₦airaland Forum

Former Big Brother Naija housemate, Diane Russet, has uncovered that her co-housemate, Frodd is a sweetheart.

As per her, the woman that will wed him will appreciate.

She wrote; “Frood is a sweetheart, and the lady that will marry him will sha enjoy.”

Recall that during the ‘Pepper Dem’ period of BBNaija, Diane was removed after an unexpected ousting which had Frodd ask her to take a hike.

Biggie had in a curve given Frodd a definitive veto power pick a coin with either Omashola or Diane’s name on it in a sack.

Full news at https://fojusi.com/frodd-is-a-sweetheart-and-the-lady-that-will-marry-him-will-enjoy-bbnaija-diane-russet/

The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19, Boss Mustapha has said sports in Nigeria will not return to normal anytime soon.

The PTF boss announced this during a press briefing on Thursday. He said the reasons are not far fetched as Sports, especially soccer attracts large crowds, and this is counter productive to the government’s Covid-19 agenda. And he cannot envision a soccer game with an empty stadium.

The Chairman said “We are not excited about allowing sports to return, we will get there, but for now, we are concerned with the few activities allowed to reopen.

Continue reading via https://fojusi.com/ptf-chairman-boss-mustapha-says-sports-will-not-return-anytime-soon/

The minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire said that health workers who are in the front line of the Covid-19 pandemic will receive hazard allowance and life insurance policy covers from next week. The minister said this in an interview with Channels television.

He said the government is well aware of the dangers that health workers undergo taking care of patients suffering from Covid-19.

Dr. Ehanire explained that the health workers usually take shifts and that they have a window period after work that they are assured to be virus free before reuniting with their families.

Continue reading at https://fojusi.com/health-workers-to-receive-allowances-and-life-insurance-next-week/

Ex Nigerian taekwondo championship Anita Aluya has said that women who train themselves in the skills of martial arts such as taekwondo, Kung Fu and judo stand a strong chance of defending themselves against rapists.

The issue of rape in Nigeria has been brought to the forefront of national issues as there has been recent outrage by Nigerians in reaction to the recent rape and murder of Vera Omozua, a student of the University of Benin.

Anita who owns a taekwondo academy in Lagos believes that women should consider a training in the sport as it will be an advantage to them in rape encounters.

She is a taekwondo black belter and a silver medalist in the National Sports Festival both in 2004 and 2006. Anita advices girls and women not to fight men in the event of a rape attempt but they should aim to attack Vital Spots such as the nose bridge or groin, this will leave the rapist weak and allow you to flee from the place.

Things like these can be learned from combats sports she said.

Keep reading at https://fojusi.com/anita-aluya-says-combat-sports-will-help-women-tackle-rapists/

There has been for sometime now a rift between The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, and the Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, with regards to the elections in Edo state, and on Tuesday they criticised each other over  the first degree certificate presented by the governor from the University of Ibadan.

The APC chairman in Abuja at the inauguration of the APC’s screening and appeal committees for its members contesting governorship  primary in Edo State, expressed his doubt over the authenticity of Obaseki’s UI certificate.

In response, the governor, via his spokesman, Crusoe Osagie, told Oshiomhole to go and confirm the authenticity of his certificate at the UI. He also said the national chairman should tell Nigerians the university he attended.

The rift, which has been ongoing since last year between Obaseki and the APC chairman has defied all efforts of the APC governors and the chairman of the Dangote group, Aliko Dangote, to reconcile the two leaders.

Continue reading at https://fojusi.com/governor-obasekis-certificate-issue-lingers/

The number of coronavirus cases in Lagos state has now reached a total of 6,065.

Also, a total of 72 fatalities have been recorded in the state.

Lagos currently has 5,049 active cases while 944 have tested negative and have recovered.

The NCDC said that Lagos recorded 170 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday.

The state currently has the highest number of coronavirus cases in the country.

The NCDC said, “On the 9th of June 2020, 663 new confirmed cases and 4 deaths were recorded in Nigeria.

Read More At https://fojusi.com/lagos-state-covid-19-cases-exceed-6000/

As state governments make preparations to reopen worship centres this weekend, the Federal Government has threatened to review the relaxation of the restriction placed on churches and mosques, if worshippers disregard its guidelines.

The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, said this on Thursday at the task force press conference in Abuja.

He also lamented that some Nigerians, who tested positive for the virus,  refused to go into isolation.

In the guidelines, the task force advises vulnerable people including those with conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer as well as people that are above 55 years to worship at home.

On Thursday, Mustapha said the task force would continue to explain the guidelines it issued to worship centres and other public places.

On the reopening of churches and mosques, he stated, “As we approach the weekend, we remind the public to be aware of the guidelines set for restricted opening of places of worship. National guidelines have been shared with the states and we expect that protocols will be agreed with religious leaders. Compliance is important so as to avoid unwanted consequences that put the lives of people at risk of contracting COVID-19. We urge utmost caution at all times.

Continue Reading at https://fojusi.com/fg-threatens-to-ban-worship-centers-of-guidelines-are-not-followed/

328 persons contracted coronavirus in Nigeria in the past 24 hours, The PUNCH reports.

This brings the total number of confirmed infections in the country to 11,844.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control made this known on Friday.

The NCDC stated, “On the 5th of June 2020, 328 new confirmed cases and 10 deaths were recorded in Nigeria.

“No new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours.

“Till date, 11844 cases have been confirmed, 3696 cases have been discharged and 333 deaths have been recorded in 35 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

“The 328 new cases are reported from 14 states- Lagos(121), FCT(70),Bauchi(25), Rivers(18), Oyo(16), Kaduna(15), Gombe(14), Edo(13),Ogun(13), Jigawa(, Enugu(6), Kano(5), Osun(2), Ondo(2)

Nigeria currently has 7,815 active COVID-19 cases.

