The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Death toll

  • Abuja building collapse: Death toll hits 3

    •Victims’ relatives protest

    The National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) yesterday confirmed the death of another victim who was trapped in the building that collapsed on Friday in the Jabi area of Abuja.

    This brings the death toll from the collapse to three.

    According to NEMA, six other people were rescued alive from the rubble of the collapsed four-storey building, with one of them critically injured.

    The NEMA Director-General, Mustapha Maihaja, who visited the site of the collapsed building yesterday, confirmed “the rescue of seven persons. One person is dead, one critically injured and five others were rescued alive.”

    He also stated that the rescue operation at the site of the building collapse had been called off.

    But this did not go down well with relatives of victims as they protested the decision.

    They were dispersed by policemen who fired tear gas and shot into the air.

    The angry youths insisted that about 18 victims were still trapped under the rubble, but the FCT Administration said there was no indication that anyone was buried under the debris.

    The rescue team consisting of officials of FCT Emergency Management Agency, National Emergency Management Agency, fire fighters and Julius Berger Plc ended the rescue operation around 8am after they failed to find victims.

    But the youths who were annoyed by the removal of the pay loaders and other equipment attempted to take over the site, insisting that many victims were still trapped under the debris and should be rescued.

    A tricycle rider, Mustapha Musa, said his younger brother, Aliu, 23, was among those trapped under the rubble, adding that his elder brother, Ali Mohammed, 30, who was among the victims that were rescued died while being taken to the hospital.

    “I have a brother there. Yesterday (Friday) we called our brother and we were talking to him on phone, but he was complaining of the heat. This morning (Saturday), we called him but we did not get him. So the government did not do anything and our people are still under the rubble,” he insisted.

    The Coordinator, Abuja Municipal Metropolitan Council, Umar Shuaibu, who was at the scene yesterday explained that the rescue workers could not find any signs of life or body.

    He disclosed that only one died out of the seven victims that were rescued, insisting that no other casualty was discovered during the overnight rescue operation.

    “We worked overnight with floodlight, we were able to comb out everything and found that there is no single person buried anywhere under this rubble. We combed everywhere even where we don’t expect to have bodies, the machines went and did a professional job.

    “Apart from the initial victims-we have one dead and six people were injured, apart from them, no other casualty was discovered,” Shuaibu stated.

    The AMMC boss said that investigation had commenced to find out possible lapses to prevent a recurrence, adding that the debris would be evacuated.

    He warned scavengers to keep off the site, cautioning that anyone found at the scene would be arrested by the security personnel.

    Acting deputy director, forecasting, response and mitigation, FCT Emergency Agency Management Authority, Florence Wenegieme stated that the responders drilled into the core of the collapsed structure but did not find bodies.

    She explained that officials had been directed to ascertain the number of the dead and injured victims at the hospital.

    Wenegieme said, “As at yesterday (Friday), only one person died, for the other people they claimed were in the building, we have been searching since last night and we have not been able to find any corpse or anybody alive.

    “So we cannot say that there are still people inside because we have searched right deep into the building but we could not find anyone.”

    Mr Eze Celestine, member, Architects Association of Nigeria, said that the professional bodies were concerned about the incidence of collapsed buildings in the country.

    Celestine advised that there should be relevant professionals in every construction site in the country, not just anybody, to ensure the environment is safe for all concerned.

    “In any construction site in Nigeria not only Abuja, there should be a regulatory industry personnel.

    “Not where anybody will come and claim that he is an architect, engineer or a builder. The enforcement has to be stronger,” he said.

    Speaking to NAN, Mr Agboola Abolade of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), called for the need to engage professionals in construction to avoid unfortunate incidences as a collapse.

    He explained that from the inspection on the site it was very likely that the kind of concrete mix that was used in constructing must have been below the standard specified in the design.

    “By looking at the nature of the rubbles we have here, you can see that it is likely that the kind of concrete mix used was below the standard.

    “If the mix was done properly we should have had a partial collapse. Even if the foundation gave way, other parts of the building could have been standing.

    “Normally, since the building has been abandoned for a long time the concrete was supposed to get stronger over the years due to the incurring process of water and air,” Abolade said.

