The Nation Newspaper

Tag: OSUN

  • Osun chieftaincy dispute: Supreme Court’s verdict on January 12

    The Supreme Court has fixed January 12 for judgment in the over eight-year chieftaincy dispute in Osun State on the appointment of a successor to the late Olufon of Ifon-Osun, Oba Olatoye Ilufoye Omotoyinbo II.

    The court chose the date last Tuesday after parties adopted their written briefs of argument in an filed against the March 3, 2011 judgment of the Akure Division of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the appeal by Alhaji Moroof Oladimeji Akintola.

    The appeal was filed on August 8, 2011 by Alhaji Maroof Adekunle Magbagbeola, Osun State governor, the Commissioner of Justice and Attorney General and nine others.

    According to court documents, the dispute arose from the state government’s handling of Magbagbeola’s appointment to succeed Oba Omotoyinbo II, who joined his ancestors on August 20, 2007.

    Akintola, who was dissatisfied with the process leading to the appointment of Magbagbeola, sued at the state High Court and prayed the court to, among others, void Magbagbeola’s appointment.

    In his deposition, Akintola averred that in line with Ifon-Osun’s tradition, the Olumoyero Ruling House, whose turn it was to produce a successor to the throne, nominated him (Akintola) and Magbagbeola for the kingmakers to perform the customary and traditional rites of determining who among the two nominees should succeed the deceased king.

    He said the head of Olumoyero family, Prince Lasisi Oyedokun, was, in line with tradition, required to present both nominees to the kingmakers to perform the customary rites of determining the actual successor.

    Akintola added that while they were waiting for the process to start, the governor and Attorney-General of the state allegedly appointed some individuals they named warrant kingmakers, who eventually appointed Magbagbeola to the throne, a choice the governor and Attorney-General later endorsed.

    He prayed the court to, among others, void Magbagbeola’s appointment and direct the parties to comply with the traditional procedure in the state’s Chiefs Law.

    Magbagbeola, the governor, the AG and nine others objected to the suit.

    They insisted, among others, that Akintola’s suit was wrongly initiated because he allegedly failed to exhaust the internal stipulations in Section 20 (1) and (2) of the Chief’s Law Cap 25 of Osun State 2003.

    They said the state government’s appointment of “warrant kingmakers” to conclude the nomination of a successor to the throne was informed by the traditional kingmakers’ inability to form a quorum.

    In a March 30, 2009 ruling, the state High Court upheld the preliminary objection filed by Magbagbeola and others and dismissed Akintola’s suit on the ground that it was not properly initiated.

    Akintola appealed to the Court of Appeal in Akure.

    In a March 3, 2011 judgment, the court allowed the appeal and ordered that the case be sent back to the High Court.

    It reassigned the matter to a new judge for it to be heard afresh, a decision Magbagbeola and others appealed against at the Supreme Court.

    In their appellants’ brief, Magbagbeola and others urged the Supreme Court to set aside the Appeal Court’s decision, which they said was arrived at without proper interpretation of Section 20 (a) and (b) of the Chief’s Law of Osun State, 2003.

    In his respondent’s brief, Akintola noted that the thrust of the appellants’ appeal was against a portion of the judgment, which states that the noncompliance with Section 20 (2) by a person aggrieved by the appointment of a chief is not fatal because the section does not provide a sanction.

    Akintola averred that he is not required to exhaust the administrative remedy provided by the law before suing in court.

    He said Section 20 (2) of the Chief’s Law was not applicable to his case.

  • Aregbesola swears in Osun JSC

    Aregbesola swears in Osun JSC

    Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has urged the state’s judicial officers to further inspire confidence in the judiciary to strengthen democracy.

    He said the Judiciary plays an important role in sustaining democratic government.

    The governor said stakeholders should work together and strengthen the judicial arm of government.

    Aregbesola spoke at the swearing-in of confirmed members of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) at the Governor’s Office in Osogbo, the state capital.

    The JSC is chaired by the  Chief Judge, Justice Oyebola Adepele Ojo, while the President of Osun Customary Court of Appeal, Justice Gloria Olagoke, is its secretary.

    Other members are: Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Dr. Bashir Ajibola; former House of Representatives members Nathaniel Agunbiade and Olarotimi Mikail Makinde, as well as Mr. Oloruntomilola Christopher Olagunju and Mr. Abel Oyewale Olutayo.

