The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian Newspapers

  • Lagos Assembly completes screening of commissioners, special advisers nominees

    The screening of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s 25 nominees as commissioners and special advisers was completed on Saturday by the Lagos State House of Assembly ad-hoc committee set up for the exercise.

    The 16-man committee chaired by the Chief Whip of the House, Rotimi Abiru was constituted on Monday last week at plenary and the screening started on Thursday.

    Other members of the screening committee are: Jimi Mohammed (Ikeja I), Yinka Ogundimu (Agege II), Abiodun Tobun (Epe I), Victor Akande (Ojo I) and Mosunmola Sangodara (Surulere II), Mojisola Alli-Macaulay (Amuwo-Odofin I), Rasheed Makinde (Ifako-Ijaiye II), Lanre Afinni (Lagos Island II),  Noheem Adams (Eti-Osa II), and Adedamola Kasunmu (Ikeja II), Suraju Tijani (Ojo II), Olusola Sokunle (Oshodi/Isolo I), Olumuyiwa Jimoh (Apapa II) and Abdulsobur Olawale (Mushin II) and Tunde Braimoh (Kosofe ll.)

    The committee was given one week to report back to the House, which means by tomorrow, Monday, it must conclude its work and report back to the House.

    On Thursday the committee screened eight of the nominees, prominent among them were the immediate past Secretary to Lagos State Government, SSG, Mr. Tunji Bello, Editor of The Nation newspaper, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso and Miss. Toke Benson-Awoyinka.

    Read Also: Makinde sends commissioners list to assembly

    The second day, Friday, the committee screened 10 of the nominees while the remaining seven took their turn on on Saturday.

    Apart from Mr. Wale Ahmed who was asked to take a bow and go as a former member of the Lagos Assembly and current secretary of the All Progressive Congress (APC), in Lagos, others were subjected to questions and answers from the members of the committee.

    However, on Friday, the first nominee that took her turn, Executive Secretary, Apapa Local Government, Mrs. Abolaji Dada   complained of not being able to get her West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) result.

    Dada, who claimed to have sat for her WAEC exam in 1984, asserted that no certificate was issued in the stated year.

    “I had my WAEC exam in a government school so I felt it would not be difficult to access it, but I eventually made effort to retrieve my certificate when the need arose but was told that my school’s data was not captured. My claim can be verified, 1984 WAEC certificate for my school was not accessible, “she said.

    According to her, if she is assigned to the ministry of education she would work at “restoring civic education in the primary school curriculum so as to make the pupils patriotic, well behaved and well-mannered individuals in the society.”

    Dada said she would ensure that the educationally disadvantaged girls go to school, and also take area boys off the street if she was made the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.

    “We will let them know that there is dignity in labour rather than making them go about doing nothing,” she said, while throwing her weight behind local government autonomy.

    Another nominee on Friday, former Chairman of Ibile Oil and Gas, Mr. Moyosore Jubril Onigbanjo (SAN) said he was passionate about the progress of the State on development and foreign investments.

    He stressed that the state needed to stop judges from using long hands to write, and that there were some laws in Lagos State that have not been reviewed since the 60s and “we need to check this”.

    He then promised to reform the judicial system if assigned to justice ministry and appealed to the government to improve infrastructure in the courts and decongest the prisons.

    Other nominees who were screened on Friday are: Mr. Lere Odusote, Mr Moyo Onigbanjo, Mrs Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf and Mr Segun Dawodu, Mrs. Folashade Adefisayo, Mrs. Ponnle Ajibola, Dr. Rabiu Olowo, Mr. Olatunbosun Alake and Mr. Samuel Egube.

    Yesterday the committee screened the last batch of nominees made up of seven people.

    They are: Dr. Idris Salako, Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, Mr. Gbolahan Lawal, Mr. Aramide Adeyoye, Ms. Ruth Olusanya, Mr. Afolabi Ayantayo, and Mr. Femi George.

    One of the nominees screened on Saturday, Mr. Afolabi Ayantayo, when answering questions cautioned on local government autonomy, saying local governments could misuse the autonomy if they are given, especially in the area of controlling their own funds.

    “It is better if we could continue with JAAC. Our own is different from that of the United States of America because they generate their own funds. I am not in support of fiscal autonomy for local governments. We should monitor them to perform better. They should be monitored by both the executive and the legislature,” he said.

