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  • Mar, Fri, 2020
Health

COVID-19: KNSG enforces border closure midnight, March 27

Border

By Rabiu Sani

Kano, March 27, 2020 (NAN) Kano State Government says it has deployed security personnel to enforce compliance with restrictions on movement of persons on its borders to prevent spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr Baffa Dan-Agundi, Managing Director, Kano State Road Traffic Authority (KAROTA), made the disclosure at a press conference, on Friday in Kano.

Dan-Agundi disclosed that the measures were part of resolutions of the Kano State Security Committee meeting presided by Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje, on Thursday, March 26.

He said that the committee deliberated extensively on precautionary measures against the pandemic.

It also deliberated on how to prevent persons infected with the virus from accessing entry or moving out of the state through land borders and airport.

Dan-Agundi, who is also a member of the committee, said the measure was imperative to safeguard public health and protect people against the virus.

He said: “Nobody is allowed to come into Kano State through its borders or to go out through its borders to neighbouring states.

“No vehicle whether private vehicles or passengers will be allowed entry into Kano State as from 12 midnight of Friday, March 27.

“However, items allowed in or out of the state include food items, raw materials for factories, petroleum products, drugs, medical equipment, textile materials and general goods for transaction between Kano and other states.

“Only the driver and his assistant are certify to enter Kano State with the goods.

“If you transport raw materials and at the same time convey passengers you will be denied entry and ask to go back.

“Also, drivers transporting goods will not be granted passage out of the state if found conveying passengers”.

Dan-Agundi said teams of security personnel, comprising the Police, Nigeria Customs, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Nigeria Immigration Service (NCS) would enforce compliance.

According to him, others such as KAROATA, Hisbah Board, personnel of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and health workers will also be deployed to enforce compliance with restriction order in eight major routes in the state.

Dan-Agundi noted that the state government had provided adequate equipment to facilitate screening of drivers of vehicles conveying goods at the borders or passengers at airport, adding that suspected case would be isolated for proper medical attention.

He said that intra-city movement of persons and business activities would not be affected as the state scales up campaign activities, while effective modalities had been put in place to monitor the situation.

The Managing Director of KAROTA urged the people to support government efforts to contain spread of the virus, observe precautionary measures, maintain good personal hygiene and pray for an end to the pandemic.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that membership of the Kano Security Committee is made up of the state governor, his deputy, police, military and other paramilitary organizations as well as community leaders.

The state government had earlier set up a task force committee on the pandemic, closed schools, sports and event centres as well as encouraged people to practice social distancing to prevent spread of COVID-19. (NAN)

RSA/KTO/MNA

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Edited by Kamal Tayo Oropo/Maureen Atuonwu

 

  • Mar, Fri, 2020
Economy

COVID-19: Pay March salary before closing markets, workers urge Wike

Salary
By Omuboye Sukubo
Port Harcourt, March 27, 2020 (NAN) Some workers on the payroll of Rivers Government on Friday pleaded with Gov. Nyesom Wike not to close markets in the state without paying March salary.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Wike had ordered the closure of all markets as a measure to curb the spread of COVID-19.

The workers, who pleaded that their names should not be mentioned, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt that the danger of staying without money would be worse than the pandemic itself.

A female secondary school teacher said that the state government ought to pay salary and give Rivers people and residents at least three days to stock their house with essential food items.

“We commend Gov. Wike for taking necessary steps to curb the spread of the coronavirus but the issue of closing all markets when salary has not been paid is a minus.

“What do we tell our children? We can’t tell them that there is no food, no parent will be able to withstand the psychological trauma this decision will cause,” she said.

A staff of the Ministry of Works said that the little money he had could not buy anything in the market because prices of food items had gone up.

“The announcement that markets should close on March 28 has caused panic buying and the effect is that prices of essential goods have tripled.

“We can’t cope with this situation when March salary has not been paid, so I am pleading with Gov. Wike to reconsider his decision and pay salaries first,” he said.

Mrs Kesima Opus, a local government worker claimed that council workers would be most affected because they had always received salaries late in the new month.

“It’s an insensitive decision because you can’t be tackling one issue and do something that could make people commit suicide.

