You: I’m travelling without a mask! COVID: Not so fast ✋ 😷
Hi!
Today is the allocated day for supplementary elections in states where results were inconclusive. Unsurprisingly, people are stealing ballot boxes, threatening voters and causing chaos.
In this edition
New COVID
WHO wants doctors to stay put
Lynching in a school
A lot more chaos
This week’s newsletter is 1,700 words (approx 6 min read)
You: I’m travelling without a mask! COVID:
A new variant of Covid-19 called "Arcturus" is causing a surge of infections in India.
It's a sub-variant of the Omicron strain and has some mutations of concern.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is monitoring the variant. They say it has one additional mutation in the spike protein that shows it might be more infectious.
Health experts are urging countries to increase testing for the virus.
It’s giving prison
Last week, members of the Nigerian House of Representatives proposed an amendment to the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act.
The amendment, sponsored by Ganiyu Johnson (APC, Lagos), is proposing that Nigerian-trained medical doctors must serve in the country for five years before they are given a full practising licence.
This amendment is meant to address the problem of "brain drain" in the medical profession, where many Nigerian doctors leave the country for better opportunities abroad.
According to the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), there are about 24,000 doctors actively licensed to practise in Nigeria to cater to over 200 million people.
The ratio of doctors to patients in Nigeria is about 1:10,000, which is awful when compared to the WHO recommended ratio of 23 doctors per 10,000 population.
Some members of the House disagree with the bill, they argue that this restriction could infringe on doctors' rights.
NMA is also against the bill. The association says poverty and insecurity are causing doctors to leave Nigeria. NMA suggests that instead of infringing on the rights of these doctors — which they say will discourage students from considering studying medicine — the government should focus on improving the working conditions within the profession and the entire country.
The bill has only passed its first reading (the fourth in an 11-stage process to becoming an official law), but it seems it's already happening.
WHO says it is concerned about the shortage of healthcare workers and has listed Nigeria as one of 55 countries that developed countries should not engage their health workers in active recruitment.
WHO reps say they’re working with governments to improve policies to retain health workers and improve their welfare.
In response to WHO’s advice, the UK government has announced that they will restrict the active recruitment of health and social care workers from Nigeria due to a projected global shortage of 10 million healthcare workers by 2030. Nigeria is one of 54 countries on this list.
The UK government isn’t saying they won’t hire medical professionals from these countries, but they will not actively target these countries for recruitment unless there is a government-to-government agreement in place.
Government spending
Buhari Presidenting
Nigeria’s (still) president, Buhari, has approved N320.3 billion as intervention funds for public tertiary education institutions in the country in 2023.
This money will be distributed to universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education to improve their facilities and programs.
The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) disclosed this information during the Fund's annual strategic planning workshop.
He also said that the education sector in Nigeria has significantly improved under the current administration (news to me), and this funding represents the highest disbursement to each beneficiary institution since the inception of the Fund.
Bridge renovation
The Nigerian FG has approved N23 billion to repair the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos and augment the contract sum for the old Enugu-Anambra road project.
The repair work on the Third Mainland Bridge will cover 11 kilometres and include interchanges, ramps, and critical links.
The repair work aligns with Executive Order 11, signed by the President, which gave legal backing to the country's national maintenance policy.
The Lagos State Government will focus on the functional structure of the bridge, while the federal government will undertake surface maintenance. The government does not anticipate prolonged closures during the works.
But as a person who has lived in Lagos for too long and lives along Lagos-Ibadan expressway, I DO! Ugh. Brace yourselves
FG has started allocating the World Bank’s post-oil subsidy support fund
Last week, we reported that the FG received $800 million from the world bank to Nigerians below the poverty line and low-income earners, to help reduce the impact of the planned subsidy removal.
The agreement between the FG and the world bank specifies the establishment of a National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office, a National Steering Committee, a National Cash Transfer Office, state steering committees, state operations coordination units, and state cash transfer units to implement the project.
The Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning says out of the $800 million, they will spend $53 million on hiring staffers, office administration, establishing the required committees and other logistics.
The remaining $747 million will be disbursed to beneficiaries.
Sports minister on the state of sports
The Minister for Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, says it will cost about N40 billion to fix the National Stadium in Lagos, which has been in bad shape for a long time.
The stadium was built in 1972 and has not been well-maintained since the construction of the Abuja National Stadium.
The minister had promised to rehabilitate the stadium, but with barely two months left in his tenure, it is still in a bad state.
The cost of fixing the stadium has risen from N21 billion to N40-45 billion due to neglect over the years. The slow pace of work is due to a lack of funds.
The minister says more private-sector support will go a long way. He urged the media to report sports in a more positive light to attract sponsors.
