₦airaland Forum

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Although imported chickens and turkeys have become status symbol in Nigeria, the National Agency for Food And Drug Administration And Control (NAFDAC) has come out to strongly warned against the consumption of imported or smuggled frozen poultry frozen meat, even as it has said that imported poultry products, especially chicken and turkey have been discovered to be causative factor in non- communicable diseases (NCDs) and antibiotics resistance.

Although NCDs are non-infectious but they are deadly. Health conditions under NCDs include cancer, kidney disease, and hypertension among others. NAFDAC Director General,Dr Paul Orhii, who gave the warning at media briefing in Lagos, urged Nigerians to avoid imported smuggled chickens and turkeys, because they have been found to contain substances that can predispose one to kidney, liver and lung diseases as well as certain types of cancers and drug resistance- bacterial infections.

At the briefing, a study, titled “Prevalence, Quality and Acceptability of Frozen Poultry Meat in Major Cities in Nigeria” carried out by experts from University of Ibadan titled “, was presented. Although imported foreign chicken, turkey and along with other frozen poultry meat have been banned by the Federal Government, some Nigerians have cultivated the habit of smuggling the banned poultry products into the country to the ‘delight’ of some Nigerians who do not know the health implications of consuming such products.

Orhii said that patronising smuggled poultry foods do not only encourage economic sabotage, but also can damage peoples’ health. Orhii added that the studies have found out that most of the smuggled chicken into Nigeria contains high level of various deadly contaminants. Orhii said: “Our studies have found that most of these smuggled chickens or smuggled poultry products, may be because the way they are transported or because they are not properly packaged, they contain some contaminants. It can be formaldehyde, at times it can be high level of antibiotics residue and other contaminants like heavy metals. “And that is why we are discouraging members of the public from consuming them. We are particularly concerned about the high level of antibiotics residue, because these can cause drug resistance, resistance to antibiotics.” Orhii added that NAFDAC would begin strict enforcement of the ban on imported poultry products.

The study, which Orhii referred to, was carried out Prof. Olumide Tewe (lead researcher) ,Prof.S.S.Abiola (meat technologist), Dr.O.AAbu (nutritional enzymologist), Dr.C.I.Alarima (agriculture extensionist), Dr.O.A.Olabisi (public health specialist), Mr.S, Adelani (chief technologist) and Mr. R. A. Aromoye (administrative assistant). According to Tewe, a nutritional toxicologist, who led the research team that discovered that foreign poultry products contain harmful toxic substance, the sample for the study on “imported (smuggled) frozen poultry carcasses were obtained from wholesalers and retailers in Lagos, Ibadan, Port-Harcourt and Abuja,” and “analysed for heavy metals, microbial status and meat quality parameters.”

The nutritional toxicologist said the analysed smuggled or imported poultry food were found to be unsafe for consumption, adding that the continuous consumption of imported chicken and turkey could damage the human system on the long run, unlike poultry products produce locally, which have been found to be safe for consumption. Tewe said: “Consumers in the study area mostly consume chicken and turkey. Other poultry meats consumed are duck, geese, guinea fowl and quail. Sources of poultry meat sold is imported or smuggled poultry meat. A very small percentage (15.33) of the retailers sold locally produced poultry meat.

“It was discovered that the foreign poultry products contain high levels of formaldehyde, as well as high levels of metals and other substances which are lethal to the human body as against the locally bred poultry products which did not contain such substances. Heavy metals (which have been found to be present in imported or smuggled meat) may cause toxicity-related mutagenesis (mutation), carcinogenesis (cancer) and other severe health hazards. Others (result of heavy metals) are cardiovascular diseases, skin disorders, and neurotoxicity lung and nasal cancer in humans”.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/nafdac-warns-against-consumption-of.html

President Muhammadu Buhari has started operating from the presidential office at the Aso Rock Villa. He was pictured in the exquisite presidential office as he resumed work this morning.



President Buhari and the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo have lived outside the Villa and used the Defence House, Abuja as their offices since their inauguration three weeks ago in order to allow renovation works to be carried out at the facility. The president and his entourage arrived the presidential villa on Sunday.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/more-photos-of-president-buhari-in-his.html

At least 350 alleged Boko Haram insurgents are to face charges over terrorist activities in the North-Eastern part of Nigeria.



