MINISTER of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Pantami has dispelled reports linking him with Boko Haram terrorist organisation.
Pantami’s response was contained in a series of tweets posted on his official Twitter handle @DrIsaPantami on Monday.
The minister, who acknowledged a retraction from one of the media outlets that published the allegation, insisted that major publishers of the allegation would be hearing from his lawyers.
1) @NewsWireNGR your RETRACTION through your independent investigation,has been noted. However, investigative journalism requires the investigation before publishing, not after. Further, major publishers will meet my lawyers in the court on this defamation of character. https://t.co/08W3dP4tlf
— Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim (@ProfIsaPantami) April 12, 2021
Earlier on Monday morning, a report with a headline that read ‘Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Sheikh Isa Pantami placed on Terror watch-list for alleged ties with Boko Haram Leader’ was published by a news website in Nigeria.
The report, which has since been deleted and retracted, read that the Nigerian minister had close ties with “late Mohammed Yusuf, the killed leader of Boko Haram with whom he allegedly shared jihadist doctrines.”
Quoting a Western Intelligence, the report also stated that the minister had ties with Abu Quatada al Falasimi and other Al-Qaeda leaders that he revered and spoke glowingly of in several of his videos on YouTube.
On his position about insurgents, Pantami said his lectures against the doctrines and other evil people had been available for over 15 years, including debates that endangered his life against many criminals in Nigeria.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says it cannot confirm or deny whether an individual is placed on its terrorism watchlist as that may hamper its ability to investigate such person (s).
“Since the Terrorist Screening Database is derived from classified intelligence and/or sensitive law enforcement information, the Terrorist Screening Center cannot confirm or deny whether any individual may be included in the watchlist. Disclosure of such information would significantly impair the government’s ability to investigate and mitigate terrorism and expose sensitive national security information,” a statement on the FBI’s website read.
THE Media Rights Agenda (MRA) will host a two-day litigation workshop for lawyers on the safety of journalists from 14th and 15th of April, 2021.
The workshop, which will take place in Abuja, is designed to enhance the capacity of lawyers to litigate cases on behalf of journalists and media organisations facing threats as result of their job.
It is supported by the Global Media Defence Fund (GMDF) through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and will bring together 30 participants drawn from different states across Nigeria.
A statement issued in Lagos by Head of MRA’s Legal Department Chioma Nwaodike said the workshop was aimed at ensuring accountability for attacks on journalists and the media in Nigeria, thereby combating the culture of impunity for such attacks.
“We are bringing together lawyers from different parts of the country who have agreed to provide pro bono legal assistance and litigation support to journalists whose rights are threatened or violated as part of an effort to provide a safe environment for media workers to effectively carry out their professional duties.”
According to her, “a situation where journalists and other media workers are killed, brutalized, tortured or visited with other forms of violence and the government takes no serious action to investigate such attacks and bring the perpetrators to justice is unacceptable. We are bringing together legal minds from across the country to discuss and agree on strategies for more aggressive intervention, using the legal system and the judicial process to ensure the safety of journalists and to protect their rights.”
Nwaodike explained that the workshop would provide participating lawyers with the opportunity of identifying and familiarising themselves with national, regional and international instruments and mechanisms that could be deployed to ensure safety of journalists in Nigeria.
She said the workshop was also intended to examine the most effective approaches in conducting strategic litigation to challenge laws as well as institutional and administrative practices impeding media freedom, contrary to the constitution or regional and international instruments to which Nigeria is a party to.
She further noted that participants at the workshop would consist of seasoned lawyers from different parts of Nigeria who had volunteered to offer their services free of charge in the defense of journalists and media organisations in Nigeria whose rights are threatened or infringed upon.
GOVERNORS of South-East states in Nigeria have launched a regional security outfit called ‘Ebube Agu.’
The decision to launch the security outfit was made on Saturday during a meeting among governors of the state over recent security challenges in the region.
