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  • Cancer: Six cancer centres to take off soon, says Alausa

    Cancer: Six cancer centres to take off soon, says Alausa

    Achieving a comprehensive and accessible treatment for cancer in Nigeria may remain elusive until the Federal government ensures complete intervention with the full support of the private sector. 

    The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare Tunji Alausa has however assured that the Federal government is taking proactive action to address the issue.

    This came after the Director General (DG) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA), Ya’u Usman Idris, portrayed a bleak scenario regarding the nation’s inadequate readiness to address the cancer epidemic.

    Alausa and Idris spoke at the World Cancer Day Symposium organized by Project Pink Blue in Abuja on Monday as part of activities marking this year’s World Cancer Day.

    Alausa explained that the N20 billion budget allocated for six cancer centres nationwide during the last administration’s tenure could not be accessed due to procurement challenges. 

    He said by the time the hurdles were resolved under the current administration, the prevailing economic conditions had adversely impacted the implementation.

    He said: “So there is no way we could use the N20b to build the six cancer centres. So we have to make presentations to the National Assembly for additional budget allocation so that we can have enough funding to build the cancer centres. 

    “I’m happy to report today that we’ve got the additional funding and the groundbreaking six cancer centres will happen very soon”.

    He also said Nigeria is taking other steps to address the burden of cancer in the country which include among others,  the introduction of the Human papillomavirus vaccine into the the country’s routine immunization targeting about 7.7 million teenage girls at no cost to them against cervical cancer. 

    Alausa’s submission came as the DG of NNRA,  Idris lamented the dearth of capacity to deal with cancer treatment in Nigeria.

    In his earlier remarks as a panellist, Idris expressed his concern that insufficient capacity is a major obstacle to cancer treatment in the country while highlighting the deficiency of critical equipment and emphasized that contributions from both the public and private sectors were significantly insufficient.

    As a regulatory authority overseeing the use of cancer equipment and various aspects of cancer treatment, he stated that Nigeria has a considerable journey ahead.

    He said: “Really, we have serious problems,  there’s nothing to celebrate today but to lament 
    Looking at the case of Nigeria,  we have only 14 radiotherapy centres in the country, and nine belong to the government, five of them belong to private and only six of them are licensed by the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency which means the others are not safe.

    “In terms of equipment,  Nigeria has only seven Linacs (Linear accelerators), for a population of 200 million people.

    “South Africa has 92, Egypt has 76, if you compare those two countries with Nigeria, even the ones we have are not functioning, because today they are functioning, tomorrow they are down.

    “If you go to the Nuclear Medicine,  we have only two  Nuclear Medicine centres that have gamma cameras and both of them are down at the National Hospital, Abuja and University College Hospital, Ibadan.

    “Now, virtually there’s no gamma camera that is working in Nigeria whereas a country like Tunisia with a population of twenty-something million has about 14 of them working. 

    “We have only one Positron Emissing Tomograph Computed Tomography (PET-CT) and it’s private. 
    “How much does it cost to put a which with N1b can be procured, Nigeria doesn’t have the money to procure even one but a private hospital did.

    “It is our duty to check the state and status of the equipment, the operations,  the services rendered by the facility, status of the personnel.

    “We also have to ensure the quality of the personnel and we find out that most of the hospitals don’t even have qualified personnel with no correct equipment among other defects but then it is our agency they will accuse of not giving license.

    Read Also: FG working to make health sector driver of economy – Alausa

    “So how do we treat cancer with this kind of equipment with 200 million people? It is not possible. 

    “We have a situation in the country, we have gazetted regulations and procedures including licensed experts on how to go about it, yet we are not doing it”.

    He however assured that the agency has been given a new lease of life since the assumption of office by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    “I Would like to say that for the first time, a  Minister of the Federal Republic has directed us that any facility that refused to comply with the NNRA regulations we should close down.

