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FACT-CHECK: Claim that NCDC will pay Nigerians to meet domestic needs due to COVID-19 is FALSE

Olugbenga ADANIKIN
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FACT-CHECK: Claim that NCDC will pay Nigerians to meet domestic needs due to COVID-19 is FALSE

A MESSAGE which has gone viral on Whatsapp says the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is providing monetary palliative to all Nigerians to cushion the impact of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).

The message urged beneficiaries to open valid bank accounts with any recognised financial institution and obtain Biometric Verification Numbers (BVNs) so that they can benefit from the relief supports.

 

THE CLAIM

“Notice to all Nigerians: All Nigerians with valid account and BVN are advice to contact the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control to claim their shotdown [sic] funds to enable them get some of their domestic needs pending when the stay will be over……call 07042835643 for more information.”

The viral WhatsApp post.

 

THE FINDINGS  

The ICIR observed that the message is filled with typographic errors, and reads like typical scam messages from the internet fraudster.

Though the NCDC has been sharing updates on confirmed COVID-19 cases, recovered cases as well as deaths via its verified social media platform, the mandate is restricted to preparedness, detection and response to infectious disease outbreaks and public health emergencies.

The Centre also has a website through which COVID-19 preventive guidelines are shared with the public and relevant stakeholders.

But the Centre does not take part in the distribution of palliatives such as disbursement of money, findings by The ICIR revealed.

Every humanitarian and support activities to vulnerable groups following the COVID-19 lockdown directive issued by Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari was mostly carried out by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development on behalf of the Federal Government.

Agencies that directly offer these supports to citizens are the National Social Investment Programme (N-SIP); National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA); Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (OSSAP-SDGs); North-East Development Commission, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons; and the National Agency for Prohibition and Tracking in Persons (NAPTIP).

In April, N-SIP, for instance, listed  2.6 million Nigerians to benefit from the social intervention programme as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown.

On April 13, President Buhari announced that an additional 1 million beneficiaries should be included in the Social Safety Net through the National Social Register. All these activities were being coordinated by Sadiya Umar Farouq, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.

The ICIR called the mobile number included in the message to clarify from the source about, but the person neither answered the calls nor replied text messages sent to the mobile line.

The line showed “Access Bank Scammer” with “32 spam reports” when it was subjected to further check, using the Truecaller mobile app.

The ICIR also reached out to Emeka Oguanuo, the NCDC spokesperson for comment, he debunked the claim.

“This is not within the mandate of the NCDC,” Oguanuo said, adding that the “NCDC does not give out money.”

 

THE VERDICT

The claim, therefore, is  FALSE.

Nigeria, other African oil exporters to lose $34b from COVID-19 pandemic – IMF

Amos ABBA
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Nigeria, other African oil exporters to lose $34b from COVID-19 pandemic – IMF

NIGERIA and other African oil exporters are expected to experience an estimated loss of $34 billion in revenue  as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic which led to crash in the  global crude oil prices.

“The continent is set to lose $34 billion for African oil exporters or a loss of more than a third, this will push the public debt burden to more than 65 per cent of GDP in 2020 on average, with a particularly fast increase in oil exporters,” said Abebe Selassie, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), African Department, Director.

He stated this at the Africa Ministerial Roundtable on COVID-19 impact on the energy sector in Africa.

Selassie further stated that African governments would experience budget pressure and an increase in debt which will be higher among oil-exporting countries.

He warned  that if the pandemic is prolonged, it could transform the continent’s demand for energy.

“The shock is certainly crippling fiscal resources in the short run, but it should not be allowed to wipe out the achievements in terms of human development over the last two decades,” Selassie stated.

The IMF chief announced that since the 2014 oil price collapse, production and investments of most African oil exporters had been on the decrease.

“The recovery on the continent depends crucially on investing in renewable energy which offers huge potential in terms of badly needed jobs and acquiring new technological capabilities,” he said.

In another development, the United States Department of State in its annual Fiscal Transparency Report for 2020 described Nigeria’s state-owned oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC) records as “opaque”.

The report noted that the NNPC did not make full disclosure of its audited financial reports available to the public despite releasing a 2018 audit report on its website.

“Actual revenues and expenditures varied significantly from estimated figures making budget documents unreliable,” the report stated.

