A Nigerian newspaper and Online version of the Vanguard, a daily publication in Nigeria covering Niger delta, general national news, politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion,lifestyle human interest stories, etc
THE police in Lagos State have arrested a 36-year-old man, who says he is a cook, for allegedly raping an eight-year-old girl in Ijaye area of the state.
He was alleged to have lured the minor with cooked rice.
During interrogation, the suspect, a father of three identified as Otobong Inyang, blamed the act on his state of drunkenness.
The suspect, who was paraded alongside other suspected criminals at the Lagos State Police Command headquarters, Ikeja, would be charged to court according to the command boss, Mr. Fatai Owoseni.
Inyang, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, lives in the same building with the minor. Four children, including the victim, were said to have entered the suspect's one room apartment, while he was cooking.
Neighbours said he instructed the children to wait for the rice which was still being cooked. But the children slept off in the process.
Narrating how the act took place, Inyang, who claimed to be a cook, said: "I was cooking rice on Sunday around 11a.m., when four of my neighbour's children, one boy and three girls, came in. They slept for few minutes after which they all went home.
"This particular girl came back alone while I was sleeping. I removed her panties and raped her. It was done under the influence of alcohol."
Mother of the child was said to have entered the apartment only to meet her daughter alone with the suspect. She asked her daughter what she was doing.
"She told her mother what I had done," the suspect said.
WARRI-FIRE, yesterday, razed property worth N50 million in Kolokolo Quarters of Enerhen, Uvwie Local Government Area, Delta State.
A number of makeshift houses and shops were consumed in the noon inferno, which started from one of the structures when residents and the shop owners were still in church.
An eyewitness, Ochuko, said: "The fire came from one of the makeshift apartments, when electric power was restored to the neighbourhood. Residents had gone to their places of worship when it started. We couldn't rescue anything.
"The shop owners usually don't open on Sundays. They lost everything. The fire would have consumed more buildings but for the intervention of the Delta State Fire Service team, which stopped further spread."
Another eyewitness said: "A nearby storey building was already in flame when the Fire Service came to the rescue.
"If not for their efforts, the whole building would have been razed and it would easily have spread to other adjoining buildings."
Items consumed by the fire ranged from building materials to clothing and electronics in a repair shop and personal effects of residents.
A shop owner, identified as Mama Efe, who ran to the scene from church, began to cry, saying her entire life investments and property had been destroyed by the fire.
Mama Efe appealed to Delta State Government, Uvwie council and relevant agencies to come to her aid as her family had been battling to cope with the present economic recession, before the fire incident, which she said would drastically aggravate their hardship.
The birthplace of Islam containing Mecca - Islam's holiest site - shifted to the western Gregorian calendar on Sunday, bringing the oil-rich kingdom in line with many of its energy customers.
But the real reason is the need to conserve funds.
Saudi Arabia like other oil exporting countries is facing an unprecedented cash squeeze, with the government slamming salary cuts all over.
The Islamic lunar calendar is actually 15 days shorter than the 365-day solar year. The calculation is that the measure will save the kingdom money by cutting salary days for many public servants.
The kingdom began the use of Islamic calendar since it was founded in 1932, Al Arabiya local news reported.
The Saudi workers will now need to work more days to earn the salaries already sliced by government.
The decision came after the cabinet announced last week the reduction of salaries of ministers and Shura members (advisors).
It was part of an austerity package, including cancellation and amendment of civil servants' allowances and rewards, such as cancelling the annual bonus.
Saudi Arabia has taken a series of steps to deal with the dropping oil prices in global markets.
In Nigeria, the state governments in Kano and Oyo have declared special holiday to mark the Islamic year, which began on 3 October.
While Kano has declared Tuesday, Oyo state has made Monday a double holiday, one for Nigeria's independence and the other to mark the Islamic New Year, 1438 AH.
Governor Abiola Ajimobi made the declaration on Sunday at the 1438 Hijrah Grand Rally organised by the National Council of Muslim Youth Organisations (NACOMYO) at Ibadan.
