The UAE is no True Friend

The UK government is happy to ignore terrible human rights abuses by regimes like the UAE, writes Matthew Hedges, who was imprisoned there

The decision by the foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, to call the UAE “true friends” and “valued partners” on tweeter and thanking them for donating PPE has been especially difficult for people like me to read. I was detained in the UAE for almost seven months in solitary confinement, falsely accused of spying on behalf of the British government who did very little to help get me released.

I am not the only British citizen who suffered at the hands of the UAE: Ali Ahmad was tortured  for wearing the Qatar flag on a T-shirt during an international football tournament, and Ryan Cornelius remains in unsanitary conditions in a cell in the UAE, having his term extended a further 20 years despite serving his full term already.

It is also concerning that despite the UAE being clearly in opposition to the UK’s goals in the conflicts in Libya and Yemen, the foreign secretary thinks that the UAE are valued partners who share the same diplomatic interests.

It seems that not only does the UK government not value British lives abroad, it is happy to ignore terrible human rights abuses by regimes like the UAE, in order to deflect from its own failings during a global pandemic.

Perhaps the foreign secretary should push for arbitrarily detained British citizens to be released in the UAE and for a de-escalation in Libya and Yemen before choosing to thank the UAE so thoughtlessly.

Matthew Hedges

London

theguardian,com

WHO Probes Kano State's Mysterious Deaths

The World Health Organization and health officials in the northern Nigerian state of Kano have launched a probe into reports of increases in unusual deaths in the state.

According to the state Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje, a team of experts is gathering hospital records and interviewing families of those who died at home to determine the actual cause of death.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has also ordered a 14-day lockdown in Kano following the reported spike in deaths.

Buhari said the government will deploy all "human, material and technical" assistance to contain the coronavirus in the state, and a team has been sent to investigate.

Preliminary investigations by the state ministry of health suggest that the increase in mortality was not unusual compared to other years, Ganduje said.

Still, officials are interviewing cemetery workers, checking hospital records and asking residents about family members who died at home, the governor said.

State officials had earlier said the the deaths were not Covid-related and attributed the deaths to meningitis, diabetes, hypertension, and other illnesses, even though no autopsies have not been done.

Kano isn't the only place to see an increase in deaths.

In the US, deaths began to increase as COVID 19 increases.

A Yale School of Public Health team, using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, found about 15,000 excess deaths from March 1 to April 4. During the same time, states reported 8,000 deaths from Covid-19.

The Testimony of The Grave Digger

A gravedigger, Kabiru Nasidi Sabon-Sara, who has worked at the Dandolo Cemetery in Kano city for over 30 years, told CNN funerals carried out at the graveyard have doubled.

Sabon-Sara said he began noticing the spike in deaths a day before Ramadan, and numbers have continued to rise since state authorities imposed a lockdown to curb a spread of the virus.

"In Dandolo we get between 35 to 40 burials, and it used to be less than that, between 13 to 15 at most in a day," Sabon-Sara said.

He said one of the diggers who joined a funeral procession died, and some other diggers have been ill.

"We don't have anything to protect ourselves. Our colleagues are falling sick. We need assistance from the government," Sabon-Sara told CNN.

Nigeria records 5,162 corona virus cases

By Abujah Racheal

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 193 new cases of the COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections to 5,162 in the country.

The NCDC also confirmed three new deaths, bringing the total death toll in the country to 167.

The agency added that 193 new cases were confirmed in 15 states with six deaths recorded in the country as of May 14.

According to NCDC, no new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours.

The agency said that till date, 5,162 cases have been confirmed, with 3,815 of them being Active Cases,

1,180 patients have been discharged and 167 deaths have been recorded in 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

“The 193 new cases are reported from 15 states, namely: Lagos (58), Kano (46), Jigawa (35), Yobe (12), FCT (9), Ogun (7), Plateau (5), Gombe (5), Imo (4), Edo (3), Kwara (3), Borno (3), Bauchi (1), Nasarawa (1), and Ondo (1).

The agency said that two cases reported on Wednesday from Kaduna state, were repeat tests and therefore, Kaduna had a total of 114 confirmed cases.