    In the meantime, the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) is to launch an immediate investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collapse of the four-storey building.

    The Coordinator of the council, Mr. Umar Shuaibu, told reporters at the scene yesterday that steps are being taken to prevent any future occurrence.

    Six others were rescued with various degrees of injuries and were rushed to a nearby hospital, Shuaibu said.

    “This is an accident. What happened is an unfortunate incidence. We have this kind of building collapse occurrence all over the world, not only in Nigeria,” he said.

    “We are going to start our investigations now; we are going to take adequate measures to prevent any future occurrence.

     

     

    “We have passed the first phase, the next phase is evacuating these rubbles and we implore the general public not to be here.

    “There are so many scavengers around, so we are going to instruct security agencies that anybody they catch around this area should be arrested,” he said.

    He, however, noted that all the stakeholders worked overnight to ensure lives were saved and not a single soul was buried under the rubbles.

    He commended stakeholders for their quick action to tackle the situation.

     

  • Katsina flood death toll hits 52

    •Fed Govt to assist victims
    •100 houses destroyed in Yobe

    •Boy swept away in Benin

    More deaths have been recorded in the Jibia, Katsina State flood. The figure is now 52, up from 44 earlier reported.

    The Federal Government last night promised compensation for the victims.

    Over 500 houses were destroyed and more than 1,000 people rendered homeless.

    The flood also ravaged Yobe State town Babangida where over 100 houses were destroyed but no life was lost.

    In Benin city, the Edo state capital, a school boy was swept away by flood.

    At the weekend, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, was hit by flood leaving many cars swept away. No fewer tan 12 people were declared dead

    The Jibia flood came as an aftermath of a downpour between Sunday night and Monday in the border town between Nigeria and Niger Republic.

    Vice President Osinbajo visited the area yesterday, accompanied by Governor Aminu Masari, Director General National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). Mustapha Maihajia and State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA)Chairman Dr. Aminu Waziri

    Osinbajo said: ’’efforts will be made to ensure that adequate relief materials reach all of the victims, most of who are present camped at the Mohammed Rabiu Model Primary School.

    “The President has asked me to assure you that everything will be done to ensure that everybody is taken care of, and that we will make sure this sort of thing does not repeat itself again’’.

    “As Nigerians, we all deserve to live our lives happily, we deserve to be treated well, and the president has assured everybody that working with the state government, we will do all that is necessary.

    “Where compensation is necessary, we will compensate, where rebuilding is necessary, we will do so,” he added.

    In Yobe, flood, caused by heavy downpour on Monday, destroyed over 100 houses in Babangida, headquarters of Tarmuwa Local Government Area.

    Chairman of the local government, Mr. Gidado Muhammad, told reporters that the council had temporarily converted a primary school in the town to a camp to provide shelter for displaced people.

    “No life was lost and no serious casualty recorded but over 100 houses have been destroyed, along with food items and other personal belongings of the residents.

    “Staff of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) are taking every detail, while the council has made provision for immediate shelter and food to the victims” he said.

    The chairman said excavation work was going on to open up more channels for easy passage of rain water in the area to avert future occurrence.

    Malam Ali Usman, a resident, said he lost four rooms, food items and clothes to the floods and now taking refuge with a relation.

    “I have sent my wife home while I am taking refuge with a relation,pending when government will assist us,” he said.

    In Edo State, residents of Uselu community in Egor local government area on Tuesday protested the death of a six-year old pupil during flood after a downpour which lasted many hours.

    The protesters blocked the busy Uselu-Lagos road with bonfires while motorists were made to take other routes to Ugbowo and the Kings Square.

    Sign boards of the Edo State government in the area were pulled down by the angry protesters.

    They said their anger stemmed from the inability of the State Government to send its officials to help find the body of the pupil simply identified as Segun.

    Leader of the protesters, Mr. Oni Enoma, said the drainage was a death trap and a nightmare to them whenever it rains.

    According to him, “A woman and her baby fell into the gutter. They were dragged out but the baby fell inside.

    But we have not been able to find the body of the boy.