Oct. 3 is the lunar month of Muharram, which is the first month of the Islamic calendar.
Nigeria has spent 720.5 billion naira ($2.4 billion) on capital expenditure this year to help drag Africa's biggest economy out of recession, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Saturday.
"I believe that this recession will not last. Several hundreds of thousands of (unemployed) workers will be re-engaged in the next few months as our public works program gains momentum," Buhari said in a televised speech marking the Nigeria's independence day.
Buhari also said the government has been negotiating to end militant attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta, but would not be intimidated by armed groups. He said oil production had temporarily dropped to less than one million barrels a day, down from 2.2 million bpd, due to militant attacks, but he did not say how much current output was.
Buhari also reiterated that government wanted to repair the country's four refineries to end costly fuel imports. He assured that the naira exchange rate to the dollar would stabilize, after dropping to record lows due to a "critical" shortage of hard currency amid low oil prices.
Meanwhile, crude oil production has not been affected by an explosion reported near Warri refinery on Thursday, according to the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG).
The explosion heard by locals late on Thursday follows a series of attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta by militants that have cut the country's crude oil production by about a third. "No one has been able to pinpoint the explosion but there was a big bang around Warri axis yesterday. For now no production is affected," Cogent Ojobor, zonal chairman of NUPENG said on Friday.
The Nigerian navy said the blast was caused when its officers foiled an attempt to attack energy facilities. "Our men fired at a boat that was suspected of carrying explosive materials," said navy spokesman Joseph Dzunve, adding that the gunfire was likely to have hit the explosives.
This is coming against the background of India's plan to buy more crude oil from Nigeria. India's Vice President, Hamid Ansari, was quoted during a visit to Abuja last week that "his country, which is the leading buyer of Nigeria's crude oil, will increase its purchase of the commodity in addition to natural gas".
Nigeria's 2016 budget was the largest in the nation's history, but an oil price drop and militant attacks on oil pipelines in the Niger Delta have left the government scrambling for funds.
By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke ABUJA – FOLLOWING the current hardship being experienced in the country occasioned by the ongoing economic recession, the National Assembly has said that a total of eight bills already passed were on hand to be forwarded to President Muhammadu Buhari for presidential assent.
Special Adviser to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, who disclosed this in a statement, Monday, said the eight passed passed bills were received from the House of Representatives by the Senate for concurrence and onward presentation to the president.
“The Bills, which are aimed at strengthening the laws of the Federal Republic, were considered and passed in a single sitting of the Senate – demonstrating commitment to employing all legislative mechanisms at its disposal to end the current economic recession in the country, “the statement said.
The statement added:” The Bills that will be presented to the President soon include the Telecommunication and Postal Offences Act (Amendment) Bill, National Crop Varieties, Livestock Breeds (Registration) Act (Amendment) Bill, Produce (Enforcement of Export Standards) Act (Amendment) Bill, Prevention of Crimes Act (Amendment) Bill, Water Resources Act (Amendment) Bill, National Agricultural Land Development Authority Act (Amendment) Bill, Bee (Import Control and Management) Act (Amendment) Bill and Agricultural and Rural Management Training Act (Amendment) Bill.”from the right, Wife of the President, Hajia Aisha Buhari; President Muhamadu Buhari; President IDRIS Derby of Chad; President of Niger Republic Mamadou Isoufou; President Patrice Talon of Benin Republic; Former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon; Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and other dignitaries during the presentation of a book titled Muhammadu Buhari: The Challenges Of Leadership In Nigeria authored by Prof. John Paden at the African Hall, International Conference Centre, Abuja. Photo by Abayomi ADESHIDA 03/10/2016
President Muhammadu Buhari (M) chats with former Head of State, Dr Yakubu Gowon. With are President of Niger Mr Mahamadou Issoufou, President of Tchad, Idriss Deby, Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, Former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and one other during a book launch on President Muhammadu Buhari tittle: The Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria by Mr John N Paden held at the International Conference Centre in Abuja
The statement emphasised the importance of the Bills in ending Nigeria's economic contraction and stated that the Bills will be promptly forwarded to President Muhammadu Buhari for his signature.
