The Nation Newspaper

Tag: mother

  • ‘Governors should prepare for mother of all battles’

    ‘Governors should prepare for mother of all battles’

    The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, spoke to reporters on national issues, including the shortage of premium motor spirit (PMS), the clamour for withdrawal of subsidy on petroleum products and the declaration that states cannot pay N18, 000 minimum wage. At the event, an enraged Wabba said workers would embark on an indefinite nationwide strike, if governors make good their threat to stop the payment of N18, 000 minimum wage. Deputy Political Editor RAYMOND MORDI was there.

    What is the latest on the face-off between the NLC and governors over the threat to stop the payment of N18, 000 minimum wage?

    We are still in a state of shock that our governors could make such pronouncement. What is N18, 000, considering the current economic challenges in the country? We were thinking that these governors will make an upward review of the minimum wage, but what we got in return was a shock; N18, 000 is not a living wage and our leaders know this. Yet, they are now saying they can’t even pay it.

    But, Nigerian workers are no fools. It is not as if the governors don’t have the financial wherewithal to pay this money; their problem is that of misplaced priorities. There are lots of leakages in the system, which when blocked will ensure that there are sufficient funds to pay workers. For example, look at duplication of political offices and political appointees by many state governors? What about jumbo salaries, allowances and other perks of offices these political appointees collect every month? The money runs into hundreds of millions of naira.

    Why should the NLC fold its arms and allow workers to be made sacrificial lambs by governors? Never! Some of these governors apart from living opulent lifestyles have also embarked on projects that have no direct relevance to the lives of the people. The cost of governance needs to be drastically cut down at all levels.

    Has there been any move for an amicable settlement of the crisis?

    We are open to dialogue. However, the sustenance of N18, 000 minimum wage is not negotiable. We are even planning to demand for an upward review of the minimum wage in view of the present economic hardships. Many states are in dire straits today because of the priorities they have chosen, which has nothing to do with public good.

    We, however, believe and still insist that workers salaries can’t be sacrificed on the altar of challenges of the economy, because it is not the making of workers. It has never happened in the history of this country and it will not be said that it is during our leadership of the NLC that this calamity was allowed to happen to Nigerian workers. The governors should re-order their priorities and again instead of going cap in hand to Abuja at the end of every month to collect allocation, they should look inwards by increasing their Internally Generated Revenues( IGR).

    In the ’60s when Nigeria didn’t have oil as the main source of her revenue, the country’s founding fathers raised funds through efficient tax system and other forms of internally generated revenue for development and also pay living wages to workers. Our current crop of leaders who put themselves up for election for different elective positions must not only endeavour to deliver on their electoral promises, they must also pay workers living wages. This is not negotiable.

    But, the governors claim that the minimum wage was imposed on them. What is your view on this?

    It is not correct that the minimum wage was imposed on the governors. For the records, the 2011 National Minimum Wage came into existence after almost two years of agitation and eventual negotiation by the tripartite stakeholders: the Federal and state governments, the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association representing other employers in the private sector and the organized labour.

    As organized labour, we submitted a request for N52, 000 minimum wage, but out of our patriotic disposition and consideration, we reluctantly agreed to the N18, 000 minimum wage, even though it was grossly inadequate as a living wage. Many of the state governments who submitted memoranda then to that tripartite committee even recommended figures that were far above the N18, 000 that was eventually agreed upon. The governors can’t therefore claim that the current national minimum wage was imposed on them. The records are there. We kept records of all these negotiations.

    But, as you are aware, things are not rosy with the governors; that is why they sought and were given bail-outs by the federal government…

    Like I said earlier, we strongly believe that there is no state in Nigeria today that can’t pay N18, 000 minimum wage. The problems with the governors is about getting or setting their priorities right. With regards to the bail-outs, the NLC has to raise alarm when we discovered that some state governors were making attempts to divert it to other uses. Some of them were diverting the bail-outs into fixed deposit accounts for personal gains.

    It is sad that some of the governors elected to play politics with the welfare of their workers; some of them were even quoted as saying that they reserve the right to do whatever they like with the intervention fund from the federal government since it wasn’t a loan. This kind of attitude is unacceptable to the NLC.

    What is the way out of the current fuel scarcity?