“We apologise to the Kaduna state government and we remain committed to ensuring the release of accurate and reliable data.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NCDC received additional medical supplies including personal protective equipment, provided by the United Nation Development Programme and from the Congressional Executives Commission on China to support Nigeria’s response to the pandemic.

One of the key strategies of Nigeria’s response is to ensure that frontline health workers are protected.

The agency said it was re-thinking its response to the coronavirus from mitigating its impact to an increasingly science-led process with a view to understanding its drivers in the country.

 

Sanlam seeks local partnerships in Tanzania

By David Whitehouse The South African insurer sees lots of potential in the market, but it needs bancassurance allies and better messaging to reach more customers.

Partnerships between insurers and banks can help to increase the penetration rate of insurance in Tanzania in 2020, says Geofray Masige, chief financial officer of Sanlam General Insurance Tanzania. Bancassurance “has the potential to be transformative,” Masige tells The Africa Report. The country’s main banks now all have a physical presence across Tanzania, which Masige sees as “a very significant improvement. The levels of service will be quite high.” Tanzania’s insurance penetration rate is among the lowest in Africa, at 0.5% in December, according to GCR Ratings in Johannesburg. GCR sees a “moderately healthy” outlook for growth, with gross premiums predicted to increase at a compound annual rate of 4% over the next five years. For foreign insurers, Masige says, there is “a lot of potential in this market. The future is open for those who come here with products.” The biggest challenge, according to him, is to use “local means to reach local people in a language and with a message that they can understand.” Clear examples of this working are so far lacking, he says. In terms of life insurance, “something has to change in the way we put across the message.” The challenge is to convert informal community arrangements into modern insurance services, he says. “We need the right partners.” Increasing access to the internet in rural areas will help to spread the message: “The level of understanding is still very low.” Banking partnerships The fact that banks in Tanzania are now allowed to use their branch networks for insurance distribution is “a positive move”, Masige says. There has been “lots of appetite from top-tier banks,” he adds. “We should be able to make progress.” Tanzanian government attempts at industrialisation are also increasing the size of the potential market. Sanlam, which is seeking operational expansion into areas such as Arusha, is open to partnership proposals from banks. In Tanzania, Sanlam’s bancassurance partners include the National Bank of Commerce. Across Africa, the firm has teamed up with banks such as Fidelity, Zenith and Stanbic, as well as with telecoms giant MTN to extend its reach. Such a strategy aims at giving Sanlam protection against a slowdown in its in South African home market. According to François Jurd de Girancourt, head of the McKinsey Africa financial institutions practice, African insurance is expected to grow by 7%-8% in local currency terms in the coming five years. South Africa is likely to be an exception to that rule, owing to “subdued local economic conditions, coupled with the maturity of the South African market,” says Yvonne Mujuru, head of insurance ratings at GCR. Sanlam bought the remaining shares in Moroccan insurance company Saham for $1.1bn in late 2018. Faster-growing markets such as Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania could help mitigate challenging growth prospects in South Africa.

COVID 19: Obasanjo Calls Other World Leaders To Call for a People's Vaccine

By Harrison Arubu

Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo is among 140 current and former world leaders calling for “a people’s vaccine” against the coronavirus (COVID-19).

The call is contained in a petition they signed on Thursday in which they are urging all governments to push for a free COVID-19 vaccine for all when developed.

The petition was initiated by the Joint UN Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS), the United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating the HIV/AIDS virus.

Obasanjo, who led Nigeria as a civilian Head of State between 1999 and 2007, is a member of the Champion for an AIDS- Free Generation.

In the petition, the leaders are demanding that when a COVID-19 vaccine is developed, it should be made available free of charge to all.

President of South Africa and Chairman of the African Union, Cyril Ramaphosa; his Senegalese and Ghanaian counterparts, Macky Sall and Nana Akufo-Addo, respectively, are among the signatories.

According to UNAIDS, the demand is the most ambitious position yet by world leaders “on what has become the most urgent quest in modern science”.

The petition came ahead of a virtual meeting of the World Health Assembly, the world’s highest health policy making body comprising health ministers from UN member states, holding on May 18.

