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  • Nollywood stars unmarried at 40 and above

    There are so many celebrities in the Nigerian movie industry who are still not married at 40 years and above.

    While some deliberately choose not to tie the knot, others have tried and failed.

    Although not married, these women are doing greatly in the entertainment industry.

    Here is our list of eight female celebrities who are unmarried at 40 and above

    Eniola Badmus (42-yr-old)

    Eniola Badmus
    Eniola Badmus

    Eniola Badmus who turned 42 on Saturday, September 7, 2019 was born in Lagos Nigeria . She had her basic and secondary school education in Ijebu Ode, Ogun state.

    She proceeded to the University of Ibadan where she studied Theatre Arts and then Lagos State University where she graduated with an M.Sc degree in Economics

    This single actress came into limelight in 2008 after she featured in the film Jenifa, a very successful seasonal show whose main character is played by another popular Nollywood actress Funke Akindele.

    Rita Dominic (44-yr-old)

    Rita Dominic
    Rita Dominic

    Rita Dominic is an award-winning actress who was born on July 12th, 1975.

    44-year-old Dominic, was born in a royal family of Nwaturuocha, and was the youngest of four children.

    She graduated from the University of Port Harcourt, where she studied Theatre Arts.

    Her first movie “A Time to Kill” came out in 1998, and since then Rita Dominic has acted in more than 100 Nollywood productions.

    She co-stars with all the most popular Nollywood actors, like Ramsey Nouah, Stephanie Okereke, Mike Ezuruonye, Ini Edo, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Olu Jacobs, and many others.

    There were a lot of reports and photos of Rita Dominic getting married.

    However, a majority of the photos which the media use as evidence are simply photos from movies , where Rita Dominic plays a bride.

    In real life, she is still single. The actress confessed that she wants her future husband to love her for who she is and not because she is famous, and revealed that she would never marry someone because of his riches either.

    Read Also: 10 Nollywood superstars married at least twice

    Kate Henshaw (48-yr-old)

    Kate Henshaw
    Kate Henshaw

    Kate Henshaw is one of the most popular and talented actresses in Nollywood.

    She was born in Cross River State and the oldest of four children. After completing her primary and secondary school in Lagos and Calabar, she spent one year at the University of Calabar reading remedial studies, and then majored in Medical Microbiology at the School of Medical Lab Science, LUTH (Lagos University Teaching Hospital) in Lagos. Henshaw worked at the Bauchi State General hospital. In 1993 Henshaw auditioned for the lead role in the movie When the Sun Sets and was handed the role. This was her first appearance in a major Nollywood movie.

    However, not much has been said about her relationships, she was once married to Rod Nattal back in 2000 and the two split. She’s been unmarried ever since then.

    Eucharia Anunobi (54-yr-old)

    Eucharia Anunobi
    Eucharia Anunobi

    Popular Nollywood actress Eucharia Anunobi is a movie producer and pastor.

    She was born on May 25th, 1965. Currently, Eucharia is 54 years old. Her birthplace is Owerri, Imo State.

    Anunobi has a degree in Mass Communication from the Institute of Management Technology in Enugu.

    She further got another education in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka where she studied the English Language.

    Her first prominent role was in the series “Glamour Girls” in 1994. Acting turned out to be the occupation of her life, and she starred in more than 90 other movies, which include her most famous productions “Abuja Connection”, and “Letters to a Stranger”. Now, she serves as a pastor at the church in Egbeda.

    Anunobi is not in a relationship. She got married to her first husband, Charles Ekwu, in 2000, but they divorced in 2006. Unfortunately, in August 2017, Anunobi’s son passed away at 15.

    Genevieve Nnaji (40-yr-old)

    Genevieve Nnaji

    Ace actor, producer and movie director Genevieve Nnaji was born in May 3, 1979.

    In 2005, She won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in making her the first actor to win the award.

    Nnaji was born in Mbaise, Imo State, Nigeria, and grew up in Lagos. She is the fourth of eight children, she was raised in a middle-class family; her father worked as an engineer and her mother as a nursery school teacher. She attended Methodist Girls College (Yaba, Lagos), before transferring to the University of Lagos, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in creative arts. While at the university, she began auditioning for acting jobs in Nollywood.

    However, recently, a picture of herself and Lynxxx surfaced online which has sparked loads of questions and guesses, Genevieve does not really disclose her personal life to the media often.

    She has a daughter, Theodora Chimebuka Nnaji, whom she gave birth to when she was 17 years old.

    Bimbo Akintola (49-yr-old)

    Bimbo Akintola
    Bimbo Akintola

    Bimbo Akintola was born on May 5th, 1970 in Ibadan, Oyo State. She dreamed about acting from the young age and successfully completed the Theater Arts program at the University of Ibadan.

    The debut movie of Bimbo Akintola was “OWO BLOW”, where she starred together with Femi Adebayo. This movie came out in 1995. Her next big work was “Out of Bounds.”

    Critics and fans highly praise the talent of Bimbo Akintola, and she has been awarded multiple times for her ability to portray any character on the screen.

    Despite her career successes, Bimbo Akintola was never married, and she did not have any children.

    She is strongly against the social stereotype that every successful woman should have a man by her side.