    As an oil producing nation, we have no reason to suffer fuel crisis. I will like to appeal to the federal government to find a way to identify and deal with the cabal behind the energy crisis. Obviously, some interests are benefitting from the current import regime we are running. But is this supposed to be so? We have no business importing petroleum products as an oil-producing nation. I also disagree with those clamouring for the removal of subsidy; these elements are anti-masses.

     

     

    Thank God, President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that subsidy is not going to be removed. He has not caved in to the pressure by anti-people elements. Removal of subsidy will trigger social unrest.

    To get out of the problem, the federal government should build more refineries even outside Nigeria; this will increase the supply of petroleum products in the market. The NLC is outraged by continued fuel scarcity resulting in skyrocketing prices and long queues at filling stations in different parts of the country.

  • Mother, child death: Hospital management absolves self of blame

    Mother, child death: Hospital management absolves self of blame

    The management of Rauf Aregbesola Health Centre in Mosan-Okunola Local Council Development Area, Alimosho, Lagos has exonerated the hospital from the incident that led to the death of Mrs Omowunmi Shonuga, who with her baby died during delivery, reports TAJUDEEN ADEBANJO

    •’She gave birth before reaching hospital’    

    •Doctor: everything was done to save her 

    •The late Mrs Shonuga
    •The late Mrs Shonuga

    The death of Mrs Omowunmi Shonuga and her baby during child birth has thrown residents of Shagari Estate at the Federal Low Cost Housing Scheme, Mosan-Okunola Local Council Development Area (LCDA) in Lagos into mourning.

    The widower, Ayobanji is crying foul, alleging that his wife and baby died due to negligence of the personnel at the Rauf Aregbesola Health Centre in Alimosho.

    According to Shonuga, the gate to the centre was locked in the early hours of Monday October 26 when he rushed his expectant wife to the place.

    He said: “We got to the hospital around 5am to meet the hospitals locked. I horned, nobody came out. After a while, a woman came out and said there was no doctor on duty to attend to me and that I should take her to the Igando General Hospital. I said it was impossible for a doctor not to be on duty in a hospital as big as this. She ignored my other inquiries. As I got back to my car, I saw that my wife had delivered the baby and  she was bleeding. It was when I started shouting, ‘Blood! Blood! Baby’ that two nurses rushed out from the hospital.”

    Shonuga alleged that the nurses blamed him for not shouting loud enough to have attracted their attention to get the keys to open the gate.

    “After they opened the gate, I drove in. One of the attendants picked the baby, but the nurses refused to touch my wife. I asked for a stretcher to take her in, they said they didn’t have. I asked for an ambulance to take her away from there, they said they were not with the keys. I had to carry her upstairs with no help from them because they didn’t want to touch her. They said there was no doctor to attend to her,” he alleged.

    Mrs Shonuga later died at the Igando General Hospital, Igando, where she was referred to.

    •Mrs Quadri
    •Mrs Quadri

    Explaining their side of the tragic incident, the Apex Nurse of Rauf Aregbesola Health Centre, Mrs Ayoka Quadri, denied that the Shonugas were not promptly attended to.

    According to her, the Shonugas came in with dead baby and the nurses and doctor on duty did all they could to save the mother’s life.

    Mrs Quadri said: “The late Mrs Shonuga was one of our clients. When she was brought in on Monday October 25 morning around 7:30am, the nurses on duty attended to them immediately and they rushed the woman inside. They saw the woman in the pool of blood with a dead baby that has not been separated from the mother. They separated the dead baby and rushed the woman into the Labour Room to resuscitate her. They gave her anti-heamorrhagic drugs that are supposed to be used for people in labour and other necessary treatment required to stop the blood.

    “Thereafter, we apply anti-shock garment before referring her to the Igando General Hospital. We also mandated one of our nurses to accompany them for quick attention.”

    •The labour room where she was attended to
    •The labour room where she was attended to

    She said the deceased must have gone through labour for long hours before she was brought to the centre, claiming it was impossible for someone to start labouring and delivered within two hours.

