Nigeria is setting up a committee to consult with local and international partners on establishing a national airline, the ministry of aviation said on Monday.
The committee will be chaired by a former pilot and will review reports on Nigeria's failed national carrier, Nigerian Airways, and other private airlines. It has four weeks to submit its findings.
The committee will also consult with Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) to determine the debt profile of domestic airlines. Three years ago, AMCON, a state-backed "bad bank" established in 2009, took on more than 132 billion naira ($663 million) of debts from 12 Nigerian airlines, including the biggest carrier, Arik, and Aero.
In a report seen by Reuters, the country's ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, proposed last month merging those dozen debt-laden airlines into a single carrier. The report said the airline should operate in partnership with a global airline.
British billionaire Richard Branson set up a domestic and international carrier called Virgin Nigeria in 2000, but he pulled out in 2010 in frustration at what he said was interference by politicians and regulators.
The airline he created, which was later rebranded Air Nigeria, closed in 2012 after collapsing under about 35 billion naira of debt, leaving it unable to pay staff, a former finance director of the company told Reuters at the time.
Reuters
Tuesday, August 25, 2015
Ex-National security adviser Sambo Dasuki charged
Nigeria's sacked national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, has been charged in court with illegally possessing weapons, an official statement has said.
Firearms were seized during a raid on his properties last month, it added.
Mr Dasuki denied any wrongdoing at the time and said the weapons belonged to his security guards.
He is the first senior official of the former government to be charged under President Muhammadu Buhari's rule.
Mr Buhari took office in May after defeating former President Goodluck Jonathan in elections.
In a separate statement, his office said he had ordered an investigation into military equipment bought since 2007.
The investigation was part of an effort to curb corruption and ensure that the military was properly equipped, it added.
Mr Buhari replaced Mr Dasuki and other security chiefs last month in a renewed effort to end a six-year insurgency by militant Islamist group Boko Haram.
The Department of State Security said the decision to charge Mr Dasuki was in line with its commitment to upholding democratic values.
No-one was above the law, no matter how highly placed they were in society, it added in a statement.
BBC
Firearms were seized during a raid on his properties last month, it added.
Mr Dasuki denied any wrongdoing at the time and said the weapons belonged to his security guards.
He is the first senior official of the former government to be charged under President Muhammadu Buhari's rule.
Mr Buhari took office in May after defeating former President Goodluck Jonathan in elections.
In a separate statement, his office said he had ordered an investigation into military equipment bought since 2007.
The investigation was part of an effort to curb corruption and ensure that the military was properly equipped, it added.
Mr Buhari replaced Mr Dasuki and other security chiefs last month in a renewed effort to end a six-year insurgency by militant Islamist group Boko Haram.
The Department of State Security said the decision to charge Mr Dasuki was in line with its commitment to upholding democratic values.
No-one was above the law, no matter how highly placed they were in society, it added in a statement.
BBC
Teen girl suicide bomber kills five in Nigeria
A teenage suicide bomber detonated an explosive device strapped to her body in the northeastern Nigerian city of Damaturu early on Tuesday, killing five people and wounding about 30, police said.
No one claimed responsibility for the blast but Islamist militant group Boko Haram has been blamed for a series of similar attacks in the region in recent weeks.
"At about 7:40 a.m., a female suicide bomber about 14 years old denoted an explosive device at the central Damaturu motor park. Six people were killed including the suicide bomber," police spokesman Toyin Gbadegesin said.
An official at the state emergency management agency said the suicide bomber tried to enter the motor park, or bus station, and was accosted by civilian viligantes. She then pulled away and set off the bomb, Idi Musa Jigawa told Reuters.
Jigawa said six people were critically wounded and another 22 had minor injuries. He confirmed the death toll given by police.
"I was inside the park, just boarded a bus when I heard a loud noise. Some policemen came to the scene and evacuated corpses," an eyewitness traveling to Maiduguri told Reuters.