    She sees nothing wrong being single and encourages women who want to have biological children to have them regardless of their marital status, as she believes that single mothers can successfully raise their children if they are emotionally and financially stable.

    Bukky Wright (52-yr-old)

    Bukky Wright
    Bukky Wright

    Bukky was born on the 31 March 1967 to a Christian father and Muslim mother in Abeokuta.

    She attended the University of Lagos, earning a bachelor’s degree in Economics.

    She began her acting career in 1996. She has featured in several Nollywood movies of Yoruba and English languages, including Wale Adenuga’s Television series Super story. Besides acting, she runs a Fashion house and Clothing line, B Collections and a beauty spa, B Wright.

    Bukky’s marital life has been a subject of controversy.

    Bukky Wright’s first husbands was Gboyega Amu, the marriage brought them, two children. But for some reason, the union was broken, and the actress started a relationship with Rotimi Makinde.
    After few years Bukky Wright reportedly began dating famous journalist Femi Davies. The relationship ended after a year, and she moved on.
    Bolaji Saheed, a music promoter, reportedly became the fourth husband of the actress, the marriage also ended. After that, she met her fifth husband, US-based Adewale Onitiri, this marriage recently crashed.

    Faithia Williams (50-yr-old)

    Faithia williams
    Faithia williams

    Faithia Williams popularly known as Faithia Balogun was born on February 5, 1969

    She was born in Ikeja in February 1969. Her ancestry is from Okpara, Delta State.

    She attended Maryland Primary School and Maryland Comprehensive Secondary School in Lagos state, where she obtained the West African School Certificate before she proceeded to Kwara State Polytechnic where she received a diploma certificate.

    She has starred, produced and directed several Nigerian films over the years. In 2008, she won the Africa movie Academy Award for the Most Outstanding Actress Indigenous and her movie Iranse Aje won the best indigenous film of the year.

    She was formerly married to veteran nollywood actor, Saheed Balogun.

    Their marriage hit rock bottom few and she has remained unmarried ever since.

  • 1000 Chinese companies to attend Lagos International Trade Fair

    About 1000 Chinese companies are expected to participate in four exhibitions at the forthcoming Lagos International Trade Fair in November.

    Managing Director of MD Perspective Limited, Chief  Morenike Dele-Alimi, stated this in Lagos yesterday.

    She revealed that Chinese government has approved not less than 200 companies to participate in each of the four exhibition sectors apart from other companies not on government list that will equally be participating.

    Alimi said the exhibitions are being organised by United Asia International Exhibition Group, an international and professional fair and pavilion organiser, authorised by the Ministry of Public Security of Peoples Republic of China and subsidised by the Chinese government.

    Read Also: Lagos Trade Fair Complex not for sale, says BPE

    MD Perspectives Nigeria Limited, an indigenous fair and exhibition organising company, is UAEC Special Partner in Nigeria for the purpose of the organisation of the exhibitions.

    According to Alimi, Nigerian businesses are currently being sensitised on the opportunities inherent in the trades with China.

    Chief  Dele-Alimi noted that owing to the vast population and corresponding size of Nigeria’s economy, the country remains an attractive investment destination for global businesses.

    She explained that the exhibitions will provide economic and commercial bridges between local and international investors and provide platforms to broaden the horizon and scope of investment opportunities for Nigerians.

    “We are glad to note that Nigerian counterparts are being sensitised to participate in the B2B (business to business) events, and are currently being matched with corresponding businesses to ensure that we have short but fruitful business meetings during the events”

    “With the continued recognition of the role of the private sector in the economic development in Nigeria and the move by the Nigerian government to transform the nation’s economy, the exhibitions seek to use the medium of trade to support government’s concerted efforts and provide an avenue for both Nigerians and foreigners to have windows of opportunities, not only to interact, but also to strike mutually beneficial business relationships.”

    “We are hopeful that not less than 500 Nigerian business people per sector will participate in the various B2B meetings that would be held during the 4-day period. This means at least 2000 Nigerian businesses are being invited for the exhibitions,” she said.

  • 35 year old lady needs N5+ million for hip replacement and plastic surgery

    35 year-old Aderinsola Odebunmi is calling on well-meaning Nigerians to help in getting a sum of 5 Million  for hip replacement and plastic surgery from her buttocks down to her legs.

    Narrating how it all started, Aderinsola who has a sickle cell trait otherwise known as  sickler said “It all started when I had swollen legs and  I was diagnosed of having sickle cell anaemia when I was a year and a half. Ever since, it has been one crisis or the other. It got worst in 2005 when I had another crisis and it’s more or less as if I’m lifeless, 3 days after I discovered I couldn’t see again as you can see i can no longer see.

    “So due to the blood tonic that was given to me then, I lost my sight for a whole year. That was in 2005. The sores and wounds on my leg now it was discovered was as a result of complications of those having sickle cell trait, I’ve been to several hospitals but no cure, rather it’s getting worse Though I was introduced to a doctor but unfortunately the doctor is no longer in the country.

    Read Also: Accident victim needs N3m for hip surgery

    “Then he said the wounds in my body was as a result of some sorts in my blood stream and that I have a swollen vein that was withdrawing pores and ever since some doctors couldn’t diagnose what is exactly wrong. They are just prescribing medicine  to treat the wounds. But as you can see it is just getting worse No foundation has raised any fund for me, but my family has been of help, they been assisting in getting money to care for me this far especially my mother. But these family members also have their own family to cater for, the treatment is so overwhelming they they couldn’t find it any longer.