    “She has been mismanaged somewhere else. We learnt that she spent the weekend in the church and from there her husband brought her to the centre. Her husband should be bold enough to say the truth. There are stages of labour. So, it is not possible to deliver within two hours. That means she has been taken to somewhere where they couldn’t manage her condition anymore before she was rushed down here. So, she probably might have started labouring since Saturday before they broughther here on Monday morning when they could not handle the case anymore.”

    The nurse who accompanied them to Igando General Hospital, Mrs Maryam Daramola, said the late Mrs Shonuga told her husband inside the car not to worry that she is not going to die.

    She said: “I was with her inside the car. The woman was talking to her husband, saying ‘Oko mi AY, o ni fi oju sukun mi (meaning: my husband Ayo, you ‘re not going to cry over me.’)  She was praying and I told the husband to drive safely, be calm, that his wife was getting better. When we got to the hospital, I ran out of the car to quickly meet the doctor. There was no bed space, so the doctor had to treat her in his office since it’s an emergency. They did blood transfusion and stabilised her.

    “Afterwards, the doctor asked her husband to explain what actually happened to her and why she was taken to church instead of hospital. He couldn’t give a convincing response.”

    On the delay before the deceased was transferred to the general hospital, Mrs Daramola denied delaying the woman at health centre.

    •The anti-shock garment used for her
    •The anti-shock garment used for her

    “The doctor who attended to her was the same person that assisted in carrying her downstairs after which he returned up stairs to write the referral. That was the time Mr Shonuga was shouting that they are wasting their time,” she said.

    Dr Olakunle Olaleye said he had to call other personnel to help carry the woman down stairs after noticing her husband’s non-challant attitude.

    “The lackadaisical attitude of the husband baffled me. I had to get the support of someone else and told the man (Shonuga) to drop his phone because of the emergency situation. I went down to get the stretcher that we used to carry her down stair with the help of the husband,” he said.

    Olaleye blamed Mrs Shonuga’s death on negligence.

    He said: “I think it was a case of negligence by her husband;  the patient has been mismanaged grossly where she was taken to because she was in a church garment and a white cap. Everything was done in the capacity of the doctor and the nurses on duty to handle the situation. But unfortunately, she died when she got to the general hospital  one hour after admission. The injury was overwhelming before she was brought into the hospital,” he said.

    He urged people to stop patronising faith-based homes for delivery and traditional birth attendants, but to take advantage of medical centres provided by government.

     

  • Bayelsa to protect mother tongue from extinction

    Bayelsa State has attained a milestone in its efforts to rescue Ijaw language from going into extinction. The state recently mobilised teachers it trained in Ijaw language to various schools. The state Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, on assumption of office, vowed to restore the dying Jaw dialects.

    Dickson, through the Ministry of Culture and Ijaw National Affairs headed by Dr. Felix Tuodolor, went through the process of developing curriculum for the teaching of Ijaw languages. He inaugurated experts to conduct research on the subject matter and develop books to aid learning. He went further to send teachers to the state-owned Niger Delta University (NDU) to be trained in the language and art of teaching it.

    Recently, in an event held at the Ijaw House, Tuodolor formally gave the teachers appointment letters to commence work in selected schools. To simplify their jobs, he also presented books, teaching and learning materials to the benefitting schools. The event was attended by representatives of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the state Ministry of Education.

    He said the Ministry of Culture and Ijaw National Affairs, SUBEB and the Ministry of Education are involved in the task of teaching the language. He also said the teachers were sent to three selected schools from each local government area.

    According to him, the state recently conducted interviews for different categories of teachers for employment. He said the language teachers were the first batch to be engaged, adding that other categories would be employed later.

    He said: “There are specific instructions that, before any other employment, we should start with the Izon language teachers; the Nembe, Epie and the Akassa. We were asked to start with these people and give them employment before any other. Today, their appointment letters are out.

    “These teachers will be posted to different schools in the state. In addition, all those schools that we are posting teachers to will receive many learning and teaching materials from our government.”

    In his remarks, the Executive Secretary, SUBEB, Mr. Walton Liverpool, said 36 letters of appointment were issued to successful language teachers. He recalled that Ijaw language was almost dead when the present government came on board. He said Pidgin English and the English language dealt a deadly blow on local dialects.

    He said the matter became worse in schools where persons who spoke Ijaw language were laughed at by their peers.