The states include Anambra, Imo, Ebonyi, Abia, and Enugu.
According to the communique issued after the meeting, the five South-East governors said they were on the same page with the Federal Government on the issue of security challenges in the country.
The South-East governors resolved to bring together all the arsenals at their command, as one united zone, to fight and flush out criminals and terrorists from the zone.
They agreed that the South-East security summit would convene every quarter while its hosting should rotate among the five states.
On the need for the security outfit, the governors stated that there was a need to galvanise all the relevant stakeholders in the South-East, the political class, the business community, the bureaucrats and the intelligentsia to provide all the necessary support to security operatives to ensure total success in the fight against criminality in the zone.
The governors further stated that there would also be a committee which would be made up of security personnel, government officials and relevant stakeholders in order to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the regional joint security platform.
With the establishment of the security outfit, the governors stated that it would fast-track crime-busting in the region.
Banditry, clashes between farmers and herders, kidnapping, attack on security operatives and others have become another major challenge in some parts of the South-East Nigeria.
In the South-Western part of the country, there is a regional security outfit named Amotekun while Hisbah outfit exists in some parts of the North.
THE Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) is enlisting the services of the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) to arrest more than 3,400 inmates who have escaped from its custody nationwide.
Punch reported that the agency had already sought the help of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in arresting the inmates, some of whom are condemned.
In order not to delay the manhunt, the agency said it was compiling the lists of the inmates in batches to send to relevant agencies for action.
An NCoS official was quoted as saying that in addition to the over 1800 inmates that escaped during last week’s jailbreak in Imo State, a total of 3,471 “dangerous inmates are currently on the run.”
“Suffice it to say that the bulk of those who fled Owerri correctional centre are hardened criminals,” the official had said.
The NCoS spokesperson Francis Enobore was quoted as confirming that the list of the prisoners would be forwarded to both the Interpol and the NIS.
“We are putting the list together, we would definitely seek INTERPOL and NIS’ assistance.
“We also realise that waiting for the list to be comprehensive before sending may also slow down the manhunt. So these batches that are coming up would be sent for local searches at motor parks and other places but everything would be uploaded to the (INTERPOL) platform.”
The ICIR had reported how some gunmen in the early hours of Monday razed Imo State Police Command headquarters.
Some vehicles parked at the command headquarters were also burnt down. It was gathered that the hoodlums further freed suspects in almost all the cells at the State Criminal Investigation Department of the command.
They also attacked the Owerri Correctional Prison in Imo State capital and freed more than 1,800 inmates.
Authorities of the NCoS announced on Wednesday that it had recaptured 48 of the fleeing inmates.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has revealed that deadly drinks which killed three people and led to hospitalisation of nearly 200 people in Kano State in March this year contained chemical used for terrorism.
This is even as the agency said it had arrested three merchants over the ‘adulterated flavoured drinks’ in the state.
NAFDAC’s Director-General Mojisola Adeyeye said in a statement signed by the agency’s Resident Media Consultant Sayo Akintola on Sunday that internal checks by NAFDAC revealed that only two of the five flavoured drinks identified in the incident were registered by the agency, while three were not on the agency’s data base.
Adeyeye, whom the statement said visited Kano State and submitted her preliminary findings to the state government, noted that the product was most likely smuggled into the country as, according to her, the agency tested all the food samples and found E-Coli bacteria in some.
“One would wonder how E-Coli bacteria would get into powder. It depends on the storage. If it’s stored in a very humid condition, and expired, the packaging probably was getting compromised. You can get bacteria into dry powdered medium. But ordinarily it shouldn’t happen,’’she said.
Having tested the additive chemical, it was discovered to be hydroxylamine, said Adeyeye, adding that “it’s a poison. Sometimes it’s used for terrorism. This is very sad because it involved people dying.”
She explained that any food that was unregistered would not be guaranteed by NAFDAC and could be unwholesome.