Globally, the novel coronavirus has killed at least 392,878 people since the outbreak first emerged in China last December, according to a tally by AFP.

At least 6,696,690 cases of coronavirus have been registered in 196 countries and territories. Of these, at least 2,886,800 are now considered recovered.

Europe overall has 182,440 deaths from 2,237,964 cases, the United States and Canada have 116,459 deaths from 1,977,983 infections, Latin America and the Caribbean 60,540 deaths from 1,201,871 cases, Asia 18,261 deaths from 638,309 cases, the Middle East 10,172 deaths from 455,923 cases, Africa 4,875 deaths from 176,016 cases, and Oceania 131 deaths from 8,632 cases.

Source: https://fojusi.com/nigerias-covid-19-cases-hit-11844/

The Lagos State Government on Monday carried out the demolition of a two-storey building in the Surulere area of the state.

It was gathered that the building was in distress, having shown visible cracks and other defects.

The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency said the building failed several “integrity tests” and thereby posed threats to the lives of the occupants.

LASEMA Director-General, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, in a statement, said the occupants were evacuated before the controlled demolition exercise.

He said, “A joint response team comprising the Agency’s officials, Lagos State Building Control Agency personnel and Ministry Of Physical Planning personnel, observed that a residential building was showing visible cracks and defects.

“The occupants of the building have been evacuated by the Agency’s officials. The building has subsequently failed the integrity testing and is undergoing a controlled demolition with LASEMA heavy-duty equipment, with a go-ahead from the Honorable Commissioner, Ministry of Physical Planning.”

He urged members of the public to take necessary corrective actions on their properties to safeguard lives from avoidable tragedies.

Read more at https://fojusi.com/lagos-state-government-demolishes-distressed-building-in-surulere/

The Federal Ministry of Health is screening 19 local firms for the production of herbal drugs that can possibly treat or cure COVID-19.

The firms, it was learnt, made numerous claims ranging from the outright cure for COVID-19 to the treatment of the symptoms.

It was learnt that the 19 firms had met with the leadership of the ministry and the Department of Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

The firms have, however, been asked to submit their samples to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control out of which three would be picked and recommended for funding.

He said a meeting was held with the leadership of NAFDAC, the National Institute for Medical Research, the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria and other relevant stakeholders.

Mamora said the ministry asked interested herbal manufacturers to tell the government what challenges they faced.

The minister said some of them complained about funding as well as possible theft of their patent. Mamora said concerns over how to identify patients for trial were also discussed.

He said, “We met with about 19 of them to know what remedies they have in place and to know how we can put them through the processes from listing the medicine to clinical trial and then we wanted to know the challenges they were having.

“They said those challenges essentially were funding and they needed assurances that their intellectual property would be protected and their product or remedy would not be stolen or repackaged by someone else.

“The other challenge is how to go about the clinical trial. Part of that is how they source for patients because they will need patients who are volunteers. These patients have to be volunteers since it is a new product that will be put out there.

“So, we are now in the process of screening the 19 of them and we will shortlist some of them. About three will be shortlisted for further assessment and we will recommend support for them in order to fast track the process of determining their efficacy.”

When asked if the drugs were for the outright cure of COVID-19 or just for the treatment, Mamora said it was too soon to say as discussions were still on.

He said NAFDAC would test the herbal solutions to see if they are safe for human consumption.

Source: https://fojusi.com/federal-government-begins-screening-of-19-companies-for-covid-19-herb-production/

Muslim faithfuls in Kano,  Katsina, Borno,  Zamfara and Bauchi states on Sunday shunned a directive of the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji  Sa’ad Abubakar, and the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, which stated that there should be no large gatherings at Eid prayers.

Our correspondents, who monitored prayer grounds in the states, observed that there were massive gatherings with the majority of the faithful not observing the PTF’s protocols such as social distancing and wearing of face masks.

Recall that states, including Kano, Katsina, Borno and Yobe,  last week relaxed the Federal Government’s lockdown and allowed religious organisations to hold their congregational activities. They gave  Muslims the go-ahead to hold prayers at Eid at grounds to mark the end of 30 days fasting.

But the  Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs,  led by the Sultan,  on Wednesday contradicted the state governments.

In a statement by its Deputy Secretary General, Prof Salisu Shehu,  the NSCIA said massive gatherings at one Eid ground in a big city should be avoided. “Rather the Eid could be performed in area mosques to avoid unmanageable crowds,”  it stated.

On Thursday, Jama’atu Nasril Islam, also led by the Sultan, directed Muslims to observe Sallah prayers at home

In a statement  by its Secretary General, Dr Khalid Abubakar, the JNI said, “Eid-el-Fitr congregation on the outskirts of towns and cities should be temporarily suspended.”

It also directed that “Eid-el-Fitr prayer be observed at home with family members or alone in case there isn’t anyone with him or her, at home.”

At the press briefing of the PTF on Thursday, its Chairman, Mr Boss Mustapha, advised against large gatherings of people during the Sallah celebration.

In Kano State, Muslim faithful trooped out as early as 8:30am to observe the   Eid-el-Fitr prayers at the various Eid praying grounds without complying with the physical distancing order.

It was observed at some Eid grounds that while some worshippers wore face masks, others refused to abide by the order.

However,  worshippers were asked to wash their hands and use of sanitisers by the people mandated to enforce hygiene rules.

But some worshippers entered the prayer grounds without washing their hands and using sanitisers.

Some of the Eid praying grounds visited included  Umar Bin Khatab Juma’at mosque, the Central Eid prayer ground located at Kofar Mata and Mahaha Eid prayer ground near the Kofar Na’isa, all in Kano metropolis.