    “We were surprised that nothing has been done by the fire fighters to find the body.

    The late Segun and his mother, whose name was given as Latifat, were walking home after school hours when they slipped into an open drainage at the Omosogie junction along the Bénin-Uselu road.

    Policemen were on ground to prevent any break down of law and order.

    Governor Godwin Obaseki commiserated with the family of the deceased Obaseki described his death as disheartening.

    He said:  “As a government, we are deeply saddened by the report of the Uselu flood incident and the death of the young male pupil identified as Segun. I share with the parents and other members of his family in their grief,” a visibly shaken Governor Obaseki said at the emergency Executive Council meeting held at the Government House in Benin City on Tuesday.

  • Death toll hits 29 in Katsina cholera outbreak

    •NGO warns against poor hygiene

    Death toll in the cholera and diarrhoea outbreaks in Katsina State has risen to 29. Of the number, 17 died of cholera.

    The state was hit on July 1.

    Commissioner for Health Hajiya Mariatu Bala Usman, who confirmed this to reporters yesterday, said the government has so far released N70 million for the control and treatment of communicable diseases such as meningitis, diarrhoea and vomiting, among others.

    She said: “We have surveillance system across the 34 councils. The disease surveillance and notification officers work directly with the Primary Health Care Development Agency responsible for managing of outbreaks like this.

    “They have been on alert since the first case was identified in Kusada. Currently, we have cases of diarrhoea and vomiting in about seven councils; 180 persons were affected by the diarrhoea and vomiting outbreak and we recorded 12 deaths.

    “Seven local governments – Funtua, Kaita, Jibia, Kankia, Ingawa, Kusada and Katsina – were affected. The government has procured emergency drugs for the 34 councils and released to the PHC for onward distribution to affected areas.

    “We are proposing to procure chlorine for the councils to safeguard their water because we realise the diseases are spread through consumption and drinking of contaminated water and foods or vegetables.”

    A Non-Governmental Organisation, NIREK NILE Foundation, has urged the people to cultivate good hygiene. It admonished them, especially those in the rural areas, to eschew poor sanitation habits like open defecation, drinking of impure and untreated water, and other bad habits, which encourage the spread of cholera and diarrhoea.

    The Chairman, Muhammad Hassan, who spoke at Bagaruwa, Mani Local Government Area, while launching a Solar Motorised Borehole sunk by the agency.

    According to him, imbibing decent health culture is a sure way of promoting efficient standard of living.

  • Death toll in Ogun pipeline explosion rises to three

    The lone survivor of the pipeline explosion at a vandalised pipeline of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Animashaun Abiodun, has died of severe burns.

    Abiodun, 28, died on Saturday at an undisclosed public hospital in Ogun State where he was receiving treatment.

    He was rescued on June 8 when operatives of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSDC) recovered two bodies of other victims of the explosion.

    Abiodun was said to be writhing in pains on the scene of a fire from a ruptured NNPC pipeline in Ogere Expressway area of the state.

    He was reportedly taken to the Intensive Care Unit of the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital in Sagamu and later moved to another hospital in Abeokuta, the state capital, for security reasons.

    But he died on Saturday.

    His suspected accomplices – Lateef Ayoola and another identified simply as Biano – reportedly died earlier on the scene of the pipeline fire.

    Before his death, Abiodun allegedly confessed to operatives of the NSCDC that most weekends, he took six or seven Jerry cans to siphon fuel from vandalised NNPC pipelines and that the money realised from selling the product was used for ajo (contribution) and give himself a “treat”.

    NSCDC’s Commandant in Ogun State Command, Ayodele Philip, who addressed reporters yesterday in Abeokuta, said some workers of a private security firm contracted to watch over the Ogere stretch of the NNPC pipeline spotted Abiodun and two others and called the attention of the NSCDC to the scene.

    Philip said the until his death, the suspect, from his confession, was helping the command with information about the criminal activities of pipeline vandals in the state.

    He added: “Abiodun had been a victim of fire explosion (before the last incident) during his illicit acts. Nemesis only taught him a bitter lesson, having refused to learn in a hard way.