"By now it is clear that the Senators take Nigeria' economic situation very seriously," he said, "If you recall, one of the points from the 21-point resolution passed by the Senate on the economy stated that it would fast-track all economic related bills. What this Senate has done is match its words with its actions."
“The eight Bills, which are all primarily amendments to existing laws, are aimed at strengthening the enforcement mechanisms in sectors of the economy that can help boost Internally Generated Revenue.
“Important highlights of the Bills include the amendment to the Telecommunication and Postal Offences Act, which is aimed at increasing some of the prescribed penalties, fines and compensations for non-compliance with the Act. This is intended to help boost investment and participation in the telecommunications sector.
“Additionally, the National Crop Varieties, Livestock Breeds (Registration) Act (Amendment) Bill, Produce (Enforcement of Export Standards) Act (Amendment) Bill, National Agricultural Land Development Authority Act (Amendment) Bill, Bee (Import Control and Management) Act (Amendment) Bill, and the Agricultural and Rural Management Training Act (Amendment) Bill are all aimed at bolstering the standards in Nigeria's Agricultural sector to help the country achieve more economic diversification, “it further stated.
Meanwhile, the Senate President, who is the Chairman of the National Assembly, has stated that the eight bills will be promptly forwarded to the president for assent.
"Moving forward, Nigerians can expect that the legislature will adopt a united and efficient approach to getting Nigeria's economy back on track," Saraki stated, "We will quickly forward these 8 Bills, which have been passed by both Houses of the National Assembly to the President. This is only a first step and we will continue to work to ensure that at the end of our tenure, Nigerians will see that this is a people-centred National Assembly, "he said.
Three Nigerians living in India were arrested at the weekend for various offences, with two of them remanded in prison after being charged with fraud.
One of them identified as Eistabot was arrested Saturday for beating up a cab driver over the fare in Greater Noida in Utta Pradesh.
India Police in Goa with some suspects
The Nigerian is a B Tech student at a private engineering college in the area.
Two other Nigerians were arrested by a joint team of Delhi and Goa Police for cheating several people after befriending them on social networking sites.
The duo - Chukwuma Collins, 35, and Nicodemus Obinna, 27 - used to befriend people on Facebook and then ask for money to send "necessary items" to their family members in UK, according to a report by The Times of India
Police said that the men used to fabricate stories about the poor conditions of their family members living in western countries and ask the victims to help them with money. After receiving the money they broke all contact with the victims.
Goa Police had received a complaint from a woman, Bridget Fernandes Rai, who claimed to have been cheated of around Rs 8 lakh, about $12,000, by the duo. She said that she had befriended Collins on Facebook and after a few days of chatting he started calling her.
Rai told the police that Collins started referring to her as his sister and asked for Rs 8 lakh to transfer some money and jewellery through a courier to his relatives.
He claimed that the courier was stuck in legal processes at the customs department in Goa and he needed to get it delivered quickly as his wife had expired. Rai agreed to transfer the money to his account. As soon as the money was transferred, Collins "disappeared", Rai alleged.
"A team from Goa Police approached us in Delhi after a technical surveillance pointed to role of some people operating from here. A joint team was formed to track the accused. The duo was arrested from Mahavir Enclave in south Delhi," said Ravindra Yadav, joint commissioner, crime.
Collins and Obinna have confessed to their crime and disclosed that they had cheated several others in a similar way. Three laptops, data cards, 36 SIM cards and 26 mobile phones were recovered from them, said The Times.
During interrogation, the duo claimed that they had arrived in India five years ago for business and then started cheating people using different techniques.
The accused were produced in a Dwarka court and taken on a transit remand by Goa Police.
A British man with HIV undergoing a pioneering treatment to cure him of the disease has shown "remarkable" progress, doctors have told a newspaper.
Scientists treating the 44-year-old patient are now hopeful of a breakthrough in what has been described as "one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV".
Results showed the man's most recent blood test showed no detectable HIV was present.