The DG emphasised that the chemical did not pass through NAFDAC as, according to her, there were no records at the agency’s Chemical Evaluation and Research Directorate to suggest that permission was given to anyone to import the chemical into the country while internal checks at the Ports Inspection Directorate of NAFDAC revealed that the chemical was not imported through the ports.
‘’Definitely, it was smuggled into the country,’’ she said, noting that before any chemical could be legally imported into Nigeria, full authorisation and permit must be obtained from NAFDAC to ensure that no dangerous chemicals were brought into the country and used to the detriment of the population.
Speaking on how the arrested merchants allegedly conducted their business, the agency’s boss explained that they also brought an additive that was kept in transparent freezer bag.
“There was another unknown chemical that was sold as food additive. This chemical for 25KG bag was supposed to be sold for N30,000. One of the merchants got it for N3,000 and sold it to another merchant for N7,000. The merchant that got it for N7,000 thought it was Dantsami (Hausa for ‘something sour’) that they normally use and tasted it to confirm that truly it was Dantsami.
“Dantsami is what is used in some parts of northern Nigeria to make drinks sour. A 25KG kilo bag of the unknown chemical was also sent to the Agency’s laboratory in Kaduna for testing,” she added in the statement.
Meanwhile, to curb further tragedies arising from consumption of the product, the Pharmacovigilance Directorate of NAFDAC has sent alert to all its 36 State offices and the FCT to mount surveillance on the unregistered products and mop them up.
‘’For safety and security concerns, NAFDAC does end-to-end monitoring for all chemicals. We request for distribution and utilisation patterns before we give importers permits to import chemicals. We must know who you have sold the chemicals to in your report. These are the things you must clarify to us before we give approval for permit to clear chemical consignments,” part of the statement read.
NAFDAC has warned people in the country against adding chemicals and additives to food and drinks to enhance taste, stressing that such practices could result in severe illness and even death.
‘’ We are very particular about food additives, about the temperature at which a food can be kept, or about the expiration date of food. If all of these are violated, then there could be food poisoning,’’ Adeyeye said, adding that whether it was food or water, adding chemicals and other substances either to enhance the food or change its form could be dangerous, especially when people could not verify the source and content of such additives.
The NAFDAC DG opined that Nigerians had a critical role to play to ensure that they did not fall victims to food poisoning, noting with dismay that despite all the measures being put in place by the agency to ensure safe foods, chemicals and other regulated products, there were those who still found ways to smuggle the chemicals into the country.
Usman Baba, Acting Inspector-General of Police. Source: Punch
‘’The public should know that they don’t have to add chemicals to food except table salt. Chemicals kill very fast because there is no prescribed amount to use,” she said, stressing that ‘’to use chemical to make a food or drink sour, you may never know what you are adding.”
She listed the regulated additives as sugar, saccharin, and sweetening, adding that ‘’there is prescribed amount to put. Sugar for drinks, Saccharin for drinks and sweetening. These are inside the food and not something you sprinkle on the food like what happened in Kano.’’
The ICIR reports that NAFDAC’s current position on the incident conflicts with its earlier claim.
It is also at variance with earlier position of Kano State government that the deaths and hospitalisations were caused by use of expired products in sachet water and local drinks.
Acting Managing Director of the state Consumer Protection Agency Baffa Babba-Da’agundi had told reporters that his agency busted a warehouse in Minjibir Local Government Area where the drinks were kept for distribution.
NAFDAC, through its Kano State coordinator Shaba Muhammad had said shortly after the tragedy that it was suspected to be caused by drinking sachet water and locally processed drinks in the state.
He had said: “Reports indicated that the infection involves sachet water and local drinks suspected to be prepared with expired and adulterated products.
“We collected samples of the suspected water and the products for analysis to establish the cause of the disease.”
The state government also said it had apprehended four persons in connection with the incident.
Chairperson of the state committee on infectious diseases outbreak Bashir Lawal revealed the incident that was first reported on March 11 to journalists on Tuesday March 16, this year.