The report also recommended an improvement on the reliability of budget documents by producing and publishing a supplemental budget when actual revenues and expenditures do not correspond to those in the enacted budget and making full audit reports for significant, large state-owned enterprises publicly available.

COVID19: Falana writes FG over 74 inmates deserving amnesty

Niyi OYEDEJI
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COVID19: Falana writes FG over 74 inmates deserving amnesty

HUMAN rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has asked the Ministry of Interior to see to the release of 74 persons who remain in prison custody despite qualifying for amnesty being granted to some inmates due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Falana, in three separate letters sent to Rauf Aregbesola, Minister of Interior, said most of those in this category were soldiers who were convicted and had served more than 75 per cent of their time but remained in custody.

He noted that 66 of the soldiers are being held at the Kirikiri Maximum Correctional Centre, Apapa, Lagos while eight others were convicted for drug trafficking in Thailand.

About 12 of the soldiers were convicted on the same case while 54 others had a separate case, Falana noted.

He identified the 12 as – Yusuf Shuaibu, Jasper Braidolor, David Musa, Friday Onuh, Igono Emmanuel, Stephen Clement, Andrew Ngbede, Nurudeen Ahmed, Allan Linus, Ifeanyi Alukhagbe, Amadi Chukwudi and Alao Samuel.

Falana also explained that they were brought before a general court-martial with six counts of committing mutiny, criminal conspiracy to commit mutiny, attempted murder, disobedience to particular orders, insubordinate behaviour contrary to and punishable under the law, and false accusation.

At the end of the trial, they were convicted and sentenced to death.

Falana said upon a review of the case the confirming authority upheld the conviction but commuted the death sentence to 10 years imprisonment.

“Since our clients are entitled to remission of the 10-year jail term they are required to spend a total of 80 months in prison custody. From September 16, 2014 to April 20, 2020 our clients have spent over 67 months in custody.

“In exercise of the powers of prerogative of mercy under Section 175 of the constitution President Muhammadu Buhari has granted amnesty to certain categories of convicted inmates including those who have spent 75 per cent of their sentence after remission.

“Having been in custody for 67 months out of the prison term of 80 months you will agree with us that our clients have spent more than 75 per cent of their 10-year imprisonment,” Falana stated.

 

Staff, patients flee as gunmen attack FMC Lokoja, disrupt planned protest

Ihuoma ILO
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Staff, patients flee as gunmen attack FMC Lokoja, disrupt planned protest

MEMBERS of staff and patients at Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Lokoja in Kogi State Wednesday scampered for safety as unknown gunmen numbering up to 50 attacked the medical facility.

The said gunmen were reported to have arrived in three white hilux vans at about 8 am and started shooting sporadically into the air to scare people away from the area.

They reportedly chased away patients from the hospital.

This happened about the time  some staff of the FMC were planning a press conference and protest to pressure the  Federal Government into establishing a COVID-19 screening centre in the state.

According to Fisayo Soyombo, an investigative journalist who broke the news on Social media, the gun men used one of the vans to barricade the hospital entrance while they drove the two others into the premises of the hospital.

The attackers, according to him then proceeded to the records and admin departments, where they seized laptops and destroyed a few things and ransacked the Medical Director’s office too.

“As the siege went on, the hospital management instructed the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) officials in the hospital not to shoot, to prevent bloodshed,” Soyombo said.

More shattered glasses at the centre

Following attack the hospital associations have instructed all staff to evacuate the hospital premises thereby shutting down the hospital effective immediately, he added.

A journalist who is based in Lokoja but did not want to be mentioned said the Management of the hospital has not issued any official statement on the incident.

Asked if the attack was in connection with the planned press conference and the protest, he said, “that is very possible because they came quite early.”

“It is believed that they may be after information on certain patients earlier admitted in the facility whose health status have been subject of controversy,” he added.

The journalist further stated that the main target of the attack was not the protest but some medical records.

“Yes, there was a planned protest and health workers. They were already moblisimg for the protest when the thugs stormed the area. They did disrupted the planned protest.But the main target according to sources were the records,” he stated.

Nigerian Tribune reports that Williams Aya, Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer confirmed the attack.

Aya, a Deputy Superintended of Police (DSP) was quoted as saying that the situation was under control after  Ayuba Edi , the State Police Commissioner drafted his men to the centre.