    He said: “When this government came on board, it was a fact that our different dialects in our communities had been given a big blow by Pidgin English. We also noticed that we preferred to speak English language even during our festivals and ceremonies to the detriment of our dialects. It became worse in schools where some students were laughed at and mocked because they could not speak correct English but they can speak their dialects.

    “There was that apathy. Meanwhile, if you go to other parts of the country, in lgbo land for instance, people take pride in speaking their language even in our market the lgbo man takes pride in speaking his language to you.”

    He said Governor Dickson made conscious efforts to arrest the development, insisting at many forums that language remains the most important identity of a people.

    “Language gives us voice. It sustains our culture and tradition,” he said.

    He added: “So, government today is doing all that is possible for people to acquire and speak our languages. We want to become fluent while speaking our languages and then work towards having one language for all Bayelsans; a common dialect.

    “We are doing this beginning with our different dialects because we don’t want any dialect to die and also we don’t want anyone to feel oppressed or marginalised. Everyone’s languages will be there but there will be a general language.

    “We are going to work on all the languages then have one general language. Parents are advised to always speak their languages to their children at home so that we will preserve our culture and tradition.

    “For each dialect, we have several books that cut across Mathematics, English language and other forms of reading and we have indigenous people who did great works on this. In all, we have 43 different translated books in our language here for distribution.”

  • Agony of a mother

    Agony of a mother

    •I dreamt he rolled over a mountain when he was five
    •I never knew my best friend was going to leave so soon

    The mother of the late Jamiu Jamiu, who was hit last Thursday by a truck driver on Lekki-Ajah Expressway, in Lagos is still in agony over the death of her son.

    Alhaja Idiat Jamiu said she saw her son two weeks ago when he visited her at her Alagbado residence.

    The late Jamiu, popularly called JJ, was the Chief Executive Officer of H2 Chicken, a frozen food company.

    The Nation learnt that the deceased’s power bike somersaulted on impact and he was removed from under the truck.

    The distraught mother said: “I was very lucky to see him two weeks ago because I complained he didn’t check on me after I returned from hajj and he was the one who picked me from the airport.”

    She described him as her confidant, saying she never envisaged his death.

    “I won’t say I saw it coming but I remember when he was a five-year-old, I dreamt he rolled over a mountain and when I called him, he didn’t answer me. Since then, that dream has been on my mind. He taught me so many things about Islam. He increased my faith. It was until this incident I realised Allah had always told me something. Allah gave me signs. But, as a Muslim what can I do?”

    •Mrs Jamiu with one of her children... on Monday
    •Mrs Jamiu with one of her children… on Monday

    Narrating how she got the news, the mother of four said: “I was in my first daughter’s school when Jamiu’s wife called me that she had been trying my daughter’s mobile line. As I handed my phone to her, she began to panic; then I became curious. She later disclosed to me that her brother had an accident and was rushed to an hospital. On getting to Oshodi, my elder sister, a retired matron, said we shouldn’t bother to come to the hospital but I became worried. I almost ran mad. I returned home believing that my son was still alive. I performed ablution and prayed God kept him for me but later that day; my husband told me Jamiu was dead.

    “He was the third child and second son. Even before he won the Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation (ZSF) Business Plan Competition in August, he had been an entrepreneur. There was nothing he couldn’t do while growing up. He hawked so many goods for me. He was my confidant. At sad moments, he consoled me. Till the last time we spoke, he assured me Allah is always there for me. He was the first to work among his siblings. Even when he told me about his chicken business, I was against it but he said he didn’t need much gain from the business but all he wanted to do was Jihad.

    “When he used bicycle for delivery, he told me Allah will protect him. When he bought a power bike, he urged me not to panic that Allah is still the protector of all. He told me about his plans. Aside the fact that he was married, he requested I prayed for him. I have accepted my fate but I pray Allah accepts my son. Because of his demise, members of my family I haven’t seen for almost 12 years are here again. He was a family man. He brought families together. I will deeply miss my baby.”

    Jamiu’s widow, Sherifah, said she was at a conference when she received a phone call from a stranger that said her husband was involved in a fatal accident.

    The 31-year-old mother of two said that her husband visited her at the conference that morning before he left.

