By Tokunbo Ogunsami

 

Chairman, Board of Governors, JEXTOBAN Secondary School, Pastor Emmanuel Adedayo Ojo, has described the introduction of Trade as a subject into the curriculum of secondary schools as a development that will  enhance employment opportunities for pupils after graduation.

Ojo, who spoke at the 25th Anniversary celebration of the school, held at its multipurpose hall at Ibafo, Ogun State, said none of the policies of the government has had any negative impact on the school; hence its various achievements since it was founded.

“Private schools are partners in progress because the government cannot do it alone. The moment we abide by the rules and regulations as laid down by the authorities, we are bound to witness peace, and progress,” Ojo said.

He gave glory to God and thanked his wife who stood by him through trying times.

”Indeed, Jesus Christ is our banner; that is the meaning of the name of the school. He has been with us. He gave the vision, I didn’t understand. Eventually, I understood He wanted us to start a school and to Him be all the glory for the success we have achieved,” he added

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He used the opportunity of  the event to present the pioneer pupil of the school, Mr. Ayodeji Oluwarotimi Awe, to guests.

Medical Director, Light Hospital, Lagos Dr Dare Akinade, who preached at the event, admonished youths to use their age rightfully.

He urged them to trust in the Lord and not lean on their own understanding so as to enjoy God’s peace and rejoice at the end of their lives.

Akinade also urged people to do the right thing and listen to God when He speaks, citing Ojo’s example as a testimony for obedience.

The pioneer Head Teacher of JEXTOBAN Secondary School, Ibafo, Aigbefor Victor, commended the giant strides recorded by the Ogun State arm of the school within five years of operation. She said besides the academic training they got at the school, pupils were also trained in sound, moral and spiritual upbringing.

By Damola Kola-Dare

 

Chairman, Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (LASUBEB), Wahab Alawiye-King, is seeking the cooperation of stakeholders in the education sector, particularly parents, teachers and pupils for the government’s EKOEXCEL project following the resumption of  public primary school pupils in the state last Monday.

The first term holiday in the state was extended by two weeks to allow teachers undergo training in the government’s EKOEXCEL programme aimed at improving teaching and learning through digitisation.

Speaking in his office, Alawiye-King stated that the government has invested in putting in place the EKOEXCEL programme, which will not only improve teaching and learning in the state, but will also go a long way in easing the two.

He was optimistic that with the intellectual and technological exposure given to the teachers at the EKOEXCEL training programme, pupils of the State Government-owned primary schools can now compete with any of their contemporaries.

“EkoExcel is a paradigm shift from the norms. It is a multifaceted, multi dimensional approach to teaching and learning in our classrooms. The introduction of technology into teaching is a total departure from the traditional way of teaching in the classroom,” Alawiye-King noted.

He advised parents to prepare their children early for school resumption, noting that absenteeism and lateness to school would not be condoned.

“The teachers should also note that absenteeism and lateness are now things of the past in the schools as the electronic devices in their hands are meant to record their resumption time, supervise the time they spend in classes and their presence in schools.

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“The last two weeks have been hectic for teachers, administrators and resource persons in the first phase of the training programme. Teachers have gone through various stages of tutelage aimed at improving their digital skills that will make their job easier.

“The state government  realised that digitisation is the way to go in its desire to improve teaching, learning and education administration.

“A fundamental element of the programme is better methodology for teachers as they will become more skilful in helping children to learn in a positive environment. For the administrators, it will improve data gathering and keeping which will give room for better record keeping and programme planning,” he said.

Alawiye-King stated further that for the EKOEXCEL programme to succeed, stakeholders in the education sector must put in  concerted efforts.

“This programme is meant for improvement in teaching and learning at the primary school level and we believe it will go a long way in improving the lives of our children hence ,we should not be found wanting in contributing our quota to the success of the programme,” he added.

 

By Segun Omolayo

 

Idioms are special properties because they are a strong element in the characteristics that define the essence, spirit and soul of a language.