    “We have the blanket approval of the Minister of State for Health to do that before they used to take us to the Minister and complain that our conditions are too stringent and the Minister will say don’t close any hospital or else you will see what will happen to you but here we have a Minister telling us to close any hospital that is non-compliant”.

  • FG working to make health sector driver of economy – Alausa

    FG working to make health sector driver of economy – Alausa

    The Minister of State for Health, Tunji Alausa, on Thursday, February 1, said the federal government is working to move the healthcare sector from a consuming part of the economy to one of the drivers of the economy as it is obtained in many advanced countries of the world.

    He made this known while on a working visit to the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.

    He said what President Bola Tinubu’s administration is working on is to ensure that the country’s healthcare care is at par with its counterparts in developed countries where the healthcare sector is a driver of the economy and not a consuming part.

    The minister cited the example of the United States where the health sector contributes about 24 percent to the country’s GDP which translates to about $ 3.3 trillion annually.

    He said: “We have a government being led by President Tinubu who is extremely passionate about healthcare, and not just healthcare alone, but passionate about taking our country to where it’s supposed to be among the comity of nations and we are more fortune that the attention he has given to the health sector hasn’t been given by any administration in the past.

    “More so, the world is changing, we need to move healthcare beyond a consuming part of our economy to one of the drivers of our economy. You go to other advanced democracies in the world, the US for instance, healthcare contribute about 24per cent of their GDP which translates to about $3.3trillion spent annually.

    “So the way we are going to move our healthcare forward would be in that direction where we would give our people opportunities and you see we have started and we have our four pillars.”

    He listed the four pillars to achieving the feat to include: governance, improving population outcome, value chain and security.

    “The first thing is governance. We’ve done a lot to start improving governance. Governance entails a lot of things like holding ourselves accountable and giving the citizens of Nigeria the care they deserve, the respect they deserve as we care for them.

    “The second part of our agenda is improving our population outcome, and how do we do that, we have to strengthen our healthcare infrastructure, equipping hospitals, and providing the needed manpower.

    “The third part of our pillar is unlocking our healthcare value chain. Moving our healthcare sector to provide durable, good, and sustainable services to attain transformation where we can begin to live a normal and respectable life.

    “The fourth pillar, of course, we have to look beyond healthcare just providing physical security, we have to ensure it provides social security and national security”, he added.

    The Minister also harped on the need to improve training as a way of addressing the dearth of human resources in the sector saying “UCH has done a lot in training and I look at the training programme that are here but we now have to start training not for now but into the future to meet our needs. Today, a lot of things have changed, the kinds of diseases that we have now were not in existence forty years ago.

    “You will be so surprised if we take the census of the numbers of cardiologists that we have in Ibadan today, they are not up to ten but as a training institution, we must train excellent cardiologists. We need to erect a proper training structure that will produce specialized people in these new medical conditions that we are having now. We need to now begin to make super specialists in our country to meet the needs of our time.

    “In regards to the tutor programme, we have about five Al over the country but then the nursing council decided that these schools should be turned into a degree awarding college. Ibadan nursing tutor programme did the right thing by doing what they were supposed to do.

    “The others would be closed down because they don’t meet the standard anymore and the people in their wisdom that founded those tutor programmes did so because we had a shortage of nurse tutors and that’s why they found those programmes but into the future now, the nursing and midwifery council has redesigned their curriculum the way the training is being done, we now have enough nurse tutors across the nation, so there’s no need for keeping those schools but I want to commend those in Ibadan for following the new requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Council and for doing what needed to be done on time.

    “Also on the human resources for health, we want to have more people engaged in our health sector. We have a lot of young people in the country that we must give opportunity for them to work. One of the ways to do this is to increase the acceptance percentage of these schools.

    “The acceptance percentage of UCH School of Nursing is very low compared to schools like Harvard which is among the best in the world. So we have to increase production. We also need more structures and equipment, and we will be working with other agencies of government to come up with how we can mobilize funds for that.”

