Mosquitoes cause malaria

by Abiodun Azi

Dr Adeniyi Adelodun, a Medical Parasitologist, says malaria can be a death factor for pregnant women if not properly treated.

Adelodun spoke at the Estate Youth Parliament (EYP) Health Talk in Lagos on Saturday.

Malaria infection during pregnancy can have adverse effects on both mother and fetus.

Malaria is a life-threatening disease and typically transmitted through the bite of an infected Anopheles mosquitoe.

Infected mosquitoes carry the plasmodium parasite and when this mosquito bites one, the parasite is released into the bloodstream.

Once the parasites are inside the body, they travel to the liver, where they mature. After several days, the mature parasites enter the bloodstream and begin to infect red blood cells.

Within 48 to 72 hours, the parasites inside the red blood cells multiply, causing the infected cells to burst open.

The parasites continue to infect red blood cells, resulting in symptoms that occur in cycles that last for two to three days at a time, he said.

On some of the effects of malaria during pregnancy, he said they include maternal anemia, fetal loss, premature delivery, intrauterine growth reeffects of malaria o tardation, and delivery of low birth-weight infants (<2500 g or <5.5 pounds).

Malaria can occur if a mosquito infected with the plasmodium parasite bites one. There are four kinds of malaria parasites that can infect humans: Plasmodium vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae, and P. falciparum.

P. falciparum causes a more severe form of the disease and those who contract this form of malaria have a higher risk of death.

An infected mother can also pass the disease to her baby at birth, which is known as congenital malaria.

On the management of malaria during pregnancy, he said: For pregnant women, it includes the use of chloroquine, quinine, atovaquone-proguanil, clindamycin, mefloquine (avoid in first trimester), sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (avoid in first trimester) and the artemisinins.

Even the World Health Organisation (WHO) now recommends that all women in the second or third trimester of pregnancy who have uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria should be treated with artemisinin-based combination therapy.

According to Adelodun, the symptoms of malaria typically develop within 10 days to four weeks following the infection.

While in some cases, symptoms might not develop for several months and some malarial parasites could enter the body but will be dormant for long periods of time.

Common symptoms of malaria include shaking chills that can range from moderate to severe high fever, profuse sweating, headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, anemia, muscle pain, convulsions, coma and bloody stools, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Chelsea surmount Shheffield United

Chelsea hit back in impressive fashion after going behind to overwhelm bottom club Sheffield United 4-1 at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The win meant they move into third-place in the English Premier League (EPL).

David McGoldricks neat flick gave the visitors a surprise ninth minute lead but Chelsea responded with goals by Tammy Abraham and Ben Chilwell before half-time

Frank Lampards side bossed the second half and captain Thiago Silva scored his first goal for the London club with a 77th minute header.

This was before Timo Werner added a fourth.

Moroccan international Hakim Ziyech, another of Chelseas recent signings, claimed two assists in a masterful performance.

Chelsea have 15 points from eight games, one behind surprise leaders Southampton and title holders Liverpool, who visit Manchester City on Sunday.

Sheffield United are still looking for their first victory of the season and have picked up only one point so far.

It is the joint-lowest total after eight games in Premier League history.

Once they scored the reaction was important and the reaction of the team for the rest of the game was spot on, Lampard said.

They are a hard team to play against. So, some great signs, but we have to keep going.

Chris Wilders side began brightly and took the lead with a well-worked short corner kick routine.

The ball eventually played in by George Baldock to Sander Berge whose shot was cleverly re-directed by McGoldrick past goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

Chelsea did not take long to get into their stride though and were level after 23 minutes.

This was when Abraham was picked out by Mateo Kovacic and his bouncing shot beat goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

Ziyech was a constant threat to the Manchester United defence and his superb delivery almost embarrassed Ramsdale who scooped the ball away to Werner whose shot then struck the crossbar.

Another Ziyech ball a minute later caused more havoc and, as Ramsdale hesitated, Chilwell crept in at the far post to score.

It was Ziyechs left foot that gave Brazilian central defender Thiago the chance to glance in Chelseas third.

Ziyech has been a huge plus for us and he will continue to be so, Lampard said of the former Ajax Amsterdam player.

Germany striker Werner wrapped up a good night for the Blues with a clinical right-foot finish after a loose ball rebounded kindly into his path in the 80th minute. (Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News

Anglican Bishops

By Jessica Onyegbula

Rev. Godwin Robinson, Bishop of Lafia Diocese, Anglican Communion, on Saturday charged the government to do more to protect and secure the citizens of the country as every Nigerian is an asset in the country.

Robinson, who gave the charge in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, stressed that the developed world could not do without Nigerians.

According to Robinson, the government is duty bound to provide security for lives and property of its citizens.

