Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has urged his commissioners and other aides to make the “required sacrifice” as the administration gets down for the task of rebuilding the state.
“The objectives of the retreat are clear, unambiguous and straight forward. It behooves on us all to participate effectively and evolve plausible ideas that would help our administration to quickly chart a course that would make the difference,” he said in an address to the commissioner-designates, special advisers and other government functionaries at the opening session of a retreat for the incoming cabinet in Patigi, Patigi Local Government Area.
The governor said the retreat was designed to sharpen the appointees and place them on a better pedestal to impact positively on the people.
AbdulRazaq was represented by Deputy Governor Kayode Alabi. The event was also attended by the Secretary to the Government, Prof. Mamman Saba Jibril; Chief of Staff Aminu Logun; Head of Service Mrs Modupe Oluwole; and Chairman of the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KW-IRS) Mrs Folashade Omoniyi; among others.
AbdulRazaq said the administration was elected to give Kwarans a new lease of life, hope and take the state to the frontline position in the country. He urged the appointees to bring their experience and expertise to bear as they assume duties.
“I implore you all to continue meaningfully to enrich the outcome of this retreat for the good of the greatest number of our people whom we were elected to serve. Though this effort, we would have proved beyond any reasonable doubts that we are up to the task and prepares to face the obvious challenges of governance.”
The governor urged the appointees to reflect upon the agenda articulated in his inaugural address, saying discussions at the retreat would centre on the priorities, expectations and objectives of the administration.
He said the retreat would adopt the policy thrusts of the government, identify key strategic priorities as well as strategies to achieve them, and review the draft four years rolling strategy plan for Kwara State.
“Retreats of this nature are expected to give participants ample opportunity to seriously reflect on the essence of governance and evolve pragmatic vision that would not only stand the test of time but which would be fully receptive to systematic implementation of policies and programmes to make life more meaningful for our people,” Abdulrasaq said.
The themes for the retreat included ‘Governance and Change’; Building a Culture of Growth and Learning; and Exploring Health and Wealth.
When it was gutted by fire two years ago, not many thought it would not be reopened months laters. Now, there is hope that its doors will soon be opened to customers, GBENGA OMOKHUNU reports.
National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) Director-General (DG) Chief Segun Runsewe, midweek disclosed that the Abuja Arts and Crafts village would soon be re-opened.
Runsewe, who disclosed this in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Abuja, said the renovation of the village had reached 80 per cent level.
The Abuja Arts and Craft Village was razed in 2017 and more than 20 shops filled with artworks worth N400m were in flames.
He said the organisation had to speed up work at the village not only for the purpose of renovation after the fire incident, but because of some alleged illegal activities going on at the site.
Runsewe also disclosed that shops at the village were being subsidised because of government’s commitment to economic development of ordinary Nigerians.
He, however, decried the situation where an individual would own between 10 to 15 shops, leasing them at exorbitant rates to traders.
The DG said the NCAC was determined to reverse the trend because government’s intention was to have more Nigerians benefit from the gesture.
“Government wanted to use the village to help the ordinary man on the street, but where one person will own three or more shops and turn himself to a landlord on government property is unacceptable.
“The place became full of criminals and a lot of dangerous activities were going on there, we cannot allow that to continue so we had to take a firm decision,’ he said.
Runsewe, however, said the issue has been tabled before the Senate Committee on Culture and Tourism, and it is still looking into it.
arts and craft market
According to the DG, some persons have also tuned the village to their houses, noting that it was against the Abuja Master Plan.
“It is not an accommodation; it is a market place for cultural activities. We have been able to, at least, see for ourselves that we need to take some actions which we have by renovating the place.
“When we re-open, there must be standards. There must be some kind of guide and strict adherence to rules. For Instance, there is no sleeping there; the market must close and open at a certain time and cars will not park overnight. Everything to do with the market must be in accordance with global acceptable standards.”
A mysterious fire engulfed the craft market at night on December 15. Traders at the market accused the government of being behind the fire incident because of previous efforts to sanitise activities in the place.
Runsewe also urged the public to disregard rumours being peddled about the cause of the inferno.
He said: “I have been making concerted efforts towards enhancing the standard of the permanent site. To ensure security of life and property at the site, we now have a police post in place.
“It was out of my personal concern for the lives of those doing business at the site that after due consultation with the occupants; I took the decision to stop people from sleeping in the premises. I took particular note of the fact that there were not adequate facilities to make the site fully residential. It was never intended to be residential.
“But for that proactive decision, this fire incident could have resulted into serious casualties. Let me categorically state that the NCAC has no hand in the fire outbreak as being alleged. The allegation is both unfortunate and laughable.”
Preliminary reports from the Fire Service and the Police attributed the fire outbreak to a hot place in Shop 47.
The DG continued: “We thank God that no life was lost because it would have been a different story. But let’s tell ourselves the truth, you know that your neighbour is cooking in the market, everybody knows that this woman was cooking there but they did nothing. Even one day I was on a disguised inspection; and I asked what the electric boiler was doing there and they said they were taking it home.
“So, nobody should claim it was the power holding company that caused it when they brought light. No, power holding company didn’t put the electric boiler there. If the woman had put it off; there wouldn’t have been fire when NEPA brought back the light at night.
“Why would the traders go and destroy government property after the fire incident? There’s fire outbreak in the market; why are you going to destroy government property? Is government the one responsible? Is government the occupant of Shop 47? This is part of the indiscipline that we’ve been permitting in our system which must stop.
“Their own will be a lesson to others. Government gives you an opportunity to earn a living; it’s not a weakness of not knowing what should be done.
“We are going to rebuild the place to international standard and accommodate all professionals and stakeholders. But this time, it will be credible and well documented persons. The era of people owning five or six shops in the place is over because these are the people fomenting all the troubles there.
“Government is not a Father Christmas; if we have to get this done, it must be done with the right people to manage and operate there. Some people believe that government property is nobody’s property. Some people before us struggled to keep the place. Why must we be the one to destroy it?”
The recent meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors in Jos, Plateau State capital, underscored the resolve of the ruling party to succeed in its ‘Next Level’ agenda. YUSUFU AMINU IDEGU reports
IF you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together.
