Buhari is a disappointment to Nigerians - Arewa youths forum

Arewa Youth Forum, AYF, has lamented that President Muhammadu Buhari and his team has performed below Nigerians’ expectations.

AYF National president, Gambo Ibrahim Gujungu in a statement in Kaduna on Sunday said, “The youths also called for cabinet reshuffle as they posited that those that were expected to assist the President in his change agenda has failed in the discharge of their duties.”

“A situation where majority of Nigerians languish in object poverty and penury, where people can no longer eat two times a day not to talk about three square meals a day is a worrisome development and a cause for concern for us and we believe should be for all well meaning Nigerians.

“Time for change is now before it is too late; the alarming situation, however, is that there seems not to be any concrete or genuine solutions coming from government and its agencies on how to ameliorate the present quagmire that is threatening to take the country to the precipice.”

“It is because of this we are calling on the President to immediately undertake a cabinet reshuffle and bring in capable Nigerians who can assist him in changing the present status quo.

“As an organization with affiliates across the 19 Northern states and Abuja and as working stakeholders across the whole country, there is a concensus that the ship of state is in dire strain. The bottom line is that Nigerians standard of living is at one of its lowest ebb in history and as a government that campaigned on the mantra of change, the time to change things cannot be better than now.

“As the umbrella organization of all youths in the north and committed to the wellbeing of Nigerian youths as a whole, we are worried about the prevailing situation in the country.

“But instead of solutions, we are daily inundated with news on alleged graft, in house fighting and at other times mundane issues from this government that was given so much by Nigerian people who are yet to see the fruit of their sacrifice and battle to root out the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) that failed to live up to the expectations of the people after 16 years in power.

“While we are not unaware of the rot and desolate situation that the All Progressives Congress, (APC) and its main flagbearer President Muhammadu Buhari met on ground, we also make bold to say that we, nay Nigerians expected better performance from the PMB led administration more than two years in the saddle.

“Let the President and his co travellers know that majority of Nigerians were in unison that the PDP failed, even your party APC know that fact and we believe that is why they came with the change mantra.

“But alas, two years down the road, many things have refused to change and instead the downward slope from the previous administration that Nigerians so much abhor and voted massively against and in favor of the APC and many others for President Buhari as an individual.

“The sluggishness of this administration in tackling some salient issues of governance has left so much to be desired. Up till now, Nigerians are still waiting for report of the Osinbajo committee that investigated the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF) and Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA) boss; government has continued to keep mute.

“The recent allegation by the Minister of state, Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu against the GMD of NNPC, Maikanti Baru is trending and government has not deemed it necessary to speak to Nigerians on the matter. This is a sour point for this administration and President Muhammadu Buhari who many had so much faith in.

“Consequently, after an overview of the polity and the present predicament of the populace, we want President Muhammadu Buhari to know that his cherished reputation and integrity which was a major factor in the victory of the APC in the 2015 general elections is gradually being eroded.

“This is because his government is not coordinated and majority of Nigerians who hitherto believed so much in him are suffering more than ever before.”

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Fed. Govt: no monkey pox virus injection

The Federal Government has described as false the news that the outbreak of Monkey Pox in some parts of the country resulted from its free medical care in the affected areas.

In a statement yesterday, Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed described the news as fake and sinister.

He urged Nigerians to disregard the report.

”The Federal Government has not conducted any free medical service or care in either Bayelsa or Rivers State, as alleged in the fake report being circulated. So that could not have been the cause of the outbreak of Monkey Pox in both states.

“Monkey Pox is a virus found only in monkeys and it is rare in human beings. It belongs to the same family as Chicken Pox and Smallpox.

”It is suspected that someone may have contracted it by eating monkey meat, thus triggering the current outbreak,” the minister said.

He said no effort will be spared in curtailing the spread of the disease.

With the confirmation of a new case of monkeypox in Akwa Ibom State, there are now 13 cases of the disease in the country.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) yesterday, confirmed 12 cases, which started with that of an 11-year-old male patient reported at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

National Coordinator/Chief Executive Officer NCDC Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu said 11 other cases were identified.

“All the cases are currently receiving appropriate medical care. All the patients are improving clinically and there have been no deaths. As at first of this month, 32 close contacts of the cases were identified, advised appropriately and are being monitored,” he said

Ihekweazu explained that a Rapid Response Team (RRT) from NCDC was immediately deployed to support the Bayelsa State Government in the investigations and public health response to the outbreak.

The team has been supporting the Bayelsa State Department of Public Health and the State Epidemiologist to respond to the outbreak. “As the outbreak investigation and response continues, the Bayelsa State Government has started an aggressive public enlightenment campaign to advise clinicians and the public on the symptoms of the disease and the steps required to manage the cases and to prevent further spread. NCDC has also collected appropriate clinical samples from the cases and these are being analysed through the National Reference Laboratory in Abuja,” Ihekweazu explained.