If our government makes up its mind, it can do it.

That comes at a price,leadership must not be sentimental. It must step on toes. The change should nevertheless start with every Nigerian.

The government is doing so little in security.

Government is an institution to maintain law and order.

In Nigeria, we dont value ourselves and our leaders dont value us.

Nigerians do not place much value on the human life.

Every Nigerian is an asset. The developed world needs Nigerians, he said.

Robinson said that the leadership of any country does not require only political leadership.

It also requires traditional opinion and even religious leadership.

They all add to what makes the leadership of a country.

The family leadership is the building block of the society but once it is faulty you find it hard to have the correct thing at the top.

The leaders dont drop from the sky.

The average Nigerian, what is his value? Who is he? That is what makes up the leaders we have.

Im not about scoring the leaders on a certain percentage. Ideal leadership is Gods leadership.

How many of our leaders are there to sincerely serve the people and not selfish interest? When you look for selfless leaders, they are very scarce.

If the leadership takes the bull by the horn and says it wants change, it can definitely get things right.

God cannot come down physically, he comes down through the people.

It doesnt always have to be through the political leaders, it can also be through the religious leaders and the youth as well, he added.

Robinson stressed that the country was in dire need of honest and selfless leaders.

Once someone sees something wrong and is moved to do something, then, obviously that person is moved by God.

The EndSARS protest was not motivated by anybody but it is a natural response to oppression.Nobody will remain oppressed forever.

The power of any society lies with the people. The people give power to the government. The leaders are there for as long as the people put them there.

Anybody in any political office should look at the good of humanity. It has gone beyond yourself. Now you need to look towards the welfare of society and humanity.

The youth should go beyond the EndSARS five-point demands. They should demand for good governance and integrity from the leaders.

They should also apply wisdom in agitations. Burning of public infrastructure will only affect the countrys economy and the masses will suffer, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Joe Biden

By Harrison Arubu

Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, on Friday night said he had already started preparing for work as President of the United States.

In a speech from Wilmington, Delaware, Biden reiterated that he would win the election, even with counting of votes still ongoing.

We dont have a final declaration of victory yet, but the numbers tell us its clear. We are going to win this race, he stated.

The former vice president said he and his running mate, Kamala Harris, were already meeting with experts as they prepare for the White House.

As of the time of the speech, Bidens lead over President Donald Trump was growing in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania where Trump was initially ahead.

He said Americans had given him a mandate for action on the coronavirus pandemic, the economy, climate change and systemic racism.

According to Reuters, Bidens address was originally planned as a victory speech, but he changed his approach in the absence of formal declaration of a winner.

Were beating Donald Trump by over four million votes, and thats a margin that is still growing as well.

One of the things Im especially proud of is how well weve done well across America, he said.

Acknowledging the frustration of many Americans over the slow voting counting process, Biden sued for patience.

I know watching these vote tallies on TV moves very slow, and as slow as it goes, it can be numbing.

But never forget, the tallies arent just numbers. They represent votes and voters, men and women who exercised their fundamental right to have their voice heard, he said.

As of the time of filling this report, Biden was ahead with 264 electoral college votes against Trumps 214, according to the Associated Press tally.

Trump has remained defiant, warning Biden in a tweet not to wrongfully claim victory.

Joe Biden should not wrongfully claim the office of the President. I could make that claim also. Legal proceedings are just now beginning!, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

President Donald Trump

By Harrison Arubu

U.S. President Donald Trump has warned former Vice President Joe Biden not to wrongfully claim victory as counting of votes in Tuesdays election continues.

Joe Biden should not wrongfully claim the office of the President. I could make that claim also.

Legal proceedings are just now beginning!, Trump said in a tweet on Friday evening.

The president said he had such a big lead in all of these states late into election night, only to see the leads miraculously disappear as the days went by.

Biden has overtaken the president in the swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania where Trump was initially ahead.

Perhaps these leads will return as our legal proceedings move forward! he added.

As of the time of filling this report, Biden was ahead with 264 electoral college votes against Trumps 214, according to the Associated Press tally.

Vote counting was still ongoing in five battleground states as of 8.30 p.m. (2.30 a.m. Nigerian time).

For Biden and Democrats, victory is not a matter of if but when, with the former vice president saying on Thursday he had no doubt he would be the next president.

Trumps campaign organisation dismissed the projection, saying it was based on results in four states where the president was still in the race.

Matt Morgan, counsel to the campaign, said Bidens false projection as the winner was based on results in four states where the president is still in the race.

Georgia is headed for a recount, where we are confident we will find ballots improperly harvested, and where President Trump will ultimately prevail, Morgan said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai

By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna State Government says it is considering the establishment of a Nutrition Agency to coordinate all nutrition activities in the state.