    Aregbesola, on July 23, sent a letter containing names of JSC nominees to the House of Assembly for confirmation.

    The Assembly, on September 11, confirmed and announced the names of the commission’s members for induction.

    The governor urged members to inspire confidence ithe Judiciary.

    He said the inauguration would further strengthen the Judiciary and ensure that the arm of government is properly run and repositioned.

    According to him, the state is showcasing to the world the link among the three arms, particularly as they are relevant to the development and advancement of our democracy.

    Aregbesola said: “No democratic government can really be complete without an effective, efficient, reliable and confidence-inspiring Judiciary; thus, informing the need to have this commission in place.

    “We have realised that the Judiciary must be able to inspire confidence in terms of justice adjudication. This could only be achieved when we have confident and eminently qualified personalities at the Judicial Service Commission to complement efforts of judicial officials.

    “It is for this reason that I urge the new members of the JSC to give their best for the development of the state and reposition the state’s Judiciary to an enviable position…”

  • Our problems will persist until we find enduring solutions to identity – CHAMS GMD

    Our problems will persist until we find enduring solutions to identity – CHAMS GMD

    Chams Plc, one of Nigeria’s leading companies has evolved over the last 3 decades from computer and hardware maintenance to the provision of enterprise technology solutions in identity management and identity transaction systems for the public and private sectors.

    Recently, it facilitated the identification process for the government of the state of Osun. The initiative called ‘Kaadi Omoluabi’ has received several accolades and commendations from the Osun citizenry and other stakeholders within and outside the state.

    Mr. OLUFEMI WILLIAMS, the Group Managing Director of the firm, in an interview with The Nation reporter MOSES EMORINKEN sheds some light on the relevance and ubiquitous benefits and solutions of data capturing to the social, economic and political problems bedeviling the country.

    What is the relevance of the Omoluabi Identity Card to the Osun citizenry?

    As His Excellency, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the executive governor of the state of Osun mentioned at the launch of the initiative on Tuesday, the Identity Card Initiative is about knowing the people that he governs. There is no way the government can plan or manage the affairs of the state, especially with respect to what the people want without detailed understanding of biometric statistics.

    It also helps the government measure the effectiveness of the services it delivers to the people.

    It creates a platform for any member of the state to conveniently transact with the government and vice-versa.

    For instance, if the government wants to build new schools or construct new roads, it can easily make objective and informed decisions about which part(s) of the state needs these infrastructural facilities depending on the population of the people, where economic transactions are preponderant, etc.

    It allows government institutions to have interconnected database. It cuts out the duplicity in registering and capturing biometric data of its citizenry. This initiative provides a unique number that can be used for such purposes.

    We did it for students and the impact was major. Immediately, the cost of managing, sponsoring and promoting affairs around the educational sector was optimized. Before then, there were haphazard approaches because of the paucity in statistics.

    Now, with the touch of a button the educational details of a child for can be generated. This leads to measurable results over time.

    How long did it take CHAMS to come up with this solution?

    This is the forte and core competence area of CHAMS. We have participated in similar projects in the past. We have been on this project for four years. The reason was because the government had more pressing project at the time before very recently it decided to take up the Identity Card Initiative.

    This novel innovation in identity capturing is not only opened to indigenes of the state but also to residents within the state.

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    What is the level of response of the people of the state to this initiative?

    The responses have been very encouraging from members of private organisations and the civil society. They believe that the initiative is very timely and custom-made for the people and government of the state.

    Does CHAMS have plans to diversify into other real sectors?

    Our core focus lies in delivering intelligent business solutions. However, there are two major industries we intend to dominate in the next few months, they are – Agriculture and Health acre. For now, that is all we can reveal.

    Is it possible to have a central database for the biometric data of Nigeria to avoid proliferation and duplicity?

    This can be answered in two ways – technical and political. I have an authoritative response to the former but with little or no political explanations for the later.

    Technically, one of the projects awarded for data capturing in 1976 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo would have solved it. However, the problems of awarding and re-awarding contracts have brought us to where we are today.

    The only solution is what the Federal Government is trying to do – which is harmonization. There is a need to harmonize these databases together. The process will be challenging but not impossible to do. At the moment there exists huge repository of data at the Federal Road Safety Commission ( FRSC ), sim card registration centres, Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC ), Nigerian Communications Commission ( NCC ), states etc. There are solutions and technologies that can harmonize data effectively.

    What exactly is CHAMS as an organisation doing differently?