    Speaking with House correspondents at the end of the exercise, chairman of the committee, Abiru said he was satisfied with the performance of the nominees saying they are all knowledgeable people but that the committee will report back to the House that will confirm the nominees or otherwise.

    He expressed satisfaction with the competence of the nominees in the way they all responded to questions from members of the committee.

  • Institute trains teachers on special educational needs and disabilities

    NATIONAL Teachers Institute (NTI) has trained teachers on Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SENDs) under 2018 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) project.

    The institute said the project is one of the five items for the 2018 SDGS workshop.

    Speaking at the flag off ceremony in Kaduna, chairman, NTI Governing Council, Senator Kaka Malam Yale, said the workshop which was conducted by Axiom  technical consultant in collaboration with the institute is aimed at equipping teachers with necessary skills and knowledge on how to ?properly integrate special need children into the mainstream classrooms in the education system.

    According to him, “I strongly recommend this idea as it opposes any discrimination imposed by factors that are beyond the control of learners. I was made to understand that the resource persons engaged to facilitate at the workshop have been carefully selected from reputable tertiary institutions in the country.”

    In his remarks, NTI Director General, Professor Garba Dahuwa Azare, said SENDs propagates the ideals of mainstream education in which every individual operates as an entity without discrimination.

    He added that the learning platform allows learners, irrespective of their conditions, to learn under the same umbrella thereby fostering mutual understanding and trust between and among them.

     

  • IMN calls for judicial enquiry over fracas with Police

    THE proscribed Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), on Saturday in Katsina State called for an independent enquiry into the its recent encounter with the Nigerian Police Force so as to ascertain those behind the violent outcomes of their recently embarked street procession which eventually turned violent

    The representative of the Muslim Brothers in Katsina under the leadership of Shayk Elzazaky, Shayk Ya’aqup Yahaya Katsina Ya-koop who spoke to The Nation in an exclusive interview in his house yesterday night, insisted that his IMN group is not violent and did not carry out violence on any one.

    He argued that an independent enquiry, composed of reputable personalities and international figures, into the recent Abuja violence involving the sect and the Police will surely vindicate them from the various accusations being leveled against the group.

    While accusing the Police of masterminding the killings and the attendant violence during each of IMN’s religious processions, he insisted that the attitude of the Federal Government and the Nigerian Police Force towards the group could be likened to the proverbial “giving the dog a bad name in other to hang it.”

    Read Also: Why we named IMN terrorist group, by IG

    He said “It is the presence of the Police and security operatives that rather escalated the violence; remove them and there will be no violence at all. We do conduct our procession here in Katsina, without Police presence and there has never been any violence at all.”

    On the comments made by the elder brother to Elzazaky, Shayk Muhammad Sani Yakoob in a recent interview, he urged Nigerians to disregard him, saying that Shayk Yakoop belongs to the Wahabi Islamic sect while Shayk Elzazaky belongs to the Shi’a Ahi-bait Islamic sect and that both have remained antagonistic to each other due to their religious divides

    He said “Their differences could be likened to the Biblical Cain and Abel. While Shayk Elzazaky represents Abel who offered acceptable sacrifices to God, Muhammad Sani represents Cain who none the less a betrayer and promoter of divisive tendencies.”

    He advised that rather proscribing the group, President Muhammadu Buhari should dialogue with the leaders for an amicable solution, adding that if the proscription order is allowed to stand it could provoke several unhealthy outcomes.

     

  • Organisers adamant as IGP declares ‘revolution march’ treason, terrorism

    THE Nigeria Intervention Movement (NIM), organisers of the proposed ‘revolution’ march, vowed on Saturday to forge ahead with the plan regardless of the arrest of the arrowhead of the march, Omoyele Sowore.

    Sowore was arrested at his Lagos residence early on Saturday by suspected personnel of the Department of State Services (DSS).

    The organization has not owned up to the arrest.

    But Police Inspector General of Police Mohammed Adamu said   yesterday that the march, scheduled for tomorrow, has ‘treasonable felony and acts of terrorism’ written all over it.

    He warned the organizers to shelve their plan.

    But the group insisted on going ahead.

    It condemned Sowore’s arrest and called for his immediate release.

    Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Amnesty International (AI) were joined by other groups in deploring the arrest.

    The National Publicity Secretary of the NIM, Olusegun Obe, said in a statement yesterday that the project remained on course.

