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Tag: 400

  • Foundation lifts 400 with medicare

    Foundation lifts 400 with medicare

    Over 400 people, including women and children, yesterday received free medical services by Nneka Chidoka Outreach Programme in Onitsha, Anambra State.

    The free screening and treatment included cervical and breast cancer, prostate cryotherapy, surgical interventions on four hernia patients, ultrasonography, mammography, x-ray of the spin, among other treatments.

    The outreach was the third in a series of medical outreach programes after the foundation was launched by former Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka, on behalf of the family, in May, in honour of his late mother, Mrs. Nneka Chidoka.

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    While 275 women received free breast and cervical cancer screening, 85 men received free prostate cancer screening, while 186 others received free eye glasses and drugs worth millions of naira.

    Speaking during the outreach, Head of the medical team, Dr. Chinonso Nwosu, said the exercise was targeted at extending quality medicare to the society and raising awareness about the deadly scourge of cancer.

    “The aim of the medical outreach is to extend quality medical care to the society at large and raise awareness and consciousness of the deadly scourge of cancer, which can be effectively managed by early detection,” he said.

    One of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Chika Okolo, diagnosed with cervical and breast cancer during previous medical outreach organised by the foundation, said she was receiving treatment on behalf of the foundation.

    She thanked the benefactor for the gesture, praying God to bless him.

  • FG receives 400,000 alerts from whistle blowers

    FG receives 400,000 alerts from whistle blowers

    The Federal Government is in receipt of no fewer than 400,000 telephone short messages   from whistleblowers on looted funds, Information and Culture Minister, Lai Mohammed, said yesterday.

    Mohammed told The Nation on Saturday that contrary to speculations that the Whistleblowers Policy might be on the wane, it is thriving quietly and the “discreet but vigorous support from Nigerians” can ensure eventual return of more billions of looted funds.

    He said  Federal Government’s optimism rests on Nigerians’ massive embrace of the policy.

    A web portal, http://whistle.finance.gov.ng,    has been launched by the Whistleblower Unit (WBU), a multi-agency team, resident in Federal Ministry of Finance Headquarters for the recording of information on  violation of financial regulations, mismanagement of public funds and assets, financial malpractice or fraud and theft that is deemed to be in the interest of the public.

    Giving a breakdown of citizens’ preferred means of communicating tips on the existence of looted funds, Alhaji Mohammed advised more Nigerians   to “take advantage of the Federal Government’s Whistleblower Policy even though it is clear that people’s interest is being sustained.

    ”As of 21st September this year, we had received a number of communication totaling 2940 and this includes enquiries , tips, compliments and general advice from the public.

    ”We have received, through our Whistleblower website, 208 enquiries , and 1580 telephone calls.

    Government, he added, has recently received 35 classified tips and another set of 546 unclassified ones.

    ”We have received 79 tips through telephone calls;  413, 213 through  SMS and 145 through our websites.

    ”Through e-mails, we received 109,” he said.

    Alhaji  Mohammed also said that after distillation processes by various finance, security, legal and law enforcement teams indicate that of all the tips received and reviewed, 321 are poised to yield results.

    ”From all the tips received and reviewed, only 321 have been deemed to be actionable. These are tips that can be worked upon for further action,” he stated.

    However, he said that he could not give specific information on any amount involved and payments made to whistleblowers thus far.

    Mohammed said in February that the policy had yielded $151million and  N8billion in looted funds.

    He said at that time that the looted funds were recovered via the clues provided by three whistleblowers who gave actionable information to the office of the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation.

    The biggest amount of $136,676,600.51 was recovered from an account in a commercial bank, where the money was kept under an apparently fake account name.

    This was followed by the recovery of N7 billion and $15 million from another person and 1 billion Naira from yet another.

    This is besides the $9.2 million in cash traced to a former Group Managing Director of the NNPC. In all,over $160million had been recovered in  February.