He reportedly said at least four persons were confirmed dead while 189 others were placed on treatment for poisoning after consuming expired juice drink in the state.
There had been incidents of poisoning from foods in Nigeria.
GOVERNOR of Plateau State Simon Lalong says he will no longer tolerate the ‘unknown gunmen’ narrative from security operatives when crimes are perpetrated.
Lalong said this in a statement signed by his Director of Press and Public Affairs Makut Macham, on Saturday.
The governor, who was reacting to the killing of eight miners in an attack at a mining site in Kuru, Jos South Local Government Area of the state, condemned the attack on innocent lives.
“The narratives of ‘unknown gunmen’ excuses would no longer be tolerated from the agencies,” the statement read in part.
According to Lalong, the attack on the miners was perpetrated as an attempt to destabilise the state and create fear in the state, saying that government would not condone such attacks on innocent people.
He also directed security agencies to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous act, which was a threat to the substantial peace being enjoyed in the state.
Lalong urged residents in the state to assist law enforcement agencies with intelligence gathering on criminal activities.
He said that they should do so through existing structures such as traditional institutions, community police constabulary, vigilance groups and other associations.
Lalong commiserated with the families of those killed and those injured during the attack.
Some yet-to-be-identified gunmen were reported to have attacked the mining site on Friday night and opened fire on the workers, killing eight persons. Several others sustained gunshot injuries.
WITH barely nine years to year 2030, the goal of achieving gender equality appears bleak in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic that now threatens to erase over 20 years of progress made towards ending all forms of discrimination against women and girls, an integral part to all dimensions of inclusive and sustainable development.
Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Amina Mohammed, in a chat with Aljazeera on Saturday, said countries were investing less in achieving Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and urged for more deliberate financing for the achievement of the gender goal.
“We are perhaps most at risk of losing traction on the gender goal because it is a goal that matters to all others and when we see the investments in the other goals, we don’t see the investments a little bit targeted towards women and girls. Every government needs to put in place an emergency response to gender-based violence in their countries,” Mohammed, who is Nigeria’s former Minister of Environment, said.
She further said that Covid-19 stimulus packages should be channeled to improve funding for the underfinanced SDGs, especially gender equality, stressing that “it is the responses that we have now that will determine the quality of that build back better.”
A recent study by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) found that stimulus packages in 2020 were much larger but less channeled towards these key SDGs affecting basic human needs and underpinning societies’ ability to achieve sustainable development.
“Despite strong public commitment to SDG 5, we found few countries using stimuli to advance gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in response to either crisis,” the report stated.
The UN chief said gender equality by 2030 required urgent action to eliminate the many root causes of discrimination curtailing women’s rights in private and public spheres. She said discriminatory laws were needed to proactively advance equality.
Responding to a question on what she would do differently to address the issue of kidnapping targeted at school girls in Nigeria, Mohammed said people would take to criminality when there were injustice, exclusion and loss of hope. She said targeting resources to ensure that young people have an alternative to conflict and violence would be key to curbing insurgency.
“On the other hand, we have to strengthen our security systems and leadership across security networks to make sure that they are also inclusive, that they also uphold the law and the rights of people in discharging their duties,” she added.
Debunking insinuation about nurturing any interest to vie for an elected office in the near future, the UN Deputy Secretary-General expressed optimism that a female president would make a difference in governance in Nigeria.
A report by Buzzfeed and the Digital Africa Research Lab (DigiAfricaLab) has exposed how some Nigerian Twitter influencers, including a public relations firm owned by popular social media influencer Japhet Omojuwa and other organisations ran a campaign in support of Alex Saab, an alleged money launderer for the Nicolas Maduro-led Venezuelan government, who is currently fighting extradition to the United States from Cape Verde.
A #FreeAlexSaab hashtag began amongst Nigerians on Twitter in mid-January.