Boko Haram has waged a deadly campaign for the past six years to carve out a state adhering to strict Islamic law in northeast Nigeria. After being pushed out earlier this year from most of the territory it had gained, the group scattered and returned to attacking soft targets.
Gbadegesin said another child suicide bomber, age 12, set off an explosion at a security checkpoint after the motor park attack, but there were no casualties.
Reuters
No one claimed responsibility for the blast but Islamist militant group Boko Haram has been blamed for a series of similar attacks in the region in recent weeks.
"At about 7:40 a.m., a female suicide bomber about 14 years old denoted an explosive device at the central Damaturu motor park. Six people were killed including the suicide bomber," police spokesman Toyin Gbadegesin said.
An official at the state emergency management agency said the suicide bomber tried to enter the motor park, or bus station, and was accosted by civilian viligantes. She then pulled away and set off the bomb, Idi Musa Jigawa told Reuters.
Jigawa said six people were critically wounded and another 22 had minor injuries. He confirmed the death toll given by police.
"I was inside the park, just boarded a bus when I heard a loud noise. Some policemen came to the scene and evacuated corpses," an eyewitness traveling to Maiduguri told Reuters.
Boko Haram has waged a deadly campaign for the past six years to carve out a state adhering to strict Islamic law in northeast Nigeria. After being pushed out earlier this year from most of the territory it had gained, the group scattered and returned to attacking soft targets.
Gbadegesin said another child suicide bomber, age 12, set off an explosion at a security checkpoint after the motor park attack, but there were no casualties.
Reuters
Tackling the main health problems in Nigeria
When it comes to overcoming hardship, Nigeria has faced the challenge of disease with determination and hard work from all those dedicated to conquering the health problems of Africa’s most populous country. Diseases such as HIV, malaria, sickle cell disease, and tuberculosis are some of the most lethal that Nigeria faces, but with continued support in tackling the problems, success rates are improving.
Malaria
Listed as one of the primary causes of death in Nigeria, malaria has claimed more lives in Nigeria than any other country in the world. To combat the incidence of malaria, the President’s Malaria Initiative was launched and is working to prevent malaria among those most vulnerable, with resources like insecticide-treated bed nets, application of insecticide indoors, and the best anti-malarial drugs available.
HIV
Working together with the Ministry of Health in Nigeria, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been implementing the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. This includes numerous preventative strategies and treatment services for HIV, which are adapted to best suit the area that they are aiding. The Gede Foundation, which was created by Dr. Jennifer Jamilah Douglas-Abubakar, PhD, provides support for HIV prevention and care, as well as seeking to lower the stigmatization of those afflicted and increase education about the disease. The foundation provides care to those who would often not be able to access treatment, not only by welcoming those living with HIV but also by providing home care services, as many suffering from HIV live in rural areas. To learn more about the foundation or even to provide support, you can connect to Jennifer Douglas, the founder.
Sickle Cell Disease
As the most prevalent genetic disease in the African region, it is no surprise that Nigeria sees the birth of an estimated 100,000 children with sickle cell disease each year. The CDC has been working to put in place programs that offer treatment plans for those afflicted, as well as developing preventative measures and researching the disease.
Tuberculosis
Nigeria is one of 22 countries that host 80% of the world’s cases of tuberculosis, necessitating that measures be taken to reduce the incidence rate of tuberculosis and to support treatment. The Nigeria Stop TB Partnership was created by the National TB Control Programme and the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise resources and secure government assistance in the treatment, care, and diagnosis of tuberculosis. Some of the aims include improving the detection rate of positive cases of tuberculosis for treatment in order to reduce the prevalence of tuberculosis and the number of deaths that result.
Through partnerships between organizations such as the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as organizations like the Gede Foundation, the government and the people of Nigeria have been working to conquer the health problems that the country faces. Prevention, diagnosis, education, and improved treatment have all been important in addressing the health problems that Nigeria is working to overcome, and continuing support should continue to improve the survival rate from the effects of disease.