    Presently I couldn’t do anything again on my own. This is my 5th year of pains and unending grief, she lamented and she want Nigerians to come to her aid. Speaking with Aderinsola’s mum, who is a retiree, Mrs. Comfort Odebunmi she said “I gave birth to her 35 years ago and when I got married  to my husband I never knew anything about SS or AS until when she was a year and a half when she developed swollen legs and I took her to the hospital that was when I got to know that she has sickle cell trait.

    “I and her father have been managing the crisis ever since but unfortunately the father died 23 years ago (weeps) and I was left alone to bear the burden. We have spent 4months in Ogun State University Teaching Hospital (OSUTH) after which she lost her sight and she couldn’t walk and when the doctors couldn’t do anything again we were discharged from the hospital. Aderinsola is my last born but she has suffered a lot  because she was a sickler, I’ve tried traditional medicine  as well all to no avail.

    I’ve spent all that I have and today I have nothing I’m appealing to well-meaning Nigerians to support us She need a sum  of N6 Million to undergo hip replacement’. Mrs Odebunmi is urging intending couple to go the blood test and know their blood group before they get married ‘and if they have sickle cell trait in their blood I advice them not to get married’, she warned.

    The money can be transferred to this Acct number:

    Aderinsola Odebunmi GTBank 0050409441

  • Lagos community signs deal with foreign investors on infrastructure

    A partnership between local residents of Odo-Ogun community on the outskirt of Lagos and a team of Chinese investors may soon bring about infrastructural development and job creation in the rural community located along the Lagos-Ikorodu highway.

    According to the details of the deal unveiled yesterday during a stakeholders’ meeting, the investors, led by Mr. Lin Anping, will provide residential houses for the villagers, good roads, hospitals, schools, shopping mall, potable water and other basic amenities as part of the projects tagged ‘Odo-Ogun Castle’.

    Read Also: Sanitation: Lagos community lauds Sanwo-Olu 

    “Although, this would be my first project in Nigeria, I have done a number of projects in China where I come from. But I have plans to develop this community into a castle which will be named ‘Odo-Ogun Castle’. According to the development project plan, we have made reservation for resident houses for the villagers, good road, hospitals, schools, shopping mall, water corporation, among others, will be built in the Castle,” Anping said at the meeting which was attended by traditional rulers, Community Development Association leaders, youth groups representatives, women leaders, indigenous groups’ leaders and numerous other residents.

    Oba Abdullateef Adewale Amodemaja of Maparaland, Agbada, Ogun State, who also attended the meeting, said, “the project is laudable for the development of this community and I am in total support of the development plans. This community has been in a deplorable state over the years and we must endeavour to embrace this opportunity.”

    Secretary of the Odo-Ogun Indigenous Progressive Movement Committee set up by the Odo-Ogun community to scrutinise the project proposal, Yusuf Muyideen, said, “the project is one of the best things that will ever happen to us in Odo-Ogun. All residents will benefit immensely from the project because it presents us with employment, economic development and good standard of living for the people.”

  • Access to basic education, merit, yardstick for quality education – Fayemi

    The governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, has said that for the standard of education to be restored to its former glory, access to basic education and merit should be the yardstick.

    He said this at the 2019  King’s Week 110th Founder’s Day Lecture organised by King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) and  titled “The founding of King’s College Lagos as a template for government involvement in Education”, which was held at the King’s College School Hall, Lagos, on Saturday.

    According to Fayemi who was the guest speaker, “our curriculum development must be based first on access to basic education and secondly, merit should be another major yardstick.”

    Read Also: Fayemi, Wike’s newfound friendship set tongues wagging

    His words: “Everybody must have access to basic education that will allow students to move to the next level of education and even if such student could not go further, he should be given opportunity to access vocational education, then second is merit.”

    He pointed out that for this to be made possible, there is need “for us to do a comprehensive analysis of what our national development is all about in order to have a good standard of education.”

    Speaking on steps taken to improve the educational sector in Ekiti State, Fayemi said he has approved and signed the release of five schools in the state to their original owners.

    “The aim is to help in reconnecting institutions to those that have the vision and the capacity to run them effectively, it’s a pilot case which we hope will guide the subsequent release of other schools.”

    Also speaking on what informed the theme for the anniversary lecture, the Chairman Planning Committee, KCOBA Founder’s Day Anniversary, Mr. Ladi Lawanson, said it is glaring enough that the standard of education is falling and the quality of preparation for the leaders of tomorrow is less than what is desired.

    Lawanson enthused: “so that’s why we thought that as an alumni association, as stakeholders in the education sector, as beneficiaries of an educational system that once worked, we had a duty to effect positive changes by speaking on such issues and invite people that had understanding on such issues and are able to influence the outcome and bring about solutions.”

    According to Lawanson, this year makes the school a hundred and ten years old, adding that “the objective of setting it up was to mould lives that will become nation builders and even from the array of our Old Boys, King’s College, no doubt, has kept that promise.”

  • Kaduna church builds bridges

    No fewer than 34 people, including 11 Muslims, have benefited from free surgeries by Mercy Angel Hospital, Kaduna.