Some Muslim leaders in the state commended Ganduje for allowing Muslims to observe the Eid prayer despite the Federal Government’s directive.

Source:https://fojusi.com/muslims-in-kano-katsina-and-borno-flout-social-distancing-protocols-and-pray-at-mosques/

Sierra Leone records its highest number of cases in a single day, 100 new infections were recorded. A number over double its highest daily jump since the index case was confirmed in the country on 31 March.

67 of them are from among 85 Sierra Leoneans repatriated on Friday from Kuwait where they’d been working mostly domestic workers.

Sierra Leone now has a total to 721 confirmed cases. According to a journalist Umaru Fofafna, the daily deaths have continued with the toll currently at 40.

“Concerns are now turning into worry in a country where most people don’t seem to have taken the pandemic seriously,” he wrote in a tweet.

Sierra Leone recorded zero new cases for the first time in almost exactly one month on May 12. The last time it did was on 13 April.

The total number of confirmed cases stands at 338. The death toll is at 20 whiles the recoveries are at 72. The country remains one of West Africa’s least impacted so far.

Meanwhile, a consignment of COVID-19 supplies were delivered to the country from the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, May 12.

“The Government and people of Sierra Leone are most grateful for the medical supplies you sent us. Your generosity in this hour of need will further strengthen our response to COVID-19,” president Bio wrote in a tweet thanking the UAE ruler Mohammed bin Zayed.

Accra Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Niger have also benefited from the UAE Aid, which is a leading soft power outlet of the Emirati government.

Source: https://fojusi.com/sierra-leone-records-100-fresh-cases-of-coronavirus-total-numbers-hit-721/

The Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has stated that the state government is trying to get the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to allow flights from Lagos to Abuja to operate, following the increasing impact of the closure of the airports on the state’s economy.

The governor lamented that the aviation industry, as well as the entertainment, hospitality and transportation sectors, had been “significantly” affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Federal Government on March 23 shut all international airports in the country before it later extended the closure to all airports in the country, banning all local and international flights.

The governor spoke as a panellist at a webinar hosted by FSDH Merchant Bank on Friday. The webinar, titled, ‘A global pandemic: local realities and peculiarities – a view from the frontlines’, was anchored by the Chairman, FSDH Holding Company, Mr Hakeem Belo-Osagie, and the bank’s Managing Director, Mrs Hamda Ambah.

Other panellists included the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai; his Edo State counterpart, Godwin Obaseki; Senior lecturer and consultant, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Dr Alero Ann Roberts; Director, Centre for International Development, Harvard University, Prof Asim Ijaz Khwaja, and Assistant Professor, Harvard Business School, Dr Jaya Wen.

The governor said, “In terms of direct economy, I know that the entertainment industry has been affected badly. I know the hospitality industry has been affected greatly, especially as people could not go out. It affected those sectors badly. Transportation business and the aviation sector have been affected significantly and these are large employers of labour. We all know that Nollywood employs many people, so we are thinking through how to reset these economies very quickly but in a very gradual manner.

“So, the aviation industry has been badly hit and just this (Friday) morning, I spoke with a major player in that industry and we are trying to get the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to see whether we are going to resume Lagos–Abuja flights before we get to other sectors. There has to be some gradual process in lifting the lockdown.

“We will continue to have engagements with all of the players down the value chain. At the right time when we see that the t’s have been crossed and the i’s have been dotted, we will do that and you can hold us to that.”

Source: https://fojusi.com/governor-sanwo-olu-seeks-approval-for-resumption-of-lagos-abuja-flights/

The Governor of Kaduna state Nasir El-Rufai announced on Friday  10 members of one family were among  the 18 new  COVID-19 cases in the state.

El-Rufai  said on  his verified Twitter handle the new cases were recorded in four local government areas – Kaduna North, Zaria, Chikun and Sabon-Gari.  According to him, 14 of the cases are from Kaduna North, two from Zaria and one each from Chikun and Sabon-Gari.

El-rufai appealed to residents to adhere to  all safety measures put in place to check the spread of the virus in the state.

He wrote, “18 new cases were recorded today, 10 of whom are family members of one case.

“14 of the new cases are from Kaduna North, two from Zaria and one each from Chikun and Sabon-Gari LGAs.

“Residents are advised to adhere to safety measures.”

Source: https://fojusi.com/10-members-of-one-family-test-positive-for-covid-19-in-kaduna-state/

President Buhari has approved the termination of the appointment of Prof Charles Uwakwe as the Registrar and Chief Executive of the National Examinations Council.

Four other officials were sacked by the president for various offences bordering on financial impropriety.

Uwakwe had been suspended since May 2018 by the Federal Government over alleged financial mismanagement and abuse of office.

Mr Abubakar Gana was immediately appointed as the acting Registrar.

Uwakwe and some top officials allegedly awarded contracts in the council to the tune of N25billion without following the due process.

NECO in a release on Wednesday confirmed that the suspended registrar had been relieved of his appointment by the President, while four members of the management had also been dismissed.

The President’s directive was conveyed in a letter, dated May 11, and signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono, on behalf of the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, which said Uwakwe was accused of violating the Public Procurement Act (2007) and pursuant to PSR 030402 and Part 1 schedule 4 (i) of NECO Establishment Act.

Source: https://fojusi.com/president-buhari-fires-neco-registrar-and-4-other-officials/

The president of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, on Wednesday, held a virtual meeting with the Director-General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Ghebreyesus, over COVID Organics.

Rajoelina, who made this known via Twitter, said the United Nations specialised agency on global health expressed its support for the clinical observation of the ‘tonic’ touted as cure for coronavirus.

