The Nation Newspaper

Tag: DON

  • Don: increase funding for cancer research, development

    Don: increase funding for cancer research, development

    •Academy of Pharmacy inducts six new fellows

    How can the rise in cancer cases be halted?

    It is by providing quality treatment, affordable  drugs and proper funding of research and development (R&D) into indigenous local herbs for treating cancer,  Isa Marte Hussaini, a professor of Pharmacology at the University of Maiduguri, has said.

    He also said inadequate funding, lack of constant power supply and non-availability of reagents from United States and United Kingdom remained challenges.

    “We need more research grants; it is not about the personnel but the tools to work with. All over the world, there are Nigerians who have distinguished themselves in the field of medicine,’’ Hussaini said.

    Hussaini spoke at the investiture of six fellows by the Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy (NAP).

    They were Director-General, Nigerian Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Prof. Karniyus Gamaniel, former deputy provost, University of Lagos, Prof. Herbert Coker; former national pharmaceutical advisor, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Ogori Taylor; first African woman to bag the fellowship of American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) in the United States Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye; Pharmacy Residency Director, Mercer University College at Atlanta Medical Center, Dr. Teresa Pounds and Communications Management consultant and Chief Executive Officer, XLR8, Calixthus Okoruwa.

    Hussaini sought government’s   assistance to research funding, saying it would lead to the quick eradication of the epidemic.

    Hussaini, whose cancer research is on the use of local herbs for cancer treatment, said: “Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally, the first being cardiovascular diseases with 8.2 million deaths reported worldwide as at 2012. Sadly, a lot of the research grants in Nigeria are focused on deaths arising from preventable diseases like malaria, TB when we should really be funding ground breaking research on cancer. We have seen fruitful evidence of the use of local herbs in the management of cancer in Nigeria.”

    NAP President, Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi, said the inductees have a strong passion for  research. They are professionals who appreciate the value of research in fast-tracking the social and economic progress of societies, he said.

    He described pharmacy as the bedrock of effective healthcare delivery, the best healthcare provider and force behind the discovery of new drugs.

    Adelusi-Adeluyi  said pharmacy is the key that unlocks medical knowledge.

    Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) President, Ahmed Yakasai, said the body was committed to making Nigeria the hub of pharmaceutical production and research on the continent.

    “Through a well-tailored plan, which we have broken down to short, medium and long-term plan, we are looking to promoting pharmaceutical manufacturing in Nigeria and examining the possibilities of producing about 70 percent  of what the industry needs, especially the active pharmaceutical ingredients while importing the remaining 30 percent,” Yakassa stated.

    Yakassai announced the launch of the PSN Foundation, in Abuja on October 17.

    He said the 90th celebration of the PSN had been billed for Umuahia.

    The event was attended by the PCN’s Registrar, Elijah Mohammed, Senator Olusola Adeyeye, General Secretary of the Academy, Prof. Fola Tayo, Vice President, Sir Ifeanyi Atueyi, Chairman, Merit Pharmaceuticals, Dr Lolu Ojo, Nnamdi Obi.

    Others were former managing director, Neimeth Pharmaceuticals, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa;  founder, Alpha Pharmacy, Sir Ike Onyechi, Prof. Kemi Odukoya, former dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos (UNILAG); Prof. Mbang Femi-Oyewo, former dean, Faculty of Pharmacy, Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) and Prof. Cecelia Igwillo of the University of Lagos.

  • Don backs national livestock census

    Don backs national livestock census

    Nigerian Institute of Animal Science Registrar Prof Eustace Iyayi has called for a national-level livestock census.

    The census, he said, will help the government to decide which areas it needs to focus on to improve livestock population.

    Nigeria, according to Iyayi, has enormous and diverse animal wealth generating opportunities for millions, adding that investment in animal wealth can contribute to income growth.

    Through data collection, he said,  the government will be able to  prove figures on animals and livestock products.

    The government, he said, will be able to gather correct data for drawing policies on the country’s food security and poverty alleviation, livestock breeding and veterinary plans.