    The surgeries were carried out by volunteer doctors from the United States of America, Wales and Nigeria.

    The team also carried out other medical interventions at the outreach sponsored by the Restoration Bible Church and Ministries, Ungwan Romi in Southern Kaduna.

    Alhaji Wada Adamu, a resident of Sabon Gari, Tudun Wada Kaduna, never thought he would ever cross over the River Kaduna bridge to the southern part of Kaduna because of the belief that the area is not safe for Muslims.

    Yet he needed to take the risk along with his son because he was in dire need of surgery to survive an undisclosed ailment.

    He eventually made the plunge and lived to appreciate the outcome.

    The General Overseer of the church, Rev. Tunde Bolanta, said the church decided to extend the intervention to the Muslim community to build bridges.

    An Islamic scholar, Sheikh Nureni Ashafa, facilitated the involvement of the Muslim community.

    Bolanta said the intervention was designed to build bridges of unity between Muslims and Christians.

    According to him: “I have personally been burdened that the narrative needed to change regarding the relationship between Christians and Muslims in Kaduna State and the nation at large.

    “We must build bridges of hope and friendship across the religious divide, restoring the confidence of the past through people of goodwill.”

    The medical intervention, according to him, was sequel to hand of fellowship extended to the Muslim community in Tudun Wada during the Ramadan fast.

    He said: “Our partnership with Sheikh Ashafa to give out gifts to 500 persons during Ramadan comprising the aged, widows, orphans and the physically challenged was significant in confidence building for our Muslim community to participate in the medical and surgical intervention.

    “Eleven surgeries were successfully carried out for our friends in the Muslim community.

    “It was a bold step for them to come into this area for surgery because according to Sheikh Ashafa, Muslims consider this part of the town (southern part of Kaduna metropolis) a red zone while Christians also consider the Muslim part of the city a red zone.”

    Bolanta believed that it was possible to rebuild the Kaduna of the past where everyone lived in peace with each other irrespective of tribe or religion.

    H said: “We hope that we can build on the friendship for the greater good of society.”

    The doctors carried out the 34 surgeries successfully, including a 5hrs 10 minutes hysterectomy of a 9.5 kg Fibroids filled uterus.

    For ten days, they carried out free surgeries to beneficiaries who could not afford medical treatment.

    Bolanta said over 1000 persons have also benefited from the skill acquisition programme of the church while the orphanage home attached to the hospital has continued to receive Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

    Sheikh Nureni Ashafa, who led members of the Muslim community in Kaduna to benefit from the intervention, described it as a fulfillment of the directives of God.

    He recalled how Restoration Bible Church provided food items for the Muslim community during the last Ramadan fast, pointing out that about 500 people benefited from food items.

    Ashafa said the values God will recognise is not how much money you have, but how much you are able to touch people’s lives positively, saying “where are those values that is there in to scriptures?

  • Abiodun signs Ogun Investment Promotion Agency, 3 other bills into law

    Ogun State governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has signed into law a bill to have a one-stop shop for investors wishing to establish their companies in the state.

    The bill, which is referred to as ‘Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of Ogun State, 2019’, was presented to him for assent by the leadership of the State House of Assembly on Friday.

    According to a statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Kunle Somorin, three other bills also signed into law by the governor included: Ogun State Legislative Fund Management Law, 2019; the Magistrates’ Court (Amendment) Law, 2019 and the Customary Court (Amendment) Law 2019.

    With the signing of these bills, the number passed by the State Assembly is now seven. The lawmakers had previously passed the amendment law concerning the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta; the amended Security Trust Fund Law and the State Public Works Agency Bill.

    Read Also: Abiodun blames Amosun for failure of Ogun Trust Fund

    Abiodun lauded the lawmakers for passing the bills, which are in the interest of the people within the first 100days of the inauguration of the 9th Assembly.

    The governor said the lawmakers also did well by passing three other resolutions as he also appreciated them for approving his request for N1.5bn loan to facilitate the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme aimed at producing 40,000 agriprenuers, saying that it would enable the state participate actively in national economic growth.

    He noted that agriculture was one of the sectors which his administration intended to revolutionise.

    While informing members of the state legislature what his administration had been able to do in the last 100 days, Abiodun said sectors like education, health, infrastructure, information technology, security, agriculture and employment are on the front burner. He assured the legislators that all parts of the state would be touched in terms of development.

    While pledging that his administration would be inclusive, the governor appreciated the lawmakers for the bills they brought forward and the resolutions, noting that it underscored their commitment to complement the executive arm of government.

    Speaking earlier, the Speaker, Olakunle Oluomo, said the passage of the bills and resolutions was to mark their 100 days in office and to use the opportunity of signing the bills by the governor to hold a caucus meeting with him.

  • Int’l Day of Peace: LASG urges manufacturers to package products with recyclable materials

    The Lagos State government has urged manufacturers and producers of consumable goods to package their products with biodegradable or recyclable materials to save drainages from blockage and flooding.

    State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Mr. Moyo Onigbanjo, made the appeal in his welcome address at the tree planting exercise to commemorate the year 2019 International Day of Peace which was held at Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota, at the weekend.