According to the report, the hashtag became a rallying cry that seeks to allegedly influence the ongoing court proceedings against Saab in Nigeria and Cape Verde, the African island nation where Saab is currently under house arrest.
Some of the accounts which participated in the campaign were recently suspended by Twitter, but some of the accounts have been restored as of the time of filing this report.
Buzzfeed News said more than 1500 accounts were suspended in response to the investigation it was conducting with Digital Africa Research Lab that was manipulating the #FreeAlexSaab hashtag.
Saab is a Colombian businessman arrested by the Cape Verdean government based on an international arrest warrant purportedly issued by Interpol at the United States’ request.
He was in 2019 charged with money laundering by a United States court. He is alleged to have helped Nicolás Maduro evade sanctions via fuel and gold trading.
Saab was arrested on June 12, 2020 when his plane stopped to refuel at Amilcar Cabral International Airport on the Island of Sal by the Cape Verdean government enroute Iran from Venezuela.
Venezuelan authorities have continued to call for Saab’s unconditional release, adding that he had diplomatic immunity when he was arrested.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court had, in a ruling it gave on the 20th of December, 2020, ordered the Republic of Cape Verde to place Saab under permanent home detention in good conditions, including access to medical treatment and visits.
According to the report, the campaign involved Alpha Reach, Omojuwa’s PR firm, and a UK-based nonprofit called Digital Good Governance for Africa.
DIGA is a UK nonprofit led by Naji Makarem, an international development professor at University College London, and Christian Elemele, a Nigerian expat and social entrepreneur who previously studied at UCL. Founded in 2019, it is currently working on a project to bring digital voting to Nigeria for the country’s 2023 elections.
Christian Elemele’s profile on the restornaija campaign website states that he is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Digital Good Governance for Africa (DIGA), an economic development professional providing consultancy and advisory services in private emerging markets through critical data, insight and analysis to global and specialist markets to top Investment funds in the DACH region consisting of Germany, Austria and Switzerland at Euromoney Institutional Investor.
Effort to contact Makarem to get his reaction to the report proved abortive as two messages sent to his email were not responded to.
Effort to also contact Elemele proved as The ICIR could not find an email address linked to him and a Twitter account associated with Elemele shows “this account does not exist”.
BuzzFeed News said after it reached out, Elemele’s photo was removed from the @wakandanomics account and it appeared to have been deactivated.
A check on the account on Way Back Machine (archive.com) showed that the account may have been recently deactivated recently as Way Back Machine captured the account on the 7th of April, 2021.
Nigerian Twitter influencers
Tonto Dikeh (@Tontolet), Pamilerin Adegoke (@UnclePamilerin), Queen Mother (@rutie_xx), Sola (@Advsola), Karen King (@theKarenKing), Gbemi Dennis (@GbemiDennis) are some of the handles listed by BuzzFeed News to have participated in the campaign.
Tweets sent about Alex Saab during the campaign Credit: Buzzfeed News
The ICIR sent a message to five of those reported to have participated, but none responded as of the time of filing this report.
In the report, Buzzfeed News said DIGA, on its letterhead, produced a Saab campaign briefing document that outlined a social media campaign that would recruit influencers in Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal to tweet in support of Saab and help generate public outcry about his case. It said participating influencers were expected to post twice per week for the initial one-month campaign, from Jan. 18 to Feb. 18.
“The influencer is expected to use the hashtags #FreeAlexSaab and tag prominent Nigerians, Ghanians and Sengalese handles from government, business, celebrities, activists etc. which will be provided to the influencer,” the five-page document reads.
Tweets sent about Alex Saab during the campaign Credit: Buzzfeed News
It instructed influencers to engage with replies to their posts about Saab and to tag the @wakandanomics Twitter account if they needed additional information. That account does not list a full name but used a photo of Elemele as its avatar. Elemele is also the co-founder of a nonprofit called Wakanda Social Enterprise.