    According to the Dean, School of Science and Technology, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Prof. Dele Fapohunda, a national livestock census  will support the government’s effort towards achieving sustainable development of the  agric sector, by providing materials to assist  in  the formulation  and implementation  schemes  that meet the local needs of  farmers.

    Fapohunda said the statistics would also help the government in areas where stocking and restocking are required as well as help the government to decide which areas it needs to focus on to improve the livestock population. Fapohunda  said the census will help the government to estimate the population of livestock in the country, stressing the need to collect data on livestock loss due to the sudden outbreak of diseases.

    To experts, the lack of livestock census has caused a gap between the government calculated livestock data and the actual livestock figure.

    In some countries, livestock survey is carried out every 10 years. It is used as a projection and planning tool for the sector, which has continued to use estimations for available livestock in the country.

  • How to make govt policies work, by don

    FOR any government to be adjudged as working for national growth and the citizenry, it must provide an evidence of bridging the gap between the intention of its policies and actual achievement of such policies.

    First female Professor of Public Administration in Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Prof. Mrs. Juliana Taiwo Makinde said this while delivering the university’s 307th inaugural lecture series.

    She emphasised the need for policy-makers to take the issue of policy implementation “seriously right” from the formulation stage.

    In her lecture, titled: “Policy somersaults, poverty of policy implementation and corruption: Obstacles to development in Nigeria”, the university don recommended that for a successful policy implementation, target beneficiaries should be involved at the formulation stage “for them to have an input in what affect their lives”.

    She maintained that “this will also give them a sense of belonging and therefore a sense of commitment”.

    According to her, attention should be given to the manpower and financial resources, which, she maintained, will be needed to implement the policy.

    She added that there must be effective communication between the target beneficiaries and those implementing policy programmes.

    Prof. Makinde, who made copious references to series of policy somersaults of Nigeria’s first ladies’ and governments’ programmes, said the culture of discontinuing a policy once there was a change of government should be discouraged.

    She added that it must be understood that even though government comes and goes, administration must continue.

    Maintaining that provision should be made for adequate monitoring of projects, she noted that poorly monitored projects would not yield desired results.

    She listed some of the policies that appear to have suffered somersaults as including policies on poverty alleviation and education.

    She said: “Starting with policy on poverty alleviation, it is on record that since independence, many programmes, which include Operation Feed the Nation (OFN: 1979), the National Directorate of Employment (NDE:1986), the Better Life Programme (BLP:1987), People’s Bank (1989),  Community Bank (1990), and the National Poverty Alleviation Programme (NAPEP, 2001), had been established by various governments at one time or the other to tackle the problem of poverty and food insecurity” and others.

    Prof. Makinde argued that in spite of the programmes, poverty was still very visible among Nigerians.

    “In addition, the programmes somersaulted as a result of poor design, insufficient or unrealistic attention paid to their implementation and monitoring, as well as top-down poverty reduction strategy,” she said.

    In her words: “The quality of leaders will go a long way to affecting implementation of policies in a way that will be devoid of implementation gap. Leaders must lead by examples and must be knowledgeable and willing to learn more to improve their skills at handling policy matters.

    The don, who regarded corruption as a big factor militating against effective implementation of policies, said efforts should be directed at reducing poverty among the people.

    She said: “We must not be unmindful of the fact that women have also contributed to policy somersault and poverty of policy implementation as a result of corruption on their part while holding sensitive political positions…

    “In a study carried out on ‘Women and Corruption in the Nigerian Public Service’ by Makinde (2015), it was revealed that many women in government have continually been linked with high profile corrupt practices. It is not my submission, however, that all the women who have held public office in Nigeria were corrupt but, a sizeable number of them have been accused of corruption in recent times while at least one has been declared as being good role model in the society.

    “The late Professor Dora Akunyili performed to the admiration of the people within and outside Nigeria when she served as the director-general of NAFDAC, the position she occupied with almost an impeccable record.”