    “He also confessed to have been involved in series of pipeline vandalism alongside his deceased friends to the extent of getting burnt on some occasions. Yet, they were not deterred until this their death.

    “Before his demise, Abiodun also confessed to have started his nefarious acts as a teenager and that the stuff seemed more of conscription into a cultic group from which it is almost impossible to withdraw, once one is taken in.”

  • Death toll in Kaduna attack rises to 71

    The Birnin-Gwari Vanguards for Security and Good Governance said yesterday that  the death toll in Saturday’s attack had risen to 71. The police announced on Sunday that 45 people were killed.

    This group said information from the survivors of the Gwaska attack, also raised the fear of another another being planned

    It called on the concerned authorities to take fi=urther security measures at Doka and Maganda districts to stop the armed bandits.

    In a statement, the group added: “We are calling on the authorities based on reliable information from the survivors of Gwaska attack, that, Dogo Gide that killed Buharin Daji renegades are planning to attack other villages and towns.

    “While commending the gallant vigilantes and volunteers as well as security agencies for their sterling performance in the rescue and evacuation of casualties, we are appealing for all peace loving people of Birnin-Gwari to be on alert and report suspicious persons and movements to the security agencies.”

    Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai yesterday visited communities in the Birnin Gwari Local Government Area where hoodlums killed 45 people at the weekend.

    He was at the palace of the Emir, Malam Jibril Zubair Mai Gwari II, where he met with the emir and community leaders, after which he proceeded to Gwaska, the scene of the fatal attack.

    Governor El-Rufai according to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity Samuel Aruwan, expressed his sorrow.

    He said: “I came here to share the pain and anguish of our people, the predicament of innocent citizens whose lives were cut short due to the terrorism of bandits and criminals who have been tormenting us.”

    The statement said the Emir of Birnin-Gwari praised the Federal and state governments for demonstrating commitment to the plight of his people.

    “We are grateful for your deep condolences and empathy. We are grateful for all your commitment to resolving the plight of Birnin Gwari people. As a member of the State Security Council, I am in the know of Federal and State Government commitment.

    “The IGP and the GOC were here and have confirmed the establishment of a Battalion of the army and Police Area Command. I am happy that you are going to Gwaska and other communities to see for yourself.”

  • Death toll hits 32 in Taraba herdsmen attack

    The death toll in Wednesday’s dusk attack by Fulani herdsmen in Taraba State has risen to 32, the locals said yesterday.

    The marauding herdsmen have resumed their violence in full swing on innocent citizens despite the presence of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, and a military panel probing allegations by former defence minister, Gen Theophilus Danjuma, that “the armed forces collude with armed bandits that kill Nigerians.”

    Herdsmen had attacked Jandeikyula village in Wukari Local Government Area on Wednesday, at 6pm.

    No fewer than 25 bodies were counted the following morning, in spite of the intervention by soldiers who were said to have battled with the killers for several hours.

    A former Special Adviser to the late Governor Danbaba Suntai, Orbee Uchiv, an indigene of Jandeikyula, told The Nation that seven new bodies were recovered yesterday.

    Some of the victims were buried in shallow graves, it was learnt.

    Uchiv said some residents had crawled into the bush during the attack.

    “But they died of injuries resulting from gunshots. Their bodies were recovered in the bush today,” he said.

    Uchiv said a photographer had snapped and filmed the bodies for the purpose of documentation.

    He said residents have deserted the affected village, despite the deployment of security personnel.

    Women in Takum town yesterday protested the killings and alleged “brutality and collusion by the military.”

    The women, in their hundreds, wearing all black, said their husbands and sons were illegally detained in the Takum barracks.

    They called the peaceful protest: “Operation Mother’s Breast.”

    Their placards read: “We are tired of intimidation; Stop harassing our people; We want to sleep with our eyes closed; We are not at war in Takum, etc.”

    The protesters marched through major arteries of the town and blocked the gate of the 93 Battalion, Ada Barracks Takum.

    They demanded the release of their arrested people as they demanded to see the Commanding Officer Lt. Col Ibrahim Gambari, who has since been accused by Governor Darius Ishaku of taking sides.