The above saying by Plateau State Governor Simon Lalong illustrates the essence of unity and collaborative efforts. This was the reason why the Progressives Governors’ Forum, which comprises governors elected under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was established in 2015 shortly after the party took over leadership at the national level. At inception in 2015, the Progressives Governors’ Forum was made up of 24 governors. This invariably means the ruling party had 24 governors between 2015 and 2019. But after the 2019 election, the ruling party lost some states and members of the forum reduced to 19. With the recent election victory in Bayelsa State by the APC flag bearer David Lyon, membership of the forum will hit 20 the moment Lyon assumes office in February next year.
The reduction in the membership of the Progressives Governors’ Forum in 2019 does not, however, weaken the primary focus of the group. From the onset, the forum has resolved to strive to meet the expectations of the electorates through the initiation of policies and programmes that has direct and indirect impact on the lives of the people. The APC as a political party was founded on the ideology of “change”. By this political ideology, the party intends to change the status quo that was obtainable before they took over the mantle of leadership. The ruling party intended to change the pattern of development, by introducing a new style of governance that would make a significant difference from the 16 years the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] was at the helm of affairs.
In order to draw the line between the ruling and the main opposition party, the PDP, the APC governors decided to establish what they called the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF). The Chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum, Gov. Lalong, who hosted the recent Jos meeting of the Progressives Governors’ Forum dwelled much on the vision of the group in his welcome remarks. He said: “As governors under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC), we are fully committed to our vision of providing accountable, responsible and responsive leadership to the people. This is in line with the promises we made while seeking votes from the electorates and the oath of office that we took to serve our people. despite the financial challenges confronting the states, we are not unaware of the torrents of expectations from the people we were elected to serve. The onus is therefore on us, to justify why we were chosen from among millions of Nigerians by devising ingenious ways of meeting the expectations of the public.”
One of the changes Nigerians noticed in the affairs of the APC governors was the synergy between the Federal Government and APC-controlled states. It was a policy synergy meant to maximize dividends of democracy in all aspects of human lives. The Jos meeting, said to be the third in the series, was a continuation of the policy synergy between the Federal Government and the APC governors. The last meeting was held in Birni-Kebbi, the capital of Kebbi State in 2017. Two years after, the PGF deemed it fit to meet again and do a thorough review of policy synergy so far. So, at the Jos parley, the governors took time to do a review of the journey so far.
Lalong said in his welcome address: “You may wish to recall that the last parley took place in Kebbi State on August 1, 2017, with the theme ‘Policy Synergy to Ensure Development’ which focused on finance, internally generated revenue (IGR), agriculture, education and social investment. This underscores the relevance of our meeting here in Jos, as we synergize to explore what we can do together, what we can share with each other and areas we can collaborate with one another, particularly the Federal Government that has partnered with us all the way.”
The PGF knew very well that having been given the mandate by the people of their various states, they are saddled with the responsibility of moving their respective states forward, by providing social services like potable water, electricity, roads, medical facilities, etc. In doing so, the ruling party must, irrespective of scarce resources, do the needful and satisfy the needs of citizenry as much as they can. Lalong added: “We must also put on record that notwithstanding the many challenges we face as a country, the APC administration both at the national, state and local government levels have recorded tremendous progress in reshaping the economy, rebuilding infrastructure, creating jobs and improving security among others.”
The host governor, however, charged his colleagues: “But we must also admit that there is still more work to be done, considering the level of decay, we inherited in our various states. That is why we have to commend Mr. President for leading the way in the determination to deliver ‘change’ and take Nigeria to the Next Level.”
The Jos parley had three key areas of focus: security and humanitarian services, health and education. This is happening at a point when insecurity is threatening the survival of the country and the freedom of the citizens. Banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery, killings, farmers-herders clash, ethno-religious crisis political violence and other violent conflicts across the country formed major news in the media daily. The APC governors need to come up with practical and effective ways on how to tackle these social menaces that is fast making democracy meaningless in Nigeria. The governors must work with the Federal Government and the local governments to ensure the protection of lives and properties. Aside from issues of insecurity, what types of positive changes have the progressive governors provided in social sectors like primary health care, health insurance, social protection for the vulnerable, and also the quality and compulsory education? Equally too, issues agitating the minds of the electorates include the level of synergy with the Federal Government through the Universal Basic Education, the National Social Investment Programme, the Humanitarian Crises Management, and the National Primary Healthcare Strategy among other programmes that the APC-led Federal Government has rolled out.
The theme of the Jos meeting was “Strengthening Public Service Delivery”. It must be noted that with service delivery comes sharp practices, shoddy deals, kick back and mismanagement of resources, which the governors failed to address during the meeting. The people need more accountability, transparency and prudent management of scarce resources in the course of service delivery. This is because the people see the way their governors enrich themselves, mismanage resources, in spite of what they promised when seeking votes. There is usually no fiscal discipline, no transparency, and no accountability. The third tier of government, which is the one closest to the masses, has been in the pockets of the state governors.
President Muhammadu Buhari in his keynote address dwelled much on these areas of transparency in service delivery. His words: “I must at this point renew my call on the state governments to double their support in the anti-corruption battle as the gains of our collaboration continued to face the danger of annihilation if corruption persists at sub-national levels. Going forward, we must all work towards building a socially cohesive society in which the resources of the country work for all. We will continue to apply public funds in such a way that no section of the country or segment of the population will suffer social exclusion.”
Buhari also sought more collaboration on the issue of security. He said: “You are all aware that insecurity has remained a big challenge for us all. We must remain determined to subdue this challenge and secure the country more than ever before. While the protection of lives and properties is a primary responsibility of government, it is also incumbent on the citizens to share in this responsibility, as security is a collective responsibility. The APC administration has remained committed to improving the welfare of all Nigerians and that is why this administration has remained justifiably proud of the singular achievement of bringing our economy back on track from the recession and place it on the part of growth and competitiveness in the last four years; especially, in the areas of human capital development, infrastructure development and prosperity.
“Nigeria is on a renewed growth trajectory. Accordingly, we will do everything within our powers to sustain the current economic recovery efforts. We will continue to reinforce our microeconomic policies to achieve sustainable economic stability and growth. We will also continued to ensure that the growth come along with more jobs and a fair and just distribution of the national wealth. Your continued cooperation in this regard is very vital.”