    She said: “I left home for the conference on October 25 but that morning before he died, he came to visit me at the conference and he joked with me. He told me he wanted to pay for a shop he planned to rent close to our residence and said goodbye. It was 10 minutes after he left I received a call about the accident. I was told he needed a pint of blood but before a family member brought it, he died. I looked at my lifeless husband on the bed and asked him ‘Is that the end?’.

    “He was a caring husband and an adorable father. His children and his siblings were his priorities. He aspired to be a big entrepreneur. We got married five years ago and I never knew my best friend was going to leave so soon.”

    •Hajia Shuaib... on Monday
    •Hajia Shuaib… on Monday

    The late Jamiu’s sister, Hajia Olajumoke Shuaib described her brother’s death as unfortunate.

    She said she was told around 11.33am.

    “When my aunt told my mum and I to return home, I became worried. My mum was destabilised. She kept asking people how it was possible to return home when her son was in pain. I miss my brother. He was close to everyone.

    He did everything for me. He was my younger brother but I confided in him. As the day passes, I miss him more. My brother was small but mighty,” she said.

    A resident, who gave his name as Johnson, said he knew the deceased very well.

    “Whenever I resumed school, I made sure I ate chicken before I went broke. I just heard the news today (yesterday). Ahh! It is very painful,” he said.

    The late Jamiu’s friend, Abdul Qudus Otunba, said it was still unbelievable his friend of 10 years was no more.

    •Jafar
    •Jafar

    He said: “I can’t pin point what I miss about him. That very day the incident happened, I dialled his mobile line to seek an advice but I didn’t know he was in pain. I miss him so much. May God grant him Al-Jannah firdaus and console his wife and family.”

    The late Jamiu is survived by two children – Jafar (4) and Jumaima (15 months old), parents and three siblings.

     

  • Ayade fetes Mother and Daughter Pageant contestants

    Ayade fetes Mother and Daughter Pageant contestants

    The Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, last weekend doled out the sum of one million naira on each of the 11 families that contested at the maiden edition of Silverbird’s Mother and Daughter Pageant.

    According to reports, the pageant, held at the Cross River International Conference Centre, Calabar, involved 11 teams, each made up of a mother and daughter.

    Extolling the qualities of the family, Ayade said that a contest which celebrates family values should have no loser, as it will affect the confidence children have in their mothers. He described the pageant as a ‘life touching’ show.

    He said; “An event like this shows that culture has not departed from us. Anything involving mothers make me very emotional, because I remember the struggles of my mother while I was growing up and how her sickness started when we were becoming successful.

    “This event should have been for the mother and her son, because sons feel very strongly for their mothers more than daughters.

    “If I had one wish in this world, it will be that mothers die no more, and I will give an arm and a leg just to see my mother again and for her to see me as a governor today.”

    Results of the first edition of the Mother and Daughter Pageant were decided exclusively from the online votes of viewers.

    The team of Mrs Angela Nwangwa and her daughter, Gift, emerged winners of the pageant. Apart from the governor’s largesse, they also got N2 million cash and a family trip to Dubai as overall winner of the contest. The duo of Mrs Omo Alake and her daughter, Ife, emerged the first runner-up, while Mrs Thelma Ukpai and her daughter, Mercy, were the second runner-up.

    Apart from emerging winners, the Nwangwa team was also awarded the Most Innovative Mother and Daughter. Team Six was adjudged the Most Creative Mother and Daughter while Team 10 had the Best Outfit.

    Team 11 got the Most Photogenic Mother and Daughter, while Team Four won the prize for Special Relationship and Bond.

    In his remarks, the Vice President, Silverbird Group, Guy Murray-Bruce, said that the theme of the pageant was Circle of Life and it was to celebrate family qualities.

  • Tragedy as rock crushes mother, children to death in Ogun

    … father, two others critically injured

    Four persons, including mother, two children and a grandchild were crushed to death by over 1000 years old rock that tipped off its base and rammed lethally on them after knocking down the wall of their bedroom.

    The incident which happened in the rocky Iberekodo community in Abeokuta North Local Government Council of Ogun state on Friday night, took the grieving residents in shock.

    However, the man of the house Ismail Lawal, Sukurat and Rofiat survived the assault on the modest home by the deadly rock because they happened to be relaxing at the sitting room when it struck but that is not without injuring them seriously.

