Details of the story behind the gory killings of eight Security Operatives in Ehime-Mbano, Imo State, on Tuesday, September 19, 2023, by gunmen have emerged.
The Security Operatives who were on a joint operation were ambushed along the road, shot dead, their bodies burnt, and their two Hilux operational vehicles set on fire.
Giving Details of the blood- cuddling incident when Governor Hope Uzodinma visited the scene of the attack a couple of hours after it occured, the Imo State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Barde, said the Operatives which included Soldiers, Police, Civil Defence, were lured to their death by a fake informant.
He told the Governor that the informant, who turned out to be one of the gunmen, had called the unsuspecting Security Team, apparently to report a security breach which necessitated their intervention.
Unknown to them, they were being lured to their death. On their way to the fake venue of the security breach, said Barde, they were ambushed and killed in a most gruesome manner when they came under a hell of gunfire by scores of gunmen.
An enraged Uzodinma has assured that the perpetrators will be fished out and given their deserved punishment.
The Inspector General of Police, Dr Kayode Egbetokun, has ordered the Police to go after them and get them to face the law. He assured that they will be greeted by the full weight of the law.
The Chief Justices of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola on Wednesday administered the oath of office on nine newly appointed Justices of the Court of Appeal.
At the ceremony held in Abuja, the CJN observed that Nigeria continuously ranks among the most litigious countries in the world.
According to him, the Country’s judiciary was not at pleasant times due to continued rise in cases pending before various courts.
He stated that the rise in court cases, was due to several novel crimes being committed in the country that have now made litigations go on a steady rise.
As a measure to curtail the trend, the CJN canvassed that Nigerians should begin to imbibe the culture of less litigation and more of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms so that courts can be freed of unnecessary burden and depletion of both human and material resources.
“Political cases, especially, are taking a monumental toll on our dockets. Indeed, the times we are in are not pleasant, to say the least.
“No court in the land is spared of this. We are constantly on our toes and the dockets are ever rising in response to the challenges of the time.
“This underscores the undisputed fact that Nigeria continuously ranks among the most litigious countries in the world.
“I strongly believe it is high time we began to imbibe the culture of less litigation and more of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms so that our courts can be freed of unnecessary burden and depletion of both human and material resources.
“However, the onus squarely rests on your Lordships to fasten your belt and roll up your sleeves to face the challenges head-on.
“You must redouble your pace to catch up with the expectations of the litigants. As judicial officers, you have a divine mandate on earth that you must discharge with unveiled honesty and sincerity.
“You must give good account of yourselves to justify your elevation to the Court of Appeal so that you can subsequently earn an elevation to the Supreme Court to further actualize your dreams.”
He reminded them that the oath administered on them to assume office as Justices of the Court of Appeal is a solemn pledge and commitment to good conduct in the course of their adjudication, especially as senior judicial officers in the appellate court.
“We are not here for long speeches but simply to realign your minds with what is expected of you at this very high and enviable level of adjudication.
“Many high profile cases would definitely come to you on appeal; and they may likely come in some juicy and irresistible gifts that are often intended to dent your reputation and integrity.
“I admonish Your Lordships to flee from such disguised temptations because your reputation and integrity matter much and count enormously in your rise to honour and fame in life.
“So, you should endeavour to always hold your heads high by auditing your conduct on a regular basis in order not to fall on the wrong side of the law.
“I have said it severally that in life, gifts and wealth that are not worked for, which are by extension, undeserving, are always destructive and calamitous in nature.
“I pray that Your Lordships don’t fall into such snare in the course of your ascension to the pinnacle of your career.
“You must, against all odds, conduct your affairs within the ambit of the law and the oath that has just been administered on you.
“The level of public scrutiny of your conduct will, henceforth, assume astronomical dimension because you have willingly taken up appointment that will strategically place you perennially in the eye of the storm.
“The tempo and rate of public assessment of your conduct and disposition have also instantaneously assumed unprecedented spike from this moment.
“You must redouble your effort and dialogue properly with your conscience in order not to fall out of the grace of the Almighty God and the Nigerian people who are curiously looking up to you.
“It takes nothing to join the crowd but it takes a lot to stand alone with good conscience.”
