The Non-governmental/Non-political & Non-sectarian organisation that provides medical relief, supports health needs of people affected by crises (UOSSM) on Friday disclosed that six hospitals have been partially put out of service in Daraa, a city in southwestern Syria in the past week.
According to UOSSM, the violence has rapidly escalated in several areas throughout Daraa since the 5th of February. Area hospitals have been put out of service after being targeted directly and indirectly with some partially operating. Three nurses were wounded in the attacks along with civilians killed.
“The danger to doctors and medical staff in the area has reached a critical level, endangering the civilian population. UOSSM calls for the immediate cessation of attacks against medical facilities and for perpetrators to be held accountable for war crimes.”
Dr Anas Al Kassem, Chairman of UOSSM Canada said, “What is happening in Daraa is reminiscent of the brutal strategy of targeting hospitals and public infrastructure in Aleppo. The wanton killing of civilians and medical staff in Syria is horrific and must stop now. ”
7-year-old Chloe Bridgewater wrote a handwritten letter to Google, asking for an opportunity to work with the tech giant.
Chloe’s desire to work with the tech giant grew after her dad, Andy Bridgewater, showed her pictures of Google offices decked out with bean bag chairs and slides.
She writes: “Dear google boss
My name is Chloe and when I am bigger I would like a job with google. I also want to work in a chocolate factory and do swimming in the Olympics.”
In the letter, Chloe discusses her qualifications – she likes computers and has a tablet on which she plays games.
And she even includes references: “My teachers tell my mum and dad I am very good in class and am good at my spelling and reading and my sums.”
It is not an overstatement to say that this young girl knows how to market herself.
Thus, on receiving the letter, Google CEO Sundar Pichai replied her with big hopes and encouragement.
He said: “I think if you keep working hard and following your dreams, you can accomplish everything you set your mind to.”
Reply from Google CEO
Chloe’s father who is a Regional Sales Manager with a Hardware company in the United kingdom, posted the reply on LinkedIn saying: “After seeing images of Google offices with their bean bags, go karts and slides my 7-year-old daughter decided to write to Google to see if they would give her a job. She lost a great deal of confidence after being knocked down by a car a couple of years ago.
“However, to say she is delighted after receiving this letter signed by Sundar Pichai himself is an understatement. She is now even more eager to do well at school and work for Google. Can’t thank such a busy person enough to take time out to make a little girl’s dream become one step closer, although not sure she’s fully aware that it’ll take more than riding go karts and sleeping in pods to make it with Google!
The Governor of Osun State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on Thursday confirmed the claims of a research that the state has the capacity to meet the rice needs of the South West.
The Governor made this observation during a visit to Onilapa to meet with rice farmers to discuss ways of improving output and packaging of local rice in the state.
“Two days ago, I was in Onilapa to meet with rice farmers to discuss ways of improving output and packaging of local rice in the state.
“New research has shown that the state of Osun has enough capacity to meet the rice needs of the South West.
“Our government will continue to provide support for these local farmers until they reach the target of 20 tonnes per hectare.
“We are working closely with various research institutes to offer insight and ideas to rural farmers towards improving their capacity.
“Our intervention in agriculture did not begin today as we have prioritised the welfare of these rural farmers from the get-go. This is why we willfully up took the task of opening up our rural areas through the construction of roads
“Under our Rural Access and Mobility Project (ORAMP), we have constructed 10km of roads in all LGAs totalling 310km across the state,” he said.
Governor of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on Thursday described the actions of the hoodlums who set ablaze the state High Court in Ilesa as a major assault on civilisation.
The Governor stated this during an on-the-spot assessment of the premises of the high court which was allegedly set ablaze by hoodlums on Monday morning.
Aregbesola, who went round the facility in company with the state Chief Judge Justice Adebola Adepele Ojo stressed that an attack on the judiciary is a direct attack on the civilisation of the people.
He said, “The fulcrum of human civilisation is based on two things: the maintenance of law and order and secondly the upholding of justice and truth.
“Where law and order can not be guaranteed, when the instruments of justice can not be guaranteed, what you have is chaos and anarchy. Our government will not allow this to happen.
“This attack is a major assault on the civilisation of the land because when you attack the major instrument of justice then you are also attacking the common man on the street.
“As a government, we are very dissappointed that this has happened,” Aregbesola said.
The Governor, who promised that everything will be done to ensure that the perpetrators of the dastardly act are brought to book, hinted that the state Commissioner of Police has been charged to apprehend those involved as quickly as possible.
Governor Aregbesola, who noted that the vandalised court calls for urgent rehabilitation stated that the high court in Ilesa and others across the state will be given urgent attention in terms of rehabilitation and security.
