Category: Featured

Angry railway workers on Thursday turned back passengers as they shut down passenger and cargo train services of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) across the country.

When The Nation visited the Mobolaji Johnson Train Station in Ebute-Metta in Lagos, the aggrieved workers were seen displaying placards.

Read Also: Railway activities shut down as workers protests in Ibadan

They also sang solidarity songs as they ensured that there was no train services at the station.

Some of the passengers who had besieged the station to board the train to Ibadan and Abeokuta respectively were turned back as the angry workers ensured the gates to the NRC train platform as well as the premises of the corporation were securedly locked.

Activities at Obafemi Awolowo Train Station, Moniya, Ibadan on Thursday shut down as the Nigerian Union of Railway Workers and Senior Staff Association protested against poor pay by the Federal Government.

The protesters were seen carrying placards with various inscriptions like: “Railway workers live matters”; “We want standard condition of service”; “FG pay us good salary and allowance; “We are suffering, give us enhanced salary regime” among others.

Some strategic places in the train station like the entry point, the ticketing office and the loading section were deserted when visited by The Nation because of the three-day warning protest.

Read Also: Niger Delta nationalities protest Fed Govt’s alleged marginalisation

One of the protesters said their salary was not enough for them to survive considering effects of economic hardship on the nation.

“Federal government invested billions of dollars asset to the stations but you can imagine a staff or a driver carrying these assets is been paid below N40, 000 monthly.

“How is such worker is going to survive, the safety of our lives is also part of our agitations?

“This is a three-day warning protest, today is the commencement day and it will continue till Friday and Saturday.”

As rising costs of insulin and other drugs increasingly turn diabetic patients into endangered species in the country, experts in herbal medicine highlight natural ways to manage the metabolic disorder without subjecting sufferers to severe side effects that often come with orthodox anti-diabetic medications, reports Associate Editor ADEKUNLE YUSUF

Death, like a thief in the night, struck again and again in the family, mowing down precious souls before their prime–without anyone having a clue until extensive damage had been done.

It was a deluge of deaths, mostly avoidable losses, which began with the painful passing of Olapeju Isiwo, a poor farmer, many years ago. He died at 63, leaving three wives and many children.

Unfortunately, when the stark illiterate died, neither he nor any member of his large family had any inkling he had diabetes. He was taken to the nearby health dispensary as he was feeling tired, went into a short coma and died–all happened in a fast-paced manner without anyone realising he had suffered a glycaemic peak, which obviously caused the coma and his subsequent death.

Twenty years after, everything was also so quick and sad for Olaolu– just like the cruel fate that befell his father. A young businessman who worked like a Trojan every day, the father of two was in a good shape– not overweight and never had a health problem until his untimely death. Feeling unusually fragile and fatigued, which members of his family ruefully assumed to be a consequence of his workaholic lifestyle, Olaolu never made it to the hospital before things turned awry.

His bright and promising life ended suddenly in tears around the time he was about to clock 40, leaving his young family devastated beyond comprehension.

At the time the household was still mourning him, tragedy almost struck in the family once more when two of Olaolu’s siblings fell sick and hospitalised for days–all happened also in quick succession.

They had come visiting to join their kith and kin in Ayobo, a suburb of Lagos, to perform the usual funeral rites for their departed brother.

However, unlike the fate that befell others in the family, timely medical intervention saved the day for both Adebola and Bimbo.

Results of medical diagnosis at a private hospital where they were rushed to return a shocker: high glycaemia. Still, in disbelief and fear at the same time, the news of being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes left the lucky duo devastated to no end till they were discharged.

Sadly, that is a fate millions of Nigerians battle with–many either managing their diabetic condition after being diagnosed or much more undiagnosed and unsure of their diabetes status.

According to Diabetes Control Media Advocacy Initiative (DICOMA), a non-governmental organization (NGO), many Nigerians living with diabetes are facing hard times, saying a significant number can no longer control their condition because of the high cost of drugs and monitoring devices.

“The scourge of diabetes is attaining a dangerous dimension in the country as many people can no longer afford their medications and routines to effectively control their condition. Children living with diabetes, most of whom must be on regular insulin injection, are also badly affected by the situation as many parents either reduce doses or stop administering injections as the cost of insulin, a vital component of diabetes management, has risen by over 40 per cent in the last six months.

A vial of insulin now costs between N6, 000 and N12,000 in different parts of the country,” DICOMA said in a statement to mark this year’s World Diabetes Day.