    The programme with the theme, ‘Climate Action for Peace: Clear Blue Skies’, was spearheaded by the Citizen’s Mediation Centre, CMC, an agency under the state ministry of justice.

    Read Also: Lagos affirms commitment on environmental laws

    Other activities to commemorate the day was the sensitisation of public and stakeholders on opportunities for wealth generation and job creation in the area of waste recycling of biodegradable materials dropped in drainages but picked up by staff of CMC.

    According to Onigbanjo, causes of flooding in Lagos are traceable to the disposal of plastic and nylon products which clog drainage channels and results in flooding.

    “We have to synergise as a people to ensure that waste products are properly disposed; the year 2019 international day of peace celebration is another opportunity for us, as a people, to be in harmony with nature by ensuring environmental management and conservation for the benefit of our society and future generations.”

    The theme, he pointed out, is expected to raise public awareness through enlightenment campaigns and advocacy to the threat posed to human settlements through natural disasters, conflicts, food insecurity, human migration and deforestation.

    “We owe it as a duty to sustain our world by adopting and supporting the use of renewable energy and environmentally friendly practices,” Onigbanjo said.

  • PDP and the return of long knives

    As former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Governor Nyesom Wike’s camps disagree and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors sport for war, Assistant Editor, ‘Dare Odufowokan, reports that PDP may have returned to its days of long knives

    FOLLOWING its unexpected defeat by the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the 2015 Presidential Elections, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may have returned to its days of long knives. Before the 2019 general elections, the party had been in a running battle with internal wrangling and intrigues, as it faced one challenge after the other, which threatened its very existence. It took the July 2017 Supreme Court verdict that sacked the Ali Modu Sherif-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the troubled party to bring respite to the then near moribund party.

    Fresh troubled however reared its head with the controversial election of Prince Uche Secondus as the National Chairman of the party few months later, but sanity prevailed somehow and the party, with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as its flag-bearer, entered the 2019 presidential race pretty much stronger than it had been since the 2015 defeat of then President Goodluck Jonathan by Muhammadu Buhari of the APC. Not even allegations that the primary election that produced Atiku was rigged could threaten the peace of the party ahead of the elections.

    Even after the defeat of Atiku and the PDP by President Buhari in the last presidential election, the opposition party continued to appear united as its leaders vowed to floor Buhari and APC at the tribunal and retrieve what they widely described as the stolen presidential mandate of March 2019. But today, the party seems to be on its way back to the days of long knives following the outbreak of fresh hostilities among its leaders. Observers say the latest crisis rocking the party, though gently, if not promptly curtailed, have the capacity to return PDP to its old crisis-ridden self.

    GENESIS

    On the surface, trouble returned to the opposition PDP after Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State publicly congratulated President Buhari on his victory over Atiku and his party at the presidential election tribunal last week. But party sources claimed there had been undercurrents before Wike’s open defiance of his party with his congratulatory message to Buhari. “Things have not really been the same thing between some of our governors, especially Wike, and the camp of Alhaji Atiku for some time now,” a party official told The Nation.

    A five-man panel led by Mohammed Garba dismissed the petition of the PDP and Atiku Abubakar, its presidential candidate, saying the petitioners failed to convince the tribunal in the reliefs they sought. Expectedly, the PDP has rejected the verdict of the tribunal and asked its lawyers to file an appeal at the Supreme Court. The party in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, alleged that despite the flawless evidence laid before the court, President Buhari was still declared winner of the 2019 Presidential Election.

    Describing the judgement as a barefaced subversion of justice and a direct assault on the integrity of the nation’s justice system, Ologbondiyan said the party was shocked that the tribunal allegedly failed to point to justice. The opposition party however urged Nigerians to remain calm, saying its lawyers are upbeat about obtaining justice at the Supreme Court. Breaking ranks with his party, Wike, a leading light in the opposition party, who was also the coordinator of Atiku’s Presidential Campaign in the south-south, sent a congratulatory message to Buhari.

    In the message Simeon Nwakaudu, his media aide, issued on his behalf, Wike asked Buhari to use his victory to unite Nigerians, “irrespective of their political leanings.” “Governor Wike called on the President to work towards the unity of the country, noting that the country is divided,” Nwakaudu said in a statement. Expectedly, the congratulatory message drew the flaks from some prominent PDP leaders and chieftains, with many of them accusing him of seeking President Buahri’s attention to the detriment of his political party.

    In the midst of the backlashes generated by Wike’s action, former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, considered a close ally of Wike, who was reported to have also congratulated the President, denied doing so and pledged his support for Atiku and the PDP. Nigerians should disregard any congratulatory message issued in my name on the outcome of the presidential election judgment. My party has indicated its intention to appeal the judgment, and as a party man and believer in the PDP/ATIKU 2019 project, I can’t author such statement,” Fayose said on his official Twitter handle.

    The PDP youths under the aegis of PDP South South Youths Vanguard, also berated Wike for congratulating President Buhari over his victory at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal. Reacting to Wike’s position, the PDP South South Youth Vanguard, in a statement by its National Chairman, James Efe Akpofure, said the governor was biting more than what he can chew. He said that the governor is not bigger than the party, adding, “how can the leadership of PDP say that the party is heading to the Supreme Court and Wike who was approved by the party to fly its flag at the governorship elections, and a member of the party is congratulating the President, who benefitted from a faulty judicial system that has been gagged by the executive.