Adamu Abubakar, the Nigerian Army Chief of Administration, who confirmed this report while addressing newsmen on Friday, June 19, 2015 mentioned that the 350 suspects had been recommended for trial at a Federal Court.



He further noted that the 350 was only a fraction of the 504 suspects currently in detention.

Abubakar disclosed that the number of those facing trial was a product of recommendation by the two joint investigative teams commissioned by the defence headquarters to investigate, screen and categorise suspected militants in detention.



The case files of the suspects have been forwarded to the office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Justice for further review.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/350-boko-haram-suspects-to-face-charges.html

After three long weeks of consultations, President Buhari is set to make some major changes.

To start with, he is said to have accepted the recommendation of the transition committee to reduce the number of ministries from the present 42 to 19 with a view to saving cost and making them more effective and responsive to the needs of Nigerians.

According to sources, many of the ministries have been merged to ensure proper coordination of duties and ensure greater efficiency and service delivery.

It was gathered that under the administration of Buhari, only 19 ministers and 17 ministers of state would operate.

On the fight against corruption, a source disclosed that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is to be merged with the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC, to tackle graft in a new way that would be prompt, fearless and decisive.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/buhari-to-slash-number-of-ministries.html

In a new interview with Sunday Sun,Cossy Ojiakor talks about her plans to get married and her natural endowements.She confesses she wants a b*utt like Nicki Minaj's..



Any plans of getting married anytime soon?

Hmmm… for now nothing serious.

Can you marry a guy from the industry, a fellow actor?

I don’t like dating industry people, so my crush never got to know that I was crushing on him, and now he is married.

Your boobs are awesome, are they natural?

I have not enhanced any part of my body. I am still natural, but I do appreciate enhancements, and I’m toying with the idea of getting massive Nicki Minaj’s kind of *ss. Hahaha, but I don’t have such careless money for now.

I learnt you are not on talking terms with your mum, how true is that?

Hmmm… my mum is a part-time musician and she goes by the name Bradson Jay. She has a degree in Music from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and I am her manager for now. I love her so much because she is a constant reminder that age is not a limitation to any ambition.

Tell us about your sex life?

My sex life is private. I like keeping my affairs secret.

What’s your advice to your fans and those who look up to you?
I don’t have any advice for them

http://www.metroparrot.net/2015/06/im-thinking-of-getting-massive-butt.html

Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote has extended his generosity to Nepal by donating a whooping sum of $1 million (over N200 million) to aid the victims of the tragic earthquake in the country. The business magnate made the donation through the Dangote Foundation on Wednesday.



Two major devastating earthquakes, with a moment magnitude of 7.3 and 7.8 respectively had occurred in Nepal on 12 May 2015, killing more than 8,800 people and injuring mover 23,000. The earthquake was reported to have shifted the highest mountain in the world, Mount Everest by 3cm South-West.

Dangote Foundation donated the amount, in line with its mandate to provide relief in times of disaster, with a message that the Chairman of the Foundation, Aliko Dangote and people of Nigeria shared in their moment of grief.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation, Zouera Youssoufou said on behalf of Dangote, during the cheque presentation to the Prime Minister of Nepal, Mr. Sushil Koilara at Kathmandu, the country’s capital that the gesture was to support the government’s emergency efforts in providing relief to the victims of the earthquake disasters.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/africas-richest-man-aliko-dangote.html

The US Ambassador to Nigeria, James F Entwistle visited President of the Senate. Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki today.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/photos-us-ambassador-visits-senate.html

Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has stated that he would not join the league of other Nigerians attacking President Muhammadu Buhari for reportedly saying that age might limit his performance.

Meanwhile, the presidency had in a statement issued on Wednesday night stated that Buhari was quoted out of context. The statement described the Daura-born ex-warlord as an ‘old wine whose taste gets better with age.’

However, Fayose who had earlier called for the president’s disqualification over issue bothering on age, said Nigerians should pray for the new leader instead of attacking him.

“No, no, we cannot comment on that, but all that we owe the President is to pray for him to be able to do the demands of his office,” the governor’s spokesman, Mr. Lere Olayinka said yesterday.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/fayose-reacts-to-president-buharis-old.html

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as a product of poor thinking and deliberate mischief the statement credited to a group, called the PDP Media Watchdog, asking President Muhammadu Buhari to resign because of his comments over his age.

The PDP has denied any link to the group.