Going by statistics from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), more than 463 million adults (1 in 11) are currently living with diabetes globally. In Nigeria, the disease affects no fewer than six million people, with the number of cases increasing very fast.

Yet, one in every two people with diabetes in the country is undiagnosed, which means that the current estimated number of cases could be double or even more.

Lately, the rising prevalence of diabetes mellitus around the world has become a major societal burden to developed and developing countries.

One of the top 10 leading causes of deaths globally, diabetes is a complex and multifactorial disease that presents as high blood sugar; a metabolic disorder of chronic hyperglycemia characterised by disturbances to carbohydrate, protein, and fat metabolism resulting from absolute or relative insulin deficiency with dysfunction in organ systems.

With diabetes, the body either doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t effectively use the insulin it makes. In Type 1 diabetes, the immune system attacks and destroys cells in the pancreas which are responsible for insulin production. While in Type 2 diabetes (T2D), the body becomes resistant to insulin and sugar builds up in the blood.

In the sub-Saharan region, Africa and, indeed Nigeria, has the highest incidence of diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes. The increase in the incidence of diabetes globally and nationally has become worrisome, especially in Nigeria owing to the peculiarity of her peoples’ poor attitude to health, poor health infrastructure, poverty level and demographic crises in the face of a rapidly rising population.

But the Director-General of the Nigeria Natural Medicine Development Agency (NNMDA), Dr Samuel Etatuvie, said having diabetes should not be seen as a death sentence because it is a condition that can be managed naturally without facing the hazards of negative effects of medications. He said diabetes can be managed through herbal medicines, which are usually more affordable and contain minimal or zero harmful properties compared to orthodox drugs that, sometimes ultimately do more harm than good.

Read Also: NGO expresses concern over rising cost of managing diabetes

He spoke when NNMDA, as part of its own efforts to mark this year’s World Diabetes Day and draw attention to the public health crisis diabetes has become, held an interactive session with the media last week. He urged the general public to be rational in their use of natural medicine for the management and prevention of diabetes.

According to Dr Etatuvie, a pharmacist, the long-term damaging effect of diabetes mellitus includes dysfunction and failure of various organs, especially the eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart and blood vessels.

“The use of insulin and other orthodox conventional oral hypoglycemic agents such as sulfonylureas (glimepiride, for instance), biguanides (metformin, for example) and meglitinides (repaglinide, for instance) to manage this metabolic disorder often comes with serious adverse effects and prohibitive costs,” he said.

In a recent response to damaging adverse effects of oral hypoglycemic agents and their consequences to people’s health, the World Health Organisation expert committee on diabetes had listed, as one of its recommendations, that traditional methods of treatment for diabetes should be further investigated.

In Nigeria, the use of herbal medicine alone or in combination with orthodox drugs is quite common.

In a study in Lagos, 305 (67.3 per cent) reported herbal medicine use, among whom 108 (35.4 per cent) used herbal and conventional medicines concurrently; 206 (67.5 per cent) did not disclose use to their physician.

Other studies showed that consuming fruits and vegetables can reduce markers of oxidative stress and inflammation in patients with type 2 diabetes. There are reports that natural compounds across Nigerian medicinal plants are used in the treatment of diabetes in Nigeria.

The NNMDA boss explained that the usefulness of medicinal plants in the treatment and management of T2D and its complications, as well as male infertility, has been attributed to their phytochemical and nutritional constituents.

“These plant constituents provide anti-diabetic activities through various mechanisms. Studies show that Rauvolfia vomitoria leaf extract effect its anti-diabetic action by enhancing the regeneration of the pancreatic islets thereby increasing insulin secretion and plasma insulin level.

“This, invariably, results in the corresponding decrease in blood glucose. The therapeutic effect of Cola nitida infusion against diabetic cardiomyopathy is through the reversal of biomarkers’ activities and levels for Type 2 diabetes while maintaining an intact morphology. “Other plants with antioxidant and anti-diabetic potential are bitter leaf, Aloe vera, ginger, scent leaf, okro, utazi, iru/Dawa Dawa, cinnamon, bitter melon, milk thistle, fenugreek, guava, insulin plant, African baobab, alligator pepper, goat weed, onions, devil tree, cashew, pineapple, soursop, cabbage tree, breadfruit tree, resurrection plant, birds eye pepper, pawpaw, African star apple, lime, kola nut, among others,” he said.

In pursuance of parts of its research mandates, NNMDA said it has developed one herbal remedy from indigenous medicinal plants that possess blood sugar-lowering properties, which it said can be useful in the management of diabetes.