He said, “Successful exchange with Tedros Ghebreyesus who commends Madagascar’s efforts in the fight against COVID-19 and congratulates us for the discovery of COVID Organics.

“WHO will sign a confidentiality clause on its formulation and will support the clinical observations process in Africa.”

The Malagasy President said the meeting followed the invitation by WHO to register the drug for clinical trials, adding that his country would prove the effectiveness of the COVID Organics.

Madagascar sent consignments of the herbal drug made from Artemisia annua to African nations.

Nigeria’s President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), received the consignment apportioned to Nigeria from President Umaro Embaló of Guinea Bissau on Saturday, saying it would be subjected to scientific validation.

Source: https://fojusi.com/madagascar-president-and-the-dg-of-who-hold-virtual-meeting/

Nigeria has grown big in the movie industry with an international recognition as Nollywood.

Not everyone who venture into acting in Nollywood becomes a Star in the industry.

Those who made it big in the Nollywood Movie Industry sacrificed a lot to get to the Celebrated level they're now.

Amongst the Fast-rising Nollywood star is a very gentleman with a high-sense of committement in the Movie Industry.

Mr. Nicholas Onwumere A.K.A Nicholas Nollywood is the latest Nollywood fast-rising star with a Multi-purpose spirit of commitment.

He is a Nollywood Movie Producer; SAINT NICHOLAS MOVIES, as well as an Actor and Nollywood renowned Marketer.

You can find his Productions and Marketing grounds at No. 146 Okigwe Rd Orji, Owerri (Or former IBC Orji Owerri), and in Lagos too.

Mr Nicholas Onwumere A.K.A Nicholas Nollywood joined the Movie Industry in the year 2005 and ever since then, he has produced the following movies:
•THE DEVIL
•SEX DECEIT
•VILLAGE LOVE
•OFUNWA
•PASTORS CURT
•MY MANHOOD

Nicholas Nollywood, on the other hand has displayed his Acting skills Vigorously in the following movies:

•THE JOURNEY OF BACHELORHOOD
•AMAKA DISAPPOINT ME
•THE ADOPTION
•CRY OF THE KINGDOM
•THE BAG
•THE MID NIGHT
•THE GOLD
•BLIND TRUST
•MBADIWE
•FORBIDDEN KINGDOM
•TEARS OF A BLIND GIRL
•DOCTOR IMO
•WHITE POISION
•ZAHA and so on

Mr Nicholas Onwumere has made it known to reputable media houses that the VISION of his MOVIE PRODUCTION lies on HUNTING TALENTS FOR THE MOVIE INDUSTRY, which he has already started by bringing up stars like THE YOUNG SHARON EFFEDI and more unveiling.

Nicholas Nollywood is a Nollywood Star with a golden heart, he is always ready to bring out the talent in anyone interested in the NOLLYWOOD MOVIE INDUSTRY.

You can connect with Actor/Producer Nicholas Onwumere A.K.A Nicholas Nollywood via:

•Facebook >>> Saint Nicolas Movies
•Instagram >>> Nicholas_Nollywood

His Movie Production Website Will Be Up Soon So That Nigerians Can Download And Watch His Movies With Maximum Excitement!!

Watchout For The Next Big Personality in NOLLYWOOD... We're talking about NICHOLAS_NOLLYWOOD!!

Despite the coronavirus pandemic and the growing tensions in the country, Burundi will, on Wednesday 20, hold general elections.

The small African country of the Great Lakes region and its 11 million inhabitants are trying to emerge from a deadly political crisis born of President Nkurunziza’s controversial candidacy for a third term in April 2015.

Unlike Ethiopia, which postponed its August elections because of the COVID-19, Burundi has decided to maintain them at all costs, like Mali, Benin, and Malawi.

Burundi, which the government claimed was protected by “divine grace”, has so far officially recorded 42 positive cases, including one death. But authorities are accused by doctors and the opposition of hiding COVID-19 cases, attributing them to other diseases such as pneumonia.

Burundi has not imposed the confinement of the population, unlike neighboring Rwanda, and the election campaign mobilized large crowds, with a few buckets of water and soap as a preventive measure.

The government had, without explanation, ordered the expulsion of the four main World Health Organization (WHO) experts advising it on the epidemic, who left the country on Saturday.

Nkurunziza’s heir*
The country, which could face a major health crisis, is preparing to turn the page on Nkurunziza, whose last years in power were marked by massive human rights violations that left at least 1,200 people dead, according to a UN report released in 2017, and pushed some 400,000 people into exile at the height of the crisis.

The UN and human rights NGOs blame the violence on the Imbonerakure, members of the ruling party’s youth league (CNDD-FDD), the dreaded National Intelligence Service, the police and, to a lesser extent, the army.

Mr. Nkurunziza had surprised the nation in June 2018 by announcing that he would not stand as his successor, even though the recently amended Constitution adopted by referendum allowed him to do so.

Internal sources reported at the time that the decision was taken under pressure from a small and very influential group of generals, all from the former Hutu rebellion now in power.

At the end of January, the regime chose a new face, General Évariste Ndayishimiye, to wear its colours at the presidential elections.

A man of the seraglio who is apparently not as tough as his mentor Nkurunziza, of whom he is presented as the “Heir”, Mr. Ndayishimiye is a favourite in Wednesday’s election in view of the omnipotence of the ruling party.

But the campaign was bitter and his main rival among the six other candidates, Agathon Rwasa, mobilised the crowds.

Keep reading at https://fojusi.com/burundi-prepares-for-elections-amid-covid-19-pandemic/

Chairman of Northern Christian Traditional Rulers, Dr. Abdu Maisharu II, has fully recovered from coronavirus.

We learnt that Maisharu, who doubles as Mai Tangale, spent 12 days in isolation.