The proxy war between the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, and the Presidential Candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Dr Rabiu Kwankwaso, has Ganduje getting the first victory Wednesday, September 20.
The Kano State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in its ruling sacked NNPP Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf and declared APC Candidate, Nasir Gawuna, the winner of the March 18 Governorship Election.
The three-man Tribunal which, for the first time in the history of Election Petitions in Nigeria, delivered its judgement virtually, for fear of violence in the Court premises, deducted a whopping 165, 663 votes from the total number of votes scored by Yusuf to give Gawuna victory. The Tribunal said the votes deducted were neither stamped nor signed, and so, void.
It ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to immediately, withdraw the Certificate of Return from Governor Yusuf and give same to Gawuna.
Kano is the only State won by NNPP in the March 2023 Governorship election.
Tension had gripped the State in the past one week over the Election Petition. There had been street protests by loyalists of NNPP. A few days ago, the Governor sacked one of his Commissioners who threatened members of the three-man Panel of Judges with death if they deliver a judgment against Governor Yusuf.
Yusuf is the first Governor to be sacked by an Election Petition since the 2023 General Elections Tribunal started sitting across the country.
The Nigeria Movie industry has once again been thrown into mourning less than a week after the passing of young actress, Cindy Amadi.
Veteran Yoruba Actor, Akeem Alamutu, passed in the early hours of September 19, 2023.
Breaking the news of his demise, Actor, Odunlade Adekola, took to his social media handle and announced the death of the Yoruba film legend.
Adekola broke the heartrending news on Instagram, sharing a video where he and his colleagues, including Kolawole Ajeyemi, displayed profound sorrow as they gathered for Akeem Alamutu’s funeral, which has been held already in adherence to the traditions of Muslim rites.
In the soul-stirring footage, a Muslim cleric gently placed Akeem Alamutu’s body on the ground, draped in white attire, as prayers were offered to beseech the Almighty for his soul’s eternal peace.
Odunlade urged everyone to embrace a humble existence and to keep in mind that all things will eventually become part of the annals of history.
He wrote, “We lost another legendary Actor. Elder Akeem Alamutu ORISA, he lived a simple life And always remember everything will become history!”
Also paying tribute to the late thespian were his other colleagues that include; Funke Akindele, Jaiye Kuti, Muyiwa Ademola, and more, flocked to the comments section to convey their profound grief and offer heartfelt wishes for the departed actor’s eternal peace.
Funke Akindele wrote, “May his soul rest in peace. It is well”
Muyiwa Ademola wrote; “Hmmm.. It is well. May his soul rest in perfect peace.
Jaiye Kuti wrote; “Lord this month ooo rest in peace”
Rachael Okonkwo “Rest In Peace sir”
The late Actor was said to have passed away following a protracted battle with illness. Also, images of him in a state of sickness circulated widely throughout his health struggle.
It was a combination of disbelief and shame on September 18, 2023, when Dr Abubakar Mustapha Danraka was sentenced to life imprisonment by a Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court for sodomy.
Dr Danraka was the Chief Pharmacist of the National Hospital Abuja.
The ruling by the Honourable Justice Asmau Akanbi-Yusuf, has been hailed as historic and, is expected to act as a deterrent to others with Danraka’s kind of dirty behaviour.
It came under the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015.
Hon. Justice Akanbi-Yusuf’s ruling is a significant development in the implementation of the VAPP Act of 2015.
The case against Dr Danraka lasted the whole of three years in Court.
Otherwise high profile and well-read, Dr. Danraka, in addition to being a Chief Pharmacist, was a Senior Special Adviser (Technical) to the Director of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development.
But he was arrested on March 27th, 2020, for sodomy of a minor who lives in the same estate as him. The minor’s identity is not made public in a bid to protect him, and reduce his trauma.
Dr Danraka reportedly lured the minor to his apartment, drugged him, and se£ually assaulted him.
The Pharmacist had pleaded not guilty during his arraignment on April 5, 2022, but the evidence presented by the prosecution team from the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) was unassailable. It led to his conviction and sentencing Dr. Danraka had pleaded “not guilty” during his arraignment on April 5, 2022. He was sentenced to life imprisonment on September 18, 2023.