The President also applauded the governors for the synergy between the Federal Government and APC-controlled state governments. He said: “This administration has come this far because of your unfaltering support and goodwill. I am confident that together we would achieve our objective of building a united and prosperous Nigeria.”
The National Chairman Comrade Adams Oshiomhole also threw some challenges to the governors. Oshiomole told the APC governors to ensure that they are be the first to implement the new minimum wage of N30,000. He said: “As the ruling party, it is good for the states controlled by the APC to take the lead in the payment of the new salary structure to prove that the APC is a welfare party. I want all the APC states to be the first to implement the new minimum wage, so that when workers start making trouble in some states as a result of nonpayment of the minimum wage, the APC states will not be affected. It is my desire that APC governors make the payment of the new minimum wage a priority as a demonstration of our progressiveness and as government of the masses”
Oshiomhole also encouraged the governors to give special attention to education in their various states. He also urged the Progressives Governors’ Forum to work with the party and its leadership in the interests of Nigerians. He said: “I say this because we are talking of synergy of policies as a theme of this meeting. It is with the synergy between the APC governors and the APC as a party that makes ordinary Nigerians feel the impact of government the more.”
A group of women, under the aegis of Nigerian Women Association of Georgia (NWAG), has been offering financial assistance to female undergraduates and orphanage homes across the country. GRACE OBIKEreports.
It has been said several times that women are the worst enemies of their fellow women and that women do not support one another. This cliche has been repeated so many times that many have come to believe it.
Several stories have been told of sometimes outrageous things that young girls, especially those in the university, do to get by. But very little is ever said of how other women might help in setting up girls and other women as a way of supporting the gender.
A 500 level student of medicine and surgery at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Hazimat Yusuf, said she is surprised that much is not being done by women to help others.
According to her, there is no way anyone can understand a woman’s challenge and problems better than a fellow woman, adding that it is unfortunate that Nigeria has a lot of influential women out there but that a lot of Nigerian women are in miserable conditions.
Another medical student, from the University of Benin, Juliet Tawari, explained that she would never have had the chance of getting an education if not for the help from others.
She said that her mother is dead and her father, who should have helped out, is a carpenter with arthritis that has badly affected his joints.
Marvelous Ejiogu, a 200 level student of applied biochemistry, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, said that her mother who is a single mother of five and struggling to make ends meet can at least heave a sigh of relief for the next year after she was awarded a scholarship of £300.
She said: “It is a one-time scholarship worth £300, which l will use for the payment of fees, hostel fees and textbooks. It is going to relieve my mother who is a single mother taking care of five children all by herself since my father died.”
For Marvelous, Juliet and more than 30 other girls, relief is finally coming as a group of women have made it their business to mentor and financially support undergraduate girls across the country.
Hazimat Yusuf explained that “I was just in class and saw my classmates filling a form. I asked about it and they convinced me to join them and apply. They asked for the normal recommendation that every other scholarship scheme required; like indigene form, result, recommendations from lecturers.
You write an essay and also state why you need the scholarship.
“Unfortunately, all my friends that applied and encouraged me to do the same did not get it. But I did and I was excited when I got the call. I know that I am good but some people are better. So I am so grateful for the opportunity. The money is going to be of great benefit to me. I am a medical student and everyone knows that textbooks for medicine and surgery are very expensive. At times we cannot afford them and we have to settle for soft copies. But there is nothing greater than having your textbooks. Sometimes we have textbooks costing as much as N17,000, N20,000, N25,000 and then you have to have like five or six of them.
“I think these women are just God-send, I am surprised that other women don’t do this often. There is no way anyone can understand a woman’s challenge and problems better than a fellow woman. You see men out there doing a lot of things that should be done by women.
“Unfortunately, we have a lot of influential women out there but still a lot of Nigerian women are left miserable. We have to do a lot of unnecessary things; things that can probably be avoided if you can get help out there. It takes nothing for women to gather and help other women. You do not have to give a lot. It is the little things that matter because N10,000 can change the lives of a lot of students. With this action from NWAG, my perception of women not supporting women has changed.”
On her part, Juliet said, “The scholarship which I have been receiving every year since 2016 has been helpful with my studies at the University of Benin where I study medicine and surgery. My mother is late and my father who is supposed to take care of my education is a carpenter whose work has been limited because he suffers from arthritis and has lost the use of his joints.”
The Nigerian Women Association of Georgia (NWAG) which awarded the scholarships has been reaching out to female undergraduates every year. The President of NWAG, Dr Stella Etta, said 13 orphanage homes are being sponsored by the organisation. Etta said that the scholarship entails £300 for each student, which is a little over N100,000 for the girls and £700 for the orphanages, on a budget of £20,000, which includes transportation and accommodation during the award.
She added, “We are women, it is not to say that the men or boys do not have issues. But we do what we know best, which is impacting women and girls. Also, we realised that in families with many children, usually the boys get sent to school first before the girls. We also know what girls go through in trying to get money for tuition. So we are trying in our little ways to stop that.
“The money is meant to help pay for tuition, buy books and things that need to be done for their schooling. Some of them start businesses with the funds as sustainable income to help themselves and their families. We know that it might not seem like a lot of money but our goal is, rather than increase the amount of money, we would increase the number of recipients. For this year, we are offering the money to 37 students, one per state and the Federal Capital Territory.
“We also gave them a task to come up with businesses that can be started with N25,000 and they gave us different ideas. Some of them have gone on to start-up businesses that have become successful.”
Hephen Yerima, a 400 level student of English and Literary Studies of the Ahmadu Bello University who has used the money to start up a business, explained that this will be her second time of accessing the funds.
She said, “So far, this is my second time accessing the scholarship. My parents can afford to pay for my school fees because it is not that expensive. We pay N19,000 as fees so I used the money I got last year to start a catering business while schooling. I intend to use the second scholarship for this year to boost my business. I was unable to get an oven last year so I used the local method of baking. But I intend to use this money now to buy an oven.”
The National Coordinator of NWAG, Mrs Agata Nnaji, said, “I got involved because I am very interested in the welfare of girls and there are many stories out there about how vulnerable young girls are, especially those from indigent families trying to get an education. It is tough enough being a girl and worst being a girl from a poor family and struggling to be able to pay school fees and take care of things.