By Jan. 20, the hashtag #FreeAlexSaab was gaining steam on Twitter, thanks to Nigerian accounts that often tweeted the same articles and images, tagged the same accounts, interacted with one another, and expressed unwavering support for Saab. The tweets intensified in March as the Court of Justice of ECOWAS, based in Abuja, Nigeria, prepared to rule on his case. It decided in Saab’s favour, but the case continues in Cape Verde.
The report stated that five sources with knowledge of the Saab campaign said that 40 Nigerian influencers, with more than a million followers in total, were recruited to participate by at least two employees of Alpha Reach, a PR firm run by Japheth “JJ” Omojuwa. Omojuwa, a prominent Nigerian influencer with 1 million followers on Twitter, was listed in the DIGA document as one of the people the campaign hoped to recruit.
Alpha reach did not respond to an email and text message sent to the company official email and phone number listed on the company website.
But Buzzfeed news, in an interview with Omojuwa, stated that “a friend in the UK” connected to the Saab campaign contacted him, and that he declined to participate — aside from posting a few supportive tweets.
“I said to this person in confidence that I support the mission and would be happy to retweet a couple of articles, but I would not personally be part of it,” he said. Omojuwa cited his “strong relationship” with the US Embassy in Nigeria as a reason why he did not want to be seen as advocating for Saab’s release, but he said it was “possible” employees at his firm worked on it.
“I don’t think I can start to have a conversation about whether Alpha is involved. If they are, there have definitely been some form of nondisclosure [agreements],” Omojuwa said.
But a researcher at the Digital Africa Research Lab Rosemary Ajayi said Alpha Reach employees participated in the campaign by tweeting about Saab and engaging with the influencers they helped to recruit and pay.
“They retweeted each other and developed threads around each other’s tweets using replies and quote-retweets,” she said. “They also shared news articles and attempted to draw in unsuspecting subject matter experts by tagging their handles and asking questions.”
Two unnamed Nigerian influencers on Twitter, according to the report, said Alpha Reach employees paid them to tweet about Saab, share specific content and hashtags, and tag a set of accounts in their tweets.
Influencers were typically paid between $6.50 to $15 for their work, though some received more, according to sources.
The influencers also told Buzzefeed and DigiAfricaLab that participants were added to a WhatsApp group where they received direction about what to post and which tweets to engage with and tag. The campaign brief produced by DIGA said each influencer should “be added to a WhatsApp group to better synchronise the timing of tweets.”
Another influencer said an Alpha Reach employee told them to tag accounts, including those of Venezuelan political leaders. “What was mentioned was that [people] would be monitoring accounts participating for retweets and amplification,” the influencer said.
A Nigerian influencer Pamilerin Adegoke, who participated in the campaign, told BuzzFeed News in an interview that an unnamed friend asked him to tweet in support of Saab. He said he paid people to engage with his Saab tweet “to drive traffic to the post for more people to see it, basically,” but claimed he was not paid to participate.
Oby Ezekwisili connection
Alpha Reach, the alleged Saab campaign centre company, also got into another hot water after Former education minister, Obiageli Ezekwesili threatened to sue Omojuwa, for unauthorised use of her identity as a director in his company.
Apart from Ezekwilisi, others listed on the company’s directors include: Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-rufai, Damilola Ogunleye and Japhet Omojuwa.
A check by The ICIR on NG-Check.com, a platform that provides information on Nigerian companies, has Ezekwesili on the list of Alpha Reach’s directors.
Alpha Reach Directors list Credit: NG-Check.com
The former minister, in a letter sent to Omojuwa by her lawyer Marshal Abubakar, on behalf of the law firm of human rights lawyer Femi Falana, dated April 9, 2021, and titled: ‘Complaint over fraudulent use of the name of Mrs Obiageli Ezekwesili as a Director of the Alpha Reach Limited RC no: 1066507 Incorporated in 2012 Demand for Full Disclosure and Public Apology,’ said their investigation revealed that Ezekwesili was listed as a director when the firm was incorporated in 2012.