The Director General of NAPTIP, Prof. Fatima Waziri-Azi, was full of commendation for the judiciary for its “unwavering commitment to justice under the VAPP Act. She praised the collaboration and support of all stakeholders in the implementation of the law and expressed the agency’s determination to continue its efforts in achieving more convictions and reducing impunity.”
It is not known yet if Dr Danraka will appeal this historic judgment against him.
Highlights of President Bola Tinubu’s Address at UNGA
Foreign Exploitation have stunted Africa’s progress
Poor Governance and broken promises have negatively affected Africa
Accelerating action on the 2030 agenda and its sustainable development goals towards peace, prosperity, progress and the sustainability for all
Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity
“First, if this year’s theme is to have any impact at all, global institutions, other nations and their private sector actors must-see African development as a priority, not just for Africa but in their interests as well.
“Due to both longstanding internal and external factors, Nigeria’s and Africa’s economic structures have been skewed to impede development, industrial expansion, job creation, and the equitable distribution of wealth.
I am mindful of the transient hardship that reform can cause. However, it is necessary to go through this phase in order to establish a foundation for durable growth and investment to build the economy our people deserve.
“We welcome partnerships with those who do not mind seeing Nigeria and Africa assume larger roles in the global community.
“The question is not whether Nigeria is open for business. The question is how much of the world is truly open to doing business with Nigeria and Africa in an equal, mutually beneficial manne
In the turmoil, a dark channel of inhumane commerce has formed. Along the route, everything is for sale. Men, women and children are seen as chattel.
“Yet, thousands risk the Sahara’s hot sand and the Mediterranean’s cold depths in search of a better life. At the same time, mercenaries and extremists with their lethal weapons and vile ideologies invade our region from the north.
“This harmful traffic undermines the peace and stability of an entire region. African nations will improve our economies so that our people do not risk their lives to sweep the floors and streets of other nations. We also shall devote ourselves to disbanding extremist groups on our turf.
“ Many such areas have become catacombs of misery and exploitation. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has suffered this for decades, despite the strong UN presence there. The world economy owes the DRC much but gives her very little.
“The mayhem visited on resource-rich areas does not respect national boundaries. Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso, CAR, the list grows.
“The problems also knock on Nigeria’s door. Foreign entities abetted by local criminals who aspire to be petty warlords have drafted thousands of people into servitude to illegally mine gold and other resources. Billions of dollars meant to improve the nation now fuel violent enterprises. If left unchecked, they will threaten peace and place national security at grave risk.
Our south is pounded by the rising tide of coastal flooding and erosion. In the middle, the rainy season brings floods that kill and displace multitudes” he said.
Full Text
STATEMENT DELIVERED BY HIS EXCELLENCY, BOLA AHMED TINUBU, GCFR PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA AT THE GENERAL DEBATE OF THE 78TH SESSION OF UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 18TH SEPTEMBER 2023
Mr. President,
Heads of State and Government, Secretary-General,
Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Mr. President,
On behalf of the people of Nigeria, I congratulate you on your well-deserved election as President of this Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
We commend your predecessor, His Excellency, Mr. Csaba Korosi for his able stewardship of the Assembly.
We also commend His Excellency, Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations, for his work seeking to forge solutions to humanity’s common challenges.
This is my first address before the General Assembly. Permit me to say a few words on behalf of Nigeria, on behalf of Africa, regarding this year’s theme.
Many proclamations have been made, yet our troubles remain close at hand. Failures in good governance have hindered Africa. But broken promises, unfair treatment and outright exploitation from abroad have also exacted a heavy toll on our ability to progress.
Given this long history, if this year’s theme is to mean anything at all, it must mean something special and particular to Africa.
In the aftermath of the Second World War, nations gathered in an attempt to rebuild their war- torn societies. A new global system was born and this great body, the United Nations, was established as a symbol and protector of the aspirations and finest ideals of humankind.
Nations saw that it was in their own interests to help others exit the rubble and wasteland of war. Reliable and significant assistance allowed countries emaciated by war to grow into strong and productive societies.
The period was a highwater mark for trust in global institutions and the belief that humanity had learned the necessary lessons to move forward in global solidarity and harmony.
Today and for several decades, Africa has been asking for the same level of political commitment and devotion of resource that described the Marshall Plan.
We realize that underlying conditions and causes of the economic challenges facing today’s Africa are significantly different from those of post war Europe.