    While commending the Chief Medical Director of the UCH, Prof Jesse Otegbayo, and the members of the management board for the job they are doing, the Minister said the issue of power, and water provision among other infrastructural needs and amenities will see him engage the required authorities for solution urging the management not to however rule out the possibility of homegrown alternative solutions, especially in addressing the power challenge.

    Read Also: Toyin Alausa: Why I love playing the role of protagonist

    “With regards to your request for power, we will speak to the minister of power on whatever solution we can come up with to solve the power problems. But we had to also look into the future, there are some generators now that are using CNG, I will suggest the hospital look into that, and we can also look into polarisation.

    “We now have solars that can power the whole hospital, so I think we should look into that and as we begin to mobilize more funding into healthcare, you have to begin to do your homework well, do your energy survey, trust me the President is so committed to the healthcare sector.

    “On the water problem, I saw the memo you sent and I have been talking to the minister of water resources on the dredging you made mention of and I’m sure we will be able to do something about that”, he added.

  • One Love Family Fest: Promasidor holds Mini Marathon for Children

    Promasidor Nigeria Limited recently had a mini marathon for children from 50 schools in Lagos in commemoration of this year’s Children’s Day. The mini marathon kicked off at the Ndubuisi Kanu Park, Alausa, where the children ran through the Lagos State House of Assembly complex to terminate at the park.

    It was part of the celebration for children at the event tagged Promasidor One Love Family Fest.

    The first category was for children between the ages of 5-8years old, who ran in the 1.5 kilometres race while the second was for those within 9-12years old who partook in the 3.4 kilometres race. The third category was for children between 13-15 years old who participated in the 4.4kilometres race.

    The maiden edition of the One Love Family Fest by Promasidor, makers of Cowbell Milk, Loya Milk, Miksi Milk, Top Tea, Onga, and Sunvita Cereal was endorsed by the Lagos State Sports Commission, whose officials were present to conduct the mini marathon.

    It was an enjoyable event for the children, and they expressed delight for being exposed to a mini-marathon at their early stage, a situation that would spur interest in sports in future. Gifts such as school bags, writing materials and products were given as reward to winners, both in the boys and girls category.

    Read Also: Wema marks Children’s Day with kiddies contest

    Elated for being the overall winner in the 4.4 kilometres race, Sulaiman David, a student of Wonder Gate College, Agbado, said the marathon was fun for him. “I am pleased that Promasidor has put this together for us to experience what a mini marathon is all about,” he stated.

    David Chukwudi, a student of Morality College, Egbeda, could not hide his feelings as he lifted his gifts in excitement saying, Promasidor has done well for children. “I am happy for being given these gifts,” he said.

    While presenting the medals to the winners, the Marketing Manager, Promasidor Nigeria Limted, Mr. Abiodun Ayodeji said it was part of the company’s effort in celebrating children as it is a household of brands that caters for the needs of the family.

  • Protest rocks Alausa over Supreme Court judgment on Agidingbi

    Community leaders and residents of Agidingbi area of Ikeja yesterday embarked on a peaceful protest against the judgment of the Supreme Court, which awarded ownership of 398 acres of property in the community to a traditional land-owning family, Akinole-Oshiun.

    The possession order is said to cover a large section of the Lateef Jakande Road, Acme Road, Fagba Close and other streets around the area, totalling over 2000 buildings.

    The protesters, who marched from Agidingbi to the House of Assembly in Alausa, said the Akinole-Oshiun family, which is the judgment-creditor in the case, had already given them seven days ultimatum to vacate their houses.

    The demonstrators urged the government to  intervene to avert bloodshed.

    They carried placards which read:  “There is no ancestral link between Akinole and Agidingbi land”, “Land grabbers are enemies of Lagos State,” among others.

