By Ikenna Osuoha

The South East chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it received with deep sense of loss, sorrow and sadness the death of retired Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu.

Mr Augustine Okeke, South East Publicity Secretary, PDP said this in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday.

Okeke who described the deceased as a national builder, said that his death was a national tragedy.

“It is a national tragedy to lose this nation builder especially at this time when the nation is facing dire security challenges requiring all hands especially such knowledgeable and experienced hands on security as that of Kanu are expected to be on deck.

“Our hearts go out to his immediate and extended families, the people of South East and indeed to all Nigerians for the loss of this national iroko,” Okeke said.

The late Naval Officer who died on Jan. 13 was the first Military Administrator of old Imo which was made up of Abia and parts of Ebonyi.

He championed the development of the old Imo with giants strides in all sectors like the establishment of Imo Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) and others. (NAN)

By Oluwafunke Ishola

The 11-week-old baby, Shalom Omoike, with a heart problem, hoping to travel abroad for a heart surgery, is dead.

His mother, Mrs Mercy Omoike, a journalist with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said on Wednesday that Shalom died on Sunday evening while waiting to travel for the surgery.

Omoike, while appreciating the gesture of kind hearted Nigerians that donated toward the surgery, said such payments into the publicised bank and “Go Fund Me Account’’ should stop.

She thanked kindhearted Nigerians and corporate organisations that had donated toward the planned heart surgery for Shalom.

“We, however, regret to announce the death of the baby. The baby boy died on Jan. 10, after a brief illness,’’ she said.

Recall that Omoike had earlier sought the support of kind-hearted Nigerians to raise N7.5 million for surgery to save the baby born with a heart problem.

Omoike said the baby boy was born on Oct. 23, with a heart problem.

According to her, the financial support was needed for Shalom’s surgery, visa, and travel expens­es to India for the surgical intervention.

NAN reports that Mr Buki Ponle, the Managing Director of NAN had also on Jan. 8, launched a #SaveShalom Appeal Fund to save the baby. (NAN)

By Fatima Mohammed-Lawal
At least 20 doctors have been infected with COVID-19 at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), an official has disclosed.

Dr Badmus Habeeb, President of UITH chapter of Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Ilorin.

He said that members of the association were battling with the pandemic based on available resources.

“About 20 of our members have been infected with the virus in the past two to three weeks. I must reiterate that this is not the best of times for us, our families and the affected patients,” he said.

Habeeb, however, said that the discovery of COVID-19 vaccine has brought hope and relief to the people.

“There is a poor resource setting in the country, where basic necessities to make the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccines easy and possible, are not readily available.

“So it, therefore, seems we may never be able to get the vaccine anytime soon.

“Base on available evidence COVID-19 vaccine is effective and there is no reason why Nigerians should not follow the guide of scientific evidence, especially with proper information,” he said.

He advised the government to provide necessary resources and incentives to health workers across the country to help curb its spread.

“The public should adhere strictly to COVID-19 protocols as announced by NCDC,” he said.

By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna State Government has established no fewer than 300 nutrition corners in health facilities across the 23 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state as part of strategies to fight malnutrition.

Mr Umar Bambale, Project Manager, Kaduna State Emergency Nutrition Action Plan (KADENAP), made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna on Wednesday.

Bambale explained that the nutrition corners were being used for food demonstration to teach women and caregivers how to prepare nutritious meals using available food items.

He said that the feat was achieved following the monthly release of N1 million by each local government area through the Ministry for Local Government Affairs for implementation of nutrition programmes in the LGAs.

“Our target is to ensure that all our health facilities have a food demonstration corner to educate mothers on ways to prepare nutritious meals for children under five years using available food.

“We had less than 100 nutrition corners in health facilities before the monthly release of the N1 million by the LGAs which started in July 2020.

“But with the consistent release of the funds we have been able to establish additional nutrition corners and procure the needed equipment, consumables and drugs in more than 300 health centres.

He commended the LGAs for the monthly release of the funds, adding that a utilisation template was designed by KADENAP to track and ensure judicious use of the funds.

The project manager said that part of the money was being used for Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM), Community Infant and Young Child Feeding (CIYCF) and Food and Nutrition programming and monitoring.