The chairman of the Gombe Task Force on COVID-19, Prof. Idris Mohammed, announced that the 72-year-old first-class chief survived the virus.

Mohammed made this known on Monday at the daily briefing on COVID-19 in the state.

He said, “It is a fact that Mai of Tangale had COVID-19 infection, he was admitted and mercifully he had fully recovered and has been discharged. His recovery took 12 days.

“Suspected cases total 1,512. We have received 1088 results from laboratory tests, 960 of this proved negative to COVID-19.

“Till date, we have 127 cumulative cases of COVID-19 in Gombe. Results awaited amounts to 125, we have treated and discharged a total of 91 persons positive for COVID-19. Currently, five persons are in isolation at Kwadon, two are at the state specialist hospital. So, a total of seven persons are on isolation in the whole of Gombe.”

Mohammed also said that Maisharu on Sunday gave the taskforce permission to disclose his medical records.

Source: https://fojusi.com/72-year-old-gombe-traditional-ruler-recovers-from-covid-19/

Some foreign airlines are allegedly making plans to resume flights to Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt airports in spite of the ban on international commercial flights by the Federal Government in a bid to halt  COVID-19 spread.

Although some of the airlines said their plans could change, it was learnt on Saturday that some of the international carriers had already scheduled some flights to Nigeria from June.

But the Federal Ministry of Aviation declared that such plans would not work until the flight ban was lifted.

Also, the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria said no foreign or local carrier could take decision to fly to or within Nigeria if the government had not opened the airspace.

It was learnt on Saturday that Lufthansa Airlines had included Abuja and Port Harcourt among its 20 long-haul routes to begin flight operations in June.

It was learnt that the carrier had made its first batch of flight reservation available in its booking system.

The company plans to resume long-haul flights in June from Frankfurt to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Toronto, Mexico City, Tel Aviv, Riyadh, Bahrain, Johannesburg, Dubai and  Mumbai, among others.

Virgin Atlantic recently announced that beginning from May 16, services for its summer schedule flights from March 28, 2021 would be on sale, as it had scheduled flights from London Heathrow to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

But senior  Ministry of Aviation officials said although it was nice to hear that airlines were making plans to resume operations, such would not happen until the ban was lifted.

The FG  on May 6 extended the suspension of both local and international flights by four weeks.

The government had earlier halted commercial flights by two weeks before it announced the four-week extension.

Read More From Source: https://fojusi.com/foreign-airlines-likely-to-resume-operations-in-june/

Kenya, like most countries in Africa and indeed the world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic with cases steadily rising each day. The government have locked down a handful of counties including the capital Nairobi and imposed a night-time curfew as part of containment efforts.

This rolling page will continue to give updates on major occurrences as relates to the East African country.

The country as of May 10 was the fourth most impacted country in the East / Horn of Africa region only behind Djibouti, Sudan and Somalia. Government also rolled out mass testing in virus hot spots, borders remain shut and a ban on public gatherings continues.

Major topics covered below include:

May 14: Cases hit 758, focus turns to Kenya-Tanzania border town
May 12: 715 cases, border crossings becoming flash point
May 11: Cases reach 700, mass prisoner release
May 10: 649 cases, Raila worries about Magufuli
May 8: May 8: Govt to foot quarantine bills, cases at 607
May 7: 582 cases, lockdown in Eastleigh, Mombasa City
May 5: KQ’s UK repatriation flight returns
May 4: Cases hit 535, govt decries abuse of relaxed measures
May 3: KQ repatriation flight, Nairobi fumigation
May 2: Case count at 435, mass testing starts
May 1: Case count hits 411, Uhuru vows transparency
May 16: 830 cases, TZ, Somali borders shut
Total confirmed cases = 830 (new cases = 49)

Total recoveries = 301

Total deaths = 50 (5 new)

Active cases = 481

Kenya’s case count reached 830 as pf today President Uhuru Kenyatta announced in an address today. The dusk to dawn curfew in place has also been extended by a further 21 days.

Read Full Article >>> https://fojusi.com/kenya-covid-19-cases-hit-830-shuts-border-with-somalia-and-extends-curfew/

The Movement for the Survival of the Sovereign State of Biafra has dared the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, to come back to the country and fight for Biafra.

MASSOB also cautioned Kanu to desist from insulting its leader, Ralph Uwazuruike over issues concerning the struggle for Biafra.

Speaking in a telephone interview with our correspondent on Thursday, the movement’s National Director of Information, Sunday Okereafor, said it was wrong for Kanu to stay in Canada, United States of America or London and think that he could achieve Biafra from outside Nigeria.

Okereafor also faulted Kanu for accusing Uwazuruike of thwarting the fight towards achieving a sovereign state of Biafra, adding that the MASSOB leader brought the IPOB leader into the struggle.

He maintained that the IPOB leader would not be able to achieve Biafra by speaking from London, Canada and America.

“MASSOB says on Biafra, we stand. Nnamdi Kanu can’t say that he is fighting for Biafra and he is staying in America, London, Canada, Australia. Every day, he is flying; he should come back home and pay the price.

“MASSOB is telling Nnamdi Kanu to come down home and fight for the freedom, rather than hiding abroad. Nnamdi Azikiwe was in Nigeria as Governor General of Nigeria and Muammar Ghaddafi was there fighting for the freedom of his people, Jomo Kenyatta fought for the freedom of Kenyans from Kenya.

“Also, Thomas Jefferson of America stayed in America and fought for their own freedom. So, Nnamdi Kanu should come home; he should bring his own members home and fight, rather than castigating Uwazuruike.

“Odumegwu Ojukwu never castigated Michael Okpara and Uwazuruike never castigated Ojukwu. Kanu was an employee of MASSOB. Uwazuruike employed him. It is now that he wants to be the boss. Does Kanu know about the struggle? No,” Okereafor said.