“We want to empower young girls to be more confident and achieve whatever they want in life. They must understand that nobody should be allowed to put them down. This is our 19th year and as at today, we have given scholarships to over 600 undergraduate girls in Nigeria. We are also supporting orphanages. In total, I will say that in Nigeria, we have touched the lives of at least 1000 people. We also use the opportunity to mentor the girls in different aspects of life. What we will like them to do with the money is to use less than N25,000 to start up a sustainable business so that they can think of being entrepreneurs”.
A kind gesture from Kebbi State Governor’s wife, Dr Zainab Bagudu, has once again, highlighted the plight of cancer patients in Nigeria. GBENGA OMOKHUNU reports.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines cancer as a group of diseases that involve abnormal cell growth which is capable of metastasis (the spread of cancer cells from the initial or primary site of the disease to another part of the body).
However, experts say not all cancers possess the ability to metastasise to other locations in the body via lymph or blood. Cancers could be in various types, such as cervical, ovarian, breast, lung, cancer of the blood (leukemia), prostate cancer and many others. Like many other countries in the world, the disease is wrecking great havoc in Nigeria, killing people in thousands each year. Sadly, a good number of Nigerians are suffering from clinical features of the disease or another, but they have no idea that it is cancer that is gradually destroying their lives.
The incidence and damaging effect of cancer in Nigeria cannot be overestimated. It is overwhelming and rapidly increasing in number and the mortality rate is high. According to some medical doctors who spoke with The Nation, the scourge of cancer and its destructive effects have been a recurring decimal and a good number of families have shared the pain of losing their members to cancer.
Also prominent Nigerians have succumbed to cancer. Before now, very few screening and diagnostic centres were available for early detection. At present, cancer treatment centres are also a rarity in the country.
In 2009, the late President Umaru Yar’ Adua’s wife, Hajiya Turai Yar’ Adua, came up with the initiative to establish the first dedicated International Cancer Centre in Nigeria and West Africa, which was located in Abuja. The centre was meant to be an internationally recognised centre fully equipped and professionally staffed. It was to be wholly comprehensive and committed to promoting excellence in cancer related care (diagnosis and treatment), cancer prevention, cancer education, training and research. But the truth remains that the state of the hospital is currently nothing to write home about. That is why Nigerians who can afford the huge cost have been traveling overseas for treatment. For now, major specialist and teaching hospitals in the country can only manage the disease at great cost to the patients.
Worried by this trend, the wife of the Kebbi State Governor, Dr. Zainab Bagudu recently donated a sum of N9, 654, 725. 00 million to the management of the National Hospital Abuja, for the settlement of the medical bills of 30 cancer patients being managed by the hospital.
The governor’s wife, who is the founder of Medicaid Cancer Foundation (MCF), at the official presentation of the dummy cheque, advised major stakeholders to find means of helping cancer patients who cannot afford their medical bills.
She vowed that her foundation will continue to assist the less privileged in funding their medical bills, especially those suffering from cancer.
Her words: “We have seen patients that are suffering from cancer. Some of them are undergoing chemotherapy and some, radiotherapy. I believe that the actual financial commitment has been made. It is not just about financial support, it is about having the confidence to be able to come to the facility that would deliver on our vision.”
The Chief Medical Director (CMD), National Hospital, Dr. Ja’faru Momoh who received the dummy cheque on behalf of the hospital, called on other well-meaning Nigerians and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to emulate the gesture of the foundation by assisting cancer patients in the hospital.
Highlighting the plight of many cancer patients in the hospital, Momoh said, “At any point in time, we have over 40 cancer patients seriously ill on admission and many cannot afford the care.
“Two weeks ago, you went round the hospital and you saw several cancer patients on admission for chemotherapy and you made a pledge through the foundation to do something to ensure that they can continue their medication. Chemotherapy is known to be very expensive and sometimes runs into several millions of Naira to complete a round of treatment. We assure you that the patients will benefit. We have ensured that they have continued to receive treatment and therefore we will be able to apply this fund judiciously to make sure that they are properly treated.
“We want to plead that well-meaning Nigerians and other non- governmental organisations (NGOs) should emulate what you are doing in the area of cancer.
“The challenge has been in funding their care, particularly chemotherapy. The drugs are very expensive. We have been on a lot of advocacy drive to get the prices reduced.”
The President, Africa Organisation for research and training on cancer and also a Chief Consultant, Clinical and Regulation Oncologist at the National Hospital, Dr. Bello Muhammed, raised an alarm over poor number of professionals handling cancer cases in Nigeria.
Muhammed said: “This country needs about three thousand radiation oncologists and we have only 70. Of that 70, only about 20 are working in centres that have facilities.
“The foundation’s effort is a very welcome development because you do know that a lot of our patients are unable to afford care and this assistance will go a long way in settling their medical bills.
“The statistics by WHO is that we should have 180 machines for a population of 180 million. We have four functional machines in the country. Government will do more by supporting NGOs because government alone cannot do it. NGOs must rise to the challenge of treating patients and also providing services.”
The challenge posed by cancer and cancer-related diseases is increasingly becoming a bigger problem in developing countries than the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The burden of cancer-related health challenges in developing countries is currently approaching pandemic proportions.
In Nigeria, cancer is often being perceived as death sentence, owing to a number of reasons, including poorly equipped hospitals, lack of knowledge on the part of the people, lack of trained oncology human resource, lack of drugs and high cost of treatment, limited screening centres, government’s poor attitude towards policy formulation and implementation.
Lack of screening centres
Screening for early signs of neoplastic changes is one of the major ways of preventing and detecting cancer in its earliest stages to avert devastating danger. Some types of cancer, especially cervical cancer, can generally be prevented through vaccination and screening and treatment of early lesion which might lead to neoplastic changes. different parts of the country. But it is quite unfortunate that in most developing countries, including Nigeria, there are only one or two cancer screening centres located only in the capital cities.
Access to drugs
Cancer drugs are largely inaccessible. Access to cancer drugs is still limited or nonexistent for most cancer patients in developing countries. Today, both treatment and diagnostics for cancer are expensive and difficult to obtain.