Results showed the man's most recent blood test showed no detectable HIV was present.
The man, who has remained anonymous, is the first of 50 people to complete a trial using the two-stage attack on the deadly virus.
The research is being carried out by a collaboration of five of Britain's top universities organised by the National Health Service.
Mark Samuels, managing director of the National Institute for Health Research Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure, told the Sunday Times: "This is one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV. We are exploring the real possibility of curing HIV.
"This is a huge challenge and it's still early days but the progress has been remarkable."
The trial patient told the newspaper that recent blood tests showed no detectable HIV virus was present, although it was too early to confirm that the treatment had worked.
The new therapy aims to overcome a major barrier to clearing the virus from a sufferer's body that has challenged researchers for decades.
Current methods using antiretroviral therapies (Art) fall short of ridding patients of HIV, as the virus can hide out of the drugs' reach in the immune system's T-cells.
By sheltering in dormant T-cells the virus can later take over its host and use it to produce thousands of copies of itself, should Art no longer work.
The research by Oxford and Cambridge universities, Imperial College London, University College London, and King's College London, is testing a "kick and kill" technique to first expose, then destroy the virus.
First a vaccine helps the body find infected T-cells. This is then followed by a course of the drug Vorinostat that awakens the dormant T-cells, which then begin producing HIV proteins that act as a homing beacon to the immune system.
Imperial College London consultant physician Professor Sarah Fidler said the treatment worked in the laboratory and there was "good evidence" it will work in patients.
However she added: "We must stress we are still a long way from any actual therapy."
The Enugu State Police Command on Monday said that it arrested two armed robbery suspects that have tormented residents of Achara Layout within Enugu metropolis.
The command's spokesman, Mr Ebere Amaraizu, told newsmen in Enugu that the suspects had been disturbing the layout for over two months.
Amaraizu noted that the suspects were nabbed through police operative response to a distress call.
"The criminals and their cohorts now at large were operating at a shop on gun point at Awkunanaw Street in Achara Layout on Thursday at about 4p.m. where suspects have allegedly robbed a sales girl of an undisclosed amount of money and valuables.
"It was gathered that on arrival, suspects allegedly engaged police in a gun duel and the ensuing gun battle resulted in the arrest of Obumneme Nwafor, who already had been touched by bullet.
"His arrest, however, promptly guided police operatives in the arrest of Emeka Oparaugo alias cross-over.
"Recovered from the suspects are locally made pistols with double mouth, two cell-phones,'' he said.
Amaraizu said that the suspects were helping the police in its investigation.
"A manhunt on the fleeing members of the gang have been intensified with a view to arresting them,'' he said.
In a another development, the command have begun an investigation into an incident of fire outbreak at Ogige Main Market, Nsukka on Friday with a view to finding out the possible cause of the incident.
The command's spokesman noted that the fire outbreak, which happened at about 2.30 a.m., destroyed one story building that contains different flats with stores.
Recall that property worth millions of Naira was loss.
A mentally handicapped man and woman have been seen displaying affection for each other in the streets of Lagos while on-looker watched in amazement. The woman is seen with pregnancy alleged to be the work of her mad lover.
Mad man in love with mad womanMad man in love with mad womanMad man in love with mad woman
Sen. Shehu Sani (APC Kaduna Central) has urged members of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) to monitor and ensure effective implementation of all projects allocated to the Northern region in the 2016 nation's budget. Sani gave the advice on Monday while addressing members of the Kaduna State Chapter of ACF, who paid him a courtesy visit in Kaduna.
''It is high time for the Northern region to improve on our education, agriculture and all other sectors to boost our economy. "The ACF should follow to the letter, toward ensuring that all projects earmarked in the Federal Government budget for the region, are being implemented,'' he said.
Sani, who is also the Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign and Domestic Debts, urged ACF to stand up and speak where necessary to ensure the transformation of the North. He said, "ACF should support the government where it is right and cry out where it feels the government is going wrong. As Northerners, we must tell ourselves the truth.