    He said: “Third Force Movement of Nigeria under the umbrella of the Nigeria Intervention Movement, wishes to reaffirm its commitment to the planned nationwide mass protests against bad political system and malgovernance (sic) in Nigeria tagged “#Revolution Now!” starting on Monday, August 5, 2019.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, this historic nationwide revolutionary action initiated by Nigerian masses and youths is purely aimed at overthrowing the corrupt and warped political system being operated by the country as well as changing the oppressive ruling class in Nigeria.

    “Therefore, we have directed all our members, allies and supporters in the Third Force Movement, especially of the Nigeria Intervention Movement, Alliance for Defence of Democracy and some revolutionary political parties to join and support the historic mass action for a new Nigeria as already endorsed by icons like Prof Wole Soyinka, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili among others

    “It is for this reason that we condemn in unequivocal stance the subversive arrest and detention of one of the key facilitators of #Revolution Now!, Sowore Omoyele; the Leader of the Take-It-Back Movement, who was forcefully abducted in his home around 1.25 a.m. today, Saturday (yesterday) and whisked away to an unknown destination

    “We hereby demand from the Nigerian Presidency and its witch-hunting Department of State Security apparatus, the immediate release of Omoyele Sowore, as his continued incarceration will not deter our forces and cadres from embarking on the planned mass action against the oppressors of Nigerians on Monday as earlier scheduled.”

    IGP: Planned march is treasonable felony

    Police Inspector General Mohammed Adamu  said the attention of the police had been drawn “to a video circulating on the social media by the ‘Global Coalition for Security and Democracy in Nigeria and others’, inciting Nigerians, home and abroad, to join a planned ‘revolution’ march against the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on Monday, 5th August, 2019 with the sole aim of forcing a regime change in the country.”

    Adamu said “the   call amounts to treasonable felony and acts of terrorism and will therefore not stand idly-by and watch any individual or group in the society cause anarchy in the land.”

    He added: “While acknowledging the rights of Nigerians to embark on protest, the Force wishes to note that such rights should not translate to a violent and forceful change of government which clearly is the meaning of ‘revolution’.

    “Needless to state that Nigeria is a democratic republic and has well-defined processes for change of government, exercised periodically during various cycle of elections.

    Read Also: Buhari orders IGP to protect all Nigerians

    “The Force therefore warns the organizers, sponsors, allies, supporters, associates and sympathisers of the group ‘Global Coalition for Security and Democracy in Nigeria’ to, in their own interest, steer clear of any such planned protest, demonstration, acts of incitement and proposed ‘revolution’, as the full wrath of the law will be brought to bear on any individual or group engaged or found participating in the above planned criminal act.

    “Parents and guardians are therefore enjoined to impress on their children and wards not to allow themselves to be used in whatever form by any person or group of persons to cause breach of law and order in the country.

    “The Police will work with other Law Enforcement Agencies and positive minded Nigerians to protect, defend and secure our public peace and space.”

    DSS keeps mum over Sowore’s arrest

    The Department of State Services (DSS) which is believed to have arrested Sowore  kept sealed lips over the matter yesterday.

    The arrest in Lagos followed that of Abubakar Dadiyata also by the DSS in Kaduna on Friday.

    Calls and text messages to the DSS spokesman, Mr. Peter Afunanya, on the issue elicited no response at press time.

    Atiku, AI, others kick

    Former Vice President and the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar   condemned the arrest of Omoyele Sowere on his Twitter handle, saying: ‘Freedom of speech is not only constitutionally guaranteed, it is the substructure of our democracy. These kidnappings in the guise of arrests stands condemned. -AA’

    Amnesty International’s initial reaction also came via its Twitter handle.

    It said it “is concerned about the arrest of Omoyele Sowore  @YeleSowore by DSS operatives. We urge the authorities to respect his rights and follow due process. If not charged for any offence, he should be released immediately.”

    Sowore’s fellow activists including Kadaria Ahmed, Chidi Odinkalu, Hajia Aisha Yesufu and Shehu Sani also condemned the arrest.

    Sani said: “Our democracy is a block of ice floating on warm waters. The sponsored protest and attacks on the @AmnestyNigeria  stand  condemned. The arrest & detention of @YeleSowore is needless; I join the call for his release.”

    Sowore himself broke the news of his arrest when he tweeted “DSS invades Sowore’s” at 1.25am on Saturday.

    He was said to have been driven to the Lagos head office of the DSS, Magodo.