We are not asking for identical programs and actions. What we seek is an equally firm commitment to partnership. We seek enhanced international cooperation with African nations to achieve the 2030 agenda and Sustainable Development Goals.
There are five important points I want to highlight.
First, if this year’s theme is to have any impact at all, global institutions, other nations and their private sector actors must see African development as a priority, not just for Africa but in their interests as well.
Due to both longstanding internal and external factors, Nigeria’s and Africa’s economic structures have been skewed to impede development, industrial expansion, job creation, and the equitable distribution of wealth.
President Bola Tinubu’s Address at UNGA
If Nigeria is to fulfil its duty to its people and the rest of Africa, we must create jobs and the belief in a better future for our people.
We must also lead by example.
To foster economic growth and investor confidence in Nigeria, I removed the costly and corrupt fuel subsidy while also discarding a noxious exchange rate system in my first days in office. Other growth and job oriented reforms are in the wings.
I am mindful of the transient hardship that reform can cause. However, it is necessary to go through this phase in order to establish a foundation for durable growth and investment to build the economy our people deserve.
We welcome partnerships with those who do not mind seeing Nigeria and Africa assume larger roles in the global community.
The question is not whether Nigeria is open for business. The question is how much of the world is truly open to doing business with Nigeria and Africa in an equal, mutually beneficial manner.
Direct investment in critical industries, opening their ports to a wider range and larger quantity of African exports and meaningful debt relief are important aspects of the cooperation we seek.
Second, we must affirm democratic governance as the best guarantor of the sovereign will and well-being of the people. Military coups are wrong, as is any tilted civilian political arrangement that perpetuates injustice.
The wave crossing parts of Africa does not demonstrate favour towards coups. It is a demand for solutions to perennial problems.
Regarding Niger, we are negotiating with the military leaders. As Chairman of ECOWAS, I seek to help re-establish democratic governance in a manner that addresses the political and economic challenges confronting that nation, including the violent extremists who seek to foment instability in our region. I extend a hand of friendship to all who genuinely support this mission.
This brings me to my third crucial point. Our entire region is locked in protracted battle against violent extremists. In the turmoil, a dark channel of inhumane commerce has formed. Along the route, everything is for sale. Men, women and children are seen as chattel.
Yet, thousands risk the Sahara’s hot sand and the Mediterranean’s cold depths in search of a better life. At the same time, mercenaries and extremists with their lethal weapons and vile ideologies invade our region from the north.
This harmful traffic undermines the peace and stability of an entire region. African nations will improve our economies so that our people do not risk their lives to sweep the floors and streets of other nations. We also shall devote ourselves to disbanding extremist groups on our turf.
Yet, to fully corral this threat, the international community must strengthen its commitment to arrest the flow of arms and violent people into West Africa.
The fourth important aspect of global trust and solidarity is to secure the continent’s mineral rich areas from pilfering and conflict. Many such areas have become catacombs of misery and exploitation. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has suffered this for decades, despite the strong UN presence there. The world economy owes the DRC much but gives her very little.
The mayhem visited on resource rich areas does not respect national boundaries. Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso, CAR, the list grows.
The problems also knocks Nigeria’s door.
Foreign entities abetted by local criminals who aspire to be petty warlords have drafted thousands of people into servitude to illegally mine gold and other resources. Billions of dollars meant to improve the nation now fuel violent enterprises. If left unchecked, they will threaten peace and place national security at grave risk.
Given the extent of this injustice and the high stakes involved, many Africans are asking whether this phenomenon is by accident or by design.
Member nations must reply by working with us to deter their firms and nationals from this 21st century pillage of the continent’s riches.
Fifth, climate change severely impacts Nigeria and Africa. Northern Nigeria is hounded by desert encroachment on once arable land. Our south is pounded by the rising tide of coastal flooding and erosion. In the middle, the rainy season brings floods that kill and displace multitudes.
As I lament deaths at home, I also lament the grave loss of life in Morocco and Libya. The Nigerian people are with you.
African nations will fight climate change but must do so on our own terms. To achieve the needed popular consensus, this campaign must accord with overall economic efforts.
