Presidential Task Force
Nigerian governors to meet Wednesday over financial autonomy for state legislature, judiciary
Governors of the 36 states are scheduled to hold a teleconference on Wednesday to deliberate on the executive order 10 which grants financial autonomy to the state legislature and judiciary. In a statement issued on Monday and signed by Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, head of media and public affairs of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), there will also be discussions on measures to prevent a third wave of COVID-19 infections in the country. Bello-Barkindo said the forum will take updates on the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability And Sustainability (SFTAS), among other issues. “The meeting, which is the 30th of its kind by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, commences at 2pm prompt but Governors are expected to start logging-in from 1pm,” he said. “The meeting will cover lessons for States ...
Boss Mustapha: Nationwide curfew not re-introduced
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and chairman of the Presidential Steering Committee, (PSC) on COVID-19, Mr Boss Mustapha, has clarified misrepresentation in the briefing of the PSC on Monday. Mustapha, who spoke to newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja, said it was erroneously reported that the federal government had re-introduced nationwide curfew between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m. as part of the COVID-19 safety protocols. He, however, said the announcement by the National Incident Manager, Dr. Mukhtar Mohammed, during the PSC press briefing was taken out of context because the federal government did not relax the curfew imposed earlier under Phase Three of the eased lockdown. Rather, he explained that what Mohammed said was that the federal government was maintaining the curfew und...
Another batch of 255 Nigerians stranded in Saudi Arabia arrive Abuja
Another batch of 255 Nigerians stranded in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. This was disclosed by the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) via its official Twitter handle @nidcom_gov, adding that the returnees arrived via Saudi Air Flight SV3405 at about 1.00pm time Monday, 29th March. According to the commission, they will proceed on quarantine at the Federal Capital Territory Hajj Camp for 14 days in line with the reversed COVID-19 protocols by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19. The Nigerian government has evacuated nearly 2,000 of its nationals from the Kingdom in the last three months even as more returnees are expected in subsequent days. In February, Nigerian government received a batch of 420 returnees from S...
Nigerian government alerts health institutions of fake coronavirus vaccine in circulation
The Ministry of Health has alerted all tertiary health institutions in Nigeria of the circulation of fake COVID-19 vaccine in Africa and the need to be on the lookout. The ministry also dispelled any possibility of COVID-19 vaccines being available for sale or being administered by any unauthorised institution in the country. This was contained in a circular issued by the ministry’s Director, Department of Hospital Services, Dr. Adebimpe Adeblyi, on behalf of the minister, Osagie Ehanire. The circular dated March 26, 2021, a copy of which our correspondent sighted on Saturday was addressed to Chief Medical Directors/Medical Directors of federal tertiary health institutions. Titled “Report of fake COVID-19 vaccine destined for Africa arrested in China,” the circular has C.1693/P&P/T/22 ...
UAE waives extra coronavirus test for Nigerians
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has removed the rapid antigen test requirement for Nigerians travellers. This is according to a March 24 letter from the protocol department of the UAE ministry of foreign affairs seen by newsmen. The federal government had suspended Emirates Airlines after it announced an additional test requirement for Nigerian travellers in addition to the PCR test mandated by the presidential task force on COVID-19 (PTF). Agreeing to remove the test requirement, the UAE government demanded that the number of passengers on inbound flights to the UAE must not exceed 200 for two weeks. It also said only direct flights between the UAE and Nigeria are allowed. “Passengers need to present a valid negative PCR test conducted within 48 hours before boarding,”. “Provide the Embass...
MTN donates 300,000 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines to Nigeria
The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 said it received 300,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines from MTN Nigeria. Speaking at the National briefing, the Chairman of the PTF and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha said: “Yesterday, Sunday, March 21, 2021, the PTF received 300,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines from MTN Nigeria. “This is acknowledged with thanks as we encourage other partners to contribute towards the fight against COVID-19.” Recall that the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, had said that the first part of the 1.4 million doses promised to be donated to Nigeria would be delivered by end of February, while the remaining balance would be delivered by end of March, 2021. Mustapha also said: “The disclosure that Nigerian...