  • Don urges governors to stop relying on Fed allocation

    A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in Ekiti State, Prof Adesegun Ojo, has blamed greed and selfish tendencies among Nigerian leaders and politicians for the pervasive poverty plaguing the masses.

    The professor of Politics, who said the monthly allocations from the Federal Government had beclouded the creative tendencies and sense of reasoning of many governors, added that the preoccupation of leaders should be how to better the lots of the people in abject poverty and not to steal the commonwealth for their selfish ends.

    He urged Nigerian government at all levels to prioritise implementation of programmes and policies targeted at eliminating poverty among the populace.

    Ojo spoke at Itapa-Ekiti in Oye Local Government Area while presenting soft loans to women and the less-privileged in the community under the Adesegun Ojo Empowerment Programme.

    Fifty aged women and other less privileged residents of the community benefitted from the programme which the aspirant said was his way of giving back to society.

    The politician advised others seeking political offices to invest in the masses rather than waste their resources on fellow politicians and hoodlums who would not make good use of the money.

    Ojo, who expressed confidence that the soft loans would make a difference in the lives of the beneficiaries and their families, added: “One of the problems we have in this country is poverty. We have to deliberately rise against this.

    “We have a lot to do. We have to empower our youths. We have to provide people’s needs. Basic amenities, such as water, roads and electricity, must be provided. There is need to provide jobs for the teeming unemployed graduates. Ensuring security of lives and property is also a key duty of governments.”

    The aspirant pledged that if elected governor of Ekiti State, he would discourage reliance on the Federal Government for monthly allocations.

    He said his administration would develop a comprehensive agricultural policy that would make the state a food basket and free the residents from poverty.

    According to him, if elected governor of Ekiti State, every local government will have a programme on agricultural development and create agricultural development zones.

    Ojo said such zones would have agricultural produce processing factories, marketing firms, houses and schools.

    The PDP chieftain said loans would also be provided to farmers to boost their productivity.

    The beneficiaries hailed Ojo for the gesture, saying it would get them out of hunger.

    One of them, Mrs Felicia Dada, said the scheme, which would hold monthly, would reduce hunger among women and children.

     

  • Three remanded for ‘killing don’ in Rivers

    A Chief Magistrates’ Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has ordered the remand in prison custody of three persons for allegedly kidnapping and killing a lecturer at the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), Dr. Eeba Lebarile.

    The suspects are: Christopher Kinanee, the deceased’s gateman, 41; Lebari Robert Tambari, ex-police officer, who was the victim’s cousin, 48; and Ibrahim Useni, a foreigner from the Republic of Benin, 27.

    The suspects were arrested between December 2015 and early this month.

    Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Ibrahim Idris, through his Special Monitoring Unit in the state, led by Ben Igwe, a deputy commissioner of police, investigated the killing.

    Two other Benin Republic nationals allegedly involved in the crime are at large.

    The IGP charged the suspects with conspiracy, kidnapping and murder.

    The police lawyer, who is prosecuting for the IGP, Mr. Okon Monday Umana, told the court the suspects committed an offence punishable under sections 324,319(1), 516(1) of the Criminal Code Cap 37, Volume 2, Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1999 and sections, 1(1) (2)(a) of Rivers State kidnap (prohibitions) amendment law No.5 of 2015.

    The Chief Magistrate, Andrew Jaja, ordered that the charge be read out to them, but they were not allowed to take plea.

    He said the court lacked power to entertain the charge, being a capital offence punishable with maximum sentence.

    Jaja ordered that the original case file be duplicated and handed over to the court registrar, to forward same to the Office of the State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

    He adjourned the case till September 28 for report of DPP advice.

    Dr. Lebari of the Department of Management, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), was reportedly kidnapped from his Mercyland Estate home on East West Road, in Obio/Akpor Local Government, on October 17, 2015.

    His abductors allegedly called his younger brother, who is overseas, to demand N1.5 million ransom.

    The decayed body of the victim was recovered from a shallow grave in his house.