    Every business goes through series of transformations. For CHAMS, we have evolved overtime according to the overwhelming changes in the needs, expectations and taste of consumers. We started as a Computer Hardware and Maintenance Company, to Networking and then to Smart Card Technology. It was the Smart Card Technology that led to the formation of value card; which was the first successful payment card in Nigeria.

    After a while, we moved into Identity Management because we realised that the problem(s) of this country will not disappear until we solve the processes of identity. Identity is like the Certificate of Ownership (C of O) for land. The (C of O) is an ordinary document, however, because we believe that the (C of O) represents a land somewhere, we can conveniently do a transaction with it. The same things can be done with the identity number to represent a person.

    The next phase for us is to translate the business from just Identity Management into intelligent businesses that can be built on identity. We have the human capital to deliver. We have a bunch of experienced, versatile and energetic executives to drive the processes.

    What should we expect from charms in the next 5 years?

    We would have dominated two industries and be listed on the London Stock Exchange.

  • MKO Abiola int’l airport in Osun to gulp N69bn

    MKO Abiola int’l airport in Osun to gulp N69bn

    The proposed M. K. O Abiola International Airport in Ido-Osun, Osun, will cost N69 billion under a concession arrangement with an indigenous company,  AWOL International, an official has said.

    Mr Niyi Ogundiran, the Director of Public Building in Osun State Ministry of Works, gave the figure at a meeting with members of the state Assembly in Osogbo on Thursday.

    Ogundiran said that the concession arrangement would last for 30 years before permanent transfer of ownership to the state government.

    He said that the contract was first awarded on Oct. 14, 2012, at the cost of N 4.5 billion, noting that the project was to be completed within eight months by the government and not under concession arrangement.

    Ogundiran said that the contract was later reviewed to gulp N11 billion to be able to accommodate more features.

    He said the state government had spent N3.6 billion on the project before the concession arrangement, adding that the N3.6 billion would be deducted from the N69 billion contract sum.

    Mr Nurudeen Adeagbo, Permanent Secretary in the ministry, said that the concession arrangement would be to the advantage of the state.

    He expressed the hope that the company would deliver a perfect job.

    In his remarks, the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly, Mr Adegboye Akintunde, urged all those in charge of the project to  ensure its success.

    Akintunde said that Osun people were watching with keen interest to know the outcome of the arrangement.

    Mr Tunde, the Chairman of the House Committee on Commerce, Co-operatives and Industries, said that the airport project was a huge investment and must be handled carefully.

    Olatunji said that, if well executed, the project would facilitate  economic development of the state.

    NAN

  • VAIDS: Lagos, Osun, FCT to provide data on hidden assets, income

    The governments of Lagos, Osun and Kaduna states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have promised to provide all transaction data required to identify tax defaulters at the expiration of the first phase of the tax amnesty programme in March.

    The Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration (VAIDS) office in the Federal Ministry of Finance which stated ths in a statement yesterday, said states that provide the required information will get enhanced Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

    This is because the obtained data will lead to considerable recovery of otherwise lost revenues and yield reliable information on eligible taxpayers.

    The VAIDS office said at the beginning of this month that it has commenced the collection of data on the income and assets of high net-worth individuals and companies in the country.

    According to VAIDS office, useful data of all payments and receipts of over N100millionhad been obtained from the Nigerian Customs Service. Also, data on all beneficiaries of payments above N100million were obtained from the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigeria Export-Import Bank Over.

    Vital information has also been received from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and land registries.

    The VAIDS office is also looking to derive more data from treasury bills, Nigerian Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and payment platforms such as Remitta.

    “This is the first step in collecting intelligence that will provide information on corporate entities and individuals who may refuse to take advantage of VAIDS. The data being collected is on individual and corporate liquid as well as fixed assets and income over the last five years, both within and outside Nigeria. Data collected will be profiled against tax payments made by such individuals and corporate entities,” said the VAIDS office.

    VAIDS, an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Finance, provides a time-limited opportunity for taxpayers with liabilities to regularize their tax status by truthfully declaring previously undisclosed assets and income. Taxpayers who take advantage of the window will avoid penalties and interest on taxes owed, tax audits and prosecution for tax offences.

    The Federal Government expects through the implementation of VAIDS to generate $1 billion, raise the country’s tax-to-GDP ratio from a meagre 6 per cent, one of the lowest in the world, to 15 per cent by 2020 and provide improved tax education to boost voluntary tax compliance.