He said that the Local Government Food and Nutrition Committees meet every month to review activities, progress, and challenges in the implementation of nutrition interventions and find ways to address them.

He added that the wives of the LGA Chairmen also supervised nutrition activities in their respective local government areas and encouraged women to visit health centres to access nutrition services.

Bambale disclosed that the demand for nutrition services had increased over the years due to the massive awareness and sensitisation campaigns to nutrition by community volunteers.

Mrs Ramatu Haruna, the State Nutrition Officer, also said that the state government had trained 1,565 Community Volunteers and established 935 Support Groups in LGAs implementing CIYCF and CMAM.

Haruna explained that the community volunteers and the support groups were massively sensitising and mobilising mothers and caregivers to malnutrition and referring malnourished children to health facilities for treatment. (NAN)

Almost half of Bulgarians are against getting a Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination, according to a poll reported by local media on Tuesday.

Some 46 per cent of Bulgarians said they were against getting the jab, while 30 per cent said they would like to get vaccinated, according to the Gallup International poll.

Another 23 per cent of the respondents were undecided.

A total of 800 people were surveyed.

Some 48 per cent of respondents said they thought the vaccines were dangerous, while 34 per cent thought they were relatively harmless. 18 per cent did not answer or said they did not know.

In the country of 6.9 million people, just over 14,000 have already had the jab, according to official data.

Bulgaria’s five-phase coronavirus vaccination campaign began on Dec. 27.

Doctors and nurses received a first dose of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine.

The government in Sofia aims to vaccinate 70 per cent of the population.

A first delivery of Moderna vaccine doses is expected on Wednesday.

A partial lockdown in Bulgaria put in place a month and a half ago has curbed case numbers.

Since the pandemic started, the country has recorded some 200,000 cases and over 8,000 deaths.

By Abujah Racheal

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced 1,270  new cases of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total number of infections to 102,601.

The NCDC disclosed this on its official website on Tuesday.

The public health institute confirmed 12 new deaths in the past 24 hours. This takes the nation’s death toll to 1,373 .

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the country has so far tested 1,033,858 people since the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was recorded in the country on Feb. 27, 2020.

The agency said the new infections were reported from 21 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

According to the breakdown released on Tuesday by health agency, Lagos takes the lead with 435 infections, FCT 234, Oyo 103, and  Plateau 86.

Other states with new infections were Rivers-71, Enugu-51, Nasarawa-41, Delta-39, Edo-39, Osun-33, Niger-31, Sokoto-23, Ondo-16, Taraba-13, Ebonyi-12, Kano-10, Abia-9, Bayelsa-8, Bauchi-7, Imo-5, Katsina-3, and Gombe-1.

The NCDC disclosed that 1,083 additional patients had been discharged after they tested negative.

Meanwhile, the total number of recoveries and discharges has risen to  81,574.

According to the agency, a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), activated at Level 3, is coordinating response activities nationwide.

NAN reports that the country’s active cases stand at 19,654, while only two states – Kogi and Cross River – have no active cases of COVID-19 as of Jan. 12.

By Gabriel Yough

Dr Innocent Vakkai, the Taraba commissioner for Health, on Tuesday, denied local media reports that he embezzled the sum of N1.2 billion COVID-19 funds given to the state by the Federal Government to tackle the virus.

Vakkai, who is also the Chairman, Taraba Technical Committee On COVID -19, refuted the allegations at a media briefing, in Jalingo, saying that the publication was the imagination of the publisher and thus false, with no iota of truth.

He explained that all the monies sent to the state for support and management of COVID-19 were paid directly into the state government’s account and not to the committee or individuals.

“I want to state here categorically that the state technical committee can only apply for funds through the Taraba government account section, we don’t have an account where support funds can be paid into for me to divert.

“If one is to apply for funds, one will first of all state reasons and items, why you need such funds, you also report back to the state government with receipts of your expenditure on how the funds were expended.

“The newspaper accused me of building a gigantic hospital in Abuja and Yola with COVID-19 funds, I want to tell the whole world that it is not true.

“I have no single health care center to my name anywhere in Nigeria, let a alone a big hospital, I will be happy if he can go and point at these structures to anybody or even to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),” Vakkai said.