But in a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, the APC said if the authors of the statement had understood simple English, taken the pains to engage in deep thinking and contextualized the comments, they would not have rushed to the press to ask the President to resign.

”What President Buhari was saying, which was lost on those who issued that jejune statement, is that only his love and passion for the country could have made him, at his age, to come out of retirement to seek the office of President, over 30 years after he presided over the affairs of the country.

”For 16 years, Nigerians gave the PDP the benefit of the doubt to move the country forward, but instead, the party put Nigeria in reverse gear at a high speed, spinning it towards a doomsday that was only averted when Nigerians showed the PDP the red card. This is what necessitated President Buhari to continuously seek the country’s highest political office, so he can help put the country on a forward march again. Nothing else matters, not for him the excitement of an office he previously held and the quest for personal accomplishment.

If the country had been well managed, President Buhari will not at 72 be crisscrossing the whole world seeking solution to Nigeria’s problems, it said.

APC said within three weeks of his inauguration, President Buhari has succeeded in returning Nigeria to the comity of nations, to such an extent that world leaders are now so eager to engage him on how to assist his country in key areas, including security and the fight against corruption.

”Within three weeks of President Buhari’s inauguration, he had done what the PDP government could not do in six years: Invigorate the fight against Boko Haram by rallying a regional and global front against the terror group. Today, the US has pledged to give $5 million for the fight against Boko Haram, in addition to other material support. This is apart from the support that has been pledged by the G-7 for Nigeria’s efforts to quell the insurgency.

”Thanks to President Buhari’s shuttle diplomacy, the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) that the PDP government could not bring together for all of six years is ready to deploy next month, while the President has ordered the release of $21 million to facilitate the establishment of the headquarters of the force in N’Djamena, Chad.

”Since assuming office about three weeks ago, President Buhari has visited Chad, Niger, Germany and South Africa, winning support and friends for Nigeria all over again and returning the country to the comity of respected nations. Those who were put off by the PDP government’s resort to politicizing the fight against Boko Haram – even as the insurgents grew stronger – are now joining President Buhari to battle the terrorists. In no distant future, the results of his tireless efforts will begin to show.

”On the domestic front, President Buhari has been handling pressing issues far away from the klieg light, and his efforts to assemble a first class team to implement his change mantra, which he is personally driving, are continuing apace. We in the APC, and we are sure most unbiased Nigerians, are very proud of President Buhari and the vigour he has shown in governance, the kind of vigour we did not see in the immediate past administration that was presided over by a far younger man,” the party said.

It said only anarchists and non-democrats will ask a President who has not spent one month in office to resign, adding: ”It rankles when those making these calls are from the ranks of the party that failed to avail itself creditably in 16 years.”

APC said it has deliberately refused to join issues with the PDP, which has been issuing a series of insipid press statements that showed clearly that the party is not ready to provide a robust opposition to the APC-led federal government.

”For the umpteenth time, we say that the PDP and its satellite bodies must realize that in order to be relevant, credible and to make the necessary impact, they must pick on real issues and articulate them intelligently, rather than latching on to trite matters. This very amateurish display won’t get them anywhere,” the party said.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/apc-lambasts-group-asking-buhari-to.html

100 people were killed yesterday June 16th after a Boko Haram booby trap exploded in the heart of the Munguno market in Borno. According to www.metronaija.com news, a Boko Haram member who disguised as a member of the state's JTF Vigilante group carried the booby trap into the market where it detonated and killed several people. According to reports, the Vigilante members had earlier engaged the sect members in a fight where they chased them out of their community.

While trying to escape, the sect members abandoned their weapons which included guns and other objects, one of which was a booby trap.

Eyewitnesses said that one of the sect member who disguised as a vigilante member picked the item up against the advise of other vigilante members. He walked into the busy market where the explosive detonated.

As of this morning, 62 bodies have been evacuated from a trailer that is being used to remove the bodies from the scene of the incident to the State Special Hospital morgue in Maiduguri.

Residents have been warned not to pick up any object which they are not sure of.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/photos-100-killed-by-boko-harams-booby.html

Oh! I guess she didn't know the meaning of the inscription her top...

http://www.metroparrot.net/2015/06/what-is-wrong-with-this-picture-18-only_15.html

According to a twitter user,policemen arrested NNPC fuel attendants at Oregun,Lagos for selling fuel above the stipulated N87 naira.