    The first accused (guard, who allegedly sold the victim’s galaxy phone, showed the police where the deceased was buried.

    Investigations are on to unravel the mystery behind his kidnap and death.

  • Police rescue don, ex-commissioner

    •Suspect arrested

    Enugu State Police Command at the weekend rescued Prof. Nduka Eya unhurt. One of the suspects in the kidnap was arrested.

    The command recovered a locally-made gun from the suspect.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Enugu-based Eya was abducted by gunmen last Thursday evening at Ezillo Street, Independence Layout, Enugu.

    Command spokesman Ebere Amaraizu said in a statement the rescue was possible through a joint operation with sister security agencies.

    He said the don was rescued on Saturday about 6:30 a.m.

    “Operatives of the Anti-Kidnap Unit, through intelligence information and coordinated operation conducted in the early hours of Saturday, rescued Prof. Eya.

    “He was rescued unhurt by the operatives following an operation carried out in a forest on Enugu-Abakiliki Expressway. One suspect was arrested.

    “A locally-made gun was recovered from him,’’ Amaraizu said.

    He said the suspect was helping the police in their investigation.

    “The rescued academician and statesman has been re-united with his family, while manhunt is on for other suspects.’’

    NAN recalls that Eya was secretary-general of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, an umbrella body of Igbo socio-cultural groups spanning nine states.

    He was Education commissioner in old Anambra State.

  • Don makes case for new uninalysis technology

    Don makes case for new uninalysis technology

    Medical practitioners have been urged to adopt the new technology for urinalysis.

    Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIRM) Director-General, Prof. Babatunde Salako, made the call during the launch of the United Nations Series-the modular way of urinalysis at the National Sickle Cell Centre, Idi Araba, Lagos.

    The event had as theme Bridging the gap between patient care and quality diagnosis using medical technology in the laboratory.

    Salako, who was the keynote speaker, said embracing the urinalysis would reduce errors and improve accuracy.

    “You now have at your disposal a calibrated automated machine that can carry out urinalysis that would drastically reduce human error, Salako, said.

    “These machines are capable of taking care of virtually everything concerned with urinary test and on the long run; the laboratory technicians would see other numerous uses of the machine.”

    He added that the UN-series–Modula way of urinalysis is automated.

    On how to rule out any error in the machine, Salako said: “There is the need to be certain that the range of normal that has been made for the machine by manufacturers also applies to us in Nigeria, so that the machine will not say what is normal for other countries is too high or low for us.

    “We need to be sure that the range is accurate because they are being calibrated based on the country where it is produced,” he added.

    Also, Managing Director, Gem Investment Limited, Chief Damian Onyekachi, said the UN-series style of carrying out urinalysis came at the right time.

    ‘’They have been using it in Europe and I believe that if we are able to establish that in Nigeria it would go a long way to help our nurses to improve patient care as well.

    “We are still working it out because this is just a launch, but by the time we get to the table, we will work on what should be and what should not be in each category. So, if you have a smaller laboratory, you go for a smaller one, if it is a teaching hospital you go for the big one that would handle like hundred tests per day.”

  • Don: bring back produce boards

    A senior lecturer with Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Dr. Awotein George, has urged the Federal Government to re-establish agricultural produce marketing boards, to boost the economy.

    He told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt that re-establishing marketing boards would boost the agricultural sector.

    George, who heads Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Environment, noted that most agricultural produce were perishable if not processed.

    He recalled that marketing boards helped the agriculture sub-sector before oil was discovered in 1956 at Oloibiri, Bayelsa State.

    Oloibiri Oilfield was discovered on January 15, 1956 by Shell Darcy, thus ending 50 years of unsuccessful oil exploration by oil companies.

    George said there were also rubber, cocoa, groundnut, palm oil and cotton marketing boards.

    He said each of the four defunct regions was noted for rubber (Mid-West); palm oil (East/Mid-West); groundnut and cotton (North) and cocoa (West).

    The lecturer said the boards  announced market price to farmers in accordance with each produce grade.