    Later in June,the Federal Ministry of Finance said it had paid  N375.8 million to 20 providers of information under the Whistleblower Policy.

    The  payment, according to the ministry ,was in respect of  recovered assets that had been declared free of legal disputes or litigation by the Attorney-General of the Federation.

    ”This payment, which is the first under the Whistleblower Policy, underscores the commitment of the President Muhmmadu Buhari-led administration in meeting obligations to information providers under the Whistleblower Policy,” the ministry said in a statement.

    The  Whistleblower Policy was recently amended to include the introduction of a formal legal agreement between information providers and the Federal Government.

    The amendment is aimed at ensuring  the protection of the identity of information providers during the payment process.

    The Whistleblower Unit (WBU) is the first line of response to whistleblower information, where initial review is undertaken before cases are forwarded to the relevant investigative agencies.

  • 400 for free surgery

    About 400 residents of Alimosho constituency will undego free surgical operations to treat Hernia, Lumpectomy, Ganglion, Keloids among others plaguing them.

    The surgical operation is courtesy of a-5day Free Health Mission by the Prince of Hope Turns To Reality Foundation, an initiative of Prince Bisi Yusuf, representative of Alimosho 1 constituency at the Lagos State House of Assembly.

    Yusuff spoke to newsmen at the opening ceremony of the five days event at the Ipaja mini stadium.

    The lawmaker said he initiated the medical mission which is a yearly event to take care of health issues confronting his constituents.

    Dr Oladokun Samson Alaba, a Surgeon and Medical Director of Okiki Hospital in Alimosho is leading over 30 surgeons including five from the United States (US) and other supportive medical staff for the event.

    Yusuff, who expressed happiness with the massive turn-out of people at the opening of the programme, said not less than 400 residents will undergo surgical operations during the five-day event.

    The lawmaker said God has been very kind to him and that it was time for him to help the people.

    “I should also be very kind to the people around me. I have to reciprocate their love, which they displayed to me by voting me into power

    “That is what I am doing. This is the only way I can be counted amongst those who add value to human lives. It is not healthcare alone, I understand what education means. I uplift the educational standard of our people every year.

    “Some people have been living with a particular illness for years. God has given me good health and I have to reciprocate that.”

    Dr Alaba said 10 surgeons were already on ground and that more were still being expected.

    He said: “We are not going to attack dangerous cases such as goitre and major surgeries. We deal with keloid, hernia, lumpectomy, ganglion and others.

    “We are ready to deal with many sicknesses, but the patients must follow instructions. It is a volunteer kind of job, we are doing it to support Mr Bisi Yusuf and his foundation to help the less privileged,” he said.

  • 400 benefit from free surgery in Ogun

    No fewer than 400 people have benefitted from the ongoing free medical surgery jointly organised by the Ogun State government and Rotary International, especially Rotary International District 9110 Nigeria.

    The surgery, which covers health issues such as hernia, glaucoma, breast biopsy, burn excision, debridement and many others, was supported by Rotary International 3020 India, and Rotary International 3610 South Korea.

    The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye stated this while inaugurating the event at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu Ogun State. He added that the philosophy was to reduce the overhead cost associated with the large charities by providing volunteers with the chance to be part owner of the organisation.

    He explained that the event aimed at giving succour to indigent citizens that could not afford the costs of the operation or travel abroad for such surgical operation, adding that the Governor has given them the mandate to work with local and international partners in making life better for the masses.

    Ipaye said: “Such surgery usually costs so much and most of our people, especially those living in rural areas and the aged, might not be able to afford the cost.”

    He said the medical tourism was a global phenomenon and there are some reasons for people going abroad for medical check-ups, some would not get well until they go abroad for treatment while some who do not have the means die untimely. He urged the Federal Government to do more to enhance the health sector in order to reduce medical tourism abroad.

    “About 400 people will benefit from this free medical treatment. We are calling on the government to pay priority attention on the health sector so as to reduce capital flight in terms of people who travel abroad for medical treatment,” Ipaye said.