    The victims – Mrs Silifat Lawal, her two children: Raaheedat (15), Semia(4) and a grandchild – Mariam, had barely fallen into a deep sleep on their bed after a Friday dinner when the rock killed them while the injured were taken to hospital for treatment.
    .
    The Nation gathered that the rock has been in existence in Iberekodo community before the Egba people settled in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital around 1830 AD.

    The Nation gathered further that the heavy downpour on Friday night which had softened the base of the rock situating on a location overlooking Ismail Lawal’s home, caused the ground to give way, and the rock having lost its balance tumbled and rolled lethally on Lawal’s home beneath.

  • Ebonyi governor loses mother

    Ebonyi governor loses mother

    These are not the best of times for Ebonyi State governor, David Umahi. Death struck on Tuesday, taking away Umahi’s mother, Deaconess Margaret Umahi, at an Enugu-based hospital after a brief illness, leaving the governor in deep mourning.

    Her remains have been deposited at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki. She is survived by many children and grand children. Her family is said to have already set the machinery in motion for a befitting burial.

  • Mother, daughter arrested for ‘child trafficking’

    The police in Abia State have arrested a mother and her 19-year-old daughter for suspected child trafficking.

    A statement by the police spokesman Ezekiel Onyeke, said the duo was arrested following a tip off.

    “The arrest of the duo was possible after an intelligence report received by operatives of the intelligence department said Chinasa Chidi delivered sometime in January.

    “Chinasa’s mother, Eziaku Chidi, with the help of Martha Ajuzieogu, who claimed to be a midwife with Lawato Hospital at Osisioma, and Amarachi (now on the run), sold the child for N150,000 to a yet-to-be identified buyer.”

    Onyeke said Chinasa was given N10,000 to cater for her immediate needs while part of the money was used to pay for her apprenticeship.

    Eziaku and Martha told Chinasa that her baby died and the body was thrown into a pit.

    Martha’s husband, Stanley Ajuzieogu said he tried unsuccessfully to stop his wife from the illegal transactions.

    The command also arrested four suspected cultists from the Abia State Polytechnic. A locally-made pistol, with a round of live cartridge, was recovered from them.

  • Dogara: Our mother is gone

    Dogara: Our mother is gone

    Speaker Yakubu Dogara has described Chief (Mrs.) H.I.D. Awolowo as a mother whose humanitarian, philanthropic deeds and exemplary life were worthy of emulation.

    Dogara, while mourning the passage of Mrs Awolowo in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Turaki Hassan, urged the federal and Ogun State governments to immortalise her.

    Dogara said: “The late Mrs. Awolowo was a mother to the nation and said she has left a huge vacuum in our lives.

    “She will continue to be remembered for her humanitarian and philanthropic deeds and said she lived an exemplary life worthy of emulation.

    “She was a pious woman who was a pillar of support for her husband, the late sage Awolowo since the days of struggle for independence up to the eighties when he died.

    “Although we would have loved that she remain with us, as mortals, we all must test death but our joy is that she has gone to rest.”

     

  • Police corporal remanded for allegedly killing mother of four

    A 28-year-old police officer Museliu Aremu, who allegedly shot dead a mother of four, was yesterday remanded in prison custody by an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrate’s Court, Lagos.

    Chief Magistrate, Mrs. Folasade Botoku, ordered that the accused, facing a two-count charge of murder and causing grievous harm, be remanded in Ikoyi Prisons pending the release of legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). The plea of the accused, a corporal  attached to the Isheri Oshun Police Station, was not taken.

    A counsel from the State Criminal Investigative Department(SCID),Panti, G.O.Osuyi, had earlier told the court that the offences were committed on September 16, at about 8.00 p.m. at Isheri Oshun, Ijegun, a Lagos suburb. He alleged that the accused shot dead one Comfort Godwin Sunday and caused grievous harm to one Godwin Sunday, the deceased’s husband.

    It was reported that the accused opened fire at the tricycle  occupied by the couple killing the mother of four instantly and causing serious injury to the husband.

    Osuyi noted that the offences contravened Sections 221 and 243 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

    The case was adjourned to October 19 pending legal advice from the DPP’s office.