  • Osun’s gospel of parliamentary democracy

    Barring any unforeseen circumstances, local government elections will hold in Osun State on January 27, 2018. At least, 332 councillorship slots will be up for grabs in an election scheduled to be the first of its kind in the life of the Rauf Aregbesola-led administration. Not only that, it will be the first in the history of the Fourth Republic that parliamentary practice will be given a shot at the local government level.

    While some professional doubters may wish to liken Osun to an administrative jungle where laws are brazenly breached and, constitutionalism, flagrantly abused, Section 22 of the Local Government (Administration) Law Cap 72A, Vol. 4, Laws of Osun State 2002 as amended states as follows: “There shall be for each local government a chairman and a vice chairman who shall be elected by the councillors of the Local Government Council from among themselves. The chairman and vice chairman shall only be elected among the councillors of the political party that has majority seat in the Local Government Council.” So, why parliamentary system in Osun?

    By the way, what does Aregbesola stand to gain by daring to walk with clear  conviction where  even  angels dare  to  tread and what roles does has the “inchoate” problem associated with local government creation in Nigeria {ref: Supreme Court’s judgement in AG Lagos v AG Federation (2004) 20 NSCQLR 99A} got to play in all of these?

    Without doubt, the creation of Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs), Area Councils and Administrative Offices in Osun was a political masterstroke by this government and Aregbesola deserves commendation for giving Osun a sense of direction and purpose. Lest we forget, ‘Ogbeni’, as he is fondly called, was a prominent member of the Bola Tinubu-led team that midwifed the LCDA system  in  Lagos State. That he is again finding a new path to rehabilitate our democracy in line with the views and position of the people clearly attests to  his valued  intelligence,  unquestionable  optimism  and  endless hope for a better Nigeria.  One can only pray other leaders would tap into the sheer force of his personality and the power of his ideas.

    Again, why the introduction of parliamentary system in Osun and where do we go for succour, in case our cherished system becomes captivated by the culture of corruption and inefficient management system usually associated with our Nigerianness?

    By design, parliamentary democracy is meant to encourage quicker legislative action, primarily because the executive branch is a product of the support of the legislative branch which in turn “includes members of the legislature.” In an environment like ours where ethnic, racial, even religious and ideological animosity has been elevated into statecraft, parliamentary practice serves as an effective instrument for direct political participation and even distribution of power. Also, the likelihood of a drastic drop in the rush for; and friction at the centre under parliamentary practice is high. And, apart from its ability to carry along with it a spectacular increase in political activities across the state, Aregbesola’s innovative revolution is most likely to generate robust discussions on the way forward for a democratic Nigeria.

    Quite clearly, it is because we have failed to test our laws that dysfunctional political system has become commonplace scandal in Nigeria. Contrary to projections, parliamentary system runs the risk of becoming a mere fig leaf by which Nigerians seek good governance and socio-economic liberation unless the fine issues of its cumulative impact are clearly defined. In any case, this is where the involvement of critical stakeholders like the youth, traditional institutions and civil society groups in exploring all the opportunities that an election of this nature and timing presents comes in. Church and state must also collaborate in the overall interest of the electorate, exploring the strengths and inspirations that the exercise will be throwing open. Essentially, political parties must read the signs right by going into the contest with their best, votes-worthy candidates.

    Walter Bagehot famously describes ability to do “what the people say you cannot do” as “the greatest pleasure in life.”  Like a field of driven snow, Osun governorship election is less than a year away! Agreed! No two elections are the same. However, the tragedy of victory is that success at the January 2018 poll may not necessarily translate into victory on September 22, 2018 unless some purposeful political reengineering is done where necessary. On the other hand, the fact that All Progressives Congress (APC) got it wrong on July 8, does not mean that all hope is lost for the party. All the more reason the Aregbesola-led administration must pray towards turning the counsel of the Ahithophels to nought! Truth  be told:  Nigerians are hungry and their quality of life has become so unimpressive that, should the opportunity present itself again, one is not in doubt of President Muhammadu Buhari’s recalibrating  the illusion of ‘belonging to  nobody’ and “everybody”. Sad therefore that Osun is being treated as a case in isolation!

