North Korean authorities have revealed to citizens in public lectures that there were confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the country as early as the end of March.
The news comes following initial denials by the secretive state, who in official statements from the capital Pyongyang claimed that it has not had any confirmed COVID-19. cases.
Radio Free Asia reported the latest news on late Friday, in which it was detailed how lecturers, speaking to organisations and neighbourhood watch groups, said there were cases within the country, without giving any numbers - citing two sources; one in Pyongyang and one in Ryanggang province.
The lecturers said the confirmed cases were in Pyongyang, South Hwanghae province and North Hamgyong province, RFA reported, and follows on from early denials by leader Kim Jong-un.
North Hamgyong is in the northeast region of the country, while South Hwanghae is in the southwest, showing the scale in distance which the virus has travelled.
Pyongyang had previously reinforced border checks and ordered foreigners from any country that has reported a case of COVID-19 to spend 30 days in quarantine, flying dozens of diplomats out of the country in early March.
North Korean authorities are 'looking into whether there is still any space for infectious diseases to enter, in line with the complete blockade of borders, airspace and territorial waters' until the global virus pandemic is under control, state media KCNA said on Saturday.
As reported by Mail Online, the secretive state had been working 'day and night' to build a new hospital 'faster and better' than planned, despite continuing to deny that COVID-19 had entered its borders.
Work on the new Pyongyang General Hospital began suddenly just under a month ago, with Kim Jong-un setting an ambitious 200-day deadline for completion.
However, he appeared to downplay any link to the ongoing pandemic at the time, making no reference to it at a groundbreaking ceremony and instead linking completion to a national holiday.
Amid the pandemic, North Korea has still been the cause of rising tensions after firing several suspected cruise missiles off its east coast on Tuesday.
The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, has confirmed that the late Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, died at the First Consultant Cardiologists Hospital, Lagos.
Abayomi had at a briefing denied knowing the whereabouts of the late Chief of Staff to the President.
But Abayomi, on Saturday, via his Twitter handle, @ProfAkinAbayomi, said, “Following enquiries on the passing away of the Chief of Staff to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Mallam Abba Kyari on Friday 17th April, 2020, the Lagos State Government states that:
Mallam Abba Kyari died from complications of #COVID-19 infection at First Cardiology Consultants in Lagos.
“This hospital is a Lagos State designated high care, biosecurity-compliant, #COVID19 facility, accredited by the Health Facility Management and Accreditation Agency.
“As a basis for accreditation, First Cardiology Consultants established a separate specialist wing with staff dedicated to the treatment of complicated cases of #COVID-19, under the supervision of the Lagos State #COVID19 emergency response team.”
A fleeing Coronavirus suspect, Vincent Prosper has been captured in Abia State, the government revealed on Saturday.
A statement issued by Abia State Commissioner for Information, John Okiyi-Kalu said the COVID-19 medical Rapid Response (RR) Team in the state received information from NCDC national control room on a suspected COVID-19 patient named Vincent Prosper who called them from Abia State to report among other things that he was manifesting symptoms of the virus and recently had contacts with a confirmed patient in neighboring Akwa Ibom state in addition to recently returning from Lagos.
“Our team immediately swung into action and called the number forwarded, took notes and asked the individual to isolate himself pending our arrival to take samples for testing.
“On arrival at the given location, he disappeared and was later to confess that he saw the ambulance and the fully kitted RR-team, lost courage, detested the possibility of being locked down and decided to switch off his phone and disappear into thin air.” he said.
According to him, the team continued to look for him quietly and at some point got him again on the phone and that he gave a wrong address at Azikiwe Road and that a team was immediately dispatched to the location but did not find him there.
Th commissioner said at that point, the team decided to enlist the services of a top security agency in the state to find him and also alerted members of the public yesterday regarding the situation in the hope that he would voluntarily come forward, but that he never did.
“But late last night, the security agency pinned his location down and this morning our RR-team stormed the location with security agents and took him into custody at our isolation facility at Amachara where we have now collected samples from him and dispatched to NCDC for testing.
“He is now fully cooperating and all necessary information given, including the fact that while he actually recently returned from Lagos he didn’t visit Akwa Ibom state since his return though he resides in a border community to Akwa Ibom State.
“His real name is also not Vincent Prosper and he actually made the call to NCDC Control room.