    He said reviving the boards would stabilise market prices, encourage and enable farmers to know their estimated income depending on the grade(s).

    George said this encouraged farmers to increase production, as they knew prices would be stable.

    He said the agricultural sector suffers from perishable  produce, price uncertainty and market glut.

    The don said if marketing boards were revived, spoilage and market glut would be over.

  • Don warns against use of antibiotics

    A Professor of Medical Microbiology (Infections and Immunity) at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Tinuola Adebolu, has warned that most antibiotics can have side effects on the consumers.

    In their place, she recommended indigenous foods and herbs.

    Adebolu spoke while delivering the university’s 88th Inaugural lecture titled: “Mechanisms of adaptive immunity and the endless battle against diarrhoeagenic bacteria’ held at the institution’s main auditorium.

    She said: “Indigenous foods and herbs which are readily available in the community such as the ones researched into can be used in treating infection since they are foods that we normally consume with no side effect.  We should let food be our medicine. They should, however, be consumed as close to nature as possible, that is in their raw state.

    “Ogi, cheese whey, honey, garlic and beniseed have antibacterial, anti-diarrhoeatic, immunomodulatory and immunostimulatory effects that can be exploited in treating individuals suffering from bacterial diarrhoea, especially in rural communities where they might not have quick access to orthodox therapy.”

    Adebolu noted that raw “Ogi” used in making pap and other components are highly potent in curing diarrhea, which she said can help reduce the morbidity and mortality that accompany such illnesses, especially in children.”

    The lecturer also recommended same for urban dwellers who were likely to be exposed to bacterias causing diseases that “have developed resistance to some of the commonly available antibiotics” .

    Adebolu called for more research into the efficacy indigenous foods or raw materials in treating bacterial diarrhea.

    She warned against over dependence on vaccines produced abroad, since there are divergent strains and serotypes of diarrhoeagenic bacterial that are implicated in different regions of the world.

    FUTA Vice-Chancellor, Prof Joseph Fuwape, described Adebolu as a scholar who has contributed greatly to knowledge in her field.

     

  • Don: Africa needs more researchers on peacebuilding

    Don: Africa needs more researchers on peacebuilding

    Prof Cyril Obi is the Project Director, African Peacebuilding Network (APN) of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), New York. At a workshop held at the  Federal University, Oye Ekiti (FUOYE), last week, Obi shares the vision of the organisation and the rationale behind the workshop with ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA. Excerpts:

    What are the core objectives of APN?

    The core objectives are three: to support African researches on conflict-affected countries and neighbouring regions of the continent, as well as the integration of African knowledge into global policy communities. APN gives grants to African researchers and does a lot of publicity and dissemination of research findings. We take images of the work and put it on the Internet.

    We support independent African research and make it accessible to key policy maker. APN accomplishes this by facilitating the transformation of the quality and scale of African research and consolidating on the contributions of

    African researchers and analysts, thereby connecting them with other African scholars, policy analysts, practitioners, and networks focusing on issues of peacebuilding, as well as with other policymaking communities around the world.

    What is the essence of this three-day workshop on research grant proposal writing?

    The workshop is part of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by APN of SSRC and FUOYE on development of Africa. The essence is a training workshop targeted at young researchers with PhDs teaching in African universities, as well as practitioners working in research organisations and civil society organisations. This workshop is for West African scholars and practitioners only. Participants are from The Gambia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. The whole essence is to bring in colleagues with interest in research that will work with our experts to help them improve the quality of their research so that they can compete internationally to win grants that will support the kind of work they want to do, hoping their work will impact positively on policies and practices in our sub-region.

    Does it mean that our researchers don’t know how to write proposals?

    Most academics are good at writing proposals for doctorate and masters

    Thesis; but this kind of proposal is specially tailored for research grants in peace building, which are very competitive. An average grant is about $15,000. So we support and train them to win this grant. In this case, the proposal is tailored towards grant on research on peacebuilding. It is a subject that is rather broad and relatively new in our part of the world.