Some doctors who also spoke with The Nation under anonymity recommended that governments in developing countries, including Nigeria, should place a high priority on cancer and allot more percentage of their annual health budget to cancer care, screening, prevention and treatment.
One of the doctors said: “Public awareness about cancer should be given attention just as it was done in the earlier days of HIV/AIDS. This would help correct health-seeking behaviour of the citizens which contributed to the failure in the treatment of cancers. Drugs for cancer treatment should be subsidised as in the case of HIV/AIDS to make it both affordable and accessible.”
The stark reality
Today, cases of cancers of all types are common in Nigeria. Reports indicate that hardly any week or month passed without cancer-related deaths being recorded. Reports further indicate that thousands of people with cancer-related issues are dying silently. Unfortunately, not much is being done by the authorities and relevant stakeholders to arrest the frightening situation. To worsen an already bad situation, many people are not aware of the dangers posed by cancer. Trained medical personnel are not readily available. Dedicated cancer centres, where they exist at all, are ill-equipped. For now, the teeming population of cancer patients would have to rely on the benevolence of kind-hearted individuals like Dr Zainab Bagudu and organisations like the Medicaid Cancer Foundation.
In preparation for the planned revocation of plots of land situated in serviced areas of the Federal Capital City (FCC), the FCT Administration has inaugurated a Task Team to holistically verify all identified undeveloped plots of land where infrastructure has already been provided.
The FCT Director of Land Administration, Adamu Jibrin Hussaini inaugurated the Task Team on Wednesday in his office at the Abuja Geographic Information Systems, Central Business District, Abuja.
The Task Team which is projected to round up its job by the end of December 2019, is expected to physically visit all such plots in the serviced districts.
The team is also mandated to back its finding with pictorial evidences to ensure that allottees are not unjustly treated.
The director enjoined the Task Team to be thorough in the discharge of this onerous work and should be guided by the zeal of patriotism it deserves.
Hussaini called on the Task Team to be dedicated and committed in carrying out the verification exercise; stressing that plots of land cannot be left fallow in the city center where government has expended billions of Naira to provide the needed infrastructure.
He cautioned the Task Team to also be guided by the principle of fairness and justice; insisting that there are no sacred cows as the FCT Administration is determined to rid the city of undeveloped plots in and around the city.
According to him, the Administration will conduct this exercise following due process; noting that all grey areas will be taken into consideration to ensure that no innocent person is made to bear the brunt unnecessarily.
The Director insisted that already, the Administration has carried out advertisement in the National Dailies in line with the directive of the Federal Capital Territory Executive Committee (FCT EXCO) to the Department of Land Administration to commence the process of revocation of titles in respect of undeveloped plot (s) of land in serviced districts of the Federal Capital City, Abuja.
Hussaini further explained that the Administration has given a grace period by extending the dateline till February 2, 2020 to ensure total compliance by affected allottees.
He emphasised that by that publication, the affected allottees have been reminded that failure to carry out development of such plot (s) contravenes the terms of Rights of Occupancy accepted by such allottees as well as the provision of Section 28(5) (a & b) of the Land Use Act N0. 6 of 1978, Cap. L5, Laws of the Federation of the Nigeria 2004.
Collaboration by Next TV and the League Management Company in a $220 in the Nigerian Professional Football League promises to address the yearnings of stakeholders and football fans across the country. SEGUN OGUNJIMI reports.
The broadcast partnership for the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) was unveiled in Abuja on Tuesday, November 12 by the League Management Company (LMC) and Next Digital Television. The deal, estimated to be in the region of $220 million, was sealed with the top officials of the LMC and Next Digital TV, 9Mobile on ground at the Maitama, Abuja office of the League Management Company.
Prince Ado Ibrahim, the Chairman, Next TV, said the business is seeking to connect the younger generation of Nigerians to the NPFL through their portable smart devices.
Unlike others before it, the project is being sponsored by a Nigerian company to bridge a gap in football promotion in Nigerian. The project, which will start with about three matches, will eventually spread to all ten matches every MatchDay.
On what informed the decision to partner the NPFL, the Next TV boss said that the league is one Nigerian product that has been underutilised. “We are not hoarding this content. We are talking with networks. We are taking Nigerian league to the Middle East hence the involvement of Samsson, a Dubai tech company that is represented at this event,” Ibrahim said.
At the event, Next TV also officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with mobile telecommunications company, 9Mobile making them the official carrier for the contents on OTT.
Represented by Layi Onafowokan, the Acting Marketing Director at 9Mobile, the company said it has a goal to make watching the NPFL affordable and convenient and would thus be offering specialised data packages and bundles for subscribers to the project.
He said the partnership is proudly Nigerian and that as a company now fully owned by Nigerians, with Nigerian investors, it will be catering for Nigerians.
“We don’t want the youths of our country idling away on social media doing the wrong things. We want to get them engaged in the NPFL which has skilled talents,” Onafowokan said.
Businesses and organisations represented at the event included WEMA Bank, First Bank and the Nigeria Investment Promotions Commission (NIPC).
The LMC boss, Mallam Shehu Dikko who supervises the 20-team Nigeria Professional Football League, disclosed to The Nation the reason behind brokering the deal and what benefits it has for Nigeria’s football league and economy.
Dikko said, “So far so good. After a long period we have seen the light at the end of the tunnel with a very big opportunity to have a very big commercial big position on the table which is a big thing. This shows that regardless of other issues, people still believe in what we are doing. People can still key in into our vision and we are just starting.
“You know that TV (Television) is the heart beat of every sport. The revenue that comes from TV, the promotions that come from TV and other financial incentives derivable from TV by clubs is massive. For a very long time, we keep saying that if you don’t solve the issue of TV then we cannot go anywhere. What people failed to understand is that even in those days when we have the TV (rights) for example, we were doing only one game and maximum of two a week. In exceptional circumstances we were doing three based on double header.”
According to him, seven of 10 games have already been wasted, stressing that that is not the right place to go. The new project, he said, would find a way to put all local games on TV in the right way, with the right quality, the right development before being sold.
“For many years, we have been saying it in the English Premier League. It is not the TV networks that are covering the EPL matches. There are specialised companies that are doing that. It is not the TV networks that are producing La Liga (the Spanish elite League) or Bundesliga (German elite League). Somebody has to produce this game and then put it on the plate and you sell across the networks and commercialised it and make your money.