Senate president receives first dose of coronavirus vaccine, calls for more sensitisation
The President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, took the lead at the National Assembly on Tuesday when he received the first jab of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine was administered on him in his fourth floor office by his personal physician, Dr Muhammad Usman, while the vaccination card was presented to him by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Health (Secondary and Tertiary), Senator Ibrahim Oloriegbe. Speaking shortly after receiving the jab, Lawan called for more advocacy and sensitization on the vaccine, appealing to Nigerians to make themselves available for the vaccination. He congratulated the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 for working so hard to ensure that the vaccine is available for Nigerians. While urging the PTF to get more of the vaccine and variety of it in ...
Nigeria threatens to ban flights from UAE, Netherlands
The Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has threatened to ban flights from the UAE and The Netherlands as a reciprocal action. The task force said the Ministry of Aviation and its relevant agencies have been mandated to take the necessary reciprocal measures as may be permissible under the laws and other international obligations expected to be discharged against Emirates airlines operating from the UAE and other airlines from The Netherlands. Mr Boss Mustapha, the Chairman of PTF and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, disclosed this at the routine briefing of the committee in Abuja on Monday. Mustapha said: “For over a month, Nigeria has been engaged with the authorities of the UAE and The Netherlands over pre-departure testing requirements passengers should meet before ...
NPHCDA: States yet to meet conditions won’t get coronavirus vaccines
National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, said, yesterday, that states yet to meet the criteria for COVID-19 vaccines would not get a share of the 3.92 million AstraZeneca vaccines received by the country on Tuesday. Executive Director of the agency, Dr Faisal Shuaib, who disclosed this at a State House briefing in Abuja, also said President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo would be vaccinated publicly tomorrow, while members of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, would have theirs on Monday. He said: “After we are able to get our strategic leaders to publicly demonstrate that these vaccines are safe, the plan is to now go to the state level to start the launch at the treatment centres of the states and also get strategic leaders, such as governors, to publi...
NDLEA warns against rogue recruitment portal floated by scammers
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has said it was yet to resume the job recruitment it suspended In compliance with stipulations by the Presidential Task Force on the COVID-19 pandemic and that a website purporting the organisation had commenced hiring should be regarded as a scam. NDLEA Head of Public Affairs, Deputy Commander of Narcotics, Jonah Achema, made this disclosure in a statement today. The agency warned the public that scammers were behind the site. Achema said that the recruitment portal circulating on the internet was fake and the public needed to take caution. The agency noted that job scammers, who had created fake NDLEA recruitment portal, had been extorting money from unsuspecting public. NDLEA said: “The agency wishes to inform the general public that ther...
NCDC: Nigeria records 13 cases of UK coronavirus variant
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said it has found six more cases of the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant in the country. This brings the total number of people who have tested positive to the variant in Nigeria to 13. The B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant was first detected in the United Kingdom and has since spread to other parts of the world. The Director-General of NCDC, Chikwe Iheakwazu, while speaking at the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 briefing on Monday, said the six new cases were detected in Lagos State by scientists at the Africa Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID), at the Redeemers University in Ede, Osun State. “Last week we detected six additional samples of the B.1.1.7 variants in Lagos state,” Mr Ihekweazu said. “We already have five c...
Senate faults PTF conversion to PSC, laments doctors strike
The Senate Committee on Health said on Thursday that the Presidency should have consulted the National Assembly before converting the the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to the Presidential Steering Committee. The panel also expressed surprise that the National Association of Resident Doctors embarked on strike despite the fact that their demands had been met by the Federal Government. Chairman of the Senate panel, Yahaya Oloriegbe, stated these during a public hearing on a bill seeking to establish a Federal Medical Centre in Mubi, Adamawa State. Oloriegbe said, “I was listening to the radio yesterday (Wednesday) and I heard that the PTF (on COVID-19) has been converted to a steering committee. “We were not consulted in terms of what will be the operational mechanism and so on. “I am ...