They are also part of the uniqueness of any language, with their assigned meanings and usages. Any surprise, therefore, that tampering with them is forbidden? You alter them at the risk of distorting part of the soul of a whole language, violating age-long usages, confounding meanings, misleading people, and what is most painful, propagating and perpetuating errors, which in time attain undue orthodoxy, relegating the truth into “clumsy truth” (apology to Brian Browne, one of The Nation newspaper’s columnists – my private tutors them all!). We must continue to shrink the ballooning tribe of error perpetuators. So, the conversation on idioms continues.

All manner of

Handling simple-looking idioms like this demands extra care, so as not to damage anything inadvertently but ignorantly. The reason is, these are idioms where removing a letter or transposing any element can change the nature and meaning as well as the application of the expression in question. Such extra care has apparently not been taken in constructing the sentence below:

Many a columnist lives to echo the cynicism and intolerable disloyalty of all manners of readership.

The problem here is about adding one letter to the word in the genuine idiom, namely: all manner of. In other words, it is incorrect to say all manners of anything. All manners of is unacceptable, because it is corrupted.

“Pop” Errors adds: ‘The difference between right (all manner of) and wrong (all manners of) is so flimsy that we just must learn the idiom by heart. The full idiom is: all manner of somebody or something, meaning “many different types of people or things.”‘ For clarity, we must display the correction, viz:

Many a columnist lives to echo the cynicism and intolerable disloyalty of all manner of readership.

Birds of a feather

Perhaps the most significant puzzle about this idiom, like almost all others, is that they are too familiar, yet so often taken for granted and abused. Concerning birds of a feather specifically, this columnist has corrected the incorrect use in tens and tens of texts he has edited, but his curiosity is that the affected writers have kept coming back with the corrections unheeded.

Apparently, such matters do not matter to them, and they therefore learn nothing from the interventions, even as they are always happy with the refinement lent their work. We will therefore continue to highlight and discuss these matters taken for granted so often, in the hope that someone will heed our preachments someday and avoid mistakes such as in:

His long tenure I often confused with the 40-year dictatorship of the late Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, but they are birds of the same feather in terms of despotism and disgraceful exit.

The error here is birds of the same feather, which is a twisted version of birds of a feather, the correct form of the idiom. Used to refer to “people who are similar in character,” the statement should run thus:

His long tenure I often confused with the 40-year dictatorship of the late Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, but they are birds of a feather in terms of despotism and disgraceful exit.

Even if the correct version sounds clumsy to you, kindly note that it is the acceptable form. And remember, students and all else are expected to use idioms in their correct forms, no matter how clumsy-sounding.

So, be mindful that a student preparing for exams might read you just before admittance into the hall, and viola, there is what he has just learnt from you staring him in the face in his question paper. He will thank you, if what he got from you helps him pass, but regret reading you if you help him fail.

Cog in the machine/wheel

You must have encountered statements like “He is a cog in the wheel of progress” and “His party is the cog in the wheel of the development of the country.” The use of cog in these is as wrong and misleading as in the following sentence:

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When they were alive, the ambitions of the likes of Awolowo and Azikiwe were considerable cogs that made any talk of cooperation between the political parties they led little more than a pipe dream.

Our writers’ companion, “Pop” Errors, will lend us its discussion of the problem posed by the wrong use of cog in the above statement. It says:

‘The use of cogs to denote obstacle in this statement is obviously an adaptation of the English idiom a cog in the machine/wheel. But it is a spectacular misuse of the idiom, and this is not peculiar to any particular writer; yet, the idiom has nothing to do with obstacles.

The Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms explains the meaning as follows: “One part of a large system or organization,” and it goes on to give examples of correct usage, namely: “He was just a small cog in the wheel of organized crime;

This warehouse is an important cog in our distribution machine” Similarly, the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines the idiom as “A person who is a small part of a large organization.” So, let the writer just call Awolowo and Azikiwe impediments, not cogs, in that context.’