    “Wike should know that he’s not more than the party and as such, he should stop bad mouthing and ridiculing the PDP. If he thinks because he was the one that brought the National Chairman he can do whatever he likes, he should have a rethink. The party cannot take a position on issues and he’s taking a contrary position by congratulating the President the whole world says manipulated the election that brought him on board.”

    MORE BRICKBATS

    Undeterred by the missiles being hurled at him, an unrepentant Wike threw more spanners into the works of the fragile peace in his party when he said he congratulated Buhari after the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal confirmed his election because it is better to offer public congratulations than visit the President at night. Wike said unlike some governors of Peoples Democratic Party, who visit President Buhari at night, he made his declaration public because it came from the heart.

    “I am sure all of you are surprised that I congratulated Buhari. Is it not good for me to congratulate him than to go to his house in the night? So many PDP governors go to see him in his house in the night. I have never gone and I will not go. We are the only state that the Federal Government refused to pay us our money used to execute federal projects because I don’t go to see him in the night and I won’t go. He is not my friend, he is not doing well, but he won in court, should I say that the court did wrong? No. “President Buhari, congratulations and carry Nigerians along. Unify the country, the country is too divided. I am saying what is right. What I will do, I will do, what I will not do, I will not do,” he said.

    To further expose the crack within the wall of the opposition party, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State said PDP governors have decided to team up with Atiku Abubakar to get the Supreme Court to upturn the judgment of the tribunal. Speaking as Chairman of PDP Governors Forum, of which Wike is a member, Dickson encouraged Atiku and the PDP to appeal the judgment at the Supreme Court. He said posterity would not be kind to any PDP governor that abandons the party and Atiku to fight the legal battle alone.

    “We would be doing a greater disservice and moral injustice to our party, our democracy and Nigerians in general if we turn blind eyes, swallow such bile and applaud that rape of justice. The judgment to say the least has further painted our judiciary with darker colors, only this time around with a never-before-seen blemished coat of tar. However, we are hopeful that the Supreme Court will rewrite that history by ensuring that such stains and tar are removed from our judicial archives. This is our stand, now and in the future. Posterity would judge us harshly if we do otherwise,” he said.

    But observers of the politics of the party say by rushing to congratulate Buhari for his victory at the election petition tribunal, Wike was sending a message Atiku and his supporters within PDP couldn’t have missed. Wike, in the run up to the PDP presidential primaries, never hid his opposition to Atiku. He openly chided the later’s camp for allegedly trying to move the party’s convention away from Port-Harcourt. “This is a continuation of the ‘beef’ between Wike and those on the side of Atiku,” a source insisted.

    UNDERCURRENTS

    The Nation gathered that before now, there has been a subtle struggle for the control of the party between Atiku and Wike. According to very reliable party sources, after the 2019 presidential election, the Rivers State governor had been making frantic moves to regain control of the party which slipped from his grip following Atiku’s emergence as the presidential candidate of the party. But it has not been easy for him to get the party back under his control owing largely to the optimism of chieftains that Atiku will triumph at the tribunal.

    “Wike also didn’t like the fact that he was not being consulted as much as he wanted on the affairs of the party. Even Secondus, the national chairman, who rode on the influence of Wike to the position, now tilts more towards Atiku and his camp as far as party activities and decisions were concerned. This probably may be because Atiku and his people were the ones pursuing the cases at the tribunal and keeping the party alive with their activities,” our source suggested, indicating that relationship between Wike and Secondus may not be at the very best currently.

    “One of such things Wike find annoying is the recently announced Dubai trip by party leaders to confer with Atiku on the state of the party. He thinks he is being shut out of the party too much. Interestingly, many PDP leaders currently feel the Rivers governor is throwing his weight around too much. Even some of his fellow governors are prepared to engage him in a showdown should he make any further move that is capable of destabilizing the party. Remember how he recently threatened to deal with the party and its leaders if he is angered,” our source said.

    Chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT), Sen Walid Jubrin, had recently said he arrived in Dubai with prominent party leaders to hold talks with Atiku. He said the meeting between Atiku and the BoT members would centre on reconciliation and other issues within the party. “After our meeting with Atiku, the BoT as a body will meet to consider other issues affecting the party, including the report of the committee that investigated the crisis in the party over the minority leadership in the House of Representatives,” he added.

    The Nation gathered that one other issue causing disaffection within the opposition party is the handling of the crisis over the minority leadership in the House of Representatives. Wike is said to be displeased with the current position of the party on the matter. He had reportedly described the panel set up by the PDP BOT to resolve the Minority leadership crisis as the most corrupt in the history of the party. Sources say Wike is opposed to the emergence of Hon. Elumelu as the Minority Leader. The refusal of the party to move against him is displeasing to the Rivers State governor and his supporters.

    During the week, the Chairman of the BoT, Senator Walid Jubril, and the Secretary, Senator Adolphus Wabara, disagreed over the submission of the investigative report. Addressing reporters after a meeting of the board at the party’s Abuja secretariat, the two chieftains contradicted one another on the status of the committee’s report. The BoT investigation committee, chaired by former Senate President Iyorchia Ayu, also had two other former Senate Presidents, David Mark, and Wabara, as well as former Deputy Senate President, Ibahim Mantu, as members.