    At a time like this, clarifying extant confusions troubling Nigeria’s Israel may tend to suffer from conceptual impressions. Petty quarrels among brothers also have the capacity to snowball into politically-motivated eruptions of cataclysmic proportions if not accorded the honour of fragility it deserves. To this end, necessary steps must be taken to urgently address all ideological disputations that may want to pitch APC members in the tents of Us versus Us. Most importantly, the salary dislocation which has so far proved to be no respecter of party, racial or gender affiliations must be  courageously confronted in a way that will  ultimately  leave  all parties convinced that the country’s present pass truly has an expiry date.

    Let me by way of conclusion state that, on a good day, an election of this shape and size should afford members of the ruling party a rare opportunity of closing ranks for the purpose of retaining the state for the party in 2018. The hope is that events as they happened in Edo State on September 28, 2016 and Ondo State on November 26, 2016 would provide lessons sufficient enough for the ruling party to deactivate opposition’s fantasy that it is the party of choice in Osun.

     

    • Komolafe  writes from Ijebu-Jesa, Osun State.
  • ‘Oando Foundation equips 80 primary schools in 22 states’

    ‘Oando Foundation equips 80 primary schools in 22 states’

    Oando Foundation, an independent charity organisation has equipped  80 primary schools in 22 states and the FCT, in its efforts to boost access to quality education in the country.

    Mrs Adekanla Adegoke, Head of the foundation, made the disclosure at the inauguration of a block of three classrooms, ICT Centre and toilet facility at LEA Primary School Rido in Kaduna on Wednesday.

    The  facilities were donated to the school by the foundation, as part of Oando’s corporate social responsibility.

    According to her, the foundation has initiated a programme tagged Adopt-A-School Initiative (AASI), aimed at  holistic improvement of public primary schools.

    “AASI was initiated in 2007 in partnership with the Ministry of Education and State Universal Basic Education Boards in line with Oando Foundation’s mission of transforming lives through education.

    “AASI is focused on improving the overall quality of basic education in public primary schools and to create a sustainable model for effective teaching and learning in all adopted schools.”

    She said that the 80 schools adopted by Oando Foundation were located in Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Kaduna, Katsina, Kwara and Lagos states.

    Others are in Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, and the FCT.

    She disclosed that the foundation had adopted two schools in Kaduna state, namely LEA Primary School, Rido, and LEA Primary School Rigasa.

    “The foundation has so far spent about N50 million in LEA Rido since its adoption in 2011.

    “We constructed two blocks of five classrooms and sanitation facilities to improve hygiene.

    “We equally offered scholarship to 22 students to support their secondary education, provided over 1,000 units of teaching and learning materials to strengthen the quality of teaching and learning in the school.

    “We have also built the capacity of teachers and head teachers in modern teaching techniques,” the official said.

    She added that the foundation also partnered Sumitomo Chemical, a Japanese company, to establish the solar powered ICT centres in public primary schools in Kaduna, Lagos and Taraba states.

    “While most children in rural areas do not have access to a computer, three out of every five children in the urban areas lack basic ICT skills.

    “To reverse this negative trend, the foundation has established 15 ICT/Creative Centres in its adopted schools, serving the learning needs of over 16,000 pupils.

    “Together with Sumitomo Chemical and other well-meaning organisations like the Educate-A-Child Qatar, we are creating an enabling environment to provide pupils from marginalised backgrounds invaluable 21st century technology skills, “Adegoke said.

    Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of SUBEB, Malam Nasir Umar thanked the foundation for the gesture, saying that “education is a collective responsibility”.

    Represented by a Permanent Member of the board, Mrs Mary Ambi, the chairman called on other corporate organizations to emulate the gesture.

    Similarly, the Village Head of the community, Alhaji Hamisu Haruna also commended the effort, adding that it would reduce current congestion of over 300 pupils per class.

    He said that the school, built in the 1960s and with a population of about 2,000 pupils, has only seven classrooms, stressing that much would be required to bridge the gap.

    NAN

  • Osun inaugurates another high school edifice at Ilesa

    Osun inaugurates another high school edifice at Ilesa

    •Citizens identification initiative cards launched

    The Osun State government yesterday inaugurated another state-of-the-art high school at Ilesa Government High School in Ilesa.

    Also, the government unveiled the Citizens Identification Initiative cards, called Kaadi Omoluabi, to be distributed to indigenes.

    The inauguration of Ilesa Government High School was in continuation of the Rauf Aregbesola administration’s policy to build 100 state-of-the-art elementary schools, 50 middle schools and 20 high schools.

