Ondo Deaths Linked to Poisonous Gin?

The death of the 18 people in Ondo State in a mysterious circumstance has been linked to a local gin that was contaminated with poisonous material (methanol).

Minister of State for Health, Fidelis Nwankwo, stated this at a media briefing in Abuja, on Monday.

He said : “At this stage, the particular poisonous substance (Toxin) is being ascertained. The Results of these detailed investigations currently being conducted by Government and partners are still being awaited and will be made public as soon as possible.

Also, the World Health Organization (WHO) has denied ever issuing any statment on the mysterious deaths.

According to the minister, “Epidemiological findings indicate a strong linkage of the outbreak with the consumption of a local gin that may have been contaminated with methanol (poisonous material).

“The assuring news however, is that NO new cases have been reported in the past 100 hours and no new mortality in the last 72 hours.

“We therefore believe that the situation is under control and that the stability will be sustained, while active case search and contact tracing continue in earnest.

“However, if any suspected case is found, it should be reported to the nearest Health Center for prompt investigation and treatment.”

While noting that preliminary laboratory investigations indicate that the outbreak cannot be attributed to any infectious organism (Bacterial or Viral). Nwankwo further said that the outbreak was also clearly not due to Ebola Virus Disease, as feared by many.

THISDAY

Buhari To Unveil Transition Committee Members Tomorrow…

Baring any last minute change in plan, the  President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) will inaugurate his  a 35-member transition committee on tomorrow, Tuesday.

The names of members of the transition committee which is expected to  work with a similar committee to be appointed by the out- going administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, will be formally presented to the public at a party event to  be presided over  in Abuja.

A party source who asked not to be quoted because he was not authorized to speak on the issue told THISDAY yesterday that the President- elect will fly into Abuja on Monday from his Kaduna home in order to inaugurate the committee.

The source also confirmed earlier report by THISDAY on the appointment of the Vice President-elect, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, to lead the transition committee.

On the composition of the transition committee, THISDAY gathered that the list is dominated by technocrats with only a few names selected based on party affiliation.

“It is not about party patronage. We must not toy with this opportunity and as such every effort is being made to ensure that the right calibre of persons are chosen to handle the transition job. Buhari and the party place great importance on the quality and integrity of the recommendations that would come with the committee’s work,” he said.

APC leadership caucus had met Wednesday and Thursday last week during which it considered the list of transition committee members and  made recommendations to the President elect.

According to the source, the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Oyegun, was in Kaduna on Saturday to meet with Buhari and to intimate him with the recommendations from the NWC.

Buhari had while speaking to Journalists shortly after casting his vote during the governorship election in Daura  promised he would forward a list of the transition committee members with terms of reference to the party leadership for scrutiny.

“Personally, I think I have an idea of whom I would like to be in the transition committee. I will appoint knowledgeable and experienced technocrats to study the hand-over notes and make recommendations. They are to be made up of a crop of patriotic Nigerians,” he said.

When contacted on phone, the National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, confirmed that the party had made recommendations on the transition committee and submitted same to Buhari. When asked whether the unveiling of the transition committee will hold on Tuesday, Mohammed said though they will be meeting on sundry issues on Monday, he could not specify what nature it would take.

THISDAY

AISHA MUHAMMADU BUHARI: I will prefer to be called, wife of the President, than First lady of Nigeria.

Just like a normal northern girl who went through Western education in her prime, Aisha Buhari, the wife of the president-elect, is not only passionate about educating the girl-child, but also empowering women.

Aisha Muhammadu Buhari.

 

Could you tell us a bit about yourself?

My name is Aisha Muhammadu Buhari, the wife of the former head of state. I was born and brought up in Adamawa before getting married. Though, I was about to start my university education when I got married. In fact, I got an admission to study Mass Communication.

So, why didn’t you follow-up on your Mass Communication admission?

I got married eventually.

The man Buhari is an enigma to many people, tell us what Buhari is really like?

The real Buhari is someone that is very simple, jovial, very understanding and has a very high sense of humour.

Your husband seems extremely passionate about Nigeria, what brought about this?

When he was the head of state, the way he handled Nigeria had started changing people for the better, but all of a sudden, his regime was toppled. So, I think he felt that Nigerians are very good and wonderful people, that they just need a very good leader, and that’s it.

How do you feel about this cult-like figure he has attained, everybody seems to have rooted for him, how do you feel?

Sometimes, I feel very emotional. He feels so too. For you to see people dying to touch you; for somebody who is quite poor to go and save N200 and send it to you, I think it is very touching.

What was your growing up like?

Just like a normal northern girl going through Western education in the morning and then in the afternoon going to Islamic school.

So, did you enjoy going to school?

Yes, I did.

What were your favourite subjects?

Government….