    A former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara, served as Secretary of the committee. However, Opara resigned from the committee before it concluded its assignment. Jubril said the Board had received the Ayu committee report but had yet to submit same to the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party. But he was swiftly countered by BoT Secretary, Wabara, who said that the Board had indeed submitted the report to the NWC. Wabara said, “We have considered the report and we have submitted the report on Elumelu to the NWC.”

  • Lambo: Time to end beauty contest in health sector

    Leveraging on his expertise and experience in the apex global and national health systems, former Minister of Health, at a Scientific Conference in Abuja, has called for an urgent end to the disharmony and unhealthy rivalry among the various professional groups in the nation’s health sector.

    The age-long issue of inter-professional disharmony in the Nigerian health sector resonated in the ornate Africa Hall of the International Conference Centre, Abuja recently as hundreds of health professionals and other stakeholders assembled for the 55th Annual Scientific Conference and Workshop of the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria whose theme was “Global Health Security: the Medical Laboratory Agenda for sub-Saharan Africa”. Agenda (GHSA). The aim was to focus on how the lofty goals of GHSA could be advanced through an interconnected network of medical laboratories in both public and private clinical settings that are capacitated to rapidly detect and report disease outbreaks in Nigeria and other sub-Saharan African countries.

    Renowned Health Economist and former Minister of Health, Professor Eyitayo Lambo, had accepted the Association’s invitation to be the Chairman of the Opening Session of the Conference and the Guest Speaker at one of the plenary sessions on the topic: “Managing Inter-Professional Disharmony in Nigeria’s Health Sector for Health Security.” Lambo, who superintended over the nation’s health sector for four years of momentous developments, was on familiar terrain. For the four years he was on the saddle, not a single industrial action was witnessed in a sector that had built a reputation for being patently unstable.

    Prior to his appointment, debilitating industrial actions by workers were a regular fare in the sector, caused often by issues arising from disharmony and needless unhealthy rivalry among the professionals.

    Guided by a robust career as a University teacher, Health Economist with the World Health Organization and the peculiar advantage of not being a health professional who had to coordinate the activities of the various professional groups in the sector, Lambo, with no worries about who might take offence, tackled the subject with clinical detachment and spoke truth to those engaged in what he calls unnecessary “beauty contest” in the health sector as very few could do.

    Stressing that the process of providing healthcare was interdisciplinary and requiring many health professionals to work as a team or in teams, Lambo noted that effective team work among health professionals was an essential tool for patient-centred health service delivery system. He observed with regret that disharmony and unhealthy rivalry among professionals in the health sector was an age-long problem in Nigeria that had hitherto not been adequately and effectively dealt with by policy makers and the various governments.

    Such disharmony and unhealthy rivalry, he added, had become so pronounced that it had negatively impacted on: the quality and continuity of patient care; the confidence of patients and the general public in the nation’s healthcare delivery system; and even job satisfaction among some of the feuding groups of health professionals. He lamented that the ugly trend had also led to a further weakening of the national health system and poor health outcomes.

    Lambo, therefore, called on stakeholders, led by the government, to boldly confront the monster of disharmony and unhealthy rivalry among health professionals, and restore harmony, stop unnecessary conflicts among the various groups of health professionals and promote inter-professional collaboration rather than competition and confrontation. A united health workforce, he noted, was necessary for strengthening the national health system, which in itself is a prerequisite to achieving universal health coverage (UHC) and the goals of the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA).

    He examined the dimensions and drivers of disharmony and unhealthy rivalry among health professionals in Nigeria and identified some of them as the rivalry between the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and medical doctors/dentists. Issues in contention, he said, include: the supremacy and the alleged arrogance of doctors towards other health professionals; leadership of the health team; and the headship of health agencies and federal tertiary health institutions. Others are the appointment of Health Ministers, the structure of the Federal Ministry of Health/other health institutions, and the appointment of Directors of the Ministry.

    The groups, he said also bicker over salary structure and emoluments, especially as it pertains to the adjustment and harmonization of emoluments; special training programmes and expanded roles for allied health workers; the appointment of non-medical professionals as consultants in hospital settings; professional autonomy; membership of Boards of Federal Health Institutions; conditions of service as well as the advocacy for the creation of Office of  Surgeon-General.

    According to Lambo, the disregard for existing regulatory laws of the health professions, non-implementation and selective implementation of the scheme of service for health sector personnel, non-adherence to job definitions and descriptions and selfishness in the pursuit of health workers’ welfare are also among the alleged causes of bitter disagreements.

    The former Health Minister further identified other dimensions of clashes as between pharmacists and doctors, nurses and doctors, medical laboratory scientists and pathologists, radiographers/radiology technicians and radiologists, physiotherapists and doctors as well as optometrists and ophthalmologists.

    The needless dishonoring and unhealthy rivalry among the professionals, he said, was a major contributor to the incessant strikes by health workers with serious effects on patients, the health system and health outcomes. For patients, the negative effects he listed included increased deaths and worsening health conditions due to moving patients from one health facility to the other; discharge of patients from public health facilities without completion of care; treatment/recovery delays; prolonged suffering and irreversible damage to health.