Malaria
Listed as one of the primary causes of death in Nigeria, malaria has claimed more lives in Nigeria than any other country in the world. To combat the incidence of malaria, the President’s Malaria Initiative was launched and is working to prevent malaria among those most vulnerable, with resources like insecticide-treated bed nets, application of insecticide indoors, and the best anti-malarial drugs available.
HIV
Working together with the Ministry of Health in Nigeria, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been implementing the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. This includes numerous preventative strategies and treatment services for HIV, which are adapted to best suit the area that they are aiding. The Gede Foundation, which was created by Dr. Jennifer Jamilah Douglas-Abubakar, PhD, provides support for HIV prevention and care, as well as seeking to lower the stigmatization of those afflicted and increase education about the disease. The foundation provides care to those who would often not be able to access treatment, not only by welcoming those living with HIV but also by providing home care services, as many suffering from HIV live in rural areas. To learn more about the foundation or even to provide support, you can connect to Jennifer Douglas, the founder.
Sickle Cell Disease
As the most prevalent genetic disease in the African region, it is no surprise that Nigeria sees the birth of an estimated 100,000 children with sickle cell disease each year. The CDC has been working to put in place programs that offer treatment plans for those afflicted, as well as developing preventative measures and researching the disease.
Tuberculosis
Nigeria is one of 22 countries that host 80% of the world’s cases of tuberculosis, necessitating that measures be taken to reduce the incidence rate of tuberculosis and to support treatment. The Nigeria Stop TB Partnership was created by the National TB Control Programme and the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise resources and secure government assistance in the treatment, care, and diagnosis of tuberculosis. Some of the aims include improving the detection rate of positive cases of tuberculosis for treatment in order to reduce the prevalence of tuberculosis and the number of deaths that result.
Through partnerships between organizations such as the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as organizations like the Gede Foundation, the government and the people of Nigeria have been working to conquer the health problems that the country faces. Prevention, diagnosis, education, and improved treatment have all been important in addressing the health problems that Nigeria is working to overcome, and continuing support should continue to improve the survival rate from the effects of disease.
Monday, August 24, 2015
Former Nigeria Finanice Minister Okonjo-Iweala ready for investigation
Former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on Sunday declared support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption drive, saying she was ready to subject herself to an unfettered government probe of her two terms in office.
The former Minister, who was reacting to media reports that she was planning to build a multi-million dollar Okonjo –Iweala family hospital in Abuja, denied nursing any such ambition.
Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala, who spoke through her spokesperson, Paul Nwabuikwu, described the report as “totally baseless”, as “the alleged hospital is non-existent”.
“Dr Okonjo-Iweala has a clean record of two terms in office,” the spokesperson said. “As we have consistently maintained, she is not afraid of a transparent investigation of her two terms in office. She supports the anti-corruption drive in Nigeria. No one who has had the privilege of serving his or her country should feel too big to be investigated.
“It is this very issue of fighting corruption that brought her back in the first place and she has a track record of blocking corruption. It is ironic that it is those same corrupt people who are trying to tarnish her image,” he said.
Mr. Nwabuikwu denied the existence of any hospital owned by Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s immediate family.
“Anyone who is in doubt can go to Gwarinpa, Abuja where the hospital is allegedly located, or enquire from General Electric and Perkins + Will Global, the two organisations that were mentioned as Consultants to the project in the report as to whether the hospital has been built,” Mr. Nwabuikwu said.
The spokesperson, however, confirmed that Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s husband, Ikemba Iweala, who retired recently as a neuro-surgeon and emergency physician with over 40 years’ of practice in Nigeria, the United Kingdom and the United States, was actually planning a hospital.
To actualize his desire to give back to Nigeria, Mr. Nwabuikwu said, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s husband had, for several years, been working on plans to establish a hospital in Abuja, using his savings to develop the concept and design of the hospital.