According to him, some group of people protested at the Federal Medical Center on Wednesday morning adding that management of the Federal Medical Centre is yet to officially report the incident to the command.

It would be recalled that the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, has stopped admitting outpatients into the hospital as a result of the outbreak of COVid-19.

 

Delta State Governor, Okowa, wife test positive for COVID-19

Lukman ABOLADE
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Delta State Governor, Okowa, wife test positive for COVID-19

IFEANYI OKOWA, Governor of Delta State and his wife, Dame Okowa have tested positive for Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Okowa disclosed this on Wednesday on his personal Twitter handle.

“My wife and I have tested positive for COVID-19. We are well and continuing with our isolation/medication. We thank you all for your continued prayers for us and our daughter,” the Governor wrote.

 

This came, less than 24 hours  after Rotimi Akeredolu, Governor of Ondo State, declared that he tested positive to the virus.

COVID-19 has since infected 25,694 people in Nigeria with 509 deaths according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control(NCDC).

With Okowa’s status, five Nigerian governors have been infected with the virus including Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, and Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

All of them, except for the two new cases have been treated and recovered from the virus.

EFCC replies Abia State Govt over marked property, says ‘no going back’

Lukman ABOLADE
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EFCC replies Abia State Govt over marked property, says ‘no going back’

THE Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says a property in Abia State that is marked for being under investigation would continue to bear the mark as it is still under investigation.

This follows a statement by the Government of Abia State on Monday giving the EFCC a seven-day ultimatum to remove what it described as ‘offensive’ notices placed on some of its property, saying they are assets of the state government.

Uche Ihediwa, Abia State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice,   who issued the ultimatum while speaking on the recent sealing of some property in the state by the Commission, said some of the property purported to belong to a highly placed politician in the state are owned by the state.

But in a reaction on Tuesday, Dele Oyewale, spokesperson of EFCC  said the notice on the property would not be removed as demanded by the state government.

Oyewale revealed that the property was marked because it is being investigated with possible links to the former governor of the state, Orji Uzor-Kalu.

“We marked the property because it is under investigation with links to the former governor of the state, Kalu and it’ll be marked till the conclusion of our investigation,” Oyewale told The ICIR in a telephone interview.

On Monday, Ihediwa had  said that the state government would be left with no other option but to seek redress in court if the EFCC fails to apologise within the seven-day period.

He explained that the assets marked by the EFCC belonged to the state government, adding that Abia government duly entered into partnership arrangements with credible investors for the development of those properties under public-private partnerships while the reversionary interest in the properties still resides in the state government.

Kalu was recently released from prison after he had spent more than 150 days following a verdict by the Court of Appeal over 7.1bn fraud while he served as governor of the state.

774,000 Jobs: They walked me out because I did not allow them to own the process- Keyamo

Ihuoma ILO
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774,000 Jobs: They walked me out because I did not allow them to own the process- Keyamo

FESTUS Keyamo, Minister of State for Labour and Employment on Tuesday said he was  walked out of a joint investigative panel on the recruitment of 774,000 people under the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) by Federal lawmakers because he did not allow them to own the process.

Keyamo disclosed this to journalists as he left the investigative hearing following a disagreement between him and the lawmakers who had asked him to apologise to them.

According to The PUNCH, the Minister also accused the lawmakers of demanding more than the 15 percent job slots to be allocated to them.

But in a swift reaction, Godiya Akwashiki,  Chairman, Senate Committee on Labour, Employment, and Productivity, who presided over the joint National Assembly panel, denied the two allegations levelled against them by Keyamo.

Rather, he accused Keyamo of allegedly trying to build a political structure of 1, 000 youths in each of the 774 local government areas across the country with the 774,000 jobs without the involvement of the NDE.

Trouble started when Keyamo was asked by the lawmakers to explain the modalities he had adopted to carry out the recruitment process and why he was not carrying the NDE along.

The Minister had explained that an Act that established the NDE gave his ministry powers to oversee the affairs and programmes of the agency.

The investigative hearing organised by the National Assembly Joint Committee on Employment, Labour, and Productivity held at the National Assembly.

Kayemo stated that his ministry was asked to supervise the recruitment by the President Muhammadu Buhari.