And now you are in government, I think you are well prepared for it? Your husband encouraged your going back to school, is he a believer in the education of the girl-child?

Yes, he is. Actually, when I got married I felt that I must continue with my education and he also wanted me to continue. I could remember shortly after we got married, he wrote a letter and asked me to take it to my late uncle, Professor Isah Abba, who was a lecturer at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Kaduna State for 30 years, in the History Department. He wrote to him that he wanted me to continue my education and also to be a very good housewife.

So how did you combine the two?

It was not easy at all. I came from a learned family; we have about four or five professors from the same parents with my mother. So, I can’t just afford to fold my arms at home and say I am the wife of the former president of Nigeria without going to school. But I thank God today that I was able to manage the two.

You have a Masters degree?

Yes, I have  the National Certificate in Education (NCE) and I have a degree in Public Administration; a diploma in Beautotherapy and a certificate course on Health Safety and Employment Standard from the United Kingdom. Then, I enrolled for the Masters programme at the Nigerian Defence Academy; I studied International Affairs and Strategic Studies.

People say you are a firm believer in Human Rights, coming from the northern background where women tend to be more submissive than the rest of the country, what brought this about?

Actually, I was raised with eight boys; I have two elder brothers and six younger brothers…

Are you the only girl?

Almost (laughter). I feel that right from the beginning, everybody should stand for his right, even when we were young and my father noticed that. My mother kept praying for me to have a husband that is tolerant.

That means you must be very opinionated?

Quite indomitable. Few months after getting married, we were still trying to know each other, whatever he said to me, the way I answered, he was thinking it was the woman that was telling me what to tell him. He didn’t know that I was on my own.

How do you hope to influence him on giving women appointment in his cabinet?

I don’t need to influence him because he is so passionate about women and he knows that when a woman gets it right, consider everything done.

So, we should be expecting to see a lot of female appointees?

Not even appointments, I think people are mistaking some few things on gender inequality, like picking one woman from a state and giving her a ministerial post, they think women are represented. For me, I don’t think women are well represented because a woman in the village doesn’t know who the minister is or what is happening. I think picking one enlightened woman as a minister,  she may not have the rapport with the real rural women and that is where it matters. Mind you,  I am not  against females as ministers.

So, how do you intend to change this?

I think the best thing to do is to empower or give key positions to women from local governments where we feel that they are very close to the grassroots. They can feel the masses’ pulse and they know where the shoe pinches, so, I think they will perform better.

What do you think about the way politics is being played in the country?

It is very unfortunate the way they play politics because we need to play it healthy to set an example for the next generation. Our children are watching us and they are copying us. I feel that they should copy something good from us.

So what will you do differently?

Just to have limitations in whatever you are doing and saying.

There is the issue about your husband’s health, if nobody can answer it, you can answer. What is the real state of your husband’s health?

My husband is very, very, very healthy. I can assure them that.

You have a nickname, Gogo, please, tell us what this means?

Gogo in Hausa means step-mother but in Fulani, aunty.

So, why are you called Gogo?

I don’t know, I think it is the Hausa culture…

Maybe you have been playing the role of a sister, aunty or a mother to people?

Yes. Actually, that was how I was introduced by my husband to his children that are my step-daughters. I asked him what it meant and he said a wife to your father, uncle.

So your husband gave you the nickname?

So to say.

Back to politics. The Chibok girls, what do you think could have been done differently?

I think that involves security. When corruption is tackled in Nigeria, we will get a lot of things done.

I want you to tell us something that people don’t know about you?

I am a lady that hates hypocrisy, I want openness and I am indomitable.

You urged  people not to stone anybody, why are you taking the path of peace?

Since democracy has come to stay, we are  supposed to practise it like we practise our religions. Our children copy from us so, we should never preach violence. We have to play politics with morality, integrity and with capacity, not violence.

Judging by all the bashes that the current first lady gets from different quarters, are you in anyway scared of taking this position?

No, I am not scared because I know my limitations and boundaries. Once you attempt to go beyond where you should be, you can receive all sorts of things.

Who are those you would say inspired you as a woman?

Every woman that can stand up for herself and on her own, indomitable women and courageous women, those are my role models.

What are your plans for the office of the first lady when your husband assumes office?

First of all, as you said that the current first lady is receiving bashes from all corners of the country. The former first lady, late Mariam Babangida, may her soul rest in peace, introduced the office of the first lady, but I am beginning to think that she died with the glory of the office. I think I will prefer to be called the wife of the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria than the first lady of Nigeria.

When you start performing as the first lady, what are those things you will have in place as your give back to the people?

Like they normally ask me some questions about pet projects, because some past first ladies normally had theirs, for me, maybe I may have, but I don’t have one now because there are a lot of problems in the country and there are lots of women with good ideas. If I decided to come up with one programme, that will divert everybody’s attention and I think the rest of the programme may not come up or may not survive. If there are genuine projects from different people, I will help champion the programmes rather than me having only one pet programme.