"It is mandatory for associations like ACF to work closely with us, the elected leaders of our people, to know what has been earmarked for the region in Education, Agriculture and Industrial sector for the benefit of the region and its people." He expressed worry that all the legacies left behind by the late Sardauna of Sokoto were either in comatose, or dead.
"For the North to progress, education must be revived so that sons and daughters of the masses in the region can obtain sound and qualitative education. "All our ailing industries must be revived and our peasant farmers be given subsidy, not just for the government to dole out money to large scale farmers, most of whom are no longer farmers.
"These must be done to ensure that the Northern region focuses toward reviving its economy," Sani said. Earlier, the chairman, State Chapter of ACF, Alhaji Ramalan Yero, commended the senator for good representation in the Senate. He said that the executive members of the chapter were in his house to seek collaboration with him on various developmental efforts in the state.
According to him, ACF is a socio-cultural organisation, established to promote and strengthen unity among the people of the Northern region, irrespective of religious or ethnic leaning. "In order to facilitate the implementation of these objectives, the forum provided for the establishment of the state chapters.
" The forum has a number of activities in skills acquisition, vocational training, capacity building and leadership development programmes in the three senatorial zones of the state. " I wish to express our readiness to partner with you in the overall development of the people of Kaduna State.
''We shall always be available to assist toward your success,'' Yero, who is also the father of the immediate past Governor of Kaduna State, Murkhtar Yero, said.
A photo trending on the social media shows a boy in Syria defending his wounded mother with a cutlery from a soldier pointing a gun at him. What do you make of it? Type your comments below…
A Syrian boy defends his wounded mother with cutlery from a soldier carrying gun
By Emmanuel Aziken Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State has denied claims of his involvement in the alleged partnership with former Deputy Speaker, Chibudom Nwuche in padding the Amnesty Office budget to the tune of N1 billion.
Rebuffing the claims in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Imam Imam, the governor said the aspect of the narrative as concerning him was completely false especially given the history of his discord with those involved.
The statement said:Tambuwal:Unmoved
"For the records, Tambuwal has never engaged in legislative, political, administrative or business relationship with the persons alleged in the story. "Nwuche left the House of Representatives in 2003, the same year Tambuwal was elected into the National Assembly to represent Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency in the House. "He was not in the House of Representatives when Nwuche was in the House.
"The history of the frosty relationship between then Speaker Tambuwal and elements close to former President Goodluck Jonathan (which both Nwuche and Kingsley Kuku were prominent members), is well known to Nigerians.
"Speaker Tambuwal could not have had dealings with people who considered him antagonistic to the aspiration of their benefactor (Jonathan).
"There is no iota of truth in the story as it relates to Governor Tambuwal."
Two health experts on Monday said the nation's health sector was still not at its best, 56 years after independence. They told newsmen in Lagos that lesser attention was being given to the health of Nigerians, hence the poor healthcare system.
In his comments, Dr Olumuyiwa Odusote, the chairman, Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), said that there was need for the government to re-strategise on how to finance the sector.
According to him, that may be key to improving the nation's health sector. "The economy, as it is, has even made things more difficult, because people will have to pay more to attain the same level of healthcare.
"We are far from where we should be in the health sector. "We need to look at health financing, basically, because that is what has come to the fore and with this economic recession, health financing has become imperative.
"Because, a lot of people, who can afford healthcare in the private setting, are not able to do so, and that means lots of people will probably succumb to unavoidable deaths," he said.
The chairman said that everybody has a collective role to play in contributing ideas on how to achieve a viable health sector. "The responsibility lies on everybody to take charge of his or her health.
"What the government can do is to synthesise these ideas and come out with a workable plan acceptable to all, " Odusote said.
Also, the Chairman, Medical Guild, Dr Oseni Saliu, said that most of the conditions in the National Health Act were not being implemented.
Saliu said, "For instance, you are to render emergency services for people, but the question now is that who pays for the service. "The act says that five per cent of the budget goes to the insurance, but are they really paying the five per cent.
"Free healthcare delivery is not something that is really feasible; somebody has to pay and also provide the support. "In terms of the public getting the services, we are not there yet. "
He said that in terms of the facilities needed for quality healthcare delivery, there was need for the government to provide the necessary ones and upgrade those on ground.