Mr Jibril Isah, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, State Primary Health Care Board disclosed this on Friday in Kaduna at a two-day meeting organised by Civil Society-Scaling Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN).

The meeting was organised to strengthen advocacy skills and capacity of health and nutrition CSOs, media and government officials, to identify areas of priorities in nutrition interventions.

Isah said that Gov. Nasir El-Rufai had already presented a memo to the Executive Council to that effect, and that the memo was currently before the Planning and Budget Commission and Ministry of Health for advice.

He said that the move was to ensure effective coordination of nutrition interventions by the ministries, department and agencies, development partners and relevant stakeholders.

According to him, the state has recruited 76 nutritionists to provide technical nutrition services at healthcare centres in the state.

Isah said that the 76 nutritionists were part of the over 1,300 health workers recently recruited under the ongoing exercise for over 3.000 health workers in the state.

The recruitment is being done in phases as part of efforts to improve the quality of health and nutrition services delivery in health centres.

The nutritionists have been deployed to health facilities across the state, he said.

Responding, CS-SUNN Coordinator in the state, Mr Silas Ideva, commended the state government for efforts to improve the nutrition status of women and children in the state.

Ideva commended the current administration in tackling the scourge of malnutrition, considering the number of nutrition strategies, plans and policies approved by the state government.

Considering that nutrition is a multisectoral issue that requires a multisectoral approach, several ministries, departments, and agencies are implementing nutrition activities coordinated by different government agencies.

For us in CS-SUNN, the plan to establish a nutrition agency is strategic as it will serve as a central coordinating point that will coordinate all nutrition activities in the state.

This will prevent duplication of services and also provide the needed coordination for effective utilisation of available resources for result driven cost-effective nutrition intervention, he said.

The coordinator also commended the state government for the ongoing establishment of nutrition corners in health facilities to create the needed awareness and knowledge on how to prepare nutritious meals for children.

Source: NAN News

UNICEF

The United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have expressed extreme concern about severe shortages of critical vaccines in Libya that threaten the health of children.

In a joint statement issued on Thursday, UNICEF and WHO noted that over the past seven months, unprecedented vaccine shortages in the country had disrupted childrens immunization schedules, putting them at risk of illness and death.

The statement pointed out that there had been an alarming decline in the number of children receiving life-saving vaccines worldwide.

It said in Libya, this decline is a direct consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to the closure of international borders, movement restrictions and delays in vaccine procurement and distribution.

The two UN agencies pointed out that many vaccination centres have been forced to close due to the lack of personal protective equipment for health workers.

According to the press release, a recent assessment of 200 of the 700 vaccination sites in Libya, carried out by the National Centre for Disease Control, with the support of UNICEF and WHO, showed that they had stock-outs of BCG vaccine and extremely limited quantities of hexavalent vaccine.

The BCG vaccine protects children against tuberculosis (TB), the worlds leading infectious killer, while the hexavalent vaccine protects against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, haemophilus B and hepatitis B.

The statement stated that the evaluation also showed that the vaccines against polio and measles would be exhausted by the end of the year, and unless urgent measures were taken to replace them, the diseases they prevent were likely to spread rapidly, with disastrous consequences.

UNICEF and WHO urged national authorities to secure immediate funding to replenish the vaccine supply, stressing that vaccines are one of the most critical public health interventions in the world.

Immunization protects children against serious vaccine-preventable diseases and reduces child mortality, said Elizabeth Hoff, WHO Representative in Libya.

She gave the assurance that WHO would spare no effort to improve immunization coverage of children across the country to ensure a healthy childhood and a prosperous future.

The statement stressed the importance of ensuring that the progress achieved through the Expanded Programme on Immunization in Libya was sustainable as the world considered multiple ways to curb the COVIDC-19 pandemic.

It is essential that all immunization sites receive an immediate supply of all vaccines to ensure uninterrupted implementation of the immunization schedule based on national protocols, added UNICEF Special Representative in Libya Abdelkader Moussi.

Source: NAN News

Gov. AbulRahaman AbdulRazaq

By Afusat Agunbiade-Oladipo

Gov. AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq of Kwara has called for a stronger and more viable policing system that prioritises the welfare of officers and men of the police.

AbdulRazaq made the call on Friday during a meeting with a delegation of the Police Officers Wives Association (POWA), as part of his ongoing engagements with various stakeholders in the state.

The governor, however, commended the president for acting fast to review the salary of policemen as part of his responses to the recent EndSARS protest.

One of the lessons from the EndSARS and the subsequent events is that police is our first line of defence as a society, he said.

He also commended the efforts of the police and other security agencies in the recent disturbance

Police are the ones in the front and we need to take care of you as part of the police family.