The Governor, during the inspection, also sympathised with of one of the securitymen of the premises, Mr Olanrewaju Owoeye, who was beaten up and wounded by the hoodlums during the attack.
Sections of the court which was inspected by the Governor include the Registry, Library l, the Secretary’s Office among others.
Housemates at the ongoing Big Brother TV reality show on Monday nominated fellow housemates for possible eviction.
During the process, Gifty, TBoss and Thin tall Tony were nominated. However, the Head of House replaced TBoss with Marvis, when called by Big Brother to save an housemate.
Meanwhile, the housemate with the highest nomination is Gifty.
The Federal Government on Monday replied the #IStandWithNigeria protesters who marched on despite the announced cancellation of the protest by top hip hop musician Tuface Idibia.
In a social media post, the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo said the voice of the protesters have been heard, “loud and clear”.
“To those who are protesting, WE HEAR YOU loud and clear.
“To those who are on the streets protesting the economic situation & those who are not, but feel the pain of economic hardship, we hear you.
“You deserve a decent life and we are working night and day to make life easier.”
Find the tweets below:
To those who are on the streets protesting the economic situation & those who are not, but feel the pain of economic hardship, we hear you.
The protest also held in the United Kingdom, where the protesters marched to the Nigerian High Commission, demanding five minutes speech from President Muhammadu Buhari.
The protest had several personality in attendance including Omoyele Sowore of Sahara Reporters, Charly Boy, Comedian Sheyi Shaw among others.
Conveners of the Monday national protest tagged #IStandWithNigeria, EiE Nigeria, a coalition of young Nigerians promoting good governance and citizen engagement, have written an open letter to the Federal Government.
The letter, whhich was addressed to the Acting President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, identified 10 challenges facing the country, from insecurity, high cost of governance, to poor power supply and more.
“In the words of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Nigeria’s First Prime Minister, ‘the future of this vast country must depend, in the main, on the efforts of ourselves to help ourselves.’
“Since the idea of a protest was muted a few weeks ago and a call to action was given for Nigerians to share their challenges and concerns via social media and SMS, we have received hundreds of text messages, Whatsapp messages; thousands of comments via various social media platforms and millions of engagements through various hashtags.
“The messages paint a clear picture of hardship across the country. Nigerians are facing difficult economic challenges and do not see any end in sight. Our standards of living have worsened and we are also disappointed in the lack of transparency and an ineffective fight against corruption in a government that made a fight against corruption a key pillar of its campaign. In summary, the change that Nigerians were promised has not been delivered and a road map to the desired destination is yet to be communicated.
“This is not about ad-hoc programs or sound-bites, but a sincerity in the government, from the Presidency to its various ministries and agencies, that this government that means what it says and says what it means. The various spokespersons for the administration are dismissive of Nigerians’ concerns, repeating that Nigeria is working when it is clear, even to the blind, that it is not!
“For example, a lot of work has gone into attempts to scuttle the peaceful gatherings in Lagos and Abuja, when the citizens right to free speech is inalienable. Furthermore, the implied attempt by some elements in security agencies to stifle the inalienable rights of Nigerians to freedom of speech and assembly cannot be allowed. We are in a democracy and citizens must be able to express their displeasure with their elected representatives in a lawful manner. If as much attention was paid to good governance, our circumstances would be much better.
“We all suffer from the country’s dysfunction and we are saying – Enough is Enough! Nigeria must come first! Not personal interests, not sectional interests; not business interests. From the impact of perennial power shortage to the lack of decent health care facilities and a good education for our children, we all pay the price, one way or another, for bad governance.
“The police who are here with us today, the teachers, hawkers in the street, traders in the market, labourers, all of us suffer when Nigeria doesn’t work. The hardship we are going through, is why we are gathered here today. Thousands of jobs have been lost over the last one year, factories have closed, people are struggling not just to keep their kids in school but provide the most basic of things – food.We have watched the price of some of our staple foods double, even triple in some cases. Yet the response to our decision to protest, a freedom and a right guaranteed by our constitution, was multiple attempts to intimidate us and discredit us. May we remind you that repressing angry and frustrated citizenry never bodes well for those in power?
“We have watched the price of some of our staple foods double, even triple in some cases. Yet the response to our decision to protest, a freedom and a right guaranteed by our constitution, was multiple attempts to intimidate us and discredit us. May we remind you that repressing angry and frustrated citizenry never bodes well for those in power?
“Perhaps it isn’t surprising that political office holders have no idea how bad things have become after all their office, the political power they wield, their jumbo pay & allowance, means that their reality is very much removed from that of regular Nigerians, the people they promised, nay, swore to serve.