Masked Jewel thieves put gun to Kim Kardashian's head and tied her up in the Paris bathroom. The police and her publicist said that the thieves left her tied up in the bathroom of her luxury residence in Paris and stole millions of dollars' worth of jewelry in the early hours of Monday.
"Kardashian, wife of rapper Kanye West, later left France aboard a private jet from Le Bourget airport after speaking to investigators. "Five attackers, wearing ski masks and clothes with police markings, struck inside the exclusive apartment block where Kardashian was staying while attending Paris Fashion Week.
"Two of the men entered Kardashian's apartment after threatening the night guard with a hand gun and stole a box with $5.6-$6.7 million worth of jewels and a ring worth about 4 million Euros.'' According her publicist, Ina Treciokas, " Kardashian was discovered badly shaken but physically unharmed.
As news of the event spread, West abruptly ended a performance in New York less than an hour into his set. The Paris apartment block is a discreet building behind the city's Madeleine church, with several secret entrances, often frequented by movie and music stars who pay up to 15,000 euros a night.
The source said that the attackers fled on bicycles and Police found the night guard in the staircase, his hand and feet bound. Kardashian was in Paris with her mother, Kris Jenner and her sisters, Kendall Jenner and Kourtney Kardashian, to attend the fashion week but the rest of the family stayed in a hotel.
The robbery set social media alight, with many users expressing disbelief at the latest headline-grabbing event in the life of a TV star whose life is continually documented on screen and the internet. Paris had seen several armed robberies on high-end jewelry stores in recent months.
The armed robbery could add to worries about safety in Paris, hit by a series of attacks by Islamist militants last year. Tourist numbers to what is traditionally the most visited city in the world, fell 6.4 percent in the first half of 2016 as many Asians and Americans stayed away.
The Director, Nigerian Army Chaplaincy ( Protestant), Col. Dawuk Danfulani, on Monday advised Christians not to hide under the cloak of God's mercy to commit crimes.
Danfulani gave the advice in an interview with newsmen in Lagos.
He said that many people were taking undue advantage of God's mercy to commit all sorts of crimes, unlike the period of traditional religion when there was less crimes.
According to him, the consequences of crimes were immediate and severe under the practice of traditional religion.
The director said that because modern religion depended on the mercy and grace of God, people took it for granted and resorted to disobedience.
"The modern religion has differed judgment to life after, which is more terrible, because no one can determine when that end will be.
"In spite of the unsavoury development, the society can not revert to traditional religion.
"The solution is more awareness and sensitisation by religious groups on the penalty for disobeying the rules and laws of the merciful God," the army chaplain said.
He urged people to be conscious of the punishment that goes with disobedience to God's instructions for our society to be a sane place.
"The traditional religion, which has a direct response or answer to all calls or crimes, was without mercy, forgiveness nor consideration.
"It was so excellent, because it did not give room to conditions or excuses for crimes, nor regard for personality, but rather severe and fearless response.
"The traditional religion did not give room for expansion nor development in the society, and was tied down to men, and women were not respected.
"But men who were custodians made the religion respected and feared, and this controlled crimes in the society," Danfulani said.
He said that the severe nature of the traditional religion made it impossible for crimes to thrive in whatever shape or size.
"In those days, the society was not materialistic, there was contentment, respect for the deities, the culture and custodians of these cultures," the chaplain said.
Rivers Commissioner for Sport, Boma Iyaye, on Monday congratulated Rangers International FC of Enugu for emerging champions of the 2015/2016 Nigeria Professional Football (NPFL) league season.
This is contained in a statement issued in Port Harcourt by Sammy Wejinya, Special Adviser on Media to the commissioner.
Iyaye had congratulated Rivers United FC of Port Harcourt for securing the second position at the end of the league.
He was also hopeful that the two clubs would give Nigeria creditable representation in the 2016/2017 CAF Champions League.
"I want to congratulate Enugu Rangers for emerging champions of the NPFL for the first time in 32 years.