    The leader of the protesters, Esther Yakubu, told The Nation “Houses are being searched by soldiers. Kitchen knives and cutlasses are being taken away. Children are being harassed.

    “Youths looking strong enough to defend the community are whisked away. The youth whose names have appeared on a ‘gossip list’ as youth defence vanguard have been arrested.

    “Our people are now left at the mercy of Fulani herdsmen whose business of killing and destroying lives and property continues.

    “The army should go into the bush and disarm those killing us, so that we shall return to our farms.”

    An Assistant Director of Publicity of the Army Exercise Cat Race, Major Adegoke, said he was gathering facts about the protest, which he would share with journalists.

    Shiban Tikari, the council chairman of Takum, Gen. Danjuma’s home, yesterday called on the people of Takum to defend themselves.

    Sharing a similar view with Danjuma that the military were not neutral, Tikari said the people can use “sticks and stones in the face of unprovoked attacks by the herdsmen.”

    The council boss alleged that he saw soldiers escorting some herdsmen to Kashimbilla area of Takum on Tuesday when the IGP, Ibrahim Idris, was commissioning a mobile police base in Takum.

    Tikari’s grouse is that the presence of the Army Exercise Ayem AKpatuma (Cat Race) in the southern part of the state has given rise to increased attacks and killings.

    He said: “These killings have continued, and instead of stopping the attacks, the army are busy harassing innocent people in spite of the influx of herdsmen in Takum.

    “Two people were arrested in Takum around 3 am this morning by the army without any reason, when Fulani militia were killing people in the villages of southern Taraba.

    “As the chief security officer of the local government, the army did not inform me when they escorted herdsmen to Kashimbilla on Tuesday when the IGP was commissioning a mobile police base in Takum.

    “It is unfortunate because these Fulani herdsmen are the ones killing people. Therefore, any Fulani herdsman in Takum is on his own.

    “We don’t have AK-47 rifles, but we can use traditional sticks and stones. I have told my people to stand their ground and defend themselves with sticks and stones.

    “In the story of David and Goliath in the Bible, it was a stone that David threw to kill the almighty Goliath.”

    The Ussa Council Chairman, Rimansikwe Karma, also lamented the influx of herdsmen in his domain at the commencement of Exercise Cat Race, adding that the coming of the herdsmen heightened security threat in his local government.

    He added that despite his complaints that the army were complicit in the attacks on his local government, nothing had been done to convince them that they were neutral.

    Karma said they were armed with evidence to confront the committee set up by the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Burutai, to probe allegations by Danjuma that the Army were colluding with bandits to kill people.

    Governor Darius Ishaku has backed Danjuma on the latter’s allegation that the armed forces “are not neutral” in the attacks on innocent Nigerians by “armed bandits.”

    He told the military panel investigating the allegation, headed by

    Retired Maj-Gen. John Nimyel, that the people of Taraba State were “fully in support of the statements by the former defence minister calling on Nigerians to defend themselves.”

    Ishaku said the remarks by Danjuma, who once headed the Nigerian army, should be carefully looked into rather than criticised.

    He said: “I didn’t sleep last night. At 1 am, I was woken up by a distress call on another herdsmen militia attack.

    “Yesterday, fortunately, the military from Takum came in to help. They battled till this morning.

    “In the morning, they counted 15 bodies. Some are in the hospital in Sondi.

    “But as you are aware, now you can go to Sondi. This is not fake news. I spoke with the commanding officer of the army there this morning.

    “Also this morning at 3 am, the military in Takum went about beating up youths, arresting them from their homes and taking them to the military barracks.

    “The people are being killed and yet you are arresting them. Where is the fairness in this matter?” he asked the military panel.

  • Lassa fever death toll hits 110

    Lassa fever death toll hits 110

    Lassa fever has claimed 110 lives in Nigeria since the beginning of the year, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said yesterday.

    The World Heath Organisation last week said the epidemic had reached record highs with 317 laboratory confirmed cases and 72 people dead.

    “Since the onset of the 2018 outbreak, there have been 110 deaths: 78 in positive-confirmed cases, 8 in probable cases and 24 in negative cases,” the NCDC said in its latest report.