Ezekwisili’s lawyer said she was unaware of her name was listed as part of the company’s directors until a Buzzfeed reporter contacted her. She said Omojuwa neither sought her consent nor obtained the requisite incorporation document and information that the CAC would require to process the registration.
She also requested in the letter sent, a public explanation and apology from Omojuwa for allegedly enlisting her as a director of his firm without her permission and approval.
The letter read in part, “On March 30, 2021, someone from Buzzfeed reached out to our Client, informing her that she was listed as one of the Directors of Alpha Reach Limited alongside Nasir El-Rufai and Japhet Omojuwa, our Client who was certain that she has never been involved in incorporating any company with you and/or Mallam Nasir El-Rufai promptly informed the Buzzfeed official so.”
“Moments later, the official forwarded the form CAC7 documents to our client corroborating her claim.”
“It is our brief that our Client promptly contacted you but you informed her that the Alpha Reach Company Limited is your company and that she is not involved in it at all.”
A file picture of Oby Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education
“Our client also requested for the incorporation documents from you and you promised to make the same available to her within a week but you never did.”
The ICIR effort to contact Omojuwa proved abortive as a message sent to his Facebook was not responded to.
But Omojuwa’s company, Alpha Reach, in a message posted on its official Twitter account, denied the former minister as being part of the company directors despite public record showing she is listed.
The company also denied being part of the Alex Saab campaign, stating that it had no link with the campaign’s accounts.
“Alpha Reach, as an organisation, was not involved in the campaign making the rounds. And neither did any Alpha Reach staff pay anyone on behalf of Alpha Reach. The speculation that the company was involved in the campaign is therefore not true. We are also aware that Twitter cleared accounts associated with the said campaign. It is pertinent to note that none of those accounts had any link or affiliation with our company.
“On another note, Alpha Reach wishes to state that at no time was Dr. Mrs. Obiageli Ezekwesili a part-owner of Alpha Reach, and she is not a member of the Alpha Reach board. This clarification is necessary because of insinuations being made that she is/was a co-owner of Alpha Reach. Thank you,” it read.
THE National Association of Resident Doctors in Nigeria (NARD) has suspended its 10-day-old strike.
The decision followed marathon meetings between the Federal Government and the doctors on Saturday, April 10.
NARD had embarked on the strike on April 1 to compel the government to meet its demands, some of which included payment of salaries of its members that had been withheld for months and increase in hazard allowance for all medical practitioners in the country.
NARD’s decision to embark on strike was contained in a communique issued after its extra-ordinary National Executive Council meeting in Abuja on March 28.
The group also issued another communique at the end of its virtual extraordinary National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on the 7th April, 2021.
President of the association Okhuaihesuyi Uyilawa confirmed suspension of the strike to The ICIR on Saturday evening.
Decision to end the strike followed the signing of a new agreement to address issues leading to the strike between the Federal Government and NARD on Saturday.
The agreement was the second to be signed by the parties over the strike within 11 days.
NARD and the Federal Government had signed an agreement on March 30, requesting that the doctors suspend the strike so the government could address their demands, but the appeal by government was not heeded.
Rising from first leg of the meetings on Saturday, April 10, Minister of Labour and Employment Chris Ngige said a new memorandum of understanding was signed between NARD and the government, which was expected to result in suspension of the strike.
He said a committee had been set up to look into irregularities in the payment of the doctors salaries among other issues.
According to him, some of the doctors’ demands would be accommodated in the 2021 supplementary budget of the Federal Government.
Ngige said other health unions and representatives of government would meet on April 14 to accelerate the implementation of the new agreement.
The ICIR had reported on April 6 how NARD vowed to continue with the strike, claiming government had failed to convene any meeting with its leadership.
The strike affected at least 74 public hospitals across the nation, including those owned by federal and state governments, crippling services.
NARD is one of the groups through which medical doctors in Nigeria relate with the public and their employers.