"Rivers United has also done well this season considering how the club started the season," he said.
Iyaye said that United showed great doggedness and traditional fighting spirit by defying the odds to come second.
"They were pushing Rangers all the way even till the final day of the season.
"We assure Nigerians that we will not rest on our laurels but work even harder to see that a very strong and well-prepared Rivers United does Nigeria proud on the continent next year," Iyaye said.
Two health experts on Monday said the nation's health sector was still not at its best, 56 years after independence.
They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that lesser attention was being given to the health of Nigerians, hence the poor healthcare system.
In his comments, Dr Olumuyiwa Odusote, the chairman, Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), said that there was need for the government to re-strategise on how to finance the sector.
According to him, that may be key to improving the nation's health sector.
"The economy, as it is, has even made things more difficult, because people will have to pay more to attain the same level of healthcare.
"We are far from where we should be in the health sector.
"We need to look at health financing, basically, because that is what has come to the fore and with this economic recession, health financing has become imperative.
"Because, a lot of people, who can afford healthcare in the private setting, are not able to do so, and that means lots of people will probably succumb to unavoidable deaths," he said.
The chairman said that everybody has a collective role to play in contributing ideas on how to achieve a viable health sector.
"The responsibility lies on everybody to take charge of his or her health.
"What the government can do is to synthesise these ideas and come out with a workable plan acceptable to all, " Odusote said.
Also, the Chairman, Medical Guild, Dr Oseni Saliu, said that most of the conditions in the National Health Act were not being implemented.
Saliu said, "For instance, you are to render emergency services for people, but the question now is that who pays for the service.
"The act says that five per cent of the budget goes to the insurance, but are they really paying the five per cent.
"Free healthcare delivery is not something that is really feasible; somebody has to pay and also provide the support.
"In terms of the public getting the services, we are not there yet. "
He said that in terms of the facilities needed for quality healthcare delivery, there was need for the government to provide the necessary ones and upgrade those on ground.
The Kebbi Government has declared Tuesday, Oct. 4 as public holiday to mark the beginning of the new Islamic calendar 1438 A.H. (After Hijrah).
A statement issued by Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, the Chief Press to Gov. Abubakar Dakingari in Birnin Kebbi urged Muslims to use the holiday to pray for Nigeria.
According to him, Sunday, Oct. 2 falls on Muharram 1, 1438 A.H., being the first day of the first month in the lunar Islamic calendar.
In Islam, the use of lunar calendar started in 578 A.D. when Prophet Muhammad migrated from his home in Makkah to Medinah in saudi Arabia.
Ifeanyi Ubah, President of FC Ifeanyi Ubah, has congratulated the management, players and supporters of Rangers International Football Club for winning the 2015/2016 Nigeria Professional Football League title.
Rangers, also known as " Flying Antelopes ", beat El-kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri 4-0 in the last match of the season to lift the NPFL title for the first time in 32 years.
"Congratulations to Rangers International FC on a thoroughly deserved title, your triumph is a product of hunger and determination, well done," he said. Ubah also lauded the supporters of his club who stood by them as the Nnewi based side ended the season in the fourth position, two years after it was founded.
Ubah expressed satisfaction with the quality of the league under the League Management Company (LMC) and extended kind words to all the teams which played in the league. "I must not fail to appreciate our fans for believing in this club, they have shown so much commitment and passion and I stand to salute them all.
"The commitment of our fans was so intensified that some of them had to travel from across the country at their own expense to cheer us in Lagos. " I congratulate MFM for surviving relegation through this match, the boys showed that determination can guarantee result.
"To me , it seems God didn't want them to go down because our team had chances that could have killed off the match and sent them into relegation even as we join continental elite.
"I also wish to congratulate Rivers United and Wikki Tourist for clinching the continental tickets. It was a keen contest which made FC Ifeanyi Ubah better," he said.
Ubah said with his team would now focus attention on the Federation cup, where it had already qualified for the final. "We all should now focus on Federation Cup finals, where we qualified against all odds," he said.