 

Moses Emorinken, Abuja

 

The German government has commended Nigeria’s efforts in the eradication of polio, having achieved the milestone of reaching three years without reporting any case of wild poliovirus.

Germany has been a long term supporter of the Polio Eradication Program in Nigeria, providing tremendous and longstanding financial support over the years with grants to fill critical funding gaps for vaccines and campaign operations across the country.

The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib, traced the historical financial partnership with Germany on Polio Eradication to over 10 years ago.

Addressing the German Ambassador, Her Excellency Mrs. Brigitt Ory, and the Members of Parliament, during their visit to a Family Health Clinic in Garki, Abuja to observe a vaccination session and surveillance documentation, Dr. Shuaib revealed that Nigeria has over the years, received millions of Euros from Germany as grants for Polio Eradication Initiative.

Represented by the Incident Manager of the National Polio Emergency Operations Center, Dr Usman Adamu, he said, “These funds, which came in at different times were used to purchase vaccines and finance operations of special immunization campaigns.

“Just recently, in December 2019, the German Government released 26.8 Million Euros (€ 26,800,000) channeled through the World Health Organization and UNICEF to the Nigerian government to support polio operations and procure vaccines”.

In his remarks, the Officer-in-Charge (OiC), World Health Organization (WHO), Dr Clement Peter stated, “Since the detection of the wild poliovirus three years ago, Nigerian Government with support from Government of Germany and other partners implemented various innovations during outbreak response (OBR) and scheduled polio campaigns to halt transmission of the virus. Surveillance has been strengthened and technological innovations such as e-Surveillance and use of audiovisual techniques for AFP detection and expansion of community informant network helped to further increase sensitivity of surveillance to detect any suspect cases.

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“In spite of this progress, the current success in Nigeria is still very fragile as insecurity, which hinders access to some children, and suboptimal routine immunization coverage across several states, pose a threat to sustaining recent gains. 47 per cent of children nationally have not received their third dose of polio vaccine, whilst 19 per cent of children in Nigeria have not received any vaccination at all”.

He then called on non GPEI partners and donors such as Germany to sustain their technical and financial support to the programme until the job is done (global certification of WPV1-free status, certification of vaccine-derived polio virus (VDPV) free status).

Speaking on behalf of the Government of Germany, a Member of Parliament who is also part of the budget committee acknowledged the achievements of NPHCDA, WHO, and UNICEF in Polio Eradication and the positive impact they have made in the journey.

The representative said, “We are happy to be on ground to see how our money is being spent, despite a lot of bad stories that have been circulating about Nigeria, it is a job well done. It is very heartwarming to come and see these positive achievements and we look forward to celebrating a certified Polio free Nigeria with you all in June 2020”.

The last wild polio virus case was detected in August 2016, in Monguno Local Government (LGA) of Borno State. As we approach certification in 2020, the WHO assured that it remains committed and vigilant in its support to immunization and surveillance efforts, in ensuring that every child is reached with vaccines.

IRAN will review its cooperation with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog should it face “unjust” measures, Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has said.

He spoke after European Union (EU) powers last week triggered a dispute mechanism under Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal.

The move by France, Britain and Germany amounts to formally accusing Iran of violating the terms of the deal and could lead eventually to reimposing UN sanctions that were lifted under the pact.

“We state openly that if the European powers, for any reason, adopt an unfair approach in using the dispute mechanism, we will seriously reconsider our cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency,” state TV quoted Larijani as saying.

But the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated their commitment yesterday to the Iran nuclear deal and agreed a long-term framework was needed, Downing Street has said.

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“On Iran, the leaders reiterated their commitment to the JCPoA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) and also acknowledged the need to define a long-term framework to prevent Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon,” a Downing Street spokeswoman said in a statement after the two met on the sidelines of a Libya summit in Berlin.

“They agreed on the importance of de-escalation and of working with international partners to find a diplomatic way through the current tensions.”