“Well, most Nigerians are now fed up so we are gathered today, here and now to tell you that things are bad; really, really bad. It is also important to state, that while this message is addressed to you as the President of this great nation, the frustrations are not only towards the Federal Government.
“We are also speaking to the National Assembly whose job it is to represent Nigerians at the Federal level and their responsibilities include law-making; appropriating monies and ensuring they are spent judiciously. However, they have so far spent the last two years in office fighting for spoils, buying expensive cars, spending time on corruption allegations against several members and unanswered questions around the budgeting process and allegations of budget manipulation.
“At the State level, several states owe salaries and have refused to be accountable and transparent in the spending of resources, including the bailout funds they received from the Federal Government. This is simply unacceptable.
“Our call for this protest had 10 key areas of concern – security, education, health, power, unemployment, the high cost of living, social justice, transparency, the cost of government & patriotism – we are making demands of 5 of these issues as follows:
Transparency in all tiers of government
We want to know how much states received as bailout funds and how the funds were spent, especially as salaries are unpaid and social services are under-funded and some cases even none existent.
That the Federal Government puts in place a clear mechanism for making public new hires into government agencies to ensure that these jobs are filled based on merit, not nepotism. Allegations of illegal hires into the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigerians Prisons are yet to be answered adequately. Freedom of Information requests to these agencies have met with silence on the substance of the request.
Allegations of ‘sex for food’ and food stealing in IDP camps must be investigated those found guilty punished swiftly. The suffering of Nigerians that are already victims of the Boko Haram onslaught cannot and should not be compounded by the actions of unscrupulous people.
How much has been recovered from the government’s anti-corruption fight? How much has been spent and what was it spent on?
Security
#onevoicenigeria protest
ALL Nigerian lives MUST matter and we need to see government – at the State & Federal level – act in a way that proves this is indeed the case.
Insecurity is at an all-time low in Nigeria, from Benue State to the Niger Delta, from Southern Kaduna to the Northeast, scores are being killed and it seems the perpetrators are mostly getting away with it. The Federal Government and States must put proactive peace and security measures in place to ensure an equitable resolution of these current crises and this road map must be made public so citizens are aware that their rights are being protected.
Cost of Government
The cost of running our government structure is too high and needs to be reduced to reflect the reality of our dwindling economic fortunes.
National Assembly: The size is no longer affordable as it operates today. The structure that supports 469 individuals cost us N115bilion a year of which they provide no record of how the money is spent. There should be a referendum on a unicameral Assembly.
There have been several reports on eliminating duplicate agencies. They need to be implemented to reduce cost and increase efficiency.
Our budget process is poor and allows for fraud. We have not learnt from last year’s debacle. We propose open contracting data standard so that the budget and procurement data are linked in a way that allows citizens see clearly what has been funded. We also propose citizen consultation so that citizens have a direct say in the budget process.
Social Justice & Corruption
At a time of increasing suffering for many Nigerians, the government should be humane and put a pause on actions to drive government revenue that increase hardship. The demolitions of living areas and markets; increase in taxes and the introduction of new taxes.
We can’t have one set of rules for the rich, and another for the poor. Allegations of corruption by political office holders should be investigated and innocence has proven beyond reasonable doubt. The Presidency’s defence of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on an offence to which he himself admitted guilt is unacceptable.
The government needs to follow the rule of law it espouses and obey court orders. Why has El Zaky not been released as ordered by the courts? A democratic government that tramples on the constitution is playing with fire as it undermines the foundation of its legitimacy.
Power
The lack of power in Nigeria continues to be a major hindrance to not just business but to people getting themselves out of poverty as many studies have shown. We demand that the government rolls out a 6-month emergency power plan that focuses on:
Metering all customers to stop estimated billing.
Appoint a NERC substantive Chairman and enforce the EPSR Act on Customer Complains Resolutions
Amend the ESPR Act to relax regulation to allow small-scale power generation. We believe this will in a very short time improve our power situation.
“It is important to reiterate that we are gathered here to protest because our political leaders have failed, our elected leaders have failed. They are not keeping their pre-elections promises, they are not delivering on their manifestos and programs. Worse, their actions and inactions have combined to create more hardship for millions of Nigerians.
“We are here to demand proper leadership, for accountability, for love of nation before self, for selfless service to the country.
“We are here because we are tired of those we have elected to ‘serve’ us taking advantage of us.
“We are here to say Enough is Enough!
“We are giving the government till its 2nd anniversary – May 29, 2017, to show substantive results on the issues we have raised. If not, the agitations will be louder and more intense.”
