of bank mandates made available to my officers showed that amounts totaling N954,680,339.86 were spent between August 20 and December 21, 2014, on various activities, including contract awards for supplies of assorted items, thereby indicating a balance of N3,605,242,575.70 in the account as at December 31, 2014.

“Regrettably, these figures could not be authenticated/verified owing to the refusal of the Federal Ministry of Health to release the Wema Bank statement of account, the bank reconciliation statements, relevant payment vouchers and other related documents for my examination, despite several written and verbal requests made for them at various times.

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“The items purportedly procured could not be verified. As such, I cannot confirm that the items were actually supplied, that they conformed with the contract quality specifications and that the elements of economy, efficiency and effectiveness were observed in awarding the contracts.

“Aside the contracts, there were other expenditures, such as Duty Tour Allowances and Trainings, the details of which were equally not made available.

“Consequently, the Permanent Secretary was requested to kindly release all the documents and records relating to the Ebola Virus Disease Fund (Wema Bank) for my scrutiny, to enable me satisfy myself that the funds were properly spent in accordance with extant regulations and that government actually derived commensurate value for the monies expended.

“Similarly, the preliminary examination of the Cash Book and the bank statement relating to the First Bank Account Number 20238265786 maintained for the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) by the Federal Ministry of Health revealed that amounts totaling N1,193,235,150.77 were paid out to various individuals and corporate entities between January 2014 and June 2015.

“However, relevant transaction documents, such as payment vouchers relating to these expenditures, were not made available to my officers for audit.

“The Cashbook produced was not properly maintained, as specified in the Financial Regulations. The ‘Bank Reconciliation Statement’ presented for audit was also not prepared in accordance with the format in the Financial Regulations.

“The purported Bank Reconciliation Statement was merely a list of receipts and payments extracted from the bank statement.

“Relevant transaction documents, such as payment vouchers, invoices, award letters, Stores Receipt Vouchers, etc, relating to the expenditures, were not produced for audit.

“Therefore, I am unable to certify that these transactions were properly conducted in the interest of the Federal Government.

“The Permanent Secretary has been requested to produce all the Payment Vouchers and other documents relating to this account for the period January 2014 – December 2015 for my examination, in line with Section 85(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and Financial Regulation 110.

“All the issues were brought to the attention of the Permanent Secretary through my Audit Inspection Report referenced OAuGF/HAAD/FMOA/16/011 and dated September 7, 2016.

“His response is still being awaited.”

 

 

By Shola O’Neil and Mike Odiegwu, Port Harcourt

THE Interim Management Committees (IMCs)  of the  Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)  have been described by the  Secretary-General of the Ijaw Youth Council(IYC), Frank Pukon, as channels of mismanagement of the commission’s resources.

Pukon, who is believed to align with the zonal chairmen of the IYC and the spokesman, Ebilade Ekerefe,  vowed in a statement on Monday that the council would ensure that a substantive board for the NDDC was appointed by the Federal Government.

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The zonal chairmen of the IYC and   Ekerefe had last week  insisted on  locking up the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt, Rivers State in   protest against Akwa’s appointment as the NDDC helmsman.

The threat was contrary to an earlier call by the IYC President Peter  Igbifa on all aggrieved Ijaw groups to stay the action pending the outcome of a stakeholders meeting slated for the end of this month.

Agency Reporter

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said it will work with security agencies to prosecute any institution or candidate found breaching its admission code of operations.

The board announced this in its latest Weekly Bulletin, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.

It stressed that henceforth, stringent measures, including prosecution, would be taken against erring candidate or institution once a prima facie case has been established against them.

The decision, the board explained, is part of its resolutions after the management meeting on the imperative of ridding the admissions process of unwholesome practices.

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JAMB’s Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, was quoted as saying that measures were being put in place to curb admission infractions.

The registrar noted that although the Central Admissions Process System (CAPS) had made the admission process transparent, fair and equitable, though some stakeholders were working hard to circumvent the system.

“The board, with zero tolerance for corrupt acts, will not fold its arms and allow unscrupulous elements to drag it back.”