    The Leader of Ojodu Legislative Arm, Mr. Wasiu Bolaji-Seidu, who is also a community leader in Agidingbi, said the news of the possession order came to the community as a surprise, as nobody from the area was served with summons that led to the judgment.

    He said: “Last Friday, they (judgment-creditor) brought a judgment, placed it on our houses and said they have taken over the entire Agidingbi land. Nobody from Agidingbi was part of the case and I don’t know how you will enforce a judgment against a person that was never part of the case.

    “Agidingbi has been in existence for over 200 years ago. I was born and bred in Agidingbi; my forefathers were born and bred in Agidingbi and I don’t see any reason why somebody will just wake up and say they are the owner of the community.

    “I am over 50 years; my father lived for over 90 years in this community before he died; my great grandfather died at the age of 150 and I don’t know where Akinole is coming from. We have people like Abibatu Mogaji, who was the Yeye-Oba of Agidingbi. We have Femi Okunnu, who is our father in the community. We don’t know where Akinole came from.”

    Bolaji-Seidu urged the government to activate the provisions of the Anti-Land Grabbing Law of the state and prevent the matter from degenerating into a crisis.

    The Baale of Agidingbi, Chief Ganiyu Ayinde Haruna, said they were embarking on the peaceful protest to call the attention of the government to the crisis brewing in the community.

    An 83-year old resident, who is the Iyalode of Agidingbi, Evang. Dorcas Faworaja, said her great grandparents were born in the area, “therefore the claimant cannot just come from anywhere and lay claim to the community.”

    Receiving the protesters, Deputy Majority Leader Mr. Olumuyiwa Jimoh hailed them for conducting themselves peacefully.

    He said the House would look into the petition.

     

  • Ashamu family explains ownership claim on Alausa, Agidingbi land

    The family of the late Chief Emmanuel Ashamu has affirmed that the major part of the land in Alausa, Agidingbi and Magodo belong to it, contrary to erroneous impression being created in some quarters.

    In a statement made available to The Nation, the Ashamu family said that it acquired the large expanse of land spanning the area between Alausa, Agidingbi and Magodo more than 50 years ago.

    While congratulating the Akinole-Oshiun family on their recent legal victory in their case against Lagos State Government, the Ashamu family clarified that it remains the bona fide owner of the land, having acquired the Akinole-Oshiun family’s interest several years ago.

    “Hence, we are imploring all the legal and illegal occupants of the land within Alausa, Agidingbi and environment to clarify with the family before dealing with anyone further on this land,” Ashamu family stated.

    According to the family, there are some unscrupulous persons who are trying to use the supposed judgment to illegally encroach into the land and properties belonging to the Ashamu family and also to usurp money from innocent, desperate and unsuspecting individual s and companies within these areas.

    The Vice Chairman, DHTL Capital Management Limited, Mr. Tunde Adeyemi, the asset management company representing the Ashamu family, explained that the Akinole’s family judgment and entitlement to the land in Agidingbi was decided as early as 1973 when there was a further dispute between the Ashade family, the original owner of the land that sold to Ashamu and the Akinole family, the late Chief Ashamu persuaded the Ashade family not to go to court but that he would deal with the family on their claim to the Agidingbi land.

    “The Akinole family made it clear in the meeting with Chief Ashamu that they were not really in the land but would need money. So an agreement was struck between the parties on the matter and the Akinole family appointed their lawful attorneys under and by virtue of a Power of Attorney dated June 30, 1973 and registered as No. 32 at Page 32 in Volume 1425 of the Land Registry in the office at Lagos. These lawful attorneys, with the knowledge and consent of the whole family, later executed a Deed of Assignment in favour of the late Chief Emmanuel Ashamu, having agreed to a sum of money paid to them on the execution of the document. This Deed of Assignment was dated  August 3, 1973 and registered as No. 33 at Page 33 in volume 1432 of the Lands Registry in the office in Lagos,” Adeyemi said.

    According to him, by the above history and the other supporting summary of root of titles, the Akinole family has conveyed all its interest in some of the land at Agidingbi.