“It is important to inform our people that COVID-19 is not a death sentence and nobody should be stigmatized because of it.
“If you suspect you are showing symptoms of the disease please call 0700 2242 362 and we will confidentially do the needful. So far, all samples tested from Abia State returned negative and we continue to handle issues with utmost confidentiality and professionalism,” Okiyi-Kalu said
Spanish children have been kept indoors since 14 March, under strict measures to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Now Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez aims to relax the rule on 27 April so they can "get some fresh air".
Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau, who has young children herself, this week pleaded with the government to allow children outside.
Spain has seen more than 20,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic and almost 200,000 reported cases.
In a televised briefing on Saturday evening, Mr Sánchez said Spain had left behind "the most extreme moments and contained the brutal onslaught of the pandemic".
But he said he would ask parliament to extend Spain's state of alarm to 9 May as the achievements made were "still insufficient and above all fragile" and could not be jeopardised by "hasty decisions".
However, the main lockdown measures remain in place, with adults only allowed out to visit food shops and pharmacies or work considered essential. Children have been barred from leaving their homes completely.
Snippets of information we received from officials of the Presidency on Saturday morning indicates that the remains of late Abba Kyari, deceased Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari is inside the bus pictured above.
Buhari's spokesman, Garba Shehu wrote;
'We just received the body of Abba Kyari the deceased Chief of Staff the President in Abuja.
In strict observation of the protocol put in place for the burial of Coronavirus victims by the @NCDCgov and the Federal Ministry of Health, the funeral prayer and burial will be private.
Thereafter, there will be no such ceremonies as condolence visits. Well meaning friends, family members and the general public are encouraged to pray for the repose of Abba Kyari’s soul.
May Allah grant the family and nation the fortitude to bear the loss.'
Is the lockdown in many countries over COVID-19 affecting Boko Haram and their means of getting weapons easily? Or what else could be responsible for this reported desire for peace?
There seems to be a crisis in the Boko Haram camp as credible sources have confirmed that the leader of the sect, Abubakar Shekau, has been making frantic efforts to seek a soft landing as he prepares to surrender.
This much was gathered from top intelligence sources in the Theatre of Operations in North-East Nigeria. According to a source who pleaded anonymity, he stated that Abubakar Shekau is desperately looking for an avenue to surrender.
“I think the end of Boko Haram is coming close as Abubakar Shekau has been making overtures through proxies for a soft landing for him to surrender to the Nigerian authorities. He has been desperate about it, and the intensity is occasioned with the avalanche of coordinated operations launched in recent times against the group, especially in the Timbuktu triangle”.
The source further added that in recent times the Boko Haram group had suffered casualties that put the group in a tight corner.
“The gap is closing in on Abubakar Shekau as it stands. The series of coordinated attacks on their hideouts has made it impossible for any escape as the military has been attacking from several flanks, and any attempt to escape now is virtually impossible.
“The Chief of Army Staff has given an order that Abubakar Shekau is captured alive. The Chief has been in Borno State and there is a likelihood that he is going to be around for a long period given his body language of not leaving anything to chance in this critical operation. As a fact, he has joined several reconnaissance operations around the Timbuktu triangle, after which he issued specific directives with the Intel gathered from the reconnaissance operations.
“He has also been in the trenches with some commanders holding meetings and analyzing Intel. I can tell you that everyone is on top of their game as the strategy is clear for all to understand.”
It was also gathered by Vanguard that the past weeks had witnessed a renewed onslaught against Abubakar Shekau and his group, which was led by the Chief of Army Staff. A top source was quoted as saying that the Chief of Army Staff is virtually visible in all locations within the theatre of operations.
“I can confirm that the Chief of Army Staff is personally coordinating the renewed onslaught against the Boko Haram group. He has been visiting troops in areas where the terrorists’ kingpin is said to be hiding. This act by the Chief of Army Staff has seen a massive boost to the morale of the fighting troops. The results coming in have been tremendous, and it is a source of joy at the Army headquarters.”
The source also stated that there had been orders from the Chief of Army Staff that utmost care must be observed to ensure that women and children are not caught in the crossfire during operations.
Gospel artiste and 2012 Tusker Project Fame star Ruth Matete Amoyi on Thursday recorded a statement with detectives over the death of her Nigerian husband John Apewajoye.