Nigeria’s forgotten money
According to a report submitted to the National Assembly by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Federal Government of Nigeria has yet to recover approximately N8tn in taxes from various sectors, including oil companies, telecommunication service operators, insurance companies, pension fund administrators, and gaming and betting companies.
The NFIU also identified an approximate Value Added Taxation of N3.9tn and withholding tax of N3.7tn that has not been paid to the government’s coffer.
The NFIU report stated that efforts to recover the revenues were ongoing.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Government has been borrowing every other week and is now in ridiculous debt.
Danger everywhere
This week, gunmen attacked two different areas in Nigeria's Benue state, killing at least 74 people.
The violence is reportedly part of an ongoing conflict between farmers and nomadic cattle herders who need land to graze their animals.
It is not clear what triggered these attacks, but witnesses said that the gunmen arrived and started shooting
These clashes often go unreported, and the government has been criticised for not doing enough to protect people.
The competition over land use is particularly complicated in Nigeria's Middle Belt states, where ethnic and religious differences often overlap with conflicts between farmers and herders.
The Nigerian President has directed security forces to increase surveillance in affected areas.
Jungle justice
Mob kills a man in Ondo
The police in Ondo State arrested two people for killing a man named Tope Olorunfemi - Channels
The men are believed to be part of a mob that attacked and lynched Tope after his reckless driving killed two people and injured six others.
The mob also accused Tope of being an internet fraudster
The police are still investigating the incident and will charge the suspects to court.
Mob of students kill a student in Ife
A final-year student at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Nigeria, named Okoli Chizoputam, was killed by angry students over allegations of theft. - Premium Times
Okoli was accused of stealing a phone from the university's residence hall, but instead of reporting him to the university management, a crowd of students reportedly lynched him.
The university management and the students’ union confirmed the incident
The university set up a committee to investigate the incident and the police commenced their own investigation.
The students’ union also suspended the hall executive officers and is looking into the immediate and remote cause of the violent action.
Lagos building collapse
A seven-storey building under construction in Banana Island in Ikoyi, Lagos, collapsed on Wednesday afternoon.
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) reported that after investigation, they said eyewitnesses said that the building fell because one of the trucks working on the building into it
Reporters were not allowed into the estate to see the collapsed building site, but LASEMA says there was no one trapped under the building and there were no deaths and 25 people were rescued with moderate injuries.
Maybe he thinks (knows) they’re lying about the truck, perhaps it's a coincidence.
Shortly after the building collapsed, the building property was sealed and Lagos governor Sanwo-Olu instructed that all developments in Banana Island should be on hold until they are subject to proper investigation
The building that collapsed, it turns out, was illegal.
The state government had sealed the property for not having the approval to commence construction, but the developers continued to build, hiding under the security of their estate/gated community.
Hence, the government intends to inspect all buildings again to ensure they have the approvals and are all up to code.
Nnamdi Kanu’s worrisome hold
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has expressed concern about the delay by Nigeria's Supreme Court in hearing the appeal against the acquittal of their leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
IPOB has questioned why the court has not given the case the same accelerated attention as political cases and accused the justices of not being neutral.
In October 2022, the court of appeal ordered the FG to release Nnamdi Kanu, but the government refused to release him. He is still in custody.
IPOB believes that the delay may be due to the ethnic profiling of the Igbo people in Nigeria.
IPOB has also criticised the British government for not using their diplomatic office to demand the unconditional release of Nnamdi Kanu, who is a British citizen.
They believe the delay in the case justifies their quest for a referendum to decide their economic and political future as an independent nation.
Last week, the Nigerian army shot at peaceful protesters in Aba while they were peacefully protesting the detention of Nnamdi Kanu. The army killed 5 of the protesters.
Other
The Nigeria Police Force has confirmed that the three officers assaulting a man in a viral video have been identified and arrested - Premium Times
Following a protest staged by the students of the institution on Tuesday, the management of Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado-Ekiti, has announced the suspension of academic activities - Premium Times
The Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Office has explained why the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi was allegedly harassed by immigration officers at the Heathrow Airport - ICIR
APC has given insight to the circumstances that led its candidate and president-elect, Bola Tinubu, to forfeit the sum of $460,000 to the government of the United States of America, USA, 1993 following a drug trafficking allegation - Channels
The Senator representing Gombe South Federal Constituency, Bulus Amos, has been suspended by the Ward Executives of Bambam Ward of Balanga Local Government Area of the state. Punch
KPMG says Nigeria’s unemployment rate will rise further to 40.6% in 2023 - The Cable
The National Emergency Management Agency, on Tuesday, confirmed receiving 152 returnees from Libya and another 104 stranded citizens from N’Djamena, Chad Republic - Punch