There was panic in Akwa Ibom State following the reported case of monkey-pox disease.

Commissioner for Health Dr. Dominic Ukong, who announced the outbreak in Uyo, said the victim had been isolated.

He also said two other suspected cases were being monitored by doctors

Ukpong explained that the viral ailment borne by wild animals, especially Monkeys could be contracted through bodily contact with infected persons and warned the populace to shun bush meat.

Commissioner for Information and Strategy Charles Udoh spoke of the need for residents to avoid crowded places as relevant agencies had been alerted to ensure appropriate clinical measures were in place to deal with such emergencies.

But the Bayelsa State Government yesterday said it had curtailed the spread of the virus through various response mechanism it created in the wake of the epidemic.

Commissioner for Information and Orientation Daniel Iworiso-Markson said many of the victims quarantined at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH), Okolobiri, were already showing signs of recovery.

He said the government had intensified sensitization and advocacy visits to communities to reassure the indigenes of its readiness to tackle the spread of the disease.

Iworiso-Markson explained that two of the index cases and the doctor affected by the disease had recovered and were discharged, adding that no death had been recorded from the disease.

“To further allay the fears and reassure Bayelsans of Governments’ effort in curbing the disease, let me make it clear that we are on top of the situation. However, it is important for people to take note of the fact that prevention is better than cure.

“Hence, they are required to always wash their hands, avoid monkeys, bushmeat and dead animals as well as be on the lookout for symptoms which often manifest as various stages of rash and an intense weakness of the body and severe pains, among other things,” he said.

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Russia 2018: Egypt qualify after beating Congo

Egypt qualified for the 2018 World Cup finals after beating Congo 2-1 in a game which finished with nail-biting moments on Sunday in Alexandria.

Egypt won after a penalty kick scored in the fifth minute of second half added time to reach the World Cup for the first time in over a quarter of a century.

Liverpool FC star Mohamed Salah was the Egyptian hero, scoring both goals in a win that qualified them for their third finals, and the first since 1990.

The euphoria was intense since Arnold Bouka-Moutou had stunned the hosts when equalising for Congo after 88 minutes.

But the Egyptians’ World Cup hoodoo ended as Salah held his nerve late on.

His dramatic winner sparked wild scenes of celebration both on and off the pitch.

Several players and fans took to the field to celebrate while supporters wept with joy in the packed stands.

Salah had broken the deadlock just after the hour on a tense night in Alexandria as he latched on to Mohamed El Nenny’s pass before poking home from close range.

But an energised stadium was flattened just minutes from full time when Bouka-Moutou ghosted in at the far post to slam a volley home past Egypt goalkeeper Essam El Hadary.

Hopes were raised as five minutes of stoppage time were indicated and in the penultimate of these, Egypt were awarded a penalty kick.

Salah coolly sent the Congo keeper the wrong way to spark a night of celebrations across Egypt and end the record seven-time African champions’ poor World Cup record.

In the three decades since their last World Cup appearance, Egypt have won four Africa Cup of Nations titles, and these were in 1998, 2006, 2008 and 2010.

But they have never taken that form into World Cup qualifying.

They had suffered repeated heart-break instead, with one of the most painful defeats coming in 2009 when they lost a bitterly-contested play-off against Algeria.

The desperation to qualify ahead of the game was so great that Egypt’s Argentinian coach Hector Cuper admitted he was taking medication for high blood pressure.

The victory gives Egypt an unassailable four-point lead over Uganda in Group E, with one round of fixtures left, while Ghana’s dreams also ended.

The Egyptians are now the second African team to reach the finals after Nigeria went through on Saturday, with the continent’s remaining three places to be decided in November.

Their qualification could be of great benefit to goalkeeper El Hadary who could become the oldest player at a World Cup ever if he plays next year.

The record was set by Colombian goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon who played at the age of 43 at the 2014 World Cup, while El Hadary turns 45 next year.

Earlier this year, the North Africans — whose first World Cup appearance was way back in 1934 — had finished runners-up at the Africa Cup of Nations.

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Nigeria becomes the first African country to qualify for World Cup

FIFA has confirmed that it will seed all four pots for the 2018 World Cup draw, based on its October World Ranking.

This means no nations from the Africa, Asia and CONCACAF regions can be top seeded.

Nigeria became the first African country to qualify for the tournament, after a 1-0 win over Zambia on Saturday.

Russia will automatically be picked as one of the eight top seeds, as hosts of next year’s tournament.

They will be joined by the seven highest-ranked nations in the October FIFA Ranking who also qualify for the finals.

Currently, only Brazil and Germany are 100 percent guaranteed they will be seeded, as they have qualified for the finals and will be in the top seven of the ranking.

Italy and England (unless seeded teams lose in the playoffs) have no chance of being seeded, nor do Mexico or Uruguay.

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