TRIBUNE

APC: Disregard speculations concerning appointment of ministers and zoning of offices by Buhari…

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged Nigerians to disregard the wild speculations making the rounds concerning the appointment of ministers and the zoning of offices under the incoming Buhari Administration.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said there is no truth to anything that has been dished out by the hyperactive rumour mill concerning the issues of appointment, especially the zoning of the National Assembly’s principal positions and other offices.

It said that in the true tradition of the APC, all issues of public interest will be handled transparently and conveyed to Nigerians through the usual communication channels.

”No appointments have been made and no offices have been zoned. The main concern of our party at the moment is to ensure a smooth transition and to hit the ground running, in the overall interest of the long-suffering people of Nigeria.

”At the appropriate time, Nigerians will be informed of the appointments made and the offices zoned,” APC said.

VANGUARD

SPECULATION: David West, Idika Kalu, Ndah-Isaiah, Fashola, Abdulahi, Akeredolu Are Candidates To Make Buhari’s Cabinet …

About five weeks to the inauguration of the General Muhammadu Buhari government, the shape of the new cabinet is beginning to emerge. Daily Sun gathered that the next Federal Executive Council may be composed of Nigerians who are not only driven by the desire to restore the dream of the founding fathers but also share the modest lifestyle of the incoming president.

Resolved to work with the best, it was learnt that the president-elect is considering the likes of former ministers of petroluem and finance, Prof Tam David-West and Dr. Kalu Idika Kalu. Others are former president of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and governorship candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria in Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu; former minister of sports, Bolaji Abdullahi, presidential aspirant of APC, Mr. Sam Ndah-Isaiah and Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola.

It was gathered that while the President-elect is not going to stand against the APC that won him the Presidency, he has resolved to pick technocrats and those he trusts to run his most important ministries.

Towards this end, a source close to the president-elect and who had been privy to meetings being held, revealed: “It’s the President-elect’s personal wish to return former Nigeria’s oil Minister, David West to the Petroleum Ministry.”

According to him, David West is incorruptible, frugal, and loyal even in trying times.

The source also revealed that while a lot of qualified technocrats are being bandied about and their names forwarded by party chiefs and lobbyists for the minister of finance, the inner circle of the President-elect is leaning toward the expertise of Dr. Idika Kalu, a World Bank specialist consultant, who, for many years, worked with the bank’s various development programmes catapulting the Korean economy from the third world into its present competitive global market.

Moreover, explained the source, it was Idika Kalu who, in 2005, openly opposed the Paris debt relief as canvassed by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration. In an essay in the Washington based AMERICA MY DREAM Magazine, the financial guru argued:

“What Nigerian authorities have in fact, opted to do is a rather expensive debt refinancing. More bluntly, our first option in dealing with our enhanced revenue cannot be for a ‘debt exit treatment,’ but rather, for the further growth and development of the Nigerian economy. This is the sustainable way of helping Nigeria’s fight against poverty, which the Paris club clearly subscribes to.”

In recognising the leaning of the caucus to Idika kalu, the source believes that the President-elect, as in the case of David West, wants Idika Kalu in the ministry of finance. However, position of the coordinating minister of the economy will be scrapped, while there will be an economic advisory committee.

For the ministry of sports, Abdulahi, Nigeria’s former Minister of Sports, may return. He had resigned as minister in Goodluck Jonathan’ government, owing to his leaning towards the new PDP, the faction of the PDP, which his mentor, Senator Bukola Saraki and five governors had formed.

Fashola and Akeredolu, it was learnt, are being considered as ministers of the Federal Capital Territory and Justice, respectively.

On security, it was gathered that Buhari is considering one General Garba as Defence Minister, National Security Adviser (NSA) or Chief of Staff.

General Cyril Iweze, a then young Igbo officer who served directly under Buhari in the First Division before the Nigeria Civil War, may lead the operation against Boko Haram.

General Iweze was the Nigerian Commander of ECOMOG in Liberia. He’s reputed to have given the Maitatsene sect hell in the defunct Gongola State.

The source revealed that General Buhari may constitute a Special Force made of serving officers and retired officers, who would be given a mandate to finish up the Boko Haram insurgency.

Nda Isaiah, publisher of Leadership Newspaper, who is noted for his ‘Big Ideas’ when he contested for APC presidential ticket, it was gathered my be minister of education.

Meanwhile, it was equally learnt that appointments in the Buhari government would be subjected to public asset declaration. Sources revealed that the president-elect would not have those whose assets run into billions in his government, as he wants to wage serious war against corruption.
NEWS WIRE NG