In Nigeria, we shall build political consensus by highlighting remedial actions which also promote economic good. Projects such as a Green Wall to stop desert encroachment, halting the destruction of our forests by mass production and distribution of gas burning stoves, and providing employment in local water management and irrigation projects are examples of efforts that equally advance both economic and climate change objectives.
Continental efforts regarding climate change will register important victories if established economies were more forthcoming with public and private sector investment for Africa’s preferred initiatives.
Again, this would go far in demonstrating that global solidarity is real and working.
CONCLUSION
As I close, let me emphasize that Nigeria’s objectives accord with the guiding principles of this world body: peace, security, human rights and development.
In fundamental ways, nature has been kind to Africa, giving abundant land, resources and creative and industrious people. Yet, man has too often been unkind to his fellow man and this sad tendency has brought sustained hardship to Africa’s doorstep.
To keep faith with the tenets of this world body and the theme of this year’s Assembly, the poverty of nations must end. The pillage of one nation’s resources by the overreach of firms and people of stronger nations must end. The will of the people must be respected. This beauty, generous and forgiving planet must be protected.
As for Africa, we seek to be neither appendage nor patron. We do not wish to replace old shackles with new ones.
Instead, we hope to walk the rich African soil and live under the magnificent African sky free of the wrongs of the past and clear of their associated encumbrances. We desire a prosperous, vibrant democratic living space for our people.
To the rest of the world, I say walk with us as true friends and partners. Africa is not a problem to be avoided nor is it to be pitied. Africa is nothing less than the key to the world’s future.
HUNTING FOR EVIDENCE AFTER DETENTION: It’s exactly 100 days today since he has been under President Bola Tinubu’s supervised detention.
On the 10th of June, former CBN governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele was literally abducted from his Ikoyi, Lagos home by men of the Department of State Services, DSS, and chaperoned to Abuja, handcuffs and all.
Since then he has not returned home. He has not been released. Over half a dozen court orders for him to be released or granted bail have been ignored by the Bola Tinubu administration. And the president professes to be a democrat. Maybe there are democrats who are not supposed to obey court orders or who are above the law.
WHAT’S EMEFIELE’S OFFENCE?: Why is Emefiele being detained for so long without trial? Why is President Tinubu so mean and vicious towards Emefiele? No other CBN governor has been so treated with such indignity and ignominy. Straight away, analysts suggest that this is a witch-hunt, an outright vendetta against the former CBN governor for supporting President Muhammadu Buhari’s naira redesign policy of late last year which curbed vote-buying during the February 25th 2O23 Presidential Election. It is said that in APC’s bad blood politics, Buhari didn’t want his party’s candidate, Tinubu to win but knowing that he had enormous cash power to buy up the votes, the sudden naira redesign was a ploy to stymie cash flow and damage Tinubu’s chances at the polls. It is said that Tinubu who hadn’t lost any election in Lagos before lost the last one because there wasn’t sufficient cash to push to the voters.
100 DAYS OF SEARCHING FOR EVIDENCE TO NAIL EMEFIELE : Other than the above, not even 100 days of intense and relentless investigation has produced an actionable offence against Emefiele. This is a checklist of offences so far proffered against Emefiele which never held water in court.
▪︎ DSS first accused him of terrorism financing and economic sabotage bordering on security breach. They quietly dropped the charge apparently because it was a ruse.
▪︎ Next, after about six weeks of detention and investigation, which included ransacking his homes, they charge him with possession of firearms and ammunition. The evidence turned out to he a shotgun, more like a toy gun. The DSS must have been too embarrassed to show up in court with a laughable evidence such as this against a former governor of a country’s apex bank.
▪︎ The evidence hunt continued and a forensic audit was initiated at the CBN. And voila! DSS eventually found the ‘smoking gun’! They claimed they had unearth a procurement deal amounting to about N6.1 billion which Emefiele approved as CBN governor. This watery evidence must have crashed as they soon found out that CBN is run by a board and not a dictator. There’s a chain of approving authorities.
▪︎ A report and accounts of the bank from 2016 to 2023 was hurriedly released in the bid to nail the suspended Emefiele, but the report had nothing incriminating on the former CBN chief.
▪︎ Currently, a special investigator, Mr. Jim Obazee, former chairman of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN) has been put on the job to nail Emefiele by all means. He has been scouring the books of the CBN and that of all Government Business Entities (GBE) for a couple of months but nothing unearthed!