Apewajoye, a pastor, died on April 11, two weeks after he suffered burn wounds sustained at the couple’s Great Wall Gardens Estate home in Athi River, Machakos County.
Ms Matete was summoned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officers. After taking her statement, Ms Matete, who is two months pregnant, led detectives, forensic officers, Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority officials and her family lawyer, Mr Robert Odanga, to her house.
The team collected samples. The exhibits include the gas cylinder that reportedly exploded, leaving Apewajoye with serious injuries.
In her statement, Ms Matete said her husband’s upper body was burnt on March 30 at around 5pm after a failed attempt to light up their 6kg gas cylinder after a refill.
She told detectives that Apewajoye, who was only wearing a pair of trousers, thought the cylinder was overfull and tried to release some gas.
“Immediately after, he tried to light the gas and that is when it exploded,” her statement reads. She ran into the bedroom to get a duvet to cover him and put out the flames while screaming for help, which attracted the attention of her neighbours.
She said they managed to take Apewajoye to Shallom Hospital, where he stayed briefly before he was transferred to Bellevue South Hospital and admitted to the high dependency unit.
On April 5, he developed complications and was referred to Kenyatta National Hospital, where a nurse questioned Bellevue’s decision to admit a burns patient for a week knowing well that the hospital did not have a burns unit.
In her statement, KNH said her husband had not been receiving enough water at Bellevue Hospital which led to his kidney failure. “They also failed to take care of his wound so it became septic,” added Ms Matete.
COMPLAINTS FILED
The pastor stayed for a week at KNH before succumbing to his injuries on April 11 at 8.30pm. Mr Odanga, her lawyer, told the Nation that a post-mortem will be done after approval from the Nigerian Embassy.
“The embassy is still holding the body at KNH mortuary after a video was released by one of its citizen’s questioning the circumstances behind this death,” he said, adding: “We hope this shall be done soon to clear the air.”
Six witnesses, including first responders, have recorded their statements with the DCI.
The lawyer said his client had filed two complaints: one against the gas company and the other against Bellevue South Hospital.
“At Bellevue, my client was told that her husband suffered burns amounting to 40 per cent, but at KNH the degree was indicated as 60 per cent,” said Mr Odanga. “The hospital needs to answer some questions regarding how they handled the deceased.”
People can breathe now, lol. Singer KCee has never put his family out there, in fact he has left many confused if he is married or not and has always omitted that part in his interviews. Today, April, 18th, 2020 Kcee turned a year older and decided to unveil his family.
Not only that, he also took out time to celebrate his wife and children.
Writing about his special day and how grateful he is, the singer wrote;
''I found the greatest fortune on earth by having you all as my back bone , thank you all for being everything i wanted in a family. Thank you all for being steadfast all the times I was absent giving to the nature of my job, thank you all for always loving me excessively even in the midst of my imperfections.
To you my dear wife , in my next world pls don’t hesitate to be my wife again .
Sommy and Kanye, words can’t express how much daddy loves you both .
My whole life revolves around you all.
I will go to the ends of the earth just to ensure that happiness never abandons you all and most especially I am grateful that you all granted my birthday wish by allowing me celebrate you all today .
And to you my fans, thank you for staying true all these years! You too are my family''.
Also celebrating his wife specially, he wrote;
''To the woman of my dreams,
The Love of my life!
The mother of my children!! I love you!
Thank you for always standing with me. You aren’t just the woman of my dreams, you help me build my dreams!! Your arms are my comfort!
You are my motivator, My chief financial officer, my best friend, my adviser and many more!
Thank you for everything you do!''
Her also celebrated his children by writing;
'I want to thank God for the gift of life and these gifts he gave me! My beautiful kids are one of the reasons while I thrive everyday to be the best in everything I do! They fuel my drive to succeed!!! Daddy loves you SOMMY & KANYE
I pray that God’s protection and love will always be abundant for you.''
Former Ivorian striker Didier Drogba and one of the country’s biggest music groups Magic System distributed aid on Friday to 200 families in a poor area of Abidjan as part of the effort to fight the coronavirus crisis.
Drogba joined Salif Traore, known as A’Salfo, the Magic System frontman, for the second phase of the “caravan of solidarity against covid-19”, financed by their respective foundations, the European Union and a real estate company.