The West African Examinations Council, WAEC on Friday commended the government of Osun for boosting education system through the introduction of an innovative technological device.
The examination body rated Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s interventions in education as “second to none” in Nigeria especially in the provision of massive infrastructure.
A statement by the Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Office of the Governor signed by Director, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, quoted the Head of the Nigeria National Office of the council, Mr Olutise Isaac Adenipekun, as stating these when he led the delegation of the national management of WAEC to the Governor in Osogbo.
He applauded him for ameliorating education with innovative technologies.
Adenipekun said, “The ongoing revolution in the infrastructural re-engineering of the school complexes in the state of Osun has also caught the attention of all stakeholders in the education sector in Nigeria and beyond.
“The immense contribution of the state government in the development of infrastructural facilities in schools, in particular, the “Mega Schools Project” is remarkable. It is in fact, second to none in Nigeria,” he stressed.
WAEC said Osun has helped to mitigate common difficulties usually encountered by the students while writing Senior Secondary School Certificate Examinations, SSSCE.
Adenipekun said Osun has contributed significantly towards enhancing Information and Communication Technology, ICT required in education sector which according to him remains the prerequisite to development of quality education in the country.
Adenipekun, who recommended the Tablet of Knowledge to other states of the federation said the initiative had contributed towards educational development.
He described the innovation as a tool of educational revolution, breakthrough aimed at enhancing and encouraging the process of teaching and learning through the use of innovative technology.
According to him, there is no doubt that the state government had recorded huge transformation in the eradication of the rots in the education sector through the introduction of the device.
“We are here in recognition of the state’s contributions to technological innovation and development to the education sector in the state of Osun since the inception of the present government.
“We are particularly proud of the landmark achievement and the major breakthrough of the current administration in Osun most significantly in education sector by the introduction of the ground breaking ‘Tablet of Knowledge’ also known as “Opon Imo” to students of the state at secondary level.
“As we commend the efforts of Mr. Governor on the landmark achievement and major breakthrough of his administration in education most importantly on the widely applauded ‘Tablet of Knowledge’ which had improved and encouraged teaching and learning, we equally recommend other states to key into this initiative so as to improve the education sector,” he added.
He said the policies of the state had been structured not only to revamp education but to make the state the pacesetter in good governance.
Adenipekun expressed gratitude to the state for its cooperation and support to the West African Examinations Council in Nigeria, which according to him had assisted the organisation on the smooth running of the Council’s office in the state.
“We must express our deep appreciation to the government and good people of the state of Osun for their continuous cooperation and support to the West African Examinations Council in Nigeria, that has enhanced the smooth running of the Council’s office in the state.
“We also appreciate the cordial relationship that has existed between the state of Osun and our flagship organisation as we express our gratitude to the government and good people of the state for the enormous contributions they have made to the progress of WAEC and the development of sound education by positively inspiring in diverse ways the teeming youths of the country.
“The enormous support of the State Government has enabled us to provide quality service to the people in diverse ways,” Adenipekun stated.
He said the Council is willing to partner with other state governments to ensure that it eradicates examinations malpractices which he described as a menace to the education sector.
“We are committed to improving our service delivery to stakeholders and we will continually ensure smooth conduct of our examination (WAEC) in the state of Osun.
“As part of our determined effort to impact positively on the quality of youth development and education in general, the Council is ready to collaborate with states Ministries of Education to create further avenues for experience sharing with teachers in the secondary schools in areas of standardised testing and candidates/students assessments,” he added.
Adenipekun, however, noted that the Council was ready to partner with the government in the area of e-testing and e-assessment as part of efforts to further recognise the state’s giant steps in introducing ICT to teaching and learning at the pre-tertiary levels.
“We must re-emphasise our commitment to the development of education in Nigeria and we appreciate your support to the Council in fulfilling its mandate as an examining body”, he added.
Governor Aregbesola who described “the Tablet of Knowledge” as a panacea to education revolution, said the state had recorded national and international awards on the initiative.
He said the state would continue to do the needful in supporting education sector which he described as “bedrock of development”.
Commending WAEC for maintaining education standards in the country, Governor Aregbesola said the examination body had contributed tremendously in raising the standards of education in the West African sub-region.
He reassured the people of the state of his administration’s resolve to turn around the fortune of the sector even in the face of the current economic hardship.
Aregbesola said the state was ready to collaborate with WAEC and other relevant examination bodies to improve on the standard and quality of education sector in the state.
“We are quite happy with the steady and certain growth that our intervention in education had recorded just as your visit would also encourage us on how to double our efforts and collaborate with your organisation to boost education sector in the state.