Tehran has continued to gradually roll back its nuclear commitments under the pact in reaction to sanctions reimposed by Washington since the U.S. quit the nuclear deal in 2018.

Tehran said last week it would abandon limits on enriching uranium, though it would continue to cooperate with the U.N. nuclear watchdog (IAEA), which is policing the nuclear pact.

President Hassan Rouhani, architect of the nuclear deal, has repeatedly said that Tehran’s nuclear steps were reversible if Tehran’s economy was shielded by other parties to the deal from U.S. penalties.

An Ophthalmologist, Dr Adeniyi Irefin, says diabetes increases risk of eye diseases like cataracts, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, which can lead to blindness, if care is not taken.

Irefin, who works with SeeWell Ophthalmic Eye Clinic, Ibadan, said this while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Ibadan, Oyo State.

He said: “Visual impairment among diabetic patient is a major public health problem that needs to be addressed.

“Diabetic eye disease is a group of eye problems that can affect people with diabetes. These conditions include diabetic retinopathy, cataracts and glaucoma

“Cataract is the most common reversible cause of vision impairment in people with diabetes, while diabetic retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness.

“Diabetic retinopathy occurs when high blood sugar levels cause damage to blood vessels in the retina.

“These blood vessels can swell and leak, or they can close, stopping blood from passing through. Sometimes abnormal new blood vessels grow on the retina,” he said.

The ophthalmologist identified some of the causes of diabetic eye diseases to include poor blood sugar control, having high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels and smoking.

“High blood sugar can lead to problems like blurry vision, cataracts, glaucoma and retinopathy.

“If the blood glucose stays high over time, it can damage the tiny blood vessels in the back of the eyes.

“Damaged blood vessels may leak fluid and cause swelling, and these vessels can bleed into the middle part of the eye, lead to scarring or cause dangerously high pressure inside the eye.

“Most serious diabetic eye diseases begin with blood vessel problems,” he said.

Irefin said that some symptoms of diabetic eye disease might include blurry vision and poor colour vision.

“Most times, there are no early symptoms of diabetic eye disease.

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“You may have no pain and no change in your vision, as damage begins to grow inside your eyes, particularly with diabetic retinopathy.

“However, some of those symptoms that may show are dark areas, poor colour vision, spots, which are called floaters, and flashes of light.

“The symptoms may not show until it is too late; this is why we place emphasis on regular eye screening by qualified professionals,” he said.

According to him, loss of vision and blindness in diabetic patients is preventable with routine eye screening and effective management of the underlying diabetes.

“Diabetes can cause damage to the eyes which can lead to poor vision or even blindness.

“But with proper management of diabetes, steps can be taken to prevent diabetic eye diseases.

“In addition to making good lifestyle choices to manage diabetes, it is important to see an eye care professional once a year for a complete eye examination,” he said.

(NAN)

Dr Chuka Agunwa of University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, has stressed the importance of Ante Natal Care (ANC) to pregnant women, saying “it is during ANC clinics that perceived dangers during pregnancy will be detected.”

He made this known in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

He defined ANC as a systematic care given to women during pregnancy to monitor the progress of foetal growth and ascertain the well-being of the mother and the foetus.

Agunwa, a Consultant Public Health Physician, said “ANC is a checkup on pregnant women at intervals to ascertain the health of the unborn child and the mother.”

He urged pregnant women to endeavour to go for antenatal, noted that it was during ANC clinics that doctors, after proper examination and investigation, would be able to identify complications such as anaemia pre-eclampsia and hypertension in such pregnant women.

He explained that “ANC allows timely management of complications through referral to appropriate facilities for further treatment.

“It also provides opportunity to prepare birth plan and to identify facility for delivery incase of complications.”

He said that the service was highly beneficial to both the mother and the unborn child and promotes maternal and newborn health by reducing the risks faced by women during pregnancy and child birth.

He added that pregnant women who go for antenatal were given iron/folate supplements to prevent anaemia, tetanus toxoid immunisation to prevent maternal and neonatal tetanus and encouraged to sleep under Insecticide-Treated Nets (ITNs).