In a report published by The ICIR on Sunday, April 4, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) countered Ngige for claiming that resident doctors were not paid in the UK and US, but paid in Nigeria. This newspaper proved the minister wrong by citing how resident doctors were paid in the UK and US.
File photo: Chris Ngige.
Ngige’s gaffe came after he had threatened the striking doctors with ‘no work, no pay’ on Friday March 2.
The ICIR had reported on Thursday, April 1, how President Muhammadu Buhari relaxed and enjoyed quality, accessible, affordable and uninterrupted health services in London, while doctors in Nigeria grounded the country’s public hospitals.
The ICIR had reported on March 14 how rift between two medical groups in the country denied house officers three months salaries across tertiary health facilities in the country.
One of the doctors is Venatus Okorie, who collapsed at University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital in February this year, after he had reportedly worked uninterruptedly for 72 hours. He confirmed his ordeal to The ICIR in an exclusive report.
NARD embarked on strike twice in 2020, resulting in the Federal Government approving additional N8 billion for hazard allowance and other demands by doctors and other health workers in the country.
Government had, in the past, issued directives to chief medical directors and medical directors of hospitals (as the case may be) to replace striking doctors with corps members and other health workers who did not receive training as doctors.
However, such a directive has not yet been issued in the current circumstance.
Meanwhile, an aide to former President Goodluck Jonathan Reno Omokri led protests against Buhari at the Abuja House in London, demanding that the president return home to fix his nation’s healthcare.
THE World Trade Organization (WTO) is calling for application for the 2022 Young Professionals Programme (YPP).
Announcing the application in a statement on its website on Friday, April 9, the organisation said the programme allowed qualified young professionals from developing and least-developed countries to enhance their knowledge regarding the WTO and international trade issues.
The WTO said YPP selection would give preference to young professionals from developing and least-developed countries that were members of the WTO and whose nationals were currently under-represented or not represented in the organisation’s Secretariat.
It added that YPP was part of the Secretariat’s overall goal to increase its diversity to better reflect the make-up of its membership.
The organisation explained further that YPP was a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience which could help open the door for future professional opportunities in the field of multilateral diplomacy and global trade.
Candidates up to the age of 32, as of 1 January 2022, from eligible countries were invited to submit their application by 29 April 2021.
The selected candidates will work at the WTO Secretariat for one year, starting in January 2022.
The 2021 cadre of Young Professionals includes 14 professionals from Bangladesh, Belize, Dominican Republic, Eswatini, Guatemala, Georgia, Indonesia, Malawi, Mauritania, Namibia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Chinese Taipei and Thailand, according to the WTO.
They were selected from more than 2,400 candidates following a competitive selection process.
Nearly 60 professionals have participated in the programme since it was launched in 2017, WTO stated.
Love of adventure and a positive attitude are required from participants at the programme.
Selected young professionals are allocated to various divisions of the WTO Secretariat based on their qualifications and the needs of the division.
The areas of work may include accessions, agriculture, dispute settlement, intellectual property rights, market access, media and external relations, WTO rules, trade and development, trade and environment, trade in services and investment, trade facilitation, trade policy analysis and trade-related technical assistance.
The online application form can be accessed on the WTO e-Recruitment website and should be completed no later than 29 April 2021, said the WTO.
More information about these young professionals is available here.
Nigerian renowned economist Ngozi Okonjo Iweala clinched the post of the director-general of the organization after defeating six others at three rounds of screening, while her last rival and South Korean candidate for the post Yoo Myung-hee eventually withdrew her candidacy on February 5, 2021, paving the way for the Nigerian-American Okonjo-Iweala to become the first female and African to lead the institution.
Okonjo-Iweala assumed office as the WTO director-general on March 1, 2021.
NARD and the Federal Government had signed an agreement on March 30, requesting that the doctors suspend the strike so the government could address their demands, but the appeal by government was not heeded.