“We are ready to partner with your organisation in raising the quality of our teachers towards the preparation for pre-tertiary examinations”, he added
The president and founder of Bohus Biotech AB, a Swedish biotechnology company Chief Daniel Chuks Ogbonnaya in partnership with Mahesh Vaswani, Managing Director, Eskay Industries has launched a world class Beauty Clinic in Lagos, Nigeria, Damesh.
The Beauty Clinic, which is located at Victoria Island, is the first of its kind in Nigeria, helping to take out frown lines, enhancing jaw-lines, cheek contouring, labial commissure, lips enlargement, face filler among others, using natural herbs.
The launch witnessed the announcement of an anti-ageing cream, Hyamin produced by Bohus Biotech AB in Sweden, which is suitable for anyone from age 30 upwards who desires to maintain a smooth, childhood face. Also announced at the launch is the new dermal filler created from the original Swedish hyaluronic acid, Decoria.
Speaking about the products from Bohus Biotech AB, Dagana Mdalala, a specialist in filler at the company observed that there is no other natural product that can fill out wrinkles, frown lines, clean injury scars, among other things like the product.
According to Mdalala, no one is ugly, adding that with the launch of the beauty clinic at Victoria Island in Lagos, people don’t have to travel to Dubai, the United States, etc. for facial beauty and treatment.
Speaking after a practical demonstration of nose shaping in the presence of everyone, the filler specialist noted that the facial treatments can be reversed after 6 months. She further stated that no form of make-up can be applied on the face until after 24hours to allow the process stay.
Confirming the healthiness of the products as against undergoing a plastic surgery which in most cases is for cosmetic purpose, Chief Ogbonnaya said: “When you perform an operation, there is a risk that something can go wrong. That, you don’t have with filling when you use the filler products. It is just a procedure.
“All you do is go in with the needle, subtle, you don’t go deep, blow it up with the substance, hyaluronic acid, which is already there, it is only that it is given up, it is given away. And you fill it. That is it. You don’t run any risk of infection or otherwise.
“My advice to Nigerians who are considering taking plastic surgery if it is worth the risk if it has to so with minor wrinkle fillers, scar cleaning because every operation has its risk,” adding that this is the only Beauty Clinic in Nigeria that can do such.
“I am hundred per cent sure that this is going to be a success because Nigerians are travelling to Dubai, I know that, people are going to England and the States for operation, I know this. They will pay the air tickets, pay the hotel bills and now pay for the treatment, why not do it at home and by so doing, contribute to the economic growth of the country as the money circulates within.”
On the other hand, Mahesh said that it took Chief Ogbonnaya over 15 years to convince him of the safety, quality and reliance of the products.
“The best thing about this partnership is the quality. There is no compromise on quality. We have been in this business for over 20 years and the quality is there.
“What I like in him (Chief Ogbonnaya) is the attitude and when I visited him at the company in Sweden, I saw the quality standard he has and he is willing to bring the same quality of Europe to Nigeria. That is a right attitude for him to think of that.
“For ten to fifteen years, he has been after me for a partnership but I was not convinced until I went to see his place,” Mahesh said.
In her contribution, Mary Brakner, a.k.a Yeye Oge, observed that the launch of the Beauty Clinic is apt since Nigerians are being encouraged to spend money on local products and service to service the Naira as against travelling to other countries for such services or products.
“This kind of Beauty Clinic is something meant to enhance the economy of the country because many Nigerians travel to U.S. Italy, even Dubai to do these facial treatments and we have brought down here to Nigeria.
“So, instead of going out there to spend money, you can spend in your country to build the economy.”
Mahesh noted that part of the future plans is to be able to produce the beauty products in Nigeria with the same quality to help employment in Nigeria, adding that the clinic is expected to have an annex across the country anytime soon, starting with Abuja and Port Harcourt.
Hyamin E is a silky and nourishing face cream, including hyaluronic acid, designed to smoothen and protect your skin and to fight the visible signs of aging.
Hyamin SBT is a rich daily moisturizer that will keep your skin moist and supple as well as fight the visible signs of aging. Hyamin SBT contains a unique combination of hyaluronic acid and sea buckthorn oil.
Both products Hyamin E and Hyamin SBT are based on the natural substance hyaluronic acid which, thanks to its unique water-absorbing properties, is the ideal moisturiser. Hyaluronic acid lubricates the tissues of the skin and supports cell function. This contributes to the prevention and smoothing-out of wrinkles and provides long lasting moisture to the skin.
Present at the event include Tosin Buknor, Celebrity On-Air Personality (OAP) at Top Radio, Moriam Musa, and Tewa Onasanya of Exqusitie Magazine.