    The Elepe of Epe and President Remo Traditional Council, Alayeluwa Oba Adewale Osinderu, said the programme was unprecedented as the people had wanted to experience the programme in the state. He appreciated the state for the giant strides recorded during the programme.

    “Don’t you know how much it costs travelling abroad for medical check-ups? At least 400 people would benefit from the surgical mission. We thank the state government and the Rotary International for deeming it fit to help the people with the people-oriented programme”, Elepe said.

    Earlier in his speech, the High Commission of India in Nigeria, Mr. Jagdeep Kapoor said the free surgical mission was to be done with seven Indian medical doctors for free, saying that they chose the state because of the Rotary International Nigeria preference of the state to others.

    He praised the state government, Rotary International Nigeria and the patients for their hospitality and steadfastness, noting that those on exceptional cases would not be attended to but referred to the hospital because the programme was slated for only eight days.

    Among the beneficiaries were those with cataract, gynaecological diseases such as uterine prolapse, hernia, glaucoma, ovarian cyst, breast biopsy, burn excision/debridement, dental restoration, gastric bypass, caesarean section and those that have breast mass, among other ailments.

  • APC chieftain empowers 400 in Ibadan

    APC chieftain empowers 400 in Ibadan

    chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State, Mr Deji Aboderin, last week empowered 400 men and women in Ibadan South East Local Government of the state.

    Aboderin, who decamped from Accord to the APC last year, distributed items such as grinding machines, sewing machines, generators, hair driers, freezers and hair clippers, among others to the needy across the local government. He was an aspirant to the House of Representatives for the Ibadan South East/North East Constituency before decamping to the APC.

    He said the empowerment had become a regular exercise for him because he was born into a family of givers.

    “In my family, we are givers. I inherited this from my parents, uncles and others whom I grew up to know as givers, empowering the poor. So, it is in my blood. I believe that these little things will help the beneficiaries.

    “Again, Governor Abiola Ajimobi has done a lot of empowerment projects. So I moved over to a family of like minds.”

    The beneficiaries, who were mostly women and artisans, expressed gratitude to Aboderin for the gesture and promised to utilize the items to improve their well-being.

    One of them, Mrs Rasheedat Adetunji, who is a hair dresser, said: “I appreciate that Mr Aboderin is helping and empowering people. If beneficiaries work hard to multiply the items, I believe we will earn a better living. Some people have completed their apprenticeship but cannot afford to buy equipment to start up. There is no doubt that this will reduce poverty among us. It will boost our business.”

    At the empowerment programme were party leaders in the local government including the Chairman, Chief Kayode Arowolo, Alhaji. Mufutau Adisa, Mrs Abigail Olufunlola and Alhaji. Yunus Adeogun.

     

  • 400,000 rice farmers to benefits from FG’s dry season incentives

    The Federal Government says 400, 000 rice farmer will benefit from its dry season farming incentives under its 2013/2014 Growth Enhancement Support Scheme.

    Dr Andrew Efisue, Technical Adviser to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) on Rice Value Chain Agenda, announced the incentives when he met with stakeholders in Bauchi on Friday.

    Efisue said the beneficiaries would be drawn from the 19 participating states, adding that the farmers would be supported with inputs to help boost their production capacity.

    He said each farmer would receive three bags of fertiliser at 50 per cent discount and 25 kg improve rice seeds for free.

    “The farmers will also get water pumps at 75 per cent discount. Those in Bauchi and Gombe States, in particular, will receive 80 (3HP) water pumps each.

    “The pumps will serve 13,000 farmers whose data have been captured in the states.

    “Thirteen (7HP) water pumps will also be distributed to farmers in Bauchi, while those in Gombe will get 12 (7HP) water pumps.

    “This effort produced more than one million tonnes of rice last year in dry season farming alone, with just over 200,000 farmers drawn from 10 states.