Vakkai, however,  said:  “I also want to disclose that we collected a sum of N1 billion from the FG and the money was used to provide Personal Protection equipment for our frontline workers.

”We also used part of it to provide equipment for our two treatment centers at the Specialist Hospital, Jalingo, and General Hospital, Takum.

“We are a 30-man COVID-19 Technical Committee and how can I possibly manipulate these men and bypass the state government account section and divert even more than we have been supported with in the first place,” he said.

In his reaction, Mr Danjuma Adamu, the state Commissioner for information and Orientation, who is also a member of the technical committee, described the news as fake, urging the public to disregard it. (NAN)

By Ikenna Osuoha

Coalition of Societies for the Rights of Older People in Nigeria (COSROPIN) has  called on the Federal Government to prioritise the healthcare of the elderly to reduce their vulnerability to COVID-19 infection.

Sen. Eze Ajoku, President of the coalition, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

He expressed concerns over the impact of the second phase of COVID-19 on older people.

Ajoku, reacting to recent COVID-19 linked deaths of older persons such as Prof. Oye Ibidabo-Obe and others, said that there was a need for urgent action to mitigate the strain of the second phase of the pandemic on older people.

He reiterated the need for preventive interventions.

Ajoku said that concerted action was needed to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 across all aspects of long-term care, including home and community-based care.

He, however, admonished older people to always comply with the health protocols of hand washing, the use of  facemasks and physical distancing.

“We can directly reduce the disease by ensuring regular testings, provision of healthcare, and observing safety protocols.

“This would indirectly reduce the severity of the disease on the people most likely to get sick and transmit the virus,” he said.

Emphasising on the need for home delivery of healthcare for older people, Ajoku added that facemasks and other safety protocols should be seen as a responsibility of all.

He noted that COVID-19 would reduce the number of healthcare workers as well as long-term facilities, thereby increasing the brunt of older persons’ underlining sicknesses.

He, therefore, warned older people against mingling with crowds, which he said was the biggest cause of community transmission.

“We have called on the government to provide geriatric wards in all Federal Medical Centres and Teaching Hospitals to safeguard older persons and provide targeted care,” he said.

He, however, called for adequate supply of food and healthcare facilities, especially in the rural areas, to foster old peoples’ health in the second phase of COVID-19.

“Many people, especially older persons who have not lost relations and friends, do not think COVID-19 is real.

“They should make hey to protect themselves first while doubting, because life does not give a second chance,” he said.

He said that older people with co-morbidities and frailty with high susceptibility to COVID-19 should be accorded priority in the containment through information and provision of healthcare facilities.

“Although, the speed and impact of the pandemic on older people with frailty justify an approach where they are offered healthcare wherever they are located first,” he said.  (NAN)

By Cecilia Ologunagba

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in partnership with other UN agencies and humanitarian organisations have announced the establishment of a global Ebola vaccine stockpile to help fight against the deadly virus.

WHO, in a statement posted on its website, announced that the vaccine stockpile would help to control future epidemics by ensuring timely access to vaccines for populations at risk during outbreaks.

Ebola virus disease is a severe and often fatal illness, with fatality rates varying from 25 per cent to 90 per cent. Thousands of people have lost their lives to the disease, since the virus was first discovered in 1976.

The statement quoted WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, as saying, “Ebola vaccines have made one of the most feared diseases on earth preventable.

“This new stockpile is an excellent example of solidarity, science and cooperation between international organisations and the private sector to save lives.”

Ghebreyesus, who underscored the importance of the vaccines to save lives from deadly viruses, said some agencies and organisations would take lead to establish the stockpile, with financial support from Gavi, the vaccine Alliance.

He listed them as the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision (ICG) which included WHO, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) the International Federation of Red Cross, Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

“The stockpile is stored in Switzerland, and vaccines are ready to be shipped to countries for emergency response.”

The statement also quoted UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, as saying, “we are proud to be part of this unprecedented effort to help bring potential Ebola outbreaks quickly under control.

“We know that when it comes to disease outbreaks, preparedness is key.

“This Ebola vaccine stockpile is a remarkable achievement – one that will allow us to deliver vaccines to those who need them the most as quickly as possible.’