“Now we won’t be able to achieve that because we keep running in circles. For instance, if I go today and sign a contract with a TV network, they give me some money and show only one or two matches a week. It’s not worth it, that is like running in circles.
“That was since 2017 when we had a hitch with our former sponsor. We had to go back to the drawing board because we had to resolve the fundamental issue of production. If you don’t produce the games, control the content and sell it across board, you are just running in circles. Production is very costly. Everybody has seen what happened with the Nigeria versus Republic of Benin game in the 2021 AFCON qualifiers in Uyo. The NTA had to go at the last minute to rectify the situation. But look at what happened, even the people that produced that game could not buy that content themselves. Everybody in Nigeria was complaining but nobody was thinking of how to solve it.”
Dikko said every country has definitive production platforms which they use for production and sell it across board. He added that that is what his organisation had been doing all alone until the appointment of the present Sports Minister (Sunday Dare) who he said, has been identifying with their efforts. The Minister, he continued, understands what his group has been trying to do and has continued to give support. According to him, there is active understanding and collaboration on the part of the Minister.
In a lengthen narrative, Dikko said, “If you go to the EPL after their games you can see that the EPL handles production, they have an outfit that produces their games and they sell it across the world and make money so also is the LaLiga in Spain and German Bundsliga too. So why can’t we have something like that in Nigeria too? That’s why we left it. It is not just about the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) if we have a decent production company that can produce these games in Nigeria and put it on the networks and it can be on NTA, be on Super Sports, Star Times and can be everywhere that revenue will come and the rights will come and the money will come too, all sports would benefit, and everybody will make plenty money. Once you are on TV you have to ensure that the venues too are good because everybody will see it. Everything will just snowball into real economy. That is what the League Management Company has been working on in the last two years.
“Remember we signed an MOU with the Nigeria Television Authority to see if we can take over their equipment and find the partners and sponsors that can help us upgrade them (the equipments and human resources) and bring them up to high level standard and develop them across the country but I can tell you to produce one game the way it is now cost a huge amount of money. Ask even the clubs that plays the CAF Champions League, for every match thy play in that Champions League, CAF deducts about $30,000 to $40,000 from their money for the production alone. This means producing a match alone will cost between N12 million to N15 million.
“So if you don’t have a company to reduce that cost and get the right equipment to get things done the right way it will be very difficult to achieve this lofty aim. So that is what we are doing right now with the new deal we are bringing on board. We are working now with Next Digital TV. Its first and foremost he issue of investment in the league, issue of production, and then the issue of commercializing the content. There are four steps that we are looking at and the issue of getting a lot of sponsors into the league. Basically that is what we are working on right now. The moment we that we will now have our games across board. Thankfully, in the last two year we have worked with the right channels in the government and the government is doing their own part. They are putting the right legislations and regulations that will drive and protect this process. Once we can produce these matches and the market is there definitely the revenues will come with the right advertisement.
“We have our focus, our target in the next five (5) years if we get it right at least we should realize a minimum of $220 million. That is the focus and target but that depends on certain variables if we get it right. If we get it right we might even surpass or double that. We discussed that with our (20) clubs and everybody have seen the business plan and everybody is backing it up and so we have to create the enabling environment to get it done. I can’t stop giving praises to the Honourable Minister of Sports Sunday Dare for always being proactive and backing everything up. The NFF President is always positive about things like this and the 20 clubs that made up the league are all working towards making this process work and succeed”.
Abuja, midweek, witnessed a protest over the killing of Mrs Salome Acheju Abuh, a 60-year-old mother of three males and a female. She was killed in her home in Ochadamu, Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
Before her death, she was a resident of Abuja.
At her polling unit on the recent governorship election, a suspected political thug was said to have marched to where she was seated, dealt her a heavy slap and kicked the chair from under her. Her husband rushed her to the hospital. When she recovered, he asked that they returned to their base (Abuja). She opted out. As the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) Woman Leader in the area, she was said to have been optimistic that her party would upstage Governor Yahaya Bello. She would not like to miss the moment. She, however, was killed in a dastardly manner two days after the governorship election.
But barely 24 hours after President Muhammadu Buhari directed security agencies to fish out her killers, the police announced the arrest of six persons in connection with the crime.
The last wednesday’s protesters, who could not hide their anger, bore placards calling for justice for the late retired civil servants.
A first cousin to the deceased, Mrs. Ruth Acheme, said the sponsors of her killers were spreading rumours to cover up.
Mrs. Acheme, who spoke with The Nation in Lokoja, the state capital, said her cousin’s remains were burnt to near ashes, and that they were only able to retrieve a part of her burnt skull, which they packed and buried last week Friday.
She said: “They claim that some of the louts were from Ibaji. The husband (also a retiree from the Presidency) pressured her that they should go to Abuja together on Sunday, but she persisted, saying PDP would win the election and she wanted to be on the ground. Even her younger sister called from Ajaka and said: ‘What are you doing there?’ But, she said: ‘If you people are afraid,’ she was not afraid of anything, and it was that day that they killed her and burnt her body.
“They came inside and packed her belongings and loaded them into their Sienna bus and another smaller car.
“One of her younger brothers came from Ogwalawo, but he was advised to go to the police station. It was after that we went with the police.
“The police passed by us to other houses that were burnt; five in all, belonging to PDP members.
“The member of the House of Representatives came to inspect the scene of the crime, he met us under the cashew tree where we stood, and together, we went to the house.
“There was little of the head and chest, they packed the whole thing in a cloth.”
Many prospective tenants in Lagos have lost millions of naira to fraudulent estate agents. Sometimes, this happens with the tacit support of landlords. The Lagos State government is ready to end the ugly trend, OKWY IROEGBU- CHIKEZIE reports
Taiwo Ogundele got married in July, last year and planned to move into a self-contain apartment in Mafoluku-Oshodi Lagos with his bride. They met the landlord who showed them a mini-flat and asked them to pay N250, 000. They were asked to prepare to move in the following week. When they went to take possession of their apartment which they had paid for after the seven days, they met 27 other prospective tenants creating a scene in the compound. They discovered that they have been duped just like the other desperate prospective tenants. The landlord disappeared and the police were invited but nothing tangible was done about the matter.