The NNMDA Ocimum herbal tea, with NAFDAC registration number A7-4105L, has been evaluated for safety, efficacy and blood-sugar-lowering effect using streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

While displaying the herbal tea, Dr Etatuvie said it was developed by the agency for the management of diabetes mellitus.

“It is a combination of indigenous medicinal plants that have exhibited hypoglycemic and antioxidant properties from preliminary investigations.

“It can be used as a baseline for self-regulation of diabetes. From the basic research work and safety analysis conducted on the product, it possesses some phytochemicals that are effective in reducing blood sugar level and also safe for consumption,” he said.

According to the Assistant Director at NNMDA, Mrs Esther Chimezie, diabetes often results from lack of enough physical movement, too many wrong foods, emotional stress, lack of sleep, toxins, and genetics.

She added that natural medicines and using food as medicine are a wonderful way to manage diabetes treatment, especially herbal supplements and medicines that have been proven by experts to have efficacy to cause a drop in hypoglycemia. This should be complemented with regular exercises.

Chimezie, however, warned that any diabetes management procedure should not be observed until after a diagnosis.

As the preparation for the June 18, 2022 governorship poll in Ekiti gathers steam, there is an uneasy calm in the All Progressives Congress (APC) over who succeeds Governor Kayode Fayemi. Correspondent RASAQ IBRAHIM writes on the succession battle

With seven months to the much-awaited 2022 governorship election in Ekiti State, the fierce political battle over who takes over the mantle of leadership from Governor Kayode Fayemi who will be finishing his second term in office come October 15, next year is taking proper shape.

The political tension in the state is rising steadily and the hitherto quiet political firmament is buzzing with activities. Like an annual ritual, political parties that had put their offices under lock and key immediately after the 2018 governorship poll have resumed operation in full swing in preparation for the election.

Politicians across party lines are already oiling their machinery and structures. Parties and gladiators have begun intense politicking in preparations for the primaries in the bid to ensure they go flawless and make sure strong candidate emerges as their flag bearers.

Unarguably, the election is going to be a two-horse race between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the leading opposition, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). One of the two parties would produce the next governor except the unknown happens, which is unlikely.

Barring any last-minute change in INEC timetable, the primaries of the various political parties to pick their flag bearers would in January but unfolding political happenings seem unpalatable, especially within the rank and file of the APC.

The ruling party is enmeshed in a battle of wits and grits. The opposition PDP is also not insulated from squabble. But, the crisis in the ruling APC is fast assuming a dangerous dimension, with its seething pot now spilling its contents over who flags the party’s ticket.

Before now, the party has been shredded into two groups with the governor on one side and the aggrieved leaders under the Southwest Agenda for Tinubu (SWAGA), led by the Ise-Ekiti prince, Senator Dayo Adeyeye. The group parades heavyweights like Senators Babafemi Ojudu, Anthony Adeniyi (SAN), Bimbo Daramola, Oyetunde Ojo and Adewale Omirin, among others, on the other side.

With the poll fast approaching, the intra-party wrangling has continued to take its tolls on the party’s fragile unity; thereby sending ominous signals that the party may go into the future elections as a divided house. The development, close watchers of the event in the party say, may be a serious setback for the APC in its quest to crack the age-long hard riddle of succession in the state, if not nip in the bud.

When people thought warring gladiators will sheathe their proverbial swords and embrace peace in the overall interest of the party, the conduct of congresses have further escalated the crisis within the party, owing to claims and counterclaims, allegations and counter-allegations that trailed the exercise.

At stake is the structure of the party because any group that controls the structure would determine who gets what, when and how, especially who gets the party’s ticket.

Before the congresses, the two factions had disagreed on which mode to be adopted for the intra-party election. While Governor Fayemi’s camp adopted consensus, the Adeyeye-led group preferred an open election.

The Adeyeye’s group said the consensus would not work in the state as a result of some unilateral decisions already being taken by Fayemi’s caucus, with grave democratic consequences to an all-embracing congress.

In spite of the outcries, the party adopted consensus in virtually all the 177 wards, which the SWAGA, said was contrived to prevent its members from contesting for positions, which formed the basis for the local and state congresses.

Expectedly, the two warring camps held parallel ward, local government and state congresses which produced different executives, in outright disregard to the directives of the APC National Caretaker panel, which had earlier warned that it would deal with those who hold parallel congresses.