“As council workers, we always receive salary of the previous month between 10th and 15th of the new month; so, we are to be paid around April 10.

“How do we cope when the markets are closed? The hunger we experience may be worse than COVID-19 that the government is trying to tackle,” she said.(NAN)
OAS/ENN/OJO
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(Edited by Edwin Nwachukwu/Mufutau Ojo)

  • Mar, Thu, 2020
Entertainment

COVID19: Commercial sex workers decry closure of night clubs in Port Harcourt

 

Sex-Workers

 By Omuboye Sukubo

 Port Harcourt, March 26, 2020 (NAN) Some female commercial sex workers around a popular night club (name withheld), in Government Residential Area of Port Harcourt, say the closure of night clubs has affected their businesses.

 

One of the female sex workers who refused to disclose her name told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt on Wednesday night that the male customers were scarce due to the corona virus pandemic.

  

She said that the closure of night clubs by the Rivers government and fear of getting infected with COVID 19 caused the low patronage.

  

“This area used to be crowded, you can see how empty the road is, it’s really unusual because I have been here for like 30 minutes and nobody has approached me.

  

“Before this coronavirus challenge, I do make at least N20, 000 per night but now all the men who patronise us are nowhere to be found, and if any approach you now, he will just offer a demeaning amount.

 

“Seeing someone that will give N5, 000 for the night is a challenge, an amount that is for short time,” she said.

 

Another sex worker, who gave her name as Gloria, said that she has not had patronage for two days.

  

“Before the outbreak of COVID19 pandemic, I do have four to five short time patronisers a day and another that I will pass the night with.

  

“I make as much as N40, 000 daily but because the clubs are closed and people are afraid of being infected with coronavirus, the patronage is low with insulting offers,” she said.

  

A lady in her late thirties said that the closure of the night clubs has affected her sex business.

  

“I do sex trade to help myself and family member and I make up to N30, 000 daily.

 “Now, coronavirus has caused a decline in patronage because the men are not outside since the clubs are closed,” she said. (NAN)

 OAS/JPE/EAL

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Edited by Joseph Edeh/Ekemini Ladejobi

  • Mar, Mon, 2020
Health

COVID-19: Gombe State Govt. closes schools

COVID-19 : Gombe State Govt. closes schools

Virus

By Ibrahim Kado

Gombe, March 23, 2020 (NAN) The Gombe State Government has ordered the closure of all schools to prevent the spread of Coronavirus in the state.

Gov. Inuwa Yahaya said this while speaking during a radio and television broadcast on COVID-19 in Gombe on Monday.

He said the closure will take immediate effect from Tuesday March 24.

“In accordance with the directive by the Presidential Task Force on COVID 19, all schools in the state are hereby directed to close effective from tomorrow Tuesday  March 24, 2020 until further notice.

“Furthermore, congregations for ceremonies, religious and other social activities are advised to limit numbers so as to not exceed the 50-person maximum as advised by the committee,” he said.

Yahaya said that the epidemic was a reality, and assured of government’s commitment towards fighting the disease.

“I must appeal to the general public to complement government’s effort in the fight against the dreaded disease irrespective of different shades of opinions or positions.

“Experience has shown that Coronavirus is no respecter of colour, creed, religion, size or level of development of any nation,” he said.

The governor also appealed to traditional and religious leaders to sensitise their followers on the dangers of the virus and the need to adhere strictly to medical advice.

Yahaya expressed government’s readiness for the fight virus in the state, adding that government had already released funds for sensitisation campaign and procurement of some equipment. (NAN)

IMK/FF/ABI

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Edited by Fela Fashoro/Ali Baba-Inuwa