Obinna Chukwujekwu, a trader who lives in Ajangbadi, was ‘settled’ by his ‘master’ after six years of apprenticeship in Alaba International Market. When he was ‘settled’, he paid the sum of N150, 000 to a developer who encouraged him to pay to secure a decent accommodation very close to where he got a shop.
Mrs Benson Awoyinka
Enthusiastically he paid with some of his mates and others he didn’t know until they met at the police station where they discovered that they have been defrauded of their hard income.
Mrs. Iyanda Bose, who lives in Ejigbo, recounted how she lost her co-operative savings with an agent. She recounted to The Nation how she registered with an agent who introduced her to a developer who allegedly was developing flats in Bucknor Ejigbo. She visited the place to monitor the rate of development and recounted how she met others coming to also check out the building.
She said she didn’t suspect she would be defrauded as there were several flats in the building under construction until they heard the landlord has escaped to Cotonou. The developer also disappeared.
She said she became homeless for almost six months until she found a make-shift shelter where she moved in with her children until she saved up for another apartment. She would want the state government to come up with a drastic measure that will curtail the activities of fraudsters who pose as genuine landlords or developers and who have destroyed several lives and families.
He wanted prospective developers to register with the government, even as she said providing their details should be one of the criteria for registration so that an aggrieved member of the public can easily find redress should he or she is defrauded. She regretted that taking them to police station does not solve the problems as they are seen walking freely without minding the lives they have destroyed.
Mrs. Iyanda further asked for a special court to try them so that it would serve as a deterrent to others.
Stories such as these are countless in cosmopolitan Lagos where almost every other person is an estate agent. Hundreds of them seem not to have any inkling of what their deleterious activities have done to a lot of families.
Special Adviser (SA) to Governor Sanwo-Olu on Housing, Mrs. Toke Benson-Awoyinka, said the government is set to sanitise the agency business by making those involved fall in line with the laws of the land.
She said though the government is desirous of the prosperity of residents, it frowns at businesses that profiteer from other people’s sweat.
She spoke at a recent stakeholders’ engagement on real estate/agency business with the theme “Lagos Real Estate: Achieving 21st Century Compliance.”
She stated that the 21st Century Smart City of Lagos requires that virtually all Real Estate stakeholders and transactions be known and captured electronically with access to data by the citizens in real-time, as Real Estate is important to Lagos as oil is to Nigeria.
She said: “There is the need to provide, develop and continuously capture and update a Unified Central Database of Real Estate activities within the state while making it accessible for the objectives of planning and policy decisions.
“Our vision is to provide an enabling environment and transparent Real Estate sector conforming to international best practices while safeguarding the interests of all stakeholders. Our mission, however, is the creation of an innovative and sustainable environment to promote Lagos as a Real Estate Investment destination in Africa and the World.”
She explained why the government came up with an agency known as Lagos State Real Estate Transaction Department (LASTRED).
The SA said it was as a result of deep frustrations suffered by members of the public and losses encountered. She recounted how her office has battled with so many cases of transaction failure.
She further explained that in the last five or six months, they have dealt with large-scale fraud in places such as Alapere in Ketu were a developer and a landlord conspired to dupe 262 members of the public on 15 units of self-contain apartments.
Reliving the experiences of some members of the public, she said usually one man will put up “To let” signpost and ask people to call or get in touch if they require accommodation. She said this was exactly what happened in Alapere Ketu where such advert attracted over 262 people who inadvertently paid for 15 flats while the developer duped them of over N68 million.
She said: “In Gbagada, there was a situation where they had five flats with 17 people paying for them without knowing until the bubble burst.
“I received a report this morning that a certain gentleman in Agege collected monies from over 300 prospective tenants and smiled to the bank with millions of naira belonging to innocent people.
“We have cases such as these. There is also a case of a man in Ajebo Estate. Luckily for us, he was prosecuted and found guilty and subsequently sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. His property has also been forfeited to the state and we are going to sell the property and refund the money back to the victims.”
On the scope of their regulation, she said it will focus on “Stakeholders, Estate Agents, Landlords and Tenants, Redress Schemes” authorised by Lagos State Tenancy Laws and will also be open to other property professionals to ensure their commitment to excellent consumer service and improving best practice within the Real Estate Sector.
She maintained that “the development and growth of the Real Estate industry depend on how to foster enduring client relationships and building trust. The objective of the agency is the protection of citizens from the initiation of the transaction to the conclusion of renting, buying, leasing or selling a property,” she added.
The SA further explained that it was the responsibility of government to partner with relevant professional bodies in the housing sector to eliminate impostors, fraudsters, charlatans and sharp practices associated with members who claim to be accredited building or housing sector practitioners, but whose sole objective is to defraud unsuspecting members of the public who engage their services in renting, leasing, buying, selling and property development.
Mrs Benson-Awoyinka said the ultimate aim of the government is to eliminate the bad eggs in the industry and punish offenders under relevant provisions of the State Law, thereby restoring the integrity of the profession within the state and Nigeria as a whole.
She pledged the administration’s preparedness to fulfil its social contract to the people in the protection of lives and properties.
Governor Babajide Sanwo- Olu said emerging issues in the sector over time necessitated the gathering which is intended to device creative ways of finding lasting solutions to incidences of fraud and unprofessionalism in the Real Estate business.
He said the intention of government is in sync with LASTRED motives which are to purge the sector of bad eggs that hide under agency business to defraud unsuspecting members of the public.
Sanwo-Olu also said the planned programmes will protect professionals who are also being affected by the unscrupulous activities of the few bad eggs impersonating genuine business owners in the real estate sector.
The governor said the theme “Lagos Real Estate: Achieving 21st Century Compliance” is apt considering the role played by Real Estate business in the financial sector, particularly in a cosmopolitan and commercial state such as Lagos.
On the need to sanitise the sector and protect the genuine ones from the quacks, he said: “Apart from facilitating business relationships between people selling or buying, leasing or renting of landed property across the state, you also in no small measure contribute to the state Gross Domestic Product (GDP) through your activities. The need to bring prospective buyers and sellers of landed property together and managing their expectations and making both parties come into agreement, happy and satisfied during business transactions have greatly impacted the economic growth and development of Lagos State.”