While the governor-led camp held their state congress at the sprawling Ekiti Parapo Pavilion, along new Ado-Iyin Road in Ado-Ekiti, the Adeyeye-led group held its own at Eagle Hall, Ajilosun Area of Ado-Ekiti.

But, the Congress Committee chaired by Alhaji Yusuf Galambi debunked the claim that parallel congress took place. He said there was no other congress, except the one his committee supervised, which was that of Fayemi’s camp.

However, following the conduct of the congresses, there are signs that a fresh political storm is brewing in the APC. The two factions are back in the trenches over who flags the party’s ticket.

It was gathered that Fayemi is desirous of installing a worthy successor that would consolidate the legacies of his administration, while the Adeyeye-led group is poised to ensure that the APC candidate is nominated from their camp.

In Fayemi’s camp, those eyeing the plum position include his Chief of Staff, Biodun Omoleye, Secretary to the State Government, Biodun Oyebanji, the Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Olawale Fapohunda (SAN), Senator Gbenga Aluko, Commissioner for Public utilities, Mr Bamidele Faparusi.

Others are former Chief of Staff and House of Representative member, Yemi Adaramodu, former Speaker, Femi Bamisile, the current Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Afunminiyi Afuye, his deputy, Hakeem Jamiu among others.

For politicians in the SWAGA camp, those jostling for the exalted position are a former member of the House of Representatives, Bimbo Daramola, Senator Dayo Adeyeye, Senator Babafemi Ojudu and Dr. Wole Oluyede. The group, highly placed sources indicated, are working round the clock towards presenting a consensus candidate for the January 22, shadow poll.

For political pundits, Fayemi’s greatest achievements will be his ability to hand over to a government of continuity. And he is ready to crush anyone on his way. But, members of SWAGA have not hidden their admiration for the most coveted seat, as Adeyeye has said on several occasions that one of them will clinch the party’s ticket and succeed the governor.

Banking on the direct primary mode for choosing the party’s candidate, Adeyeye and collaborators have begun an aggressive mobilization tour of the 16 local councils to woo APC members ahead of the primary. The shadow election is going to be a titanic battle.

Read Also: Police seal entrances to APC national secretariat

However, barely two months to the primary, Governor Fayemi has been silent on his succession plan. He has not given any indication about his anointed candidate. This has polarised the once indivisible and united governor’s political family.

The governor’s deafening silence has set his allies on a collision course. The rumblings are currently taking their toll on the state executive council. There is a growing suspicion and mistrust among his cabinet. Four members of the cabinet are in the race. They are the SSG, Chief of Staff, Commissioner for Public Utility, Bamidele Faparusi, Attorney-General Olawale Fapohunda.

An impeccable source told The Nation that the development is tearing his cabinet apart, with members working at cross purposes to ensure their preferred aspirant get the APC ticket. While some members are supporting the speculated ambition of Omoleye, others are queueing behind the candidature of Oyebanji.

Although the SSG and the Chief of Staff have not officially declared their intention, a keen observation of political events has shown that they are very much interested in the exalted seat.

Until recently, all eyes were only on three cabinet members, who were believed to be the governor’s likely choice: Oyebanji, Omoleye and Fapohunda. But, the former has since lost out of the race because he has no political clout for the office and seems unpopular within the progressive fold.

Though Fayemi has kept his succession plan close to his chest, there are feelers that the governor may likely settle for his successor among his cabinet members. He was said to be considering either the SSG or the Chief of Staff as the next governor because of their loyalty.

To this end, some people came up with the permutation of a fierce battle between the SSG and the Chief of staff. And the prediction has begun to manifest with their supporters both within and outside the government holding nocturnal and strategic meetings to map out strategies on how to outdo each other.

However, indications have emerged that the political battle is assuming perilous dimensions as the supporters of the duo recently threw caution to the wind when they engaged each other in a fierce war of words on social media platforms.

It was also observed that there has been increased politicking within both camps with the supporters doling out a preponderance of sponsored publications on WhatsApp, and Facebook to market and de-market the aspiration of their preferred choice and opponents respectively.

While doing everything to position their preferred aspirants, subtle efforts are also being made to taint the image of a perceived political rival. This development, observers feared, may divert the attention of the government from the goal of governance.

A top APC chieftain and member of the cabinet told our reporter that Governor Fayemi was finding it difficult to openly anoint one of his cabinet members because he doesn’t want to make a decision that would cause disaffection in his government.

The source noted that the governor and his wife, Erelu Bisi Fayemi have discreetly picked their preferred candidate between the duo but are only waiting for the final nod of his leader and Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Niyi Adebayo because he would not want to go against his position.