Health

NAFDAC shuts down 6 sachet water factories in Rivers

NAFDAC shuts down 6 sachet water factories in Rivers
By Mustapha Sumaila
Closure
Abuja, Sept. 27, 2018 (NAN) The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) said it has shut down six sachet water factories at Okirika Local Government Area of Rivers for operating in an unhygienic environment.
The NAFDAC Director of Public Relations Unit, Dr Abubakar Jimoh, confirmed this in a statement in Abuja.
Jimoh explained that NAFDAC office in Port Harcourt “after a successful raid of illegal sachet water producers in Okirika local government area of the state and the agency was alarmed at the unhygienic environment and had to shut down the six factories visited.
“What we saw in Okirika is horrible and despicable to say the least; most of the illegal producers, packaged their water directly from the bore hole without any filtration system and with very poor Hygienic Practice.
“The factories are located in dingy rooms while sachet waters were packed on bare floors, some were located very close to toilets, gutters and kitchens which is against the agency’s rules,” he said.
“Almost all the outfits are not registrable, they connect water directly from bore holes to water packaging machines.
“No micro filters, UV water sterilizers and treatment plants; the environment is very bad, the operators are not trained and the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) are not observed; everybody does what he likes,” the statement read in part.
The spokesperson said that two persons were arrested while others took to their heels on sighting the officials of NAFDAC.
He disclosed that five generator sets, two water packaging machines, two water treatment machines, films, two standing fans and loosed parts of water packaging machines were confiscated during the exercise.
Jimoh warned illegal sachet water producers to desist from producing unhygienic and unregistered packaged water that could endanger public health. (NAN)
MS/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola

Health

Quackery: Nasarawa residents demand closure of illegal health facilities

Quackery: Nasarawa residents demand closure of illegal health facilities
NAN-H-3
Clinics
By Awayi Kuje
Keffi (Nasarawa State), Nov. 1, 2017 (NAN) Some residents of Nasarawa State have called on the State Government to close down all illegal health facilities to prevent further loss of lives.
The residents also urged the government to make the closure of such a routine exercise in order to tackle the activities of quacks and improve their health condition.
They made the appeal on Wednesday in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Keffi, Keffi Local Government Area of the state.
However, the residents lauded the state government for shutting down some illegal health facilities in some local government areas of the state as part of measures to tackle quackery in the state.
NAN recalls that the state government recently shut down over 40 private hospitals, clinics and laboratories in Karu Local Government of the state over not adherence to due process.
NAN also recalls that the state government through the Ministry of Health closed 20 illegal health facilities in October in Akwanga Local Government Area of the state.
The residents noted that the measure would go a long way in tackling quackery as well as improve the health condition of people in the area.
Mr Samson Moses, a resident, said that the state government’s efforts in tackling the activities of quacks across the state deserved commendation and called for its sustenance.
“Our appeal is that we want the state government to make the closure of illegal health facilities to be a routine exercise in order to tackle quackery and improve on the health of the people of the state,” he said.
Another resident, Mrs Zainab Mohammed, said that the closure of the illegal clinics would sanitise the health sector in the state.
She urged those involved in illegal operation of health facilities to desist from such in the interest of the wellbeing of the people.
Dr Haruna Ekom, who led the inspection team from the state Ministry for Health during the closure of illegal health facilities in Akwanga, decried the increasing rate of quackery in the health sector.
According to him, the illegal activities in the sector are affecting the health status of the people.
Ekom, who is the Director of Clinical Service in the ministry, said that the exercise was not aimed at witch hunting anybody but to ensure that ethnical practices are observed in the sector.
The director said the state government appreciates and acknowledges the contribution of private health establishments, noting however that the right thing must be done to sanitise the system and save lives.
He restated government’s commitment to initiate more health policies in order to save human lives and called on the public to report quack medical practitioners to the ministry for appropriate action. (NAN)
AKW/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola

General news

Abuja airport closure: Medview Airlines to operate 5 daily flights to Kaduna

Abuja airport closure: Medview Airlines to operate 5 daily flights to Kaduna

NAN-H-41

Flights

By Adekunle Williams and Solomon Asowata

Lagos, March 3, 2017 (NAN) Medview Airline has rolled out a special schedule with five daily flights from Lagos to Kaduna International Airport ahead of  the closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The Chief Executive Officer of the airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole, made this known to newsmen on Friday in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Federal Government had approved the temporary closure of the Abuja airport from the midnight of March 7.

This is to enable the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) carry out a major rehabilitation of the runway at the airport for a period of six weeks.