He described the role of the agents as very crucial, stressing that it is the realisation of that fact that made the government establish the Lagos State Real Estate Transaction Department (LASTRED) with an Executive Order NO EO/BRF/009 of 2012.
Sanwo-Olu pointed out that the idea is to establish, regulate, monitor and develop the institutional framework while enhancing the integrity of the property market by sanitising the system.
He advised them to form a formidable force and join hands with the government to work towards salvaging the present situation within the profession.
He assured that his administration will declare a total war against unfair treatment that had been meted to residents.
He said: “Let me assure you all that the present administration is very passionate about the housing sector and LASTRED and we are determined to strengthen the operations of this department to achieve the 21st Century vision of the government in the Real Estate business.”
He encouraged the estate agents to explore the deployment of new technology to create a platform for establishing business relationships with potential clients and also maintain the existing ones.
“Today, we are in an era when the internet has made the whole world a global village. You should, therefore, advertise your services and products to boost your real estate business and re-position it through modern social media platforms to strengthen the industry and ensure that people are better informed about your business,” he said.
They lost their legs to bomb blasts in the Northeast. Now, they have new legs to walk, courtesy of Prosthetic Rehabilitation Programme (PRP) of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), CECILIA OLOGUNAGBA
To amputees, who are victims of Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast of the country, it was dream come true and relief from societal stigma when they were given the opportunity to walk again. They got their limbs severed from them through bomb blast.
Hundreds of them, who had lost the hope of walking again are now on their ‘feet’, courtesy of the Prosthetic Rehabilitation Programme (PRP) of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Domiciled in Dala Orthopedic Hospital, Kano State, the PRP is an initiative of the ICRC with the aim of rehabilitating amputees of bomb blast and other explosions through the provision of free artificial limbs to support them and return their dignity and normalise their lives.
Available statistics showed that no fewer than 608 amputees of bomb blast, bullet wounds and other explosions from the Northeast and Kano State have benefitted from the programme since 2016.
A visit to Kano State to interact with some of the beneficiaries attested to how far the programme has contributed to the restoration of amputees’ dignity, their livelihoods and dreams.
Rabiu Saminu, a 51-year-old taxi driver is one of the survivors of the November 14, 2014 bomb blast at the Dala Central Mosque, Kano State.
He narrated his ordeal and how he survived the attack in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano. According to him, the attack, which claimed hundreds of lives, left him without legs.
Narrating his ordeal, he said: “As a driver, I lost my source of livelihood as a result of my disability and was denied other opportunities because of my condition.
“After the bomb blast, I was taken to National Orthopaedic Hospital, Dala (NOHD) in Kano for treatment.
“After the treatment, I was referred to a team working in the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Limb Workshop for prosthetics and orthotics at NOHD.”
He said it was the centre that fitted artificial legs for him and after a few days of exercise and monitoring, he could walk again.
He said: “Since I got the artificial legs, I could do my chores unattended and I feel normal.
“The stigma and discrimination I suffered after the first treatment also stopped and my dignity, and source of livelihood restored; thanks to ICRC Prosthetic Rehabilitation Programme.”
Another beneficiary is 10-year-old Ibrahim Maidoki, who lost hope of walking again as a result of an infection that led to the amputation of his two legs in February 2019.
His father, Yaro, said he used to carry Ibrahim on his back to school at Danbagina Primary School, Kano and would leave him at the mercy of friends to support him for his daily activities.
“It was a painful experience for us to see our son in this condition. The disability affected his relationship with his peers as he also suffered stigmatisation.
“Ibrahim, who likes playing football can no longer play with his mates as a result of the amputation.
“However, when we took him to ICRC Prosthetic and Orthotic Centre at NOHD Kano and got his two legs fixed with artificial limbs; he can now play football with his classmates.”
Binta Usman, a 23-year-old woman, who lost her legs to poliomyelitis at the age of four, was excited that she could walk and ride a tricycle with the support she got at the centre.
She was assisted with orthotics devices to support her weak limbs so that she could walk again.
Usman is a graduate of School of Health Science and part-time worker of medical dispensary, administering drugs and injections to patients.
She said: “I am happy that I am back to work. I will like to go back to school for my degree and study Pharmacy. I can go far in life with this support and my dream will be achieved.”
Another beneficiary, Bashir Rabiu, a 22-year-old man residing in Bichi Local Government of Kano State, had a case of bilateral amputation and could not walk again.
Rabiu said he lost the hope of walking again until a friend directed him to the ICRC centre, where he got artificial limbs.
He explained that “after I got my new limbs, ICRC supported me with N80,000 grant to start a poultry business.
“ICRC also supported me with transportation stipend and feeding during my rehabilitation and promised to help me to grow my business,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ICRC’s Ortho-Prosthetist, Ms Idah Kadyamatimba, who heads the centre, shares her experience on some of the difficult cases handled.
She said: “The centre received and attended to many people with different challenges. Some were victims of bomb blast, while others had polio or diabetes and had their limbs amputated.
“People from all walks of life come to the centre for artificial limbs and we take them through the journey to see them back on their feet.
“They come with different challenges, but they go back happy and hopeful. For instance, Ibrahim Maidoki’s father carried the 10-year-old-boy on his back to the centre on June 17, and he was measured and the first fitting was done on June 21; and on June 26, he was provided with artificial limbs.”
According to her, the centre handles no fewer than 25 prosthetic fittings in a month, using polyprolene technology, which is light and allows the beneficiaries to move freely.
Kadyamatimba encouraged people living with disability to visit the centre and be assisted, saying “disability due to whatever reason should not be seen as inability; there is ability in disability.”
NOHD Medical Director, Dr. Mohammed Salihu, urged Nigerians to support people living with disability.
He said: “Those who are disabled today did not plan for it. They just found themselves in that situation by accident and it can happen to anyone.
“Therefore, we need to rally round those who are physically challenged and give them maximum support for them to be part of the society.”
As the world celebrated International Day of Persons with Disabilities on December 3, experts have urged development partners, non-governmental organisations, governments at all levels and well-meaning Nigerians to emulate ICRC by supporting this group.
They said such support would go a long way in restoring the people’s dignity, remove stigma, discrimination and restore sources of their livelihoods.
Cecilia Ologunagba is of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