The source added: “It is crystal clear that both the SSG and the Chief of staff have their eyes on the plum seat. And thus causing wrangling among us. Currently, the state executive council is polarized in the middle. The SSG is on one side and the Chief of Staff on the other side with their supporters.”

The source, who painted a gloomy picture of the succession struggle, said the cabinet that once prided itself as a united fold is now breaking up into factions because of the succession struggle. He said: “The governor is aware of the dirty fight within his cabinet for the APC ticket but he just feigned ignorance. I think it is time he nipped the political storm in the bud so that it doesn’t escalate into a deadly one that could sweep him off.”

However, over the last few days, there has been a rumour that the governor has anointed Oyebanji for the APC ticket and that he has directed other aides eyeing the coveted seat to go and collapse their structures and work for him. This caused a stir within the rank and file of the party. This compelled the governor to come out openly to douse the tension by stating that he has not endorsed anyone for the governorship ticket. He assured that the party will conduct an open and transparent primary for all aspirants.

Also, the Chief of Staff summoned an emergency meeting of all the political appointees where he clearly debunked the rumour of an anointed candidate. In a bid to douse the tension caused by the rumour, Fayemi also held a meeting with the six APC members in the House of Representatives in the Governor’s Lodge in Abuja. It was gathered the discussion centred on the rumour.

One of the lawmakers and a leading APC aspirant, Bamisile, said the essence of the parley was to hear from the governor himself on whether he has any preferred candidate or not. The party’s spokesman, Segun Dipe also said there is no crisis within the party or the cabinet over who succeeds Governor Fayemi.

Dipe said the governor has no anointed candidate but has the right like other average party members to support a particular aspirant for the forthcoming governorship poll. He added: “I don’t think the governor has anointed anybody. And I am sure this has been stated in clear terms. Governor Fayemi couldn’t have because they have not even started collecting forms. So, how could the government anointed anybody at this point?”

 

 

One person was killed and 68 others were abducted by armed bandits in Zazzaga community in Munya local government area of Niger State.

The Nation learnt that the attack, which occurred on Tuesday night, took the community unawares.

This attack was coming barely 48 hours after four businessmen were abducted by bandits in Tegina town in Rafi local government area.

According to a source in Sarkin Pawa who spoke on phone to our Reporter, the bandits went from house to house to shoot people adding that four people are currently suffering from gunshot wounds.

The source stated that a lot of people got injured while trying to escape from being abducted by the bandits.

Read Also: Police nab fake soldier, 5 others for vandalism in Niger

The Secretary of Munya local government Council, James Isaac Jagaban, confirmed that one person was killed in the attack adding that four others are on admission due to gunshot wounds.

He said that 68 people were abducted and no contact has been made by the bandits to the family regarding their release.

A community leader, Isah Munya, who spoke to The Nation lamented they no longer feel safe.

He said: “We want to know what the Federal government is doing about this. It is getting out of hand, every day, we have attacks.

“Is the Federal Government ready to declare these people terrorists because they are terrorising our communities and killing our people? Something needs to be done about it.”

Policemen and their family members fled their Division A barrack residence in Akure following attempts by commercial motorcyclists popularly known as Okada riders to attack the place.

The riders broke into the gate and threw stones into the building while policemen and their families fled through the back gate.

Some policemen scaled the fence and ran away while others struggled to take their vehicles away from the barracks.

Bonfires were set in front of the A Division as the Okada riders demanded to see the policeman who shot one of their colleague dead.

It was gathered that a driver had knocked down and killed one Okada rider and a cocoa merchant at Arakale area of Akure.

Both men died on the spot, sparking a protest by Okada riders.

Read Also: Police to arraign 12 ‘killers’ of mob-lynched cop

A policeman reportedly attached to a filling station in the area was said to have fired shots in the air to scare the protesters away but one of the shot hit and killed an Okada rider.

The policeman reportedly fled to the A Division for refuge and was pursued by the Okada riders.

One of the protesters said they want the killer policeman released to them.

“We want to see the policeman. He is inside this A Division. A government car killed two persons at Arakale area and a policeman was shooting into the air and killed another bike man. We are angry,” he stressed.

Gunshots fired by the police angered the Okada riders who hauled stones and other objects into the building.

An eyewitness said many policemen scaled the fence and ran away.

Ondo Police spokesman, DSP Fumilayo Odunlami, said she was yet to be briefed about the incident.