“This is the time to show solidarity and compassion, to help the poorest in the population,” said Drogba, invoking his “civic responsibility”.
“Not everyone can afford to stay confined for several weeks. The daily life of a young African is not the same as that of a young Frenchman,” said the former Marseille and Chelsea striker and captain of the Ivorian national team.
A total of 1,000 families in 11 areas of the Ivorian economic capital will receive soap, sanitising gel, rice, cooking oil and sugar over 11 days, said the organisers.
“Sharing values are important for artists. Culture can be at the service of society,” said A’Salfo.
Drogba recently offered his foundation’s hospital to the Ivorian state as a testing centre.
One of the sons of Governor Nasir El-rufai of Kaduna State has apologised over a tweet suggesting the r.a.p.e of a Twitter user’s mother.
Bello El-rufai, 32, on Sunday threatened to “pass to his friends” the mother of @thanos_zer after a Twitter disagreement escalated.
The private message was later made public and elicited outrage on social media, with several civil society groups calling for Mr. El-rufai’s prosecution under the Cybercrime Act.
His mother, Hadiza, also appeared to condone her son’s behaviour after she responded to the tweet saying “all is fair in love and war.”
Mrs. El-rufai later apologised for her tweet, saying she would “never condone sexual abuse in any shape or form.”
But her son, for much of the week, stood by his tweet and only seemingly caved in to pressure on Friday.
In his apology Friday afternoon, Mr. El-rufai, who works as a legislative aide to a Kaduna senator, said the comments were made “in the heat of the moment.”
I can see how my tweet may have come across, and I apologise to those who were offended by it. I say, once again, that I’d never condone sexual abuse in any shape or form. https://t.co/TYh9hJAix5
A few days ago I made a comment that was wrong, unbecoming and contrary to the values on which I was raised. I wish to withdraw that statement and apologise to the gentleman concerned for the hurtful comment,” he said.
“I also apologise for appearing to attack an entire ethnic group for the misdeed of one person. I regret the sexual innuendo in the private message and apologise unreservedly for it.
“I wish to state very strongly that the statement was made during the heat of the moment and I wish to put on the record that I do not condone sexual violence.”
Mr. El-rufai said he does not believe that there can be any justification for gender-based crimes, adding that he is learning from the episode in the continuous journey of emerging as a better person.
“I have apologised to my mother in person. I have also reached out to the women in my life and apologised,” he said.
“I realise that the intensity around this matter stems partly from my surname. The mistakes I made with the private message and in smearing an ethnic group because of one person are now being replicated by people that are attacking my parents and my family because of my conduct.
“I am one of many children in a family raised with standards of decency and strong values of which my recent conduct has fallen short. I appreciate the time that friends and loved ones have taken to show me the error of my ways.
“I apologise to the general public in recognition of the duty to acknowledge wrongdoing and strive to be better.”
Master Chidera Nwankwo is a 10-year-old boy who was kidnapped along with his younger brother, a two-year-old boy. But Chidera was later found after he was left on a road at Ngwa in Abia State by the kidnappers, who took his brother away. He shares his experience in the hands of the kidnappers with Raphael Ede.
Can you recall what happened to you on April 8, 2020?
On Wednesday, April 8, 2020, a lady came to our house and told me to go and get what my mother bought in the market. And I couldn’t leave my younger brother behind as there was no one else at home, so I carried my brother and followed her.
Did you know the lady?
No, but I had earlier seen her with my mother; that was why I followed her. While we were going, they stopped a ‘Keke Marwa’ rider (commercial tricycle rider) who took us to New Garrick Market but I did not see the items she asked me to come and carry. Then they brought a car that took us to a park and we took a vehicle going to Aba. I asked them where we were going and they said we were going to where my father was going to minister.
I was going to shout if they didn’t tell me where they were taking us to. I don’t know what happened from that moment till when it was already dark. They took us to a hotel where we slept. In the morning, the owner of the hotel – a woman – brought biscuits and a soft drink for us to take but I refused to eat or drink anything. She persuaded me to drink it but I refused. So the woman took us in her car and when we got to a certain place, she stopped. The man with them gave me N200 to go and buy anything that I wanted. I told them I did not want anything.