    Of these, 20 elementary schools, 22 middle schools and 11 high schools have been completed.

    Four high schools had been previously inaugurated, starting with Wole Soyinka Government High School at Ejigbo; Osogbo Government High School (formally Osogbo Grammar School) in Osogbo; Adventist Government High Schoola (formerly Seventh Day Adventist Grammar School) at Ede and Ataoja Government High School (formerly Ataoja School of Science)  in Osogbo.

    The “new” Ilesa Government High School has 72 classrooms of 49 square meters each, capable of sitting 49 students, six offices for study groups, six laboratories, 18 toilets for young ladies, 18 toilets for young men, science library, art library, facility manager’s office, bookshop, sick bay, bursar’s office, three principals’ offices, three general staff office, senior principal’s office, records store and security shed/reception.

    Besides, there is a 1,000 square metres of floor space hall capable of sitting 1,000 pupils for external examinations. It has storage for equipment, utility storage, a stage, office space, storage for documents, four female toilets and four male toilets.

    The school boasts Olympic-sized football field, nine-lane sprinting tracks for 100 meters and 400 meters events, a pavilion and outdoor basketball court that doubles as tennis court.

    Also equipped with stand-alone transformer for electricity and a borehole, the school cost N1.3 billion, including its furnishing, landscape and electronic boards, the government said yesterday.

    In his speech, titled: ‘’The Making of the Educated Person’’, Aregbesola said the state has public schools that could compete with the best in the world.

    The governor said the provision of the new school buildings was in fulfilment of his administration’s promise to provide functional education to pupils.

    He said: “All these are in fulfilment of our promise to provide functional basic education. This stems from our conviction that every child is owed basic education. It is a fundamental and inalienable right of every child. We have gone this length and committed such huge amount on education because we are preparing for the future.

    “A good basic education fulfils the definition of literacy as the ability to read and write and is a solid foundation on which other superstructure of vocational training or higher education can be built.

    “Having the ability to read means that one can receive information and systematised knowledge stored in various retrieval forms, like books, digital electronic devices and by direct observation of events and phenomena.

    “This includes the capacity to observe, understand and make sense out of nature, creation and one’s environment in the most basic form. To write means also that one can graphically reproduce one’s thoughts, observations, ideas and received knowledge in clear, free-flowing prose, in at least one language.

    “We are, therefore, developing the new literate man, a man not just for himself but for the collective; one who sees his own existence and value in the light of other members of the society.

    “We have seen the future. Before our very eyes, advances in science and technology are changing our world. In the foreseeable future, we will see that those who are not well educated will be onlookers and will have no place in it.

    “Generally, the world is in

  • Fed Govt, Osun, NGOs fight malaria with nets

    Fed Govt, Osun, NGOs fight malaria with nets

    Malaria is considered a major health challenge that hinders the development of countries, especially those in African, where over a million lives, including expectant mothers and children under the age of 0-5 years are affected.

    Mindful that the disease remains one of the biggest challenges and which causes 11 per cent of maternal mortality in Nigeria, the Federal Government and key stakeholders are making serious efforts to ensure that the rate at which the disease spreads is reduced maximally.

    In a bid to curb the spread of the disease, the Federal Government and various international organisations have stepped up advocacies to ensure people are adequately sensitised to preventive measures and how to get treated if affected.

    One of the measures through which the spread of malaria can be curbed is the use of Long Lasting Insecticide-Treated Nets (LLIN).

    Lately, the Osun State government, through its Ministry of Health, in collaboration with a number of non-governmental organisations that include the Catholic Relief Services, the National Malaria Elimination Programme, the World Health Organisation and the Society for Family Health, embarked on the replacement of LLIN campaign across the state in furtherance of the 1.6 million nets distributed in 2013.

    The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Rafiu Isamotu, revealed that, in February this year, the team, which comprised officials of the various organisations and the state government envisaged 4,974,662 as the population expected to benefit from the programme.

    He said: “The team toured the entire state with a mandate to distribute for the population about three million nets as part of its mandates.”

    Also, the Manager for the LLIN Replacement Campaign, John Ocholi told Southwest Report that the nets are chemically-treated and endorsed by the World Health Organisation to protect people from mosquito bites that cause malaria.

    Ocholi added that the move was imperative as he said governments globally are interested in curbing the deadly disease. He, therefore, called on people, especially the expectant mothers and children to optimise the opportunity by making use of the material.