He noted that such care was to prevent complications and for safe delivery.

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Dr Emeihe Ebube, who works at Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, also told NAN that
“the overall purpose of ANC is to optimise the outcome of pregnancy for the mother, her child and the rest of the family.”

He explained that “parental care, also known as focused ANC, is a type of preventive healthcare with the goal of providing regular check-ups.”

Ebube said the check-up would allow doctors or midwives to treat and prevent potential problems throughout the pregnancy, while promoting healthy lifestyle that benefit both mother and child.

“Focused ANC would prevent, detect and manage those factors that adversely affect the health of mother and baby and provide advice, reassurance, education and support for the woman and her family.

“Fathers can also contribute to focused ANC by providing financial support; help the woman to make a birth plan, accompany her to the health facility during ANC and during childbirth,” he stressed.

(NAN)

Help prevent cancer

Carrots contain numerous phytochemicals that are well-studied for their anticancer properties. A few of these compounds include beta-carotene and other carotenoids. These compounds promote immunity and activate certain proteins that inhibit cancer cells. Studies show that the juice from carrots can combat leukemia as well.Carrots are also found to lower oral cancer risk.

Promote eye health

Vitamin A in recommended quantities is essential for good vision, and carrots offer the nutrient in abundance. If a person is deprived of vitamin A for too long, the outer segments of the eyes’ photoreceptors begin to deteriorate. This disrupts the normal chemical processes involved in vision. Restoring your vitamin A intake can facilitate restoration of your vision.

Might enhance hair growth

Carrots are powerhouses of vitamins A and C, carotenoids, potassium, and other antioxidants – all of which contribute to hair health. There is limited research on this, though.

Promote skin health

Carrots are rich in carotenoids. Research suggests that fruits and vegetables rich in these compounds can improve complexion and one’s overall appearance. They achieve this by giving your skin a healthy glow. Be mindful, though – overconsuming carrots ((or other foods high in carotenoids) can result in a condition called carotenosis, wherein your skin appears yellow or orange.

Regulate blood pressure

A recent study claimed that carrot juice contributed to a 5% reduction in systolic blood pressure. The nutrients present in carrot juice, including fiber, potassium, nitrates, and vitamin C – are found to aid this effect.

Aid diabetes treatment

Following a healthy, balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. Studies show that high blood levels of vitamin A may lower the risk of type 2 diabetes. Carrots, being abundant in this nutrient, make for an ideal addition to a diabetic meal.

Boost immunity

Vitamin A regulates the functioning of your system and prevents infections. It achieves this by boosting your body’s immunity. Get this immune-boosting vitamin from carrots. Carrots also contain vitamin C. This nutrient further contributes to strengthening the immune system.

Strengthen bones

Vitamin A influences bone cell metabolism. The beta-carotene in carrots is a strong antioxidant that is associated with bone health.

May aid weight loss

Raw, fresh carrots are about 88% water. A medium carrot has only about 25 calories. Hence, including carrots in your diet is a smart way of fill yourself up without piling on calories.

Carrots also contain fiber. A study showed that meals containing whole and blended carrots resulted in higher satiety levels in the test subjects.

Lower cholesterol levels

Carrot consumption reduces cholesterol absorption and increases the antioxidant status of your body. These effects can also promote cardiovascular health. Raw carrots are also rich in a fiber called pectin that helps lower cholesterol.

Are good for the teeth and gums

Crisp and raw carrots help clear plaque from the teeth and freshen your breath. The fibrous carrots also increase salivation, which can neutralize the citric and malic acids usually left behind in your mouth.

Promote liver health and eliminate toxins

Carrots contain glutathione, a supermolecule that helps detoxify the liver. The veggies are also high in plant flavonoids and beta-carotene, both of which stimulate and support your overall liver function. The vitamin A in carrots also combats liver diseases.

Source: stylecraze.com