So he called a tricycle rider and we got in, but the woman from the hotel left. The rider took us inside a village and at a point, they stopped an okada man (commercial motorcyclist) and the woman with us took my brother and they got on the bike. The man said the tricycle would me and him to meet them where they were going. When we got to a bus stop, the man asked me to get down and look for my brother in the shops there. He said he wanted to go to the bank to get some money so that he would take us home.
Do you know the hotel where you slept?
No, but I know it is in Aba. If I see the hotel again, I will know it but I don’t know how to get there.
How do you know it is in Aba?
I saw signposts that showed that we were in Umahia and then Aba.
How did you reunite with your parents?
I saw an ‘okada man’ and asked him questions; I was crying. He called a woman who could speak my language. She asked for my name and some other things. She asked where I left from and I said Akwuke in Enugu.
How did the woman contact your parents?
I told her my parents (phone) numbers and the woman called someone living in Akwuke to ask if there was a family whose children were missing. That was after she had called my father and my mother and their lines were not available. It was the person she called that was able to reach my father through the line I gave them.
If you see the people who kidnapped you, will you be able to recognise them?
Yes, I can recognise the two of them.
What is your prayer for your brother?
I pray that he will be rescued and will be in good health. I pray no evil will befall him.
China’s National Health Commission reported 27 new confirmed coronavirus cases on April 17, up from 26 the day earlier, according to data published on Saturday.
Of that figure, 17 cases were imported via individuals arriving overseas, up from 15 the previous day.
Newly discovered asymptomatic cases were at 54, down from 66 a day earlier.
Three of the new cases were imported, according to the Health Ministry.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country reached 82,719, an increase of 300 from the number reported the day prior.
The sharp uptake follows revisions in case reporting that the NHC announced on Friday.
The ministry placed the total death toll from the virus at 4,632 as of April 17, a number it originally reported on Friday when it publicly announced the revised figures.
The new death toll marks an increase of over 1,000.
Malawi’s High Court on Friday temporarily barred the government from implementing a 21-day lockdown to curb coronavirus following a petition by a human rights group.
The Human Rights Defenders Coalitionarguedthat the government had failed to announce any measures to cushion the poor during the lockdown.
Malawi is one of the poorest countries in Africa. More than half of its population live below the poverty threshold.
The organisation’s chairman, Gift Trapence, said the court had granted them temporary relief pending a judicial review in seven days.
“Yes, we have been granted the injunction,” he told AFP. “So, what it means is that there is no lockdown for the next seven days.”
On Thursday and Friday, thousands of angry market traders marched in the capital Lilongwe and in the cities of Blantyre and Zomba, to protest against the lockdown.
They have vowed to disregard the shutdown, saying it will devastate workers who live hand-to-mouth.
President Peter Mutharika had announced a three-week lockdown starting on Sunday and said the measure “may be extended” if needed.
The southeast African country has recorded 17 cases of coronavirus, two of them fatal.
Dr. Amina Umar Ganduje, daughter of Kano state governor, has gone into isolation after a co-member on the State Task Force on COVID-19 she worked with got infected with the virus.
Other members of the Kano Task Force team include health commissioner Aminu Tsanyawa, environment commissioner Kabiru Getso, Imam Wada, secretary of the committee and Deputy governor Gawuna, chairman of the committee.
Also, other members of the team have gone into isolation after co-chairman of the committee, Professor Abdulrazaq Garba Habibu tested positive to Coronavirus.
DailyTrust quoted a reliable source within the government to have said, “You know, since they have mingled with the co-chair, whose status is now known (as positive), the best for the rest members of the committee is to go for self-isolation.
“Their specimen has been taken for test, but their results are not out for them to know their status.
“We are praying that the results would turn negative. But I can confirm to you that virtually all members of the Kano task force on COVID-19 are now in self-isolation and are waiting for their results,” the source said.
United States President, Donald Trump has announced a $19 billion relief program for the agriculture sector, which has been hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak.
The package, called the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, will include $16 billion in direct payments to farmers and ranchers and $3 billion in mass purchases of dairy, meat and produce that will be distributed through food banks.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture “will do everything in our power to implement this program as quickly and as efficiently as possible,” Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said during a White House news conference on Friday.
The agric sector has struggled due to low patronage and waste of farm produce, courtesy of the national lockdown.
Obviously, this relief package by President Trump will be of tremendous assistance to the farmers and further help in getting food to people.