He stated that MASSOB would continue to maintain its non-violent approach towards achieving Biafra, adding that some people were working towards hijacking the struggle from the movement.

Okereafor said, “We know that they want to hijack the struggle. Even now, they want to hijack it. But Uwazuruike remains the father. Kanu was an employee of MOSOB. How can an employee know more than the Managing Director?

“Uwazuruike is going the normal line in which he is supposed to go and get Biafra. We don’t carry arms; so, how can you expect us to carry arms. Kanu is a freedom fighter; how would you run away from the people he is fighting for?”

Read More >>> https://fojusi.com/massob-asks-nnamdi-kanu-to-return-to-nigeria/

The Niger State Government has announced the demise of a Professor of Veterinary Medicine at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Bello Agaie.

According to a statement on Thursday night by Mary Noel-Berje, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor Abubakar Sani, the late Agaie died of coronavirus disease.

“Governor Abubakar Sani of Niger State has revealed that so far ten (10) persons have been confirmed positive for coronavirus out of 202 samples collected and tested.

Read More >>> https://fojusi.com/niger-state-mourns-death-of-professor-of-veterinary-medicine/

The Chairman, Five Star Group, Emeka Okonkwo aka E-Money, left police custody after approximately six hours of police interrogation.

E-Money, it was learnt, arrived at the Police Headquarters Annex, Kam Salem, Obalende, Ikoyi, around 1pm in a wine-coloured suit.

He was subsequently grilled for about six hours by the Inspector-General of Police, Monitoring Department.

A top source said, “E-Money visited the Force HQ annex today and met with police detectives and was grilled for about six hours. He came along with two others and responded to many questions. Somebody took his bail and he was allowed to leave and return on Wednesday for more questioning.”

The IG, Mohammed Adamu, had placed E-Money under investigation over his flamboyant lifestyle and alleged flagrant abuse of police escorts.

Okonkwo, who is the brother to musician, Kingsley Okonkwo aka K-Cee, was said to have drawn the ire of the police boss for allegedly using policemen like domestic servants.

Read More Here >>> https://fojusi.com/police-release-e-money-after-a-six-hour-interrogation/

A 37-year-old woman who has been diagnosed with coronavirus has been delivered of a baby boy at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba.

The hospital made this known in a press statement on Tuesday.





According to the statement, the COVID-19 patient was delivered of the baby boy on Saturday.

It, however, did not state the COVID-19 status of the baby.

The statement read, “A team of LUTH doctors, anaesthetists and nurses delivered another woman diagnosed with COVID-19 of a baby boy (Birth weight: 2.6kg).

“The 37-year-old mother was delivered of the baby via a caesarean section on Saturday, May 9.

“The mother and baby are doing well.

“We celebrate our committed frontline staff for this achievement.”

This birth is coming in the midst of increasing cases of coronavirus in Lagos.

As of May 11, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said Lagos had recorded 1,933 confirmed cases of COVID-19, out of which 1,398 are active cases. Lagos has also recorded 502 recoveries and 33 deaths.

LUTH had, on April 27, successfully delivered a 40-year-old COVID-19 patient of a baby girl.

Source: https://fojusi.com/37-year-old-covid-19-patient-delivers-baby-at-luth/

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said he reduced his political activities since he quit power back in 2015 to enable him to concentrate on his foundation.

The former leader gave the explanation on Sunday in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, when Governor Douye Diri inaugurated the state executive council of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Jonathan, who said he was actually moving away from being “an effective partisan politician,” however, noted that his absence from political activities was being misunderstood.

He said, “Don’t be discouraged if you do not see me in most party activities in the state. I decided to appear in this event so that I will not be misunderstood.

“I’m shifting away from being an effective partisan politician because of my foundation. People who want to partner me felt that if you are a partisan leader in the country, they will eat with you with a long spoon.

“I felt that after serving as President of this country, I should go to some other areas where my services would be required. Through that process, I would be able to support the nation and the state in one way or the other.”

He called on the new state executive council to run an all-inclusive administration, to promote peace, unity and stability in achieving more successes for the party.

Jonathan averred that the survival of the party was largely dependent on its capacity to effectively manage its affairs.

“You have an enormous responsibility before you. You must work with the governor and not at cross purposes.

“No matter how strong a party is, if the people don’t appreciate you, you would be struggling to have them on your side. I know you will work harmoniously with members and carry everyone along,” he said.

The former President also applauded the exemplary leadership exhibited by Diri within the short period in office.

Diri, on his part, charged the new party leadership to reach out to all those who had left with the view to bringing them back into the fold towards sustaining the party’s dominance in the state.

He said, “As a result of our divine emergence, we should not be vindictive. Let us forgive one another and bring everyone on board because we want to sustain our party’s dominance in the state.

“It seems like a tall order but you have the capacity to do so. We are all brothers and sisters of Ijawland. So let us not split ourselves. When we are united, we will be stronger and bring development closer to our people.”

Also speaking, the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, represented by the National Vice-Chairman of the South-South zone, Elder Emmanuel Ogidi, congratulated the new state exco and implored them to work as a team.

Also speaking, immediate past governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson, expressed satisfaction with his successor for recording successes in piloting the affairs of the party so far.

Represented by the Sagbama PDP Caucus Chairman and elder statesman, Chief Francis Doukpola, Dickson thanked the immediate past chairman for his loyalty to the party and the winning streak during his leadership while congratulating the newly inaugurated executive.

In his acceptance speech, the new chairman, Mr Solomon Agwanana,  thanked Jonathan and Diri for their leadership role in strengthening the party.