    “Hence, this is to inform the Lagos State Government and all its agencies; the Nigerian Police and other law enforcement agencies; all current occupiers of the landed properties in Agidingbi, Alausa, part of Magodo and its surroundings that the major expanse of this land belongs to the family of the late Chief Emmanuel Oyedele Ashamu; and concerted efforts should be carried out to clarify the position of their land from the family representatives before dealing with any individual, family or and corporations,” Adeyemi said.

  • I was blindfolded, says freed Fire Service chief

    Freed Acting Director of Lagos State Fire Service Rasaki Musibau said he could not recognise the two suspects arrested by the police because he was blindfolded by his abductors.

    Musibau addressed a jubilant crowd on Wednesday at the headquarters of the Fire Service at Alausa, Ikeja.

    The Lagos State Police Command had earlier said it had arrested two suspects in connection with the abduction.

    Police spokesman Bala Elkana, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), released the picture of the suspects.

    When asked if he could recognize the suspects, the Fire Service chief said he could not.

    “I was blindfolded by my abductors. There is no way I can recognize them,” he said.

    Musibau said the kidnappers whisked him away around 6pm, as against 8pm reported by the media, while going to Epe.

    “I ran into them (the kidnappers). They were operating freely on that road (Epe-Itoikin). Some people were lucky not to have been abducted. They just robbed them and allowed them to go. In fact, some vehicles before me were robbed at gunpoint. When I ran into them, they smashed the windscreen of my vehicle. At that point I was kidnapped; I met two other persons that have been abducted. Not quite long, they whisked us away,” he said.

    Musibau, who arrived office around 8:30am, was welcome by jubilant workers.

    They offered prayers to God for returning him alive. Praise songs and dances followed.

    He thanked them for standing by him and his family during the turbulent period.

    According to him, the abductors dropped him somewhere in Ikorodu before he called workers at the Ikorodu Fire Service Station.

    Read Also: Police arrest suspected kidnappers of Lagos fire service boss

    The Nation learnt that it was at that station he was taken home.

    Musibau said four persons were freed by the abductors, remaining three in their captivity.

    It was learnt that the families of those still in captivity are yet to pay their ransom.

    Musibau toured all the offices to greet people and express gratitude.

    Afterwards, he went to his office before leaving for the secretariat in Alausa.

    Police spokesman said Musibau and others kidnapped were freed around 11:45pm inside the forest where the kidnappers kept them, by a joint security force.

    Elkana said they were released unhurt and have been reunited with their families.

    He said: “The victims have since reunited with their families. The command’s tactical teams are still in the creeks and forests combating the places to arrest the hoodlums.

    “Water-tight security measures have been put in place across the state to forestall future occurrence. The command deeply appreciates the support of the Lagos State Government and the good people of Lagos, who stood by us and also provided useful information that facilitated the rescue of the victims. Together we will continue to make Lagos State one of the safest states in Nigeria.”

    Later in the day, the command’s image maker said two suspects had been arrested in connection with the abduction of the Fire Service director and six others.

    Elkana said: “Following a sustained and well-coordinated operations by the Command’s Tactical teams led by the Officer in Charge of Anti Kidnapping Unit, Bulus Musa, a superintendent (SP), two members of the kidnapping gang that abducted the Director of Lagos State Fire Service, Rasaki Musibau and six others on Saturday at about 8.pm have been arrested.

    “The suspects – Blessing Bayo, 29 and Smart Alfred, 32 – all of Arogbo, Ondo State were arrested on Wednesday at about 05:30am at Ibefun along Ikorodu-Ijebu-Ode Expressway, a boundary community with Ogun State and they all confessed to the commission of the crime.

    “Two single barrel guns were recovered from them.  Investigation is ongoing; efforts are on to arrest other fleeing members of the gang.”

