9ja Update

By Ibrahim HassanWuyo A security expert ,Mohammed Garba Potiskum has warmed that people should stay at home during the pandemic as lurching kidnappers could strike and demand payment of ransom through POS. According to him,” kidnapping in general terms has reduced as a result of non-availability of cash in circulation. However, unconfirmed report available to us claims some kidnappers are utilizing POS on the victims. There is more to it than meets the eye in this particular instance but kidnapper’s lay ambush and source information on the whereabouts of their victims before they strike.” He said the spate of crime in Nigeria will be reduced to the barest minimum when the Federal Government strengthens its ties with the numerous security agencies in the country. Garba Potiskum, the Managing Director and CEO of HNB Security & Protective Company ,spoke in Kaduna during a virtual presentation of a paper,entitled ‘ emerging security threat in the corona virus (COVID-19) pandemic an...

By Lawani Mikairu House of Representatives Committee on Aviation yesterday called on the federal government to reopen airports in each six geo-political zone of the country when the ban on a flight is eventually lifted. The call was made by the chairman of the Committee, Honourable Nnolim Nnaji who advised the Presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 to consider the partial opening of the airports to unlock the economy.

By Sola Ogundipe & Chioma Obinna Health workers at the isolation centre at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, have raised the alarm over the Federal government’s failure to pay them their accrued COVID-19 allowance since the 7th of April 2020 when the hospital commenced treatment of COVID-19 patients. The helpless workers who are risking their lives on a daily basis treating Nigerians with coronavirus disease are worried that what happened to them during the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak may be repeated. Some of the workers who spoke to  Vanguard  under anonymity said while their counterparts at the Infectious Disease Hospital, IDH, Yaba have been paid, those in LUTH are still living on promises.

The 28 Rohingya were taken to the island late Saturday instead of the camps as authorities were afraid they might be infected with the coronavirus, Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen told AFP. “Most likely they will stay there until they return to Myanmar.” They are the first group of Rohingya to be sent to the island, local government administrator Tanmoy Das told AFP, adding they were being looked after by navy personnel who had built the facilities. Officials said the group — including 15 women and five children — were detained after coming ashore on Saturday from one of two boats suck at sea while trying to reach Malaysia. Some 250 other refugees who also left the boat in six or seven dinghies have not been found, he added. Bangladesh had refused to let the two trawlers carrying about 500 people land on its territory despite UN calls to allow them in as a powerful storm bears down on the region. So far, no coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the sprawling camps in Bangladesh’s ...

US President Donald Trump speaks during a Fox News virtual town hall “America Together: Returning to Work,” event, with anchors Bret Baier (R) and Martha MacCallum (L), from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC on May 3, 2020. – Trump will answer questions submitted by viewers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) President Donald Trump on Sunday said the United States will have a coronavirus vaccine by the end of this year. “We are very confident that we’re going to have a vaccine at the end of the year, by the end of the year,” Trump said in a Fox News “town hall” show broadcast from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. He also said he would urge the reopening of schools and universities in September, saying “I want them to go back.” The vaccine prediction moves up the timeline that has been discussed as the United States and other countries race to be the first to bring out a way to prevent COVID-19. Trump insisted he would be happy for another country...

The Anglican Bishop also decried negligence of the government’s directives on COVID-19 lockdown put together by governors of the affected states in containing the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Kanu made this known while delivering sermon attended by our correspondent on Sunday. He said church leaders in various denominations in Abia State assured to take personal responsibility for the enforcement of the rules on social distancing and face masks during service. According to the cleric, “These are strange times. These are extraordinary times and we must take extraordinary measures. Don’t enter any church in the Diocese of Aba Ngwa North if you don’t have your face mask. Any Priest who allows such people into any of our activities within this period shall be dismissed summarily. If you want to die, die in your house and don’t infect members of my Diocese. I can only be a Bishop if I have members who are alive and healthy. “Salvation is not free. You must play your part. All through...

EXTENSION agents working under the Justice Development and Peace Movement (JDPM), Oyo and the University of Agriculture Makurdi (UAM) have concluded plans to resume training activities previously halted by the COVID-19 lockdown across the country under a cautious regime. The training activities would adhere strictly to the rules on physical distancing set by the country on COVID-19, coordinators from JPDM and UAM have said. The two organizations are partnering with the African Cassava Agronomy Initiative (ACAI) of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) for the dissemination of the AKILIMO decision support tools to farmers in Oyo State and Benue State. AKILIMO is an all-in-one agronomic advisory tool developed by ACAI that supports cassava growers with knowledge and recommendations to intensify their cassava-based cropping systems.