He told the committee that he had inaugurated a 20-member committee to implement the recruitment process and that the committee had started work.

But in response to this, Akwashiki,  asked why NDE was not being carried along in the process.

He replied that Nasiru Ladan,  the Director-General of the NDE, is a member of the committee but when asked to defend himself, Ladan said the minister was in a better position to answer all questions relating to the N52 billion budgeted for the recruitment of 774,000 Nigerians under the NDE

Following this response, the federal lawmakers disagreed with Keyamo which resulted into a shouting bout.

The committee then decided to go into a closed-door session to discuss the matter, but the Minister declined, insisting that the further discussions be held in the presence of journalists.

While this lasted, members of the committee demanded an apology from Keyamo who they accused of dictating to them.

He was therefore asked to leave the meeting since he refused to apologize to the committee members.

The lawmakers accused Keyamo of trying to dictate to the committee on how to run its affairs claiming that he has no right to direct the committee on how to conduct its proceedings.

The Minister had on Monday inaugurated the 20-member committees in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) by virtual means.

According to Keyamo, 1,000 persons would be selected from each of the 774 local government areas in the country to be engaged by the government in the Special Public Works Programme.

FACT-CHECK: Was N-Power website hacked and applicants’ BVN exposed?

Olugbenga ADANIKIN
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FACT-CHECK: Was N-Power website hacked and applicants’ BVN exposed?

ON Friday, June 26, Bashir Ahmad, the Personal Assistant on New Media to Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari announced on his verified Twitter handle @BashirAhmaad the re-opening of a new batch of the N-Power Social Intervention Programme of the current administration.

Ahmad said the application was free.

He further disclosed that fresh applications were to commence from 11:45 pm on the above date, encouraging eligible candidates to visit the portal hosted on the website of the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHDS).

In less than 48 hours, over a million applicants were reported to have applied for the job.

“In line with the ongoing N-POWER Batch C online application which commenced Friday, June 26, 2020, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs Disaster Management and Social Development, hereby announces that over 1,000,000 applications have been received from across the Federation in less than 48 hours after the Honourable Minister, Sadiya Umar Farouq, declared open the new N-Power Portal on the Ministry’s website,” the Ministry stated in a report by The ICIR.

The initiative is part of the Federal Government’s social intervention programme to create job opportunities and build capacities of youths across different sectors such as technology, agriculture, and teaching, among others.

However, a viral post on WhatsApp claimed the website has been hacked and that applicants’ Biometric Verification Numbers (BVN) have been exposed.

 

THE CLAIM

“Attention: Please if you know anyone who registered for Npower recently, inform them to move their money to their relative’s account, N-power site has been hacked and their BVNs are exposed.”

“Treat as Urgent,” a WhatsApp user posted.

The viral WhatsApp post.

FINDINGS

First, independent findings by The ICIR revealed that the job portal is secured by the Amazon, a United State-based tech firm.

The web domain is also different from the previous domain used for the N-power job website when it was originally under the direct supervision of Yemi Osinbajo, Nigeria’s Vice President.

Currently, the webpage basically operates as a sub-domain of the official website of the FMHDS.

Based on the technical details of the N-Power website, the internet connection was also encrypted.

It was observed that unlike a website that has HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) which is mostly considered unsecured, the N-Power Application portal is preceded by the HyperText Transfer Protocol Secured (HTTPS), thus secured.

Websites with HTTPS are mostly considered secure. It often has a ‘lock’ symbol to indicate the security status.

“HTTPS uses Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to encrypt normal HTTP requests and responses,” Cloudflare, a UK IT firm stated.

“As a result, HTTPS is far more secure than HTTP. A Website that uses HTTP has http:// in its URL, while a website that uses HTTPS has https://.”

 

Why is HTTP not secure? HTTP vs HTTPS
Illustration Source by Cloudflare

As of Tuesday noon (June 30), both portals, the N-Power website and the N-Power application portal are secured and running. The original domain is also secured based on the above analysis.

Speaking with The ICIR, Akindayo Akindolani, Managing Partner, McAnderson Institute of Technology, said once a website is visited and the lock sign is missing, it implies the website is not secured.

He said there are times when website domains are renewed and the SSL are left out; this, he noted, could make the website vulnerable to cyber attacks.