The ex president promised that his watchword would be repositioning the party and consolidating the gains achieved by past leaders.

Source: https://fojusi.com/former-president-goodluck-jonathan-dissociates-himself-from-partisan-politics/

The Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El Rufai, announced that the state has recorded two fresh deaths from COVID-19 pandemic, which brings the total deaths so far to three in the state.

Kaduna state recorded its first fatality on May 2, 2020 when the victim who was a retired civil servant who concealed his travel history to Kano,  died before the result of his test came out.

The latest deaths, according to the governor in his twitter handle, are a senior citizen from Makarfi and a lady from Zaria.

El-Rufai in the tweet, also disclosed that two more persons had tested positive, brining the active COVID-19 cases in the state to 87.

According to the tweet which was released at 11.04 pm on Saturday, the two new cases are a male from Igabi and a female from the Chikun Local Government Area of the state.

El-Rufai had on Friday raised the alarm that illegal interstate travel was widening the spread of the coronavirus in the state.

The governor who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye, in a statement, noted that majority of COVID-19 cases in the state had travel history.

El-Rufai added that inter state travel had increased the danger of community transmission as infections have “now been recorded in some mainly rural local governments on the borders of the state.”

Source: https://fojusi.com/covid-19-kaduna-records-two-new-death/

There was controversy on Saturday over an alleged deaths of about 110 persons in Azare town, headquarters of Katagum Local Government Area in Bauchi State, within the past two weeks.

The drama began when a former member of the House of Representatives, Ibrahim Mohammed Baba, raised the alarm in a letter to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), informing him of the death of over 100 persons in the town in the last one week.

Baba, who confirmed to one of our correspondents that he wrote the letter, claimed that the deaths were due to the outbreak of coronavirus in the town. The outbreak, he said, resulted in over 100 fatalities, “throwing the entire area into great mourning, panic and confusion.”

The former lawmaker served between 2015 and 2019, reelected in 2019 but removed by the Elections Petitions Tribunal. He also said about 286 persons were allegedly buried at the Azare cemetery in the last two weeks, adding that anyone in doubt should visit the cemetery to verify his claim.

He said, “If you go to the graveyard, they have a register there and you would see it yourself. In the last two weeks, they registered more than 286 bodies at the Azare graveyard. The normal death rate in the town was about one to two per day, so you have to raise the alarm when you are burying 200 to 300 persons in two weeks and over 100 per week. Our people are dying, do we have to keep quiet?

“We are not blaming anybody; this is a pandemic, we are just asking the government to take further action. The Federal Medical Centre there is doing well; they have over 20 people in isolation there. It’s a case of community transmission like the one in Kano.

“Go to the Federal Medical Centre isolation centre and ask them how many people they have there within two weeks. When Justice Dahiru Saleh died, the record was around 236. If you go to the Azare cemetery, the register is there. What we are trying to do is to inform the government to do the needful. We are asking for a testing centre and other measures the government can deploy to give palliatives to people.”

In the letter titled, ‘Massive COVID-19 outbreak in Azare: Request for urgent action’, Baba, who once represented Katagum Federal Constituency, requested the President to intervene urgently.

The letter partly read, “The centrality and proximity of Azare to Bauchi, Kano and some major cities of Jigawa State makes the town’s large population susceptible to the virus due to the already existing large cases of the disease in those areas.

“And because media coverage is always largely skewed towards states capitals and other more prominent cities, the ongoing horrific situation in Azare has not got the attention it deserves, and that is why I want to use this privilege to appeal to you for urgent action to arrest the unpalatable situation.

“Consequently therefore, I wish to appeal to Your Excellency to direct the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to urgently reach out to Azare town with all the necessary facilities and palliatives to assist the communities there.

“And to help in this expected effort, may I draw your attention to the fact that an Opthalmology unit and laboratory have already been built and equipped by the Central Bank of Nigeria at the Azare Federal Medical Centre since 2013 but have not been inaugurated and put to use till now.”

Meanwhile, the total number of cases in the state rose to 161 following the addition of the 44 new cases detected on Saturday.

Overall, there were 239 new cases in the country on Saturday, pushing the total cases to 4,151. Number of deaths increased to 128 while 745 persons have so far been discharged.

Source: https://fojusi.com/110-people-die-strangely-in-214-days-in-bauchi/

Just barely a week since President Magufuli of Tanzania announced the country was interested in COVID-Organics, the Malagasy preventive / curative, potion for coronavirus, a consignment was delivered on Friday according to reports.

The donation comes days after the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo received their donations. Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau have also been served.

The Guinea-Bissau consignment, according to Malagasy President Andry Rajoelina, was a donation for the West African bloc, ECOWAS, but the group this week said it had not ordered for nor does it recommend the untested and unscientific medication.

Tanzania is currently the East Africa Community’s second most impacted country behind Kenya. The country has 509 cases with 21 deaths and 183 recoveries as of May 9.

The president also made news headlines this week after claiming that non-human samples had tested positive for the virus. Head of the country’s national laboratory was subsequently dismissed. The Africa Centers for Disease Control rejected Magufuli’s claims stressing that the said kits were certified.

Source: https://fojusi.com/tanzania-receive-covid-19-herbal-remedy-from-madagascar/

The Democratic Republic of Congo made the announcement Thursday, of the partial reopening for pedestrians, a border post with Zambia.This followed a day’s demonstration against this preventive measure taken in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The demonstrators were protesting against the closure all land, air and sea borders by since 20 March by the government.

“As Kasumbalesa depends largely on products from southern African countries and also from Zambia, the population is having difficulty making a living,” explained the mayor, André Kapampa.

“Beginning Friday the pedestrian corridors will be open,” he said, adding that pedestrians will have to comply with preventive measures. This includes wearing of masks, temperature checks and social distancing.