Good job!

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/photo-police-arrest-nnpc-station.html

The Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, has formally directed that the appellations; His Excellency and Executive , be dropped in all official and informal communication with him. He would rather prefer to be addressed simply as Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, Governor of Abia State. The Governor wants all public communication to be concentrated on the work and policies of the state and not on the person of the Governor and has therefore directed all contractors, political groups, individuals and party loyalists not to put his portrait on billboards, posters and signages but to only use the pictures of ongoing projects in their billboards and posters.

The Governor has also directed the general public to remove all congratulatory posters and election billboards littering the environment as these public posters are defacing the environment of the state. He has further charged the people of the State to be partners with Government in ensuring a healthy and beautiful environment. He is also, by this directive, re-assuring the good people of Abia State of his mission of service to the people and therefore urged the citizenry to key into the new vision.


Signed: Godwin Adindu Chief Press Secretary to the Governor.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/new-abia-governor-drops-his-excellency.html

THE police in Lagos State have arrested a 23-year–old armed robbery suspect, who, along with two other members of his gang, allegedly burgled a mobile phone shop and made away with 35 mobile phones of different brands.



The suspect, Kenechukwu Anierobi, was arrested by a team of policemen who were on patrol along the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway during a stop and search execise.



The arrested suspect and two other members of his gang, who are now at large, were walking along the expressway with a bag when the policemen stopped them.

Two of the suspected armed robbers escaped but the police succeeded in arresting Anierobi and found the 35 mobile phones of different brands in the bag.



A police source said that “Anierobi was the first to be arrested on May 18, 2015, around 1:00 a.m. in Mushin. He and his friends had just finished carrying out an operation.”



The police source added that “The policemen noticed Anierobi because he was walking suspiciously. When he was stopped to be searched, a black nylon bag containing 35 cellphones was found on him.

“The gang specialised in stealing phones, clothes and shoes after breaking into phone and boutique shops. They operate with iron cutters."



Speaking on the issue, Anierobi said: “I used to work as a truck pusher Alaba market. I used to get N1,000 for every load I carried. Some days, I could make up to N7,000. But I needed more money because I wanted to look good and dress well like my friends.

“I decided to follow my friend, Obi, to rob. I was arrested after our last operation. In that operation, I broke into a phone shop at Mushin and stole about 35 cellphones. We were almost at Toyota Bus Stop when the police patrol team arrested me. My colleagues saw what was happening from a distance and took to their heels."

The image maker in charge of the state police command, Kenneth Nwosu, confirmed the arrest of the suspect, adding that another member of the gang, Ugo, had been arrested.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/23-year-old-arrested-with-35-phones.html

Scores of workers of Daar Communications Plc, operator of African Independent Television (AIT) and Raypower FM Radio, on Wednesday shut down all broadcasting activities at the Benin studio in protest over unpaid salaries.

The protesting workers were said to have blocked the main entrance to the station located along the Benin/Lagos bypass.

A detachment of anti-riot policemen were however called by the management of the station to forestall any break down of law.

It was gathered that the protesting workers put at 50 of AIT and Ray Power, were owed salaries salaries spanning between 12 and 17 months.

One of the protesting workers who did not want his name in print for personal reasons, said newly employed staff of AIT were being owed 12 months while old staff were yet to be paid salaries between 13 months and staff of the Raypower FM, the Radio arm of the broadcast outfit were owed 17 months.

“The stations generate millions of naira on a daily basis, so there is no reason why we should not be paid our salaries. They have no excuse not to pay us our money. It is share wickedness and man’s inhumanity to his fellow man. We have families to care for and children to pay their school fees. Many of our children have stopped going to school. But their own attend schools abroad.

“Look at where our station is located, in another village so far away from Benin City. You have to chatter a taxi carb for not less than N500.00 to get there if you miss the staff bus. And not even every cab driver will agree to go there because of the wrong location of the station, yet, they expect us to be there everyday, whether you have anything to do or not,” the source told

Chairman of the organization, Raymond Dokpesi (Jnr) was said to have spoken to the protesters on phone. He allegedly appealed for calm, assuring them that the management will within one week do everything possible to pay parts of the salary arrears.

He however allegedly threatened to pay-off any of the staff that decided to resign from the establishment.

http://www.metronaija.com/2015/06/workers-shut-down-ait-raypower-over-17.html