    The unhealthy rivalry among the professions, according to him, also: promotes inequality in access to quality health care because most of the poor cannot afford to pay for private health care; increases morbidity and mortality, especially among the poor; leads to sub-optimal contribution by the various professional groups to the care of patients; encourages outbound medical tourism by those who can afford it; and contributes to job dissatisfaction and emigration of qualified health workers. The trend, Lambo said, also contributes to: further weakening of the national health system and the nation’s poor health outcomes; and client dissatisfaction with and loss of confidence in the public healthcare delivery system.

    To manage and resolve the disharmony and unhealthy rivalry among the health professionals, Lambo urged government to take the need to bring all stakeholders together seriously and adopt an impartial approach in order to effectively resolve most, if not all, of the outstanding causes of the trend. He also enjoined the leaders of the relevant professional groups to come to the table to resolve all outstanding issues with an open mind. In other words, he said, the round table conversation should enjoy the attendance and frank participation of all concerned with a spirit of no-victor-no-vanquished.

    Government and other relevant stakeholders, he said, should promote mutual respect and trust among the various professional groups as well as create a mechanism for ensuring adequate involvement of all groups in decision-making concerning the care of patients. They should also make industrial relations mechanisms and collective bargaining more effective and transparent as well as ensure the timely honouring of any collective bargaining agreements.

    The former Health Minister further called on government to: adopt a holistic approach in dealing with issues relating to health workers; establish open communication channels for groups of health professionals; review existing legislation concerning Federal Tertiary Health Institutions, taking into consideration the best practices from other countries with better health systems; and vigorously promote inter-professional collaboration in health care.

    He itemized the possible benefits of harmony among health professionals and inter-professional collaboration to include the enhancement of patients’ satisfaction with care, enhancement of the co-ordination of health services, improvement of patients’ care and outcomes and the enhancement of patients’ safety.

    To health professionals he said, they would reap the benefits of improved job satisfaction, reduced job- related stress, lower staff turnover, maximized utilization of the skills and expertise of health professional, improved understanding of roles and improved coordination among care givers.

    Lambo, who said it would be a win-win situation for all, added that health care organizations stand to gain the benefits of improved effectiveness and responsiveness, improved health outcomes, increased capacity to serve a variety of healthcare needs, and reduced medical errors.

    Reflecting on his tenure as Health Minister between 2003-2007, Lambo attributed his widely acclaimed success and the industrial peace experienced in the health sector during the period to: the grace and mercy of God; his not being a member of any of the health professions which enabled him to deal with issues dispassionately and impartially without bias in favour or against any group; and his leadership style and skills which encouraged most of the professional groups to work closely with him Other factors were his vision for the sector which was shared by most members of each professional group and the development/implementation of the nation’s first comprehensive health sector reform program to attain the vision. That, he noted, was a major unifying factor.

    Other factors that contributed to industrial peace during his tenure were: the maturity exhibited by the leadership of most of the professional groups; the open door policy adopted which encouraged the various groups to approach him for necessary consultations, even at short notice, on any relevant issues; commitment to transparency in the appointment of heads of federal tertiary health institutions; and the strategic support he got from President Olusegun Obasanjo and the Finance Minister to make money available to settle outstanding payments to health workers.

    Lambo said there were no “sacred cows” under him when there were known infractions while the leadership of the unions were regularly updated, especially when monies and dues were involved. They were also informed of releases and cash backing as and when due.

    He said no personal demands were placed on federal tertiary health institutions and their management by the Minister beyond the line of duty, which he said gave no opportunity for the unions to accuse him of putting pressure on the finances of the institutions, thereby creating conflict.

    Lambo also spoke extensively on the appointment of Ministers of Health, which has been a major sore point in the relationship among the various groups in the health sector. As against the popular trend and agitation by some for medical doctors to always be named ministers, he was emphatic that what was required of a Health Minister is not the knowledge of medicine per se, since a Health Minister is not required to perform surgeries or attend to patients in health facilities. Rather, the most pertinent requirements for an ideal Health Minister, according to Lambo, include: a very sound knowledge of the national health system (which has health service delivery as just one of its six major pillars or building blocks); strong management and leadership skills  including being visionary and a strategic thinker; ability to make economic and political arguments with the President, Finance Minister and the leadership of National Assembly for financial resources and elicit high level support for health system changes; skills required to effectively engage the Ministries and Departments of Government that oversee the key determinants of health that are beyond Health Ministry’s purview as well as engage with non-state actors which have expertise and vested interests in health, including private providers of health services, special interest groups, advocacy organizations and donors; and ability to ensure the provision of essential health functions directly or indirectly through the agencies and private sector parties.

    To support his position that Health Ministers do not necessarily have to be medical doctors, Lambo presented the profiles of the current Health Ministers in 80 of the Member-States of World Health Organization (WHO) of which almost half are non-medical doctors. Among the countries with non-medical persons as Health Ministers currently are the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Ireland, China and The Netherlands. In Africa, he said Ghana, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Lesotho, Mali and Kenya are among countries that have Health Ministers who are not medical doctors.

    The audience gave Lambo rapt attention as he waded through the fairly long presentation and rewarded him with a resounding standing ovation at the end of the engagement, which some of those who made comment on the occasion said was sure to elicit a change of thinking in the nation’s health sector.