    A total of 1 121 suspected cases were reported, “353 are confirmed positive, 8 are probable, 723 are negative (not a case) and 37 are awaiting laboratory results.”

    The NCDC said cases have been reported in 18 of Nigeria’s 36 states while 16 health workers had been affected in six states.

    Health Minister Isaac Adewole told local media on Tuesday that the government would soon take delivery of vaccines to tame the virus.

    “We are doing everything possible to fight and address the outbreak of lassa fever on all fronts,” he said.

    Lassa fever belongs to the same family as Marburg and Ebola, two deadly viruses that lead to infections with fever, vomiting and in worst-case scenarios, haemorrhagic bleeding.

    The name comes from the town of Lassa in northern Nigeria where it was first identified in 1969.

    More than 100 people were killed in 2016 in one of the nation’s worst outbreaks of the disease, affecting 14 of the 36 states, including Lagos and the capital Abuja.

    The virus is spread through contact with food or household items contaminated with rats’ urine or faeces or after coming into direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.

    The Bauchi Government said yesterday that Lassa fever had killed three people in the state. It also recorded 25 suspected cases in seven local government areas.

    Chairman of the state Primary Health Care Development Agency (BSPHCDA), Alhaji Ibrahim Gamawa, said:.

    “Healthcare workers in health facilities are particularly at risk of contracting the disease.

    “Especially where infection prevention and control procedures are not strictly adhered to,’’ he said.

    The chairman listed the affected local government areas as Alkaleri, Bauchi, Bogoro, Dass, Tafawa Balewa, Toro and Warji.

  • Death toll in Kaduna clash rises to 12

    Death toll in Kaduna clash rises to 12

    The death toll in Monday’s crisis in Kaduna State has risen to 12.

    It was also learnt that 18 persons were arrested yesterday.

    Police Commissioner Austin Iwar, who addressed reporters after a visit, vowed to unravel causes of the crisis.

    Iwar, who visited the community with other top security chiefs, including the General Officer Commanding 1 Division, Maj.-Gen. Mohammed Mohammed, and Commandant of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Modu Goni, was shocked at the destruction.

    He said: “It is unfortunate, the level of destruction here;  some people were killed and property destroyed. This is not what we wished for our state.

    “We will not leave any stone unturned in investigating the remote and the immediate causes of this problem. We will talk to the stakeholders to find out the real problem. We will resolve the crisis through a civil problem-solving approach and consider the criminal aspect of it.

    “So far, we have arrested 18 people for their suspected involvement and we are working to ensure we get to the root of the matter.”

    The 11 victims were buried about midnight while one of the injured, died in hospital yesterday, Iwar added.

  • Lassa fever death toll hits 31 in 15 states

    Lassa fever death toll hits 31 in 15 states

    HEALTH minister Prof. Isaac Adewole yesterday announced that the outbreak of Lassa fever has spread to 15 states, recording 31 deaths.

    He added that there had been 105 laboratory confirmed cases and three probable cases.

    The minister told the Emergency National Council of Health in Abuja yesterday that cases were recorded in Bauchi, Plateau, Taraba, Nasarawa, Benue, Kogi, Ebonyi, Rivers, Imo, Anambra, Edo, Delta, Ondo, Osun and Lagos states.

    The minister added that 10 health care workers were affected in four states (seven in Ebonyi and with one each in Nasarawa, Kogi and Benue states).

    Prof Adewole said four health workers died (three in Ebonyi and one in Kogi.)

    He said the meeting was summoned to discuss the state of public health challenges in Nigeria with a focus on some of the challenges that bedeviled the nation in the past few weeks.

    Adewole added that Lassa fever had been a recurrent outbreak in the country, stressing that Nigeria had battled with a series of outbreaks in the past few months.

    According to the minister, Nigeria dealt with Ebola in 2014; the country reacted strongly and the response was acknowledged by the international community.

    He said: “The success against Ebola created a situation whereby every other public health challenge in Nigeria to be a tea party.

    “Therefore assume that Lassa fever and other challenges would be likened to malaria, that they were not serious.’’