Kasumbalesa has registered one case of Covid-19, from a Congolese man returning from Europe.

Congolese small-scale traders cross the border illegally at night, but controls along the border have been tightened over the past days, said civil society activist Pierre Mwepu.

Source: https://fojusi.com/the-drc-zambia-border-has-been-partially-reopened/

The Lagos State Government has announced it will commence chloroquine clinical trial for the treatment of the novel coronavirus disease within the next one week or thereabouts.

This is sequel to the approval by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control that chloroquine could be used for the clinical trial treatment of the deadly disease.

There were 386 new cases on Friday, pushing the total cases in the country to 3,912. The number of deaths increased to 117 while 679 persons have been discharged so far.

The state Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, said at a media briefing in Ikeja on Friday that there would be three arms of the trial, capturing treatment, prevention and care for high-risk individuals, like elderly persons with underlying ailments such as hypertension, diabetes and obesity.

Findings revealed that the state submitted its final protocol to NAFDAC on Thursday evening as it awaits the approval of the agency in preparation for the commencement of the hydroxychloroquine clinical trial treatment next week.

NAFDAC, which approves medicines meant for clinical trials, had on March 20 approved the use of chloroquine for clinical trial treatment of the novel disease, warning however that the approval was not for the drug to be used as a treatment for the virus.

The Director-General, NAFDAC, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, also confirmed a few weeks ago that only Lagos State, which has the highest number of cases and is the epicentre of the virus in the country, had signified interest in using the drug for a clinical trial to find treatment for the virus.

And in a recent interview with one of our correspondents, the DG said the state government had sent its protocol to NAFDAC for final approval which would allow it to begin the clinical trial.

She said, “For a clinical trial, you will have to write a protocol and Lagos State submitted its protocol to us. We vetted it back and forth and now they are about to start. It has to be well designed because whatever comes to the scientific world must be defensible. That is the essence of clinical trial treatment planning.

“It has to be well thought out. How many patients will give us a statistical result that will be interpreted well and give a level of confidence? So, these are the kinds of things that go into a clinical trial protocol. We have come alongside Lagos State to review their protocols and they are about to start.”

However, the commissioner said on April 7 that the state had concluded plans to start COVID-19 clinical trial in partnership with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and other institutions.

Meanwhile, addressing journalists on Friday, Abayomi said the clinical trials were coming at the most appropriate time given the number of cases the state had been recording in recent times. He noted that the state would use hydroxychloroquine produced by original manufacturers and not the generic one and that the state was set to receive “thousands and thousands of the tablets.”

The number of cases in the state rose by 176 on Friday to 1,667.

He said, “To put together a clinical trial is a very difficult thing; there are people that specialise in clinical trial research. We have to perform the clinical trial in such a way that we would be able to get a very clear result out of it and it won’t have any bias.

We are planning almost three arms of the hydroxychloroquine trial; one arm of the trial would be for treatment. In other words, if you present with COVID-19 and you test positive, does hydroxyl chloroquine improve your chances of not dying from it or does it shorten the amount of time between when you are diagnosed and when you are cleared of the virus and you are ready to be discharged?

“We are also using it as prevention. For example, if you want to test, when you give the hydroxychloroquine to the health care professionals as prevention, does it protect them from getting infected by COVID-19?

“We also want to use it among people in the communities who have high risk. For example, somebody who is over the age of 70 with hypertension, diabetes or obesity, we know that if you have COVID-19, you are at risk of developing severe to critical symptoms, so if we give members of the public on this clinical trial access to the original hydroxychloroquine, we will protect certain high risk persons from developing or contracting COVID-19.

“These are the arms we are developing in our clinical trial strategy. There is a lot happening around this activity and I think within the next week or so, we would have commenced the trials.”

The commissioner noted that it needed NAFDAC’s permission, ethics approval and recruitment of the participants in the trial.

He added, “As I said, we are still in the early part of the outbreak, so we have a long way to go and the trials are coming in at a time we feel the most appropriate; when we are seeing at least 100 cases a day. It will be easy for us to perform those clinical trials with the number of cases that we are seeing.”

Source: https://fojusi.com/lagos-plans-to-commence-chloroquine-trials-next-week/

The Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, has unilaterally dissociated itself from reports of a donation from Madagascar regarding a coronavirus herbal cure, COVID-Organics.

In a May 6 press release, the ECOWAS Commission said it dissociates itself from claims that it had “ordered a package of COVID Organics (CVO) medicine from a third country.”

“We wish to dissociate ECOWAS and its health institution, West Africa Health Organization, WAHO, from this claim and inform the general public that we have not ordered the said CVO medicine,” the statement read in part.

The controversial Malagasy virus cure is already in West Africa after Guinea-Bissau took delivery of a donation days ago. The Malagasy president Andry Rajoelina told national broadcaster that a donation had been made to 15-member ECOWAS bloc.

At the handing over ceremony to Guinea-Bissau officials, the packaging of the drugs had flags of all African countries in the bloc. Bissau had agreed to deploy to neighbouring countries, Rajoelina added.

The current statement is a direct response to Rajoelina’s claims. It stressed that ECOWAS was not against traditional or herbal contributions to health challenges but that it was only ready to support and endorse products that had been scientifically tested and proven.

It added that WAHO remained in contact with WHO, Africa CDC and other international stakeholders in seeking a scientific search for COVID-19 cure. The WHO has warned against untested cures whiles the Africa CDC said it was in talks with Antananarivo.

It is not known as yet if Guinea-Bissau has started deployment and whether other African countries will accept the packages. The last ECOWAS heads of state meeting did not discuss anything around the issue.

Source: https://fojusi.com/ecowas-disapproves-madagascars-covid-19-medicine/