Bankole said the flight schedule would be operational on March 8, a day after the Abuja Airport had been closed.

He said with the schedule, all Medview Airline flights to Maiduguri and Yola would be routed through Kaduna airport.

According to him, their departure and arrival time, however, remain unchanged as well as flights originating from Lagos.

Bankole said the schedule was a proactive measure taken to ensure that all its numerous passengers’ going to Maiduguri and Yola had a seamless transition to their various destinations, while flying Abuja-bound passengers to Kaduna.

He said the airline had put in place all the necessary logistics to cope with the traffic expected in Kaduna International Airport.

“This is a call to duty, and we are equally duty bound to render uninterrupted services to air travellers on all our routes,” Bankole said. (NAN) WAC/ASO/ENN/MST

Edited by Edwin Nwachukwu/Muhammad Suleiman Tola

General news

Closure of Abuja Airport: Stakeholders express divergent views

Closure of Abuja Airport: Stakeholders express divergent views

NAN-H-13
Stakeholders
By Sumaila Ogbaje
Abuja, Jan. 5, 2017 (NAN) Aviation Stakeholders on Thursday expressed divergent views on the proposed closure of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, for six weeks and the use of Kaduna Airport as alternative.

Mr Noggie Meggison, Chairman, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), during a Stakeholder’s Forum organised by the Minister of State, Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, in Abuja, said the operators would support the government.

Meggison said that AON was in total support of the rehabilitation of the Abuja airport runway which he described as long overdue and had become a safety concern.

He drew the attention of the government to possibility of carrying out the repairs on the runway at night while flights would be operating in the day time.

Meggison said the operators were of the opinion that repairs of the runway could be carried out between 6 p.m and 6 a.m, while flight operations could take place in the day time.

According to him, Gatwick airport has 400,000 passengers in a year and Abuja has only 14,000 passengers, and we have that kind of volume and Gatwick didn’t close for repair, we also can operate.

The chairman, who commended the minister for his forthrightness in piloting the affairs in the sector, said there had been a lot of actions by Sirika in the sector since he assumed office.

He, therefore, urged the government to explore possibility of carrying out the repairs on the runway at night while flights would be operating in the day time.

Similarly, Mr Osho Joseph, Representative of Foreign Airlines in Abuja, said that Kaduna might be an alternative for local airlines, but not for foreign airlines at the moment.

Joseph also suggested that February to March could have been the ideal time for the closure to beat onset of rainfall.

The Deputy British High Commissioner, Harriet Thompson, express readiness to support the government throughout the period of the closure.

She debunked the insinuations that the government of Britain might close down its embassy in Abuja, saying the country would stand by Nigeria at all times.

The Representative of Gov. Nasir El’rufai of Kaduna State, Mr Gambo Hamza, assured of the State Government’s readiness to ensure smooth operations during the period.

He said that the government had begun cleaning up of the airport, adding that adequate security arrangement had been put in place. (NAN)
OYS/FAT/MST

Edited by Fati Sule/Muhammad Suleiman Tola

General news

Adamawa Govt. sets up committee on closure of IDPs camps

Adamawa govt. sets up committee on closure of IDPs camps

NAN-HG-5

Committee

By Mohammad Adam

Yola, Jan. 4, 2017 (NAN) The Adamawa Government has set up powerful committee to handle the closure of all Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state.

Alhaji Ahmed Sajoh, the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, told newsmen on Wednesday in Yola at the end of the state security meeting.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the state government had on Dec. 28, 2016, announced plans to close the IDPs camps across the state in Jan. 2017.

Sajoh said that the committee would liaise with all relevant stakeholders on how to evacuate the IDPs to their respective states and shut down the camps.

“At the meeting, a committee was set up to consolidate the evacuation of the remaining IDPs and shut down of the camps.

“The committee will also collaborate with all relevant stakeholders on IDPs matters to ensure smooth and effective evacuation of the IDPs,” he said.

Sajoh said the meeting also resolved on the need for massive enlightenment of the public to watch out for escapee-insurgents and report suspicious movements. (NAN)

AMA/ORO/MST
Edited by Razak Owolabi/Muhammad Suleiman Tola