“We are calling on Health Ministers at the World Health Assembly to rally behind a people’s vaccine against this disease urgently.

“Governments and international partners must unite around a global guarantee which ensures that, when a safe and effective vaccine is developed, it is produced rapidly at scale and made available for all people, in all countries, free of charge.

“The same applies for all treatments, diagnostics, and other technologies for COVID-19,” they said.

How Peter Okoye Met and Married His Beautiful Wife, Lola Omotosho

Peter Okoye, a member of defunct Nigerian music duo P-Square has been married to his beautiful wife Lola Omotayo for 8 solid years.

Their love story is one that inspires as tied the knot in November 17, 2013 after they fell in love.

Their marriage was subjected to many controversies as most Nigerians quizzed why Peter settled on a woman far older than her.

She said, “my agency handles some British American tobacco and the P’ square was doing a show for us at one of our events in Enugu. Though I have met with peter a couple of times this time at the show, there was a kind of connection.“He asked for my phone number, but I refused. I told him, if he really wants to know me, he should find it himself. He took it as a task and he found it. The rest is history.‘

According to Lola, she being in her 30s and Peter in his 20s wasn’t a disturbance to their relationship.

She added further,’ like I said peter is an old soul and he always tells me that I’m like a 23 years old. Age is just a number. It is nothing new in the world, you can see it around as people date people far older than them.

So we shouldn’t base it on the age factor. He doesn’t make me feel I’m older and he is younger than me.

COVID-19 Treatment: PSN Kicks against Importation of Madagascar Mixture

The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has kicked against the importation of herbal concoction from Madagascar for the treatment of COVID-19 patients, describing the federal government’s decision as distasteful and disgraceful.

In an interview with THISDAY Tuesday, the President, PSN, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, said several bright Nigerian scientists had proposed solutions against COVID-19 to the federal government but that they have all been ignored, adding that the same government was searching for already-made solutions from abroad.He said: “I am aware of efforts made by researchers in this country. Even the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Nigeria Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) and a host of others have made efforts, but government appears not to be interested. We are waiting for fully cooked foods from elsewhere. We are waiting for others to be done with their own researches so we can adopt them.

“Government has refused to fund its own research institutes. We keep hearing donations of N25 billion, N50 billion, $3 million, and several other billions. Why can’t government dedicate half of these monies to research; why can’t they commission its research bodies to find solutions?” he queried.

He said if government was serious about developing vaccines and cures against COVID-19, it should bring all researchers with ideas together, tell NIPRD and other group of scientists to sit with them to hear their various ideas.

“The solutions that are promising should then undergo government (clinical) trial. That is what Madagascar did. These researchers are not just herbalists; some areprofessors, pharmacists and doctors.

“The other recommendation is for government to bring these brains together and tell them that since Madagascar has been able to do this, they should get to the laboratories and come up with solutions,” he added.

He said although in principle, the PSN would not mind if the Nigerian government imports any new drugs that was proven to cure COVID-19 or indeed any other disease for which Nigerians have neither the capacity or technology to produce locally, it was appalling that the country was about to spend scarce foreign exchange to import ‘coal into Newcastle’.“Even if we are not going to pay for this, it is thoroughly disgraceful that a country that should be the leader of Africa, with the largest GDP will allow itself to be dragged this low. Nigeria has about 174 Universities (43 federal, 52 state and 79 private), 20 faculties of pharmacy and about 69 federal-funded research institutes (including NIPRD and NIMR) while Madagascar has only six universities, one faculty of pharmacy and nine research centres.

“Nigeria has some of the best scientists in the world who have done so much work on natural and herbal medicines. Nigeria has developed a pharmacopeia of natural and herbal products and has one of the richest flora and fauna – potent sources of phytomedicines. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19, a number of them have raised their voices that they have herbal and natural products that can be used to treat or manage COVID-19. Some have patents. Many herbal companies and producers have announced specifically that they have herbal formulations that can do what this ‘invention’ from Madagascar can do.”

He said government should save the Nigerian pharmaceutical scientists and other scientists from the shame of having our country import and try herbal remedieswhich God has given the nation in abundance, adding that some of which the country’s grandfathers and grandmothers have used for ages.