    The minister said that Nigeria had also dealt with the resurgence of polio, adding that the issuance of recertification will be tougher than it was before.

    “The international community will not come to Nigeria’s rescue or certify the country polio free until everyone is sure that Nigeria is polio free, and that is another health challenge,’’ Adewole said.

    The minister said that the country had dealt with measles and persistent case of measles across the country despite the available vaccines, adding that government has already commenced nationwide campaign against measles.

    He lamented that many states were yet to pay counterpart fund for the measles campaign.

    Adewole said in 2017, Nigeria had to contend with the outbreak of cholera from Kwara, Lagos, Kano and Borno states, adding that the disease is preventable with the availability of water and good hygiene.

    The minister said first confirmed case of yellow fever happened in 2017, 17 years after the last case in the country.

    He said: “We have also commenced the nationwide immunisation against yellow fever that will take about seven years to complete due to non-availability of vaccines and large number of people to vaccinate.

    “We have already taken delivery of 25 million doses of vaccines; with these we should be able to go far but not far enough.

    “We are already talking to stakeholders and international partners to shorten the campaign to five years.’’

    Adewole said Nigeria has to deal with cases of monkey pox, stressing that it causes a lot of anxiety in the country which led to the death of three people.

    He said the cases were prevalent in the South-South with Bayelsa, Rivers and Cross Rivers as the focal point of the disease.

    The minister said that government was able to build diagnostic capacity to diagnose monkey pox in Nigeria.

    Besides, Adewole said Nigeria had dealt with meningitis in 2017, adding the problem of meningitis is poor notification and inability to make diagnosis on time.

    He said Lassa fever has been persistent in the country over the past 30 years.

    The minister appealed to the Nigeria Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) and other research institutes to look into the changing dynamics of Lassa fever.

    The minister said: “Lassa fever use to occur only during dry season but now we are contending with an all year transmission of Lassa fever.

    “NIMR director-general, other research institutes will need to find out whether we are dealing with new strain of Lassa fever virus in the country.”

    He also urged state governments and other key stakeholders to work closely with the Nigeria Centre of Disease Control to address outbreak of diseases.

    The meeting was attended by a number of state Commissioners for Health and FCT health secretariat.

    Participants at the meeting renewed their commitments to work with federal government facilities in their states to enhance disease surveillance and disease response programmes.

  • Death toll in Boko Haram’s oil exploration team ambush hits 69

    •Suicide bomber kills 14

    As many as 69 lives may have been  lost in last Tuesday’s ambush of an oil exploration team close to Lake Chad by Boko Haram elements, according to reports yesterday.

    An aid agency worker involved in the recovery of bodies after the attack in Magumeri, Borno State said 19 soldiers, 33 civilian militia and 17 civilians were killed.

    The latest of the corpses were recovered on Friday at Geidam in Yobe State.

    This came as a suicide bomber killed 14 people in Dikwa, in the same state on Friday in an attack that bore the hallmarks of Boko Haram.

    Sources said the body found at Geidam had gunshot wounds which suggest that the victim must have walked over a long distance before succumbing to death.

    “There could be more such victims in the bush,” one source said.

    The terror sect yesterday released a video recording of three employees of the University of Maiduguri it abducted on Tuesday in which they pleaded with the federal authorities  to “come to our rescue to meet the demand” of Boko Haram.

    “They have promised us that if their demands are met they will release us immediately to go back to the work we were caught doing,” one of the captives said.

    University of Maiduguri spokesman Danjuma Gambo confirmed the identities of the three kidnapped men in the video.

    “They are our staff but one more is yet to be accounted for,” he said.

    Five members of staff of the university – two lecturers, two technologists and a driver – were killed, Vice-Chancellor Ibrahim Njodi said on Friday.

    On Friday, two suicide bombers struck a camp for displaced people in Dikwa, 90 kilometres east of Maiduguri, killing 14.

    The bombers disguised themselves as traders wanting to buy grain.

    One of the bombers  detonated his  explosive  after entering a building housing people who had previously fled the insurgency and since returned, the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) said.

    “We have so far evacuated 38 victims comprising 14 dead and 24 injured,” said SEMA spokesman Bello Dambatta.