  • Ambode swears in Muri-Okunola as HOS

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on Monday swore in Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola as the 21st Head of Service (HOS) in the state.

    Ambode in his remarks at the ceremony held at the Lagos House, Alausa, described the appointment as a new chapter with a high expectation to inject youthful vibrancy in the state’s civil service.

    He tasked the new HOS to adopt creative thinking and growth mindset in the discharge of his new role.

    Ambode expressed strong optimism in the ability of Muri-Okunola to effectively take charge on account of his capacity, knowledge, exposure, experience and youthful energy.

    He, however, urged him to lead by example and encourage accountability and professionalism in the service.

    “Following the swearing in of the new Head of Service, a new chapter has just been opened in the history of the Lagos State Public Service.

    “It is a new chapter with high expectations for the injection of new energy and vibrancy that will move our Public Service to new heights.

    “As the number one Civil Servant in Lagos State, you must demonstrate leadership and lead by example for others, including the Body of Permanent Secretaries, to follow.

    “You have a responsibility to provide direction and encourage accountability, transparency, professionalism and high sense of discipline.

    ”Your actions must be based on sound and objective judgment with consideration for merit and proven record of competence and loyalty,” Ambode said.

    The governor, who underscored the strategic role of the civil service, said the success of government policies and programmes largely depended on the quality and orientation of the civil service.

    Read Also: Ambode’s aide: Sanwo-Olu will deliver

    “Hence the need for the new leadership to implement necessary measures and initiatives to foster growth and development,” he said.

    Responding, Muri-Okunola thanked Ambode for the confidence and trust reposed in him.

    He assured that the public service would improve on all well-known traditions for speedy, efficient and effective implementation of government policies and initiatives.

    46 years old Muri-Okunola is the youngest Lagos HOS ever.

    He was appointed as the Executive Secretary, Land Use and Allocation Committee, a position he held between 2005 and 2011.

    Until his appointment, he was the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth and Social Development.

    Meanwhile, Ambode also swore in six new permanent secretaries into the Lagos Body of Permanent Secretaries.

    NAN

  • ‘No vacancies in Aso Rock, Alausa come 2019’

    A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Lanre Razak has said there are no vacancies in both Aso Villa in Abuja and Alausa Government House in Lagos State, asserting that, “APC will walk over other parties in 2019 elections.” Razak, who was the former Commissioner for Public Transportation in Lagos State explained that, what people view as crisis in the APC camp is never a crisis, saying, “it is just as a result of individuals struggling to get a viable and sure platform to win elections.”

    Speaking further, Razak insisted that, “in Lagos State also, there is no threat to the APC either from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or any other party,” expressing confidence that, “we will over run them. We have very solid and effective crisis management mechanism that would be deployed to resolve all the issues before the elections. APC is the only viable platform for people ctowin elections. That explains the steam you notice in those struggling to have the ticket to contest elections on the its platform.”

    He hinged his confidence on the leadership prowess of the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and APC’s performances across the country in the last three and a half years. “I have absolute confidence in Tinubu’s leadership and I don’t have doubt in his ability to lead us to the promise land. He is a God sent leader that other leaders ought to emulate. I am fully in support of all actions he has been taking so far because the actions are in the best interest of democracy and humanity.”

    In conclusion, Razak asserted that the Lagos State APC governorship candidate, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, will win convincingly because of what the electorate in Nigeria and Lagos State know about Tinubu’s leadership and APC performance in Lagos State. Nobody, according to him,  either in Lagos or anywhere in the country would give his vote to the PDP because they know the atrocities the party committed during its16 year’s rule during the period they drained the nation’s economy.

  • Ambode swears-in five new perm secs

    Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode on Monday at the Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja swore-in five new Permanent Secretaries into the State Civil Service.

    The appointees are Dr. Olabisi Taiwo (Ministry of Health), Mr. Olusegun Ajibade (Public Service Office), Mrs. Abiayo Akinsiku (Primary Healthcare Board), Dr. Yusuf Jimoh (Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Relations), and Mr. Ganiyu Rufai (Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives).