Emefiele, Arrested By DSS
However, a media propaganda has been set off that a N7 trillion fraud involving Emefiele is about to be unravelled. For months of detention by the DSS, nothing could be found to prosecute Mr Emefiele; all the forensic auditing so far has yielded nothing, but the media is filled with outlandish headlines of the greatest fraud in the history of Nigeria.
PRESSED TO RESIGN UNDER DURESS: The president had committed an illegality ab initio by suspending Emefiele without any serious offence or infraction of the statutes since the office is a tenured one. The three months required for the acting position had elapsed without any headway, Emefiele was forced to resign while in detention. Tenured deputy governors were also pushed out on flimsy excuses. But it has come out that some part of the plot was to clear out the CBN and install Tinubu’s men.
That assignment seems concluded as Femi Cardoso, a Tinubu’s boy, has been appointed substantive CBN Governor with four new deputies made in Tinubu’s image. Thus has the CBN been completely captured.
SOME IMPLICATIONS OF THE MINDLESS VENDETTA AGAINST EMEFIELE: The DSS is the first victim of this blind pursuit of Emefiele. The once pristine agency has been reduced to the lapdog of the presidency. And they are doing the job without any shame or sense of self esteem.
Second, they have proven to be unruly and lawless in doing the bidding of the president. They have disobeyed every law order made against them over the Emefiele case. They seem to violate the rights and freedom of Nigerians with a new found fervour, engendering autocracy. No law of the land allows the DSS to detain any Nigerian indefinitely!
They have also taken over the job of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The investigation and prosecution of Emefiele borders on economic sabotage and has nothing to do with internal security.
Apart from the EFCC, the judiciary has been denigrate and battered in this singular pursuit of personal vendetta of Mr. President. The judiciary is made a mockery of as its orders are ignored with impunity.
The financial system is also being disembowelled with auditing searchlight targeted at individuals instead of a holistic x-ray of the system.
Finally, the Tinubu administration is currently being remarked for its narrow-minded, vindictive hunt-down of perceived political enemies instead of reforming the entire system for the good of all. We aver that no Nigerian public official can survive the scrutiny Emefiele has been subjected to. Not even the president. Clamping a former CBN governor into detention for 100 days without any concrete charge and without nary a bail doesn’t do good to a government or a country at that. Governance by witch-hunt makes everyone a witch!
Osuji, an accomplished Journalist, Writer, Columnist, was Media Adviser to former Imo State Governor, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha
Kano is becoming the worst hit State by the diphtheria, a disease being contracted through consumption of cow skin, popularly known as Ponmo, according to health experts.
The Director General of Kano State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (PHDA), Muhammad Nasir Muhammad, disclosed that as at last count, 520 persons have been killed by the disease, while more may likely die in weeks to come.
The DG, who revealed this in a keynote address at a one-day orientation for media practitioners on the outbreak of diphtheria disease in Kano, attributed the situation to poor routine immunisation which found a higher number of zero doses among the children in the State.
Muhammad decried the shortage of diphtheria vaccine in Kano which has about 8,000 confirmed cases representing 80 percent of the total.
“The state received 200,000 doses of vaccine which is less than one million doses after the outbreak of the disease. But according to our findings, we need over 6 million children to be vaccinated.”
He called on the federal government and development partners to do something urgent for the speedy and effective control of the disease while appreciating UNICEF for its commitment.
Earlier, the Chief Field Officer of UNICEF in Kano, Rahama Mohammed Farah, described diphtheria as a threat to children and their wellbeing.
“It is very important to understand that the analysis of the vaccination status of the suspected cases shows that 60.08 percent of all suspected cases are children who were not vaccinated. As of last week, over 400 suspected cases with 11 deaths have been reported in Kano State.
“The eight most affected local government areas include Ungogo 2,651, Dala 989, Fagge 943, Gwale 714 and Kumbotso 713. Others are Nasarawa 538, Kano Municipal 506 and Tarauni 269.
“UNICEF is therefore collaborating with the government and partners to respond to the emergency to save lives of children affected.”
The UNICEF Kano Field Office added that the office supported the diphtheria response since the first case of the diphtheria disease in December 2022 saying the outbreak needs to be urgently stopped, controlled, and prevented from spreading.