He disclosed further that aside from the lock, users might find it difficult to determine the security of a website has been compromised except it is checked from the backend through the login details. This move, he said, would enable the user to verify the login data and recent activities on the website.

“Once a website is hacked, the original contents could be changed.  Aside from the lock sign, if you log in to the backend and check the login history details, you can find some discrepancies.”

But this is not the case with N-Power portal, The ICIR has confirmed.

Remi Afon, the President of Cyber Security Experts Association of Nigeria (CSEAN) who also shared similar opinion with Akindolani, however, stressed that ascertaining the safety of a website would also include checking for pop-ups, malware and unusual links on the comment sections.

“The padlock signs only show that information sent to the website is encrypted,” Afon said, adding that “most hacked websites are not easily detected by mere visiting them except they are defaced.”

Meanwhile,  the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Anjuri Ngelale in a tweet post has debunked the claim that the website is compromised.

Garba Shehu, spokesperson to the President Buhari also affirmed Ngelale’s clarification by retweeting his message which earlier debunked the false claim.

The ICIR also reached out to Halima Oyelade, Special Assistant on Media to the FMHDS Minister. She also debunked the claim.

“Thank you for reaching out. No, it is not true,” she replied The ICIR‘s enquiry via a text message

Similarly, Mr Zam @DaBullIt,  the Twitter user had also admitted to having spread the fake news and apologised for misleading the public.

 

VERDICT:

Based on all available information, the claim above is MISLEADING and FALSE.

One World Media seeks applications for 2020 coronavirus reporting award

Abeeb ALAWIYE
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One World Media seeks applications for 2020 coronavirus reporting award

AS the world battles the (COVID-19) pandemic, The One World Media is receiving applications for the 2020 Coronavirus reporting award.

According to the organisation, Coronavirus Reporting Award 2020 was launched with the support of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), in response to the exceptional work of journalists and filmmakers covering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in developing countries.

To be eligible for the offer, all entries should focus on stories, topics or issues in, about or related to the developing world, including Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Middle East, Russia or the Post-Soviet States.

Read Also:

Jurors will be looking for media that covers under-reported stories or new angles and approaches to more familiar stories.

Entries must have had their first screening, broadcast, theatrical release, launch or publication between 1 December 2019 and 30 July 2020.

The Coronavirus Reporting Award is open to entrants anywhere in the world, as long as the work meets one of the following criteria:

The entry has been broadcast, screened or published (in print or in an established online publication/website) in the UK.

The entry has been broadcast or published (in an established print/online publication/website) internationally and is available for an English-speaking audience.

 

For more, click here

COVID-19: Over 7.9 million people need urgent life-saving assistance in Nigeria ― UN

Niyi OYEDEJI
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COVID-19: Over 7.9 million people need urgent life-saving assistance in Nigeria ― UN

THE United Nations says not less down 7.9 million Nigerians are facing challenges that require urgent life-saving assistance and could be worse with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eve Sabbagh, Head, Public Information Unit, United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Nigeria stated this in an interview with The ICIR.

She stated that the number of people in dire need of life-saving assistance including food, shelter and potable water rose from 7.1 million in 2019 to 7.9 million in 2020 amid COVID-19 pandemic.

“Before the pandemic, we had already recorded an increase from 7.1 million to 7.9 million but with the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people in need is rising even further,” she said.

READ ALSO:

Sabbagh noted that the COVID-19 pandemic is really taking tolls on Nigerians, particularly the vulnerable ones living in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, all in the North East of the country.

“With the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on vulnerable people in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, the number of people in need of urgent assistance is rising,” she said.

“This is why it is urgent aid actors receive the funding necessary to implement life-saving actions, including COVID-19 prevention.”

According to her, the UN and partners need $834 million to provide urgent aid to 5.9 million people in Nigeria.

She explained further that it is of utmost importance for the UN and other Non-Governmental Organisations working on the humanitarian response to get the needed fund to assist the vulnerable Nigerians.

“UN and NGOs working on the humanitarian response have so far only received 15 percent of the money needed,” she told The ICIR.

“Basically at this stage, we have less than $20 for the whole year for each person we would like to try and help in the three states. It is less than 65 cents a day for each person. This does not bring much food and medication for example.

“There are many people in need of urgent assistance that we cannot help right now due to under-funding.”

 

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