    SaharaReporters, Sowore’s online outfit, said his phone was forcefully seized before the arrest.

    “An eyewitness confirming that his phone was forcefully taken from him,” it said in a report.

    Shortly before his arrest, Sowore had tweeted: “All that is needed for a #Revolution is for the oppressed to choose a date they desire for liberty, not subjected to the approval of the oppressor.”

     ‘He was arrested at the gym’ – Sowore’s driver

    Someone claiming to be Sowore’s driver said the Sahara Reporters publisher was arrested by armed men who “knocked on the door.”

    The driver who did not give his name said on social media that “I noticed immediately that these knocks were strange. And didn’t open. I looked and I saw men armed to the teeth.

    “They started forcing their way in like armed robbers. But I knew they were DSS men, knowing fully well the attention RevolutionNow has garnered. Sowore wanted to open at first but I immediately told him who they are. He retreated and like magic, he was not in the room when they forced their way in- 8 of them.

    “That was when he managed to tweet. By this time, I had been beaten and handcuffed. Phones were snatched from me. An order to block all exits came from the leader when Sowore was not found inside. He was later arrested at the gym in a gestapo manner and dragged after a bit altercation.

    “I followed them immediately till we got to CMD road around Ketu when one of them came down from the Sienna and corked his gun, threatening to shoot me. I had to escape at that point.”

     

  • Another Nigerian killed in South Africa

    Another Nigerian has been killed in South Africa, according to information from Johannesburg on Saturday.

    The Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa identified the victim as 43-year-old Benjamin Simeon from Okposi, Ebonyi State.

    Simeon, a Taxify driver, was allegedly shot by yet to be identified gunmen in the early hours of yesterday in Johannesburg.

    The spokesperson for the association,  Mr.  Sunny-Wenike Douglas, said the victim was killed moment after dropping off his clients in a part of the city.

    Douglas added that an investigating officer with the South Africa Police Service confirmed that a case of murder had been opened on the matter.

    Read Also: Union confirms killing of Nigerian teenager in South Africa

    He vowed that his association would follow up with the case to ensure that the killers were arrested and brought to justice.

    On June 12, a Nigerian insurance officer, Mrs Obianuju Ndubuisi-Chukwu, was murdered in South Africa while attending a conference there.

    Her killing was followed shortly by the murder of a Nigerian teenager who was also shot dead in Johannesburg.

  • CSOs partner with UN on crime prevention in Nigeria

    A coalition of Civil Society Group (CSOs) under the umbrella of Education 4 Justice CSO’s Network, has concluded plans to engage the United Nations on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in the implementation of the Education 4 Justice (E4J) Initiative in Nigeria.

    This was stated in a communique signed by the President of Education 4 Justice CSO’s NETWORK, Chris Ibe, made available to The Nation recently in Lagos.

    He said the group was formed because of the interest of the civil societies involvement in the implementation of the E4J Initiative, under the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration and is basically focused on crime prevention and promotion of culture of lawfulness in the Nigerian communities considering the levels of violence and civil disobedient in our communities today.

    He said the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) must be commended for their commitment in the national fights against crime through their numerous programmes, especially the launching of E4J Initiative in Nigeria.

    Read Also: United Nations mark peace day in style

    “That E4J CSO’s Network will contact, mobilise and develop a data base of CSOs/NGOs working in the areas of crime prevention, drug and substance abuse, criminal justice, de-radicalisation, violent extremism, conflict resolution/peace building, leadership, gender education, anti-corruption, migration and any other area relevant to the E4J Initiative Programme,” he said.

    Also a Delegate, Amb. Obuesi Phillips, the Global Director of Community Agenda for Peace, who also attended the E4J Initiative launching in Abuja, appreciated Mr. Christogonus C. Ibe for taking the lead. He charged members of the coalition to be committed to the initiative to enable them make meaningful impact in our effort to support the UNODC and other stakeholders in the implementation of the E4J Initiative Programme in Nigeria.

  • OAU student commits suicide over poor academic performance

    A student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Grace Dara Opeyemi, at the weekend committed suicide over poor academic performance.

    The student in the Department of English Studies was said to have exercised the fear that she might not graduate alongside her mates for alleged poor performance in the university’s final year exams last semester.

    According to her mate, who preferred anonymity, the deceased died after taking a dose of snipper on Friday.

    “From a copy of the academic records on the university portal it showed that she had five outstanding courses and special electives as carry over and was unable to write the final exams with her mates in the last semester,” the source said.

    Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of the university, Abiodun Olarewaju, confirmed the incident but said he was yet to be briefed about it.

    Read Also: OAU students flee hostels over cultists threat

    However, he said got to know about the a female student of the university died of depression after taking a dose of a lethal substance known as Snipers because of her poor academic performance.

    Olarewaju added that after the discovery that the deceased had taken the deadly substance, she was rushed to the university’s health centre and was later referred to the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital where she reportedly died.

    Promising that the university would investigate the incident, he cautioned other students not to see suicide as an option from challenges.

  • Killing of Catholic priest: Buhari orders manhunt for killers

    PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday directed the security agencies to go all out to find the brains behind Thursday’s killing of Reverend Father Paul Offu in Enugu.

    Buhari also sent condolences to the Catholic Church over the killing of the priest who, until his death, was in charge of St. James Greater Parish Catholic Church, Ugbawka, Enugu State.

    Similar condolences came from the state branch of the  Miyetti-Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN).

    The group described the death of Offu as one too many and said the killers must be brought to book.

    Buhari, according to his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, expressed deep shock and dismay over the killing of the priest.

    The President commiserated with government and people of Enugu State, family of Rev Fr. Offu and members of the parish and all Christians.

    Describing the killing of the priest as “barbaric and unwarranted’’, President Buhari assured the Catholic Church and all Nigerians that the fight against “lawlessness and recklessness’’ will be intensified as security of lives and property continues to top his priorities.

    “The entire nation is shaken by the horrible assassination of this priest. The administration will continue to guarantee the freedom of religion and protect places of worship as well as the lives of citizens wherever they live,” he added.

    Directing law enforcement agencies to act swiftly in their investigations and bring the perpetrators of the “horrific crime’’ to book, the President called on all religious leaders to pray for peace, healing and security of the country.

    Miyetti-Allah: Fulani herders not responsible for killing of Offu

    In its reaction, the Miyetti-Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Enugu State said that its members were not responsible for the killing of the Catholic priest.

    It said it has been inundated with a barrage of accusations following the killing which it described as unfortunate.

    The group said it was part of the security and peace committee in Enugu State, hence it was bound to control its members and ensure that criminals do not infiltrate its members conducting their business of cow rearing.

    Chairman of MACBAN in South East, Alhaji Giddado Siddiki in a statement said: “Again our hearts bleed over the most bastardly murder of a Catholic priest, Reverend Father Paul Offu, of the Catholic Diocese of Enugu.

    “This is one murder too many! It is most condemnable and heartily regretted.

    “Again our society aches as a result of the activities of criminals who care less about the value of human life. It is painful that the security apparatuses of the government have not been able to contain the excesses of these men of the underworld who have continued to diminish the value of life in our society.

    “We hereby most heartily console the members of the Catholic Diocese of Enugu, and all the Christian faithful on this very painful and irreparable loss.

    “We once more call on the government to rise to the occasion and provide adequate security for the citizens of Nigeria across the length and breadth of the country.

    “We maintain that crime, in whatever form of its perpetration, is anti-society. Criminals of any guise cause pains to society and should therefore be properly identified and made to face the full wrath of the law.

    “While we mourn the sudden departure of Father Offu, we are very hopeful that this occasion will agitate the government sufficiently to respond to the challenge of criminality amongst us.

    “Please let all of us be duly consoled. May God receive the soul of His dutiful servant in Paradise.”

  • Lagos suspends advertising firm over ‘indecent’ campaign

    THE Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA), on Saturday  suspended, pending final investigation, the practising license issued to Provision Media System limited for engaging in an  alleged  indecent projection of women.

    The  Lagos State government agency  said the  company’s  “unregistered mobile advertising truck which has no valid registration for the current year 2019 was illegally deployed in engaging in abysmally debasing projection of semi-nude women for several hours around the Lekki/Ikoyi toll gate.”

    It added,  “The agency having gone through its records for the current year 2019 could confirm that the truck with Lagos State plate number APP713XL is not registered with the agency for the deplorable purpose for which it was deployed by the company on Saturday,” Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer  of LASAA, Mr. Bolaji Sanusi said in a statement.

    He declared that “no outdoor mobile advert truck within the jurisdiction of our dear state is licensed to display such crass immorality of the calibre that the owner(s) of this unregistered truck exhibited on our roads over the weekend.”