“UNICEF, on behalf of ICG will manage the stockpile, and as with stockpiles of cholera, meningitis and yellow fever vaccines, will be the decision-making body for its allocation and release.”

As Ebola outbreaks are relatively rare and unpredictable, there is no natural market for the vaccine, and doses are only secured through the establishment of stockpiles and are available in limited quantities.

According to the UN agencies, an initial 6,890 doses are available for outbreak response and quantities will be added over the coming months to take the emergency stockpile to 500,000 doses, the amount recommended by health experts.

Partners MSF and IFRC, which have worked tirelessly to stop Ebola outbreaks, also hailed the stockpile establishment.

IFRC Secretary General, Jagan Chapagain recalled the devastating impact of Ebola on communities in West and Central Africa.

Chapagain said IFRC volunteers had risked their lives to save lives through each outbreak, saying “with this stockpile, it is my hope that the impact of this terrible disease will be dramatically reduced.”

Meanwhile, Natalie Roberts, Programme Manager at MSF Foundation, said that the Ebola vaccine stockpile could increase transparency in the management of existing global stocks and the timely deployment of the vaccine where it’s most needed.

According to the UN agencies, the injectable single-dose Ebola vaccine (rVSV∆G-ZEBOV-GP, live) is manufactured by Merck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) Corp and developed with financial support from the U.S. Government.

The European Medicines Agency licensed the Ebola vaccine in November 2019, and the vaccine is now pre-qualified by WHO, and licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as in eight African countries.

Before achieving licensure, the vaccine was administered to more than 350,000 people in Guinea and in the 2018-2020 Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) under a protocol for “compassionate use”.

The vaccine, which is recommended by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunisation for use in Ebola outbreaks as part of a broader set of Ebola outbreak response tools, protects against the Zaire Ebolavirus species which is most commonly known to cause outbreaks. (NAN)

By Abujah Racheal

The Director General, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, has warned that the Coronavirus pandemic is spreading fast, causing mild symptoms in some victims and severe illnesses and death in others.

Ihekweazu disclosed this on Monday in Abuja at the joint national briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19.

He said that many victims have continued to experience fatigue and other symptoms even after recovery.

According to him, in the last four weeks, the country has recorded a spike in the number of new COVID-19 cases.

“We have now reported over 100,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nigeria and this is a stark reminder of the reality we live in now.

“A virus that has affected over 100,000 lives and led to over 1,300 deaths within 11 months in Nigeria, with millions more globally.

“We cannot be too careful. The silent face of COVID-19 with which you cannot tell whether someone has the virus or not, the only option before us is to take protective measures at all times,“ he said.

Meanwhile, Ihekweazu said that healthcare workers needed now to maintain a higher index of suspicion for COVID-19, noting that “if people were unwell, they should first rule out COVID-19 before treating malaria’’.

“We are rolling out the use of Rapid Diagnostic Test Kits (RDTs) in five institutions in Abuja. This will increase access to testing and we then intend to roll out across the country in February.

“This will make testing a lot more available to hospitals,“ he said.

The NCDC boss pointed out that there was no state that was spared of COVID-19.

“We would have been surprised if there were, as our data suggest that we were right in saying that there is COVID circulating in every state of Nigeria and we all have to continue the hard work we have been doing,” he pointed out.

The NCDC boss said that the country had reached “a critical level“ where the hospital capacity would no longer be able to cope with more serious COVID-19 cases and health workers would be forced to make tough decisions.

“We need to protect our more vulnerable citizens, while we all have to take responsibility because this has gone beyond the NCDC, PTF or government, as all hands must be on deck.

“By organising large gatherings indoors, you are not only putting yourself and guests at risk but also the staff who have limited choice but to serve.

“By going to clubs, you are putting your parents at risk,“ he said.

Speaking on COVID-19 fatigue, he said that while Nigerians might all be tired and fed up, the virus was taking advantage of the fatigue and gaining momentum.

“By adhering to health measures, wearing masks, washing hands, observing physical distancing, staying at home, avoiding large gatherings and poorly ventilated indoor space, we can prevent its spread.

“Most important of all, the 100,000 cases and over 1,000 deaths are not just numbers, but these are fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, children, friends whose deaths will be mourned and the pain of their loss deeply felt,“ he  pointed out. (NAN)