We cannot leave everything in the hands of the federal government. That is why I called this meeting on how to move forward.

What has happened in other states, following the EndSARS protest, is unimaginable

Some police officers were killed, police formations and installations were damaged or burnt in some cases, correctional centres were invaded and prisoners were released.

We thank God we do not have such havoc in Kwara state.

We appreciate the effort of the police and other security agencies in Kwara because the state is one of the safest in Nigeria, the governor said.

Responding to some of the requests of the POWA delegation, AbdulRazaq said he would move quickly to solve the water crisis in their barracks.

We will look into your requests immediately, so that we can start seeing the benefits of this interface

We will engage you more to know the exact locations to sink boreholes, said the governor.

Earlier, Mrs Elizabeth Egbetokun, Chairperson of POWA and wife of the state Commissioner of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, commended the governor for taking interest in the activities of the POWA.

She called for governments support on the ongoing construction of a vocational training centre.

According to her, there are 15 police barracks in Kwara and six out of these are in Ilorin metropolis that need boreholes.

Kindly look into this, so that the police family can have potable water to drink, she said.

Source: NAN News

Police IG Mohammed Adamu

By Monday Ijeh

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr Mohammed Adamu, has ordered the deployment of legitimate force to protect lives and property of citizens, including police officers.

The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Mr Frank Mba, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday in Abuja.

Adamu said the protection must also cover personnel of other law enforcement agencies, their families and prevent attacks on private/public assets from violent persons or groups operating under any guise.

He called on senior Command officers, including Commissioners of Police (CPs), and Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) to resist all riotous elements forthwith.

The IGP urged the CPs and AIGs to checkmate any form of violent/riotous protests in line with Section 33 (1) and (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

He said the section of the constitution provides for the use of such force as is reasonably necessary, for the defence of any person from unlawful violence or for the defence of property.

Adamu said the section also allows for force in order to effect a lawful arrest or to prevent the escape of a person lawfully detained for the purpose of suppressing a riot, insurrection or mutiny.

The IGP said the force will not tolerate a repeat of attacks and killings, arson and wanton destruction, and looting of public and private assets witnessed during the recent violent protests in some parts of the country.

He warned that the Force will deploy the full weight of the law and legitimate force, if necessary in preventing a reoccurrence.

Adamu pledged the commitment of the force to ensure the safety and security of law-abiding citizens across the country ahead of the yuletide.

He called for the collaboration and support of citizens in the ongoing reforms of the Force.

In the wake of the ENDSARS protests and the violence that followed, a total of 51 civilian fatalities and 37 injured persons were recorded.

Report shows that that 22 policemen were murdered and 26 others injured by the protesters with 205 police stations, corporate facilities and private property attacked, burnt or vandalized. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Lagos Judicial Panel on SARS brutality

By Moji Eniola

The absence of the two youth representatives serving in the Lagos Judicial Panel on EndSARS protest on Saturday stalled proceedings as the panel could not form a quorum.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Brig.-Gen. A. I. Taiwo was already on hand to give Nigerian Armys testimony on the alleged shooting of peaceful protesters at Lekki on Oct. 20 but the panel failed to form a quorum.

NAN learnt that the two youth representatives Mr Temitope Majekodunmi and Ms Olorunrinu Oduala did not make an appearance at the panel on Saturday in protest against the freezing of Odualas First Bank account by Central Bank of Nigeria.

Odualas bank account was allegedly frozen on Nov. 6 over alleged sponsorship of the #EndSARS protests.

Justice Doris Okuwobi (retired), Chairperson of nine-member panel, said that due to the absence of Oduala and Majekodunmi, proceedings will not hold because the panel could form a quorum.

She said: We are confronted with a situation which prevented her from coming. We do not know if the two youth representatives will eventually pull out.

We do not want a situation where proceedings will go on and it is impugned that with controversy due to a lack of quorum.

Justice Okuwobi stressed the importance of all the panels sitting being in accordance with the law.

In all matters, we have to wait for them to join us, without them we are handicapped, the retired judge said.

Reacting, Mr Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), counsel the Nigerian Army, noted that the military were at the panel in response to a summons dated Oct. 28 and asked the panel when the military should return to give evidence.

Mr Kayode Enitan (SAN), counsel for the Lagos State Government, aligned with the submission of the counsel for the Nigerian military. He however noted the importance of a quorum.

The issue of quorum is of utmost importance as to the competence of the panel to proceed and as to the integrity of recommendations to be made at the end of proceedings.

Therefore, the directive that the panel should adjourn is quite appropriate, the LASG counsel said.

Justice Okuwobi adjourned the panels proceedings to Nov. 14. (NAN)

Source: NAN News