    He added: “The government of Lagos State, under the leadership of Governor Babajide Sanwoolu, has zero tolerance for any slightest attempt by anyone, under whatever guise, to debase the moral fabric of our dear state. Nobody/company can hide under the guise of engaging in outdoor advertising business to display obscenity that is antithetical to our cherished cultural and moral values.

    Read Also: Traffic offences: Lagos state model

    “The full weight of the law, as enshrined in the Agency’s extant law, will be meted on the company owning this erring outdoor mobile truck after due investigations must have been concluded. We assure members of the public that the Agency shall henceforth scrutinize activities of mobile trucks to forestall a recurrence of such an avoidable obscenity.

    “The state will not in any ramification condone the use of outdoor advertisement structures, whether static or mobile, to perpetrate illegally obscene activities.”

    ​The video of half-naked women dancing in the transparent outdoor display truck sparked uproar on social media.

    The women wore only bra and pant and were dancing on a stripper pole.

  • Nigerian doctor gets international grant on HIV/AIDS project

    NIGERIAN medical doctor, Tongdiyen Laura Jasper has been listed among the three successful applicants for grant into research work on HIV, by the International AIDS Society initiative, Collaborative Initiative for Pediatric HIV Education and Research (CIPHER). The international AIDS society is one of the biggest AIDS coordinating bodies globally.

    Dr. Jasper, a public health physician, who is a graduate of medicine, University of Jos was among the 150 shortlisted from about a thousand entries and the only African who made the final four shortlisted for the grant.

    She has two years to come up with a structured programme of attending to children living with HIV in the country.

    The research work aims at exploring facilitators and barriers to ART adherence among young children to develop a caregiver peer mentor training curriculum and intervention programme and to also test the impact of caregiver peer support, a locally adopted behavioural intervention, to improve adherence and promote achievement of viral suppression among children.

    Currently, Nigeria has the second highest number of children living with the virus behind South Africa. Nigeria with 1.9 million people living with HIV/AIDS, while 0.2 per cent are children between age 0-14 years.

    Besides, the country accounted for 37, 000 of the world’s 160,000 new cases of babies born with HIV in 2016. While, South Africathe hardest-hit country in the world, with 7.1 million people living with the virushad only 12,000 newly infected children in 2016.

    Hence, the work of Jasper, mother of four is to see how the viral load of these children can be suppressed with appropriate structured programme that will ensure that children do not miss any of their drug routines.

    Jasper who has been working in the HIV programme in the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria for about three years now said the project starts in October 2019.

    The choice of project according to her is borne out of the fact that children on HIV treatment don’t achieve viral load suppression when compared to their counterpart from Africa.

    Hence, it is the curiosity to know what could be responsible for this and how best to help the children achieve viral load suppression that motivated her to go into the project.

    “The aim is to discuss HIV pediatric matters and to help people come up with evidence for action to be taken into consideration for children living with HIV/AIDS,” she said.

    Read Also: Rivers to sponsor treatment of HIV/AIDS patients

    The fund, she therefore said “is to be used to design the intervention and implement the research. As we implement the research work, we will be publishing the findings of the research so that whatever that is impactful can be adopted by the Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Health as initiative ideas that works and included in routine programme implementation to improve the outcome of children living with HIV, which is really poor especially in Nigeria where we have the second highest number of children living with HIV after South Africa.

    “The South African children are doing well but the case cannot be said to be the same with Nigerian children.”

    On why zeroing down to caregivers, she said “we  realized that most of the children in our setting and other African countries may have lost one of their parents or both parents, and left under the care of relatives, or people who are not related to them. So the quality of care a child living with HIV get under this circumstance is very faulty. So our proposal is to develop a structured peer support  intervention for caregivers of children living with HIV for us to design a structured way of care for these children to see that these children are been followed up and they get the best of treatment. ”

    Jasper also noted that she is motivated “towards nation building. I also know that the future of every country lies on the younger generation. And I believe so much that it is important to give every child the best they get and a chance to leave because from my experience, I realize that mortality and morbidity which is death and rate of sickness among children is far higher than among adult and many of these children hardly live up to their fifth birthday. By the time they are five going ten -adolescence they begin to die and it does all because of the kind of care we offer them know that in HIV treatment we have the first line drugs, and second line drugs. If we fail the first line drug and you are on the second line drug, it is more or less the last option, should a child then develop resistance to that then there is no other option because the third line drug is not readily available to us and it is also very expensive.”