    Ambode charged them to place high premium on efficient service delivery and work to make the machinery of governance to roll faster in the overall interest of the people.

    The governor told them to bring their wealth of experience and knowledge to bear in their respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and to go all-out to meet the high expectations of not only government but the teeming population of the State.

    “With this appointment, you have all effectively become the Accounting Officer of your MDAs. You have been entrusted with a bigger and more sensitive responsibility which will put to test your leadership and managerial skills.

    “Let me remind you of the very high expectations that will be placed on you, not only from the government but more importantly, from the over 22 million Lagosians who desire efficient and service delivery.

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    “Your ability to meet these expectations will depend on the amount of creativity and innovation you can bring to bear in the discharge of your responsibilities.

    “Nobody expects you to reinvent the wheel. What is expected of you is to bring to bear your knowledge and experience so that the machinery of governance can roll faster and deliver more quality results to the teeming population of our State,” the Governor counseled the appointees.

    While congratulating the new Permanent Secretaries, the Governor pointed out that the elevation was strictly based on merit as evidenced by their outstanding performance, commitment and dedication to duty over the years, saying they must work to justify their appointments.

    Responding on behalf of the new Permanent Secretaries, Taiwo expressed gratitude to God and the governor for the opportunity to serve the State at the highest level in the civil service, just as she assured that they would not betray the confidence reposed in them but rather uphold the principles of public service.

  • Quiz competition shows special pupils can learn

    For the first time special needs pupils were able to test their knowledge during a quiz competition organised by the Lagos State Ministry Education Monday last week.

    A team of two pupils representing 10 primary, six junior secondary and five senior secondary and special schools participated in the competition held at the Adeyemi Bero-Auditorium, Alausa.

    The participants, who had various physical and intellectual learning challenges, answered questions in Mathematics, English and General Studies.

    The duo Augustine Jude and Ogunlade Iyanu lifted the senior secondary category trophy for Ipakodo Senior Grammar School, Ikorodu. In the junior secondary category, Salawudeen Hamed and Mistura Adekoya of Agbowa junior Secondary School, Agbowa-Ikosi came first; while in the primary School category, the duo of Tobiloba Bamgbelu and Salami Ibrahim of Pacelli School for the Blind, Surulere.

    Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mrs Adebunmi Adekanye, said the competition was designed to stimulate the minds of the special pupils and give them a sense of belonging.

    “There is no gainsaying that the Lagos State government is resolute about integrating pupils/students living with disabilities into the society; to empower them with skills that could instill confidence in them, such that they can contribute their quota to national growth.  It is for them to take advantage of the windows of opportunities opened to them,” she said.

    Mrs Musa Ketimu, Director, Child Guidance School Counselling and Special Education, said like its theme: “Developing intellectual abilities of children with special needs in Lagos State”, the competition was a proof that special needs children were capable of learning.

    “All people with intellectual disabilities are very capable of learning and can live a very normal lfie.  Some may require support while others will need mental tasks to propel them into reasonable action,” she said.

    General Manager, Lagos State Office for Disability Affair (LASODA), Dr Babatunde Awelenje, praised the ministry for organising the competition among special pupils, saying it was in line with international best practice.

    He urged parents not to keep their children with special needs at home but allow them get educated/trained as it was the only way to make them self-reliant.

    The first and second runners up in the junior secondary category were Oyekinle Mary and Adewale Oyindamola of Ikeja Junior School, GRA; and Prosper Eze and Chidera Nnaka of State Junior School, Surulere.

    In the Primary Schools’ category, John Favour and Iwuji Nelson of Community Primary School inclusive, Ajangbadi, and Adewale Segun and Afez Saka of National Orthopaedic Special School Igbobi, came second and third.

    All the participating schools and winner were given trophies, gifts and certificate of participation.