So far, Mr. Nwabuikwu said, Mr. Iweala had made efforts to source for financing for the project, pointing out that it was the prototype design and website of the yet to be realized project that was being published as a multi-billion dollar evidence of corruption against the former minister.
“Why is Dr Okonjo-Iweala the object of this ceaseless campaign of falsehoods and distortions? The answer is simple: because she refused to steal and share, and because she blocked many powerful people, some of whom are now in power, from stealing. That is why they would go to any lengths to tarnish her name,” the minister’s spokesperson explained.
He recalled that it was the former minister’s fight against fuel subsidy scammers that led to her mother being kidnapped in 2012, followed with the demand for her to resign from government and leave the country.
“The hospital idea is still very much alive. Anyone who is interested should please come forward to discuss possible investment. But there is a condition: the money must be clean. Corrupt people, especially lying governors, need not apply,” Mr. Nwabuikwu said.
Premium Times
Related stories: Video - Council want former Finance Minister Okonjo Iweala investigated
Video - Finance minister Okonjo-Iweala talks to CNN about gay rights
Police foil assassination attempt on Minister of Finance Okonjo Iweala
The former Minister, who was reacting to media reports that she was planning to build a multi-million dollar Okonjo –Iweala family hospital in Abuja, denied nursing any such ambition.
Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala, who spoke through her spokesperson, Paul Nwabuikwu, described the report as “totally baseless”, as “the alleged hospital is non-existent”.
“Dr Okonjo-Iweala has a clean record of two terms in office,” the spokesperson said. “As we have consistently maintained, she is not afraid of a transparent investigation of her two terms in office. She supports the anti-corruption drive in Nigeria. No one who has had the privilege of serving his or her country should feel too big to be investigated.
“It is this very issue of fighting corruption that brought her back in the first place and she has a track record of blocking corruption. It is ironic that it is those same corrupt people who are trying to tarnish her image,” he said.
Mr. Nwabuikwu denied the existence of any hospital owned by Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s immediate family.
“Anyone who is in doubt can go to Gwarinpa, Abuja where the hospital is allegedly located, or enquire from General Electric and Perkins + Will Global, the two organisations that were mentioned as Consultants to the project in the report as to whether the hospital has been built,” Mr. Nwabuikwu said.
The spokesperson, however, confirmed that Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s husband, Ikemba Iweala, who retired recently as a neuro-surgeon and emergency physician with over 40 years’ of practice in Nigeria, the United Kingdom and the United States, was actually planning a hospital.
To actualize his desire to give back to Nigeria, Mr. Nwabuikwu said, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s husband had, for several years, been working on plans to establish a hospital in Abuja, using his savings to develop the concept and design of the hospital.
So far, Mr. Nwabuikwu said, Mr. Iweala had made efforts to source for financing for the project, pointing out that it was the prototype design and website of the yet to be realized project that was being published as a multi-billion dollar evidence of corruption against the former minister.
“Why is Dr Okonjo-Iweala the object of this ceaseless campaign of falsehoods and distortions? The answer is simple: because she refused to steal and share, and because she blocked many powerful people, some of whom are now in power, from stealing. That is why they would go to any lengths to tarnish her name,” the minister’s spokesperson explained.
He recalled that it was the former minister’s fight against fuel subsidy scammers that led to her mother being kidnapped in 2012, followed with the demand for her to resign from government and leave the country.
“The hospital idea is still very much alive. Anyone who is interested should please come forward to discuss possible investment. But there is a condition: the money must be clean. Corrupt people, especially lying governors, need not apply,” Mr. Nwabuikwu said.
Premium Times
Related stories: Video - Council want former Finance Minister Okonjo Iweala investigated
Video - Finance minister Okonjo-Iweala talks to CNN about gay rights
Police foil assassination attempt on Minister of Finance Okonjo Iweala
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