“Last week, UNICEF delivered 1.2 million vaccines to the Kano State government in our continuing support to the government for a response to the diphtheria outbreak. Diphtheria is a highly contagious, infectious disease that can cause death.
“The media has a key role to play, particularly in infection prevention risk communication and community engagement. You will need to educate the public and increase the awareness of parents and communities on the disease and the outbreak, on the importance of immunisation, and what parents need to do in case of suspected cases and how to prevent infection from further spreading.”
Global debt hit a record $307 trillion in the second quarter of the year despite rising interest rates curbing bank credit, with markets such as the United States and Japan driving the rise, the Institute of International Finance, IIF, said on Tuesday.
The financial services trade group said in a report that global debt in dollar terms had risen by $10 trillion in the first half of 2023 and by $100 trillion over the past decade.
It said the latest increase has lifted the global debt-to-GDP ratio for a second straight quarter to 336 percent. Prior to 2023, the debt ratio had been declining for seven quarters.
Slower growth, alongside a deceleration in price increases, were behind the debt ratio rise, the report said.
“The sudden rise in inflation was the main factor behind the sharp decline in debt ratio over the past two years,” the IIF said, adding that with wage and price pressures moderating, even if not to their targets, they expect the debt to output ratio to surpass 337 percent by year-end.
More than 80 percent of the latest debt build up had come from the developed world with the U.S., Japan, Britain and France registering the largest increases. Among emerging markets, the biggest rises came from the largest economies, namely China, India, and Brazil.
“As higher rates and higher debt levels push government interest expenses higher, domestic debt strains are set to increase,” the IIF said.
The report found that household debt-to-GDP in emerging markets was still above pre-COVID-19 levels, largely due to China, Korea and Thailand. However, the same ratio in mature markets has dropped to its lowest level in two decades in the first six months of the year.
“Should inflationary pressures persist in mature markets, the health of household balance sheets, particularly in the U.S., would provide a cushion..against further rate hikes,” it said.
Markets are not pricing in a U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike in the near future, but the target rate of between 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent is currently expected to remain in place until at least May of next year, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
Rates are expected to remain high for a long period in the United States, which could pressure emerging markets as needed investment is funneled to the less-risky developed world.
The Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged at the end of its meeting on Wednesday but could signal that it is open to further rate hikes.
Following the killings of 20 persons in cult-related clashes in Ogiun state, the state governor, Dapo Abiodun said his government will soon enact a law for the death penalty for cultists.
The governor made the pronouncement following clashes by rival cult groups in Shagamu last week. Apart from those that paid the supreme price, others sustained various degrees of injuries, the magazine learned.
Security agencies in the state have since stepped patrol of communities in the state to prevent reprisal attacks.
The state’s helmsman disclosed this during his visit to the palace of Oba Babatunde Ajayi, the paramount ruler of Remoland, saying the death penalty will address the problem of cultism in the Gateway state.
According to him, the government will not fold its arms while some unscrupulous persons unleash mayhem on the state, vowing to bring all those involved in the deadly clash to face the law.
He said the state “will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that we bring any person directly, indirectly or remotely responsible for these occurrences to book. I have discussed with the Attorney General perhaps it is our disposition that allows for these occurrences of heinous crimes.”
“It is well within my powers as the governor of this state to pronounce the death penalty on people and we are going to ensure that we enact that because when people appreciate and understand the consequences of their behaviours, perhaps they will begin to have a rethink.
“The last time I came here, I said any house that we arrest anybody that is connected to either cultism or kidnapping, we will find out where they live and demolish that house.
“Sadly, it has been very difficult for me to implement because they rent an apartment and the unsuspecting landlords who don’t know what they do give their houses to them. After we have arrested them and are about to demolish the house, those landlords will come and beg us that they did not know the suspects were into that business.
“I am now pronouncing that we will no longer refer to these people as cultists or any other name. We are pronouncing them as murderers and we will mete out punishments that are deserving to murderers,” he stated.
Meanwhile, political analysts insist that the permanent solution to the problem of cultism in the country is for politicians to stop arming youths during elections to work for their parties.
These youths are usually abandoned by the politicians after the election to fend for themselves, causing them to turn against their communities with a view to survive.