    Apart from the micro-planning, sensitisation  and advocacy programme, the team visited the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), traditional rulers, traders, the media and other relevant stakeholders to persuade them to key into the initiative and create more awareness on the exercise.

    Also, the Osun State Deputy Governor, Chief (Mrs) Grace Titi Laoye-Tomori, was installed as the state’s Net-Ambassador to rally support for the programme. At the investiture ceremony, the deputy governor promised, on behalf of the state government, to ensure the provision of logistics and other mechanisms to assist in the success of the campaign.

    Other community leaders, traditional rulers and government officials at the local level were also installed as Net-Ambassadors for their respective domains.

    In continuation of the efforts to make more people aware of the exercise, officials were drawn throughout the 322 wards to help with household mobilisation. Houses were reached from August 13 to 17, this year with net cards to ensure the eligibility of each household (i.e. father, mother and two children) have a net card while cases with more children attract an extra net card. The Net Cards were the legal tender for the collection of the nets. During the household mobilisation, about 2,762,110 net cards were distributed out of the 2,763,701 envisaged.

    During the process, two beneficiaries of the LLIN, Mr. Adereti Wasiu and Mrs. Ololade Afolabi, praised the state government and its partners for the initiative. They pledged their readiness to make wise use of the nets.

    Meanwhile, on September 6, this year, Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, presided over the inauguration of the LLIN Replacement Campaign Distribution.

    At the ceremony, Aregbesola underscored the importance of the nets as protective guards against mosquito bites. He promised to restore healthy living apart from dredging water canals that enhance mosquito breeds. He also supported the all-round sensitisation initiative to ensure compliance and adherence to the campaign.

    The Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, who was represented by the Chief Medical Director of LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, Prof. Akeem Lasisi, said the Federal Government, in its ongoing efforts to rid the country of malaria, is providing about 13 million nets for the six worst hit states. Adewole explained that the Federal Government is planning to reduce drastically the prevalence of the disease by 2020.

    Representatives of the Society for Family Health, Dr. Jenifer Ayate, the Catholic Relief Services, Dr. I. Adebayo, the National Malaria Elimination Programme, Dr. Audu Mohammed, the World Health Organisation, Dr. Tolu Arowolo and the Osun State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Isamotu, all re-emphasised the need for people to be cautious and to embrace the use of the nets to protect their families.

    After the opening ceremony and the distribution exercise with the sampling of the use as well as onward collection by beneficiaries, from September 6 to 10, this year, about 2,470,472 nets were redeemed with net cards out of the 2,912, 850, representing 89.5 per cent reach. In the process, about 12,008 workers were engaged for the distribution across the 30 local government areas.

    After the distribution, 119 independent monitors moved round Osun State from September 14 to 17, to assess the level of compliance with the campaign.

    Households were visited to know the challenges encountered during the drying, hanging and use of the nets. During the end-process as it was called, residents were assisted to hang the nets and re-orientated on the need to sleep under the nets at bed time to safeguard them from mosquito bites.

    At the debriefing was Dr Isamotu, Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Dr. Gbenga Oyinlola, Permanent Secretary, Osun State Ministry of Health, Dr. Akinyinka Esho and Dr. Ernest Nwokolo, of the Directorate of Society for Family Health, among others.

     

  • Court remands three men over murder

    Court remands three men over murder

    An Osogbo Chief Magistrates’ Court, on Tuesday ordered the remand of three men in an Ilesa Prison over alleged murder.

    The defendants: Jimoh Sheriff, 20, Saidu Aliu, 25, and Yusuf Taofiq, 21, were docked on a five-count charge, bordering on murder, conspiracy, false pretense and unlawful possession.

    The Magistrate, Mr Ashiru Ayeni, ordered the remand of the defendants due to the magnitude of the alleged offence committed.

    The Prosecutor, Insp. Elisha Olusegun, had  told the court that the accused persons committed the offences between May and Sept. 20 at about 7:45p.m. within Osogbo and Ifon area in Osun.

    Olusegun said the defendants conspired and killed and behead one Sanusi Isiaka .

    He said that the defendants were also in possession of charms, and obtained money under false pretence from innocent citizens.

    The prosecutor said that the offences contravened Sections 324, 319(1), 516, and 213, punishable under Section 509 of the Criminal Code cap 34 Vol.11 Laws of Osun, 2003.

    The pleas of the defendants were not taken, while the case was adjourned until Dec.21 for mention.

    NAN