The new emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, has reacted to the mass deaths recorded in Kano State.
Recall that scores of people, including elites and prominent sons of the state, have died in Dala, Fagge, Tarauni, Nasarawa, Gwale and Kano Municipal.
Among those already buried are academics, administrators, bankers, media practitioners and businessmen.
Reacting, a statement the Emir personally signed maintained that the deaths were not COVID-19 related.
“We have been informed by the ministry that the deaths were not as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.
“This report is really important, the report has further confirmed to us that COVID-19 is real and that as of today about 73 people have tested positive for the pandemic.
“My people, with regards to this situation, it has become necessary for us to remind you of the need to follow all the necessary medical advice,” he said.
He further urged Kano residents to stay away from crowded places, wash their hands regularly and avoid stigmatizing others.
“I equally call on you to look after your children and make sure they do not continue to play football on the streets, once you notice any symptoms please do not hesitate to report such to medical experts,” he advised.
The Emir while calling for more prayers, commiserated with families of the deceased.
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved a gradual easing of lockdown measures in Lagos, Ogun and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The three locations had been put on lockdown since March 30, 2020 as part of measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus disease that has infected over 3 million people across the world.
However, in a national address on Monday, April 27, Buhari said the lockdown will continue till Monday, May 4 when a phased easing will commence.
The president has now imposed new measures that will apply nationwide; chief among them is the mandatory use of face masks in public, in addition to maintaining physical distancing and personal hygiene.
“State governments, corporate organisations and philanthropists are encouraged to support the production of cloth masks for citizens,” Buhari appealed.
Buhari also said there will be an overnight curfew from 8 pm to 6 am when all movements will be prohibited except for essential services.
The president also placed a ban on interstate passenger travel until further notice. However partial and controlled interstate movement of goods and services will be allowed for the movement of goods and services from producers to consumers.
The restrictions on social and religious gatherings will also remain in place, according to the president.
The president assured Nigerians that the new measures will be strictly followed with aggressive reinforcement of testing and contact tracing measures.
He said the measures will also allow the restoration of some economic and business activities in certain sectors.
Buhari noted that the measures are in line with the recommendations of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, the various Federal Government committees that have reviewed socio-economic matters, and the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF).
Nigeria has recorded 1,273 coronavirus cases in 32 states and the FCT, as of April 26.
239 people have recovered, but 40 people have died.
North Korea has released a statement from Kim Jong-un in an effort to prove he is not dead amid ongoing rumours about his health.
Kim is reported to have sent a thank you message to builders working in the seaside resort of Wonsan.
Rumours have swirled about the North Korean dictator after it was reported he was either dead, gravely ill or in a vegetative state.
State-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun has now reported Kim sent a personal letter to builders working on a tourism project in Wonsan.
Wonsan is also the location where what is believed to be Kim’s armoured private train was spotted, and where he may be hiding out amid the coronavirus pandemic.
It is unclear if the letter was actually sent by Kim, and no new pictures of the leader have been released by state media.
South Korean intelligence has said they are confident that Kim is alive and well, but US officials continue to investigate.
Kim was last seen at a meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party to discuss the coronavirus threat on April 11, and is claimed to have undergone heart surgery on April 12.
The North Korean leader was then suspiciously absent from the national birthday celebrations of his late granddad Kim Il-sung, known as the Day of the Sun.
Chinese journalist Shijian Xingzou said a “very solid source” told her the North Korean leader had died.
She has 15 million followers on Chinese social media site Weibo, and she is also the niece of one of the the country’s foreign ministers.
Separately, a Japanese media outlet claimed Kim was in a “vegetative state” after undergoing heart surgery.
Other unverified rumours state Kim may have been injured during a recent missile test as there are reports of panic buying in North Korea.
Two patients, Abbas Hassan, a 24-year-old male and Hauwa Mohammed, 42-year-old female, are on the run after testing positive for COVID-19 at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital in Borno State.
The man is said to be residing at Layin Tanki in Gwange II while the woman lives in Shuwari ward, both in Maiduguri.
The Borno State Commissioner for Health and secretary to the state’s response team for the prevention and control of COVID-19, Dr Salisu Kwaya-Bura, alerted the public at the team’s daily media briefing held on Sunday.
The commissioner said the male patient (Abbas) was in initial telephone contact with the response team after his sample was collected, but eventually switched off his phone when he learnt he tested positive.
He noted that a diligent surveillance and investigation team was working very hard to track the patient.
Kwaya-Bura called on anyone who test positive to the disease not to regard it as a death sentence, noting that majority of those who test positive have recovered.
The commissioner disclosed that 16 of Borno’s COVID-19 cases emanated from community transmission, while 14 others were connected with the index and another case..
The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, says President Muhammadu Buhari will determine when to lift the lockdown order in Lagos, Abuja and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Ehanire disclosed this on Sunday while speaking on the efforts made by the Federal Government to tackle COVID-19 pandemic in the country.
“The President will make that announcement in his own time. We will give him the facts, he will consider the facts and make his own announcements using his own wisdom,” the Minister said.
In order to curtail the spread of COVID-19 in the country, President Buhari had on March 29 declared a total lockdown.
While directing the cessation of all movements in Lagos and the FCT for an initial period of 14 days, Buhari asked all citizens in the affected areas to stay in their homes, adding that travel to or from other states should be postponed.
Two weeks after the expiration, the President extended the lockdown on April 13 for another two weeks.
But when asked if it is professionally wise to relax the lockdown or to extend it, the Minister did not affirm or oppose the question.
He believes that every country has the right to balance the medical and health-related benefits from the economic-related benefits.
According to him, the decision of whether or not to extend the lockdown has to be tailored according to the needs of Nigerians.
“What happens is that every country, you balance the medical and the health-related benefits from the economic-related benefits because you have an economy you don’t want to kill and you also have the health side that you don’t want to destroy.
“It’s a very delicate balance which you need to do. All countries do that; it’s not only in our country. Even in the United States, they have that debate all the time. Do we open the economy now or do we not open it now?” he said.
A few days back, the Nigerian news space was filled with reports on the rumoured death of IPOB leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The group which calls for the Biafra nation and liberation of the Igbo’s from Nigeria as a sovereign entity immediately refuted the claim of Kanu’s death as vicious rumors and released a video of him to quell the reports.
However, Nigerian journalist, Dr. Kemi Olunloyo has insisted that Nnamdi Kanu is dead. In a series of tweets on her Twitter page, she not only reiterated his death, she also claims that Kanu’s wife, Uchechi Kanu, is upset with IPOB for hiding the death of her husband.
Kim Jong-Un, North Korea’s Supreme Leader is dead – according to multiple sources coming out of North Korea and the Far East, though due to the hyper-secretive nature of the pariah state the exact picture remains unclear tonight.
It was being reported as fact by media outlets in China and Japan that the 36-year-old dictator was dead. Other sources said he was on his death bed in a vegetative state with no hope of resuscitation after botched heart surgery. Because of the nature of the ultra secret regime in North Korea claims of Kim Jong-un’s death are very difficult to verify before an official state announcement.
But a Hong Kong-backed news channel’s vice director, who claims to be the niece of a Chinese foreign minister, made the announcement.
Vice director of HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television Shijian Xingzou says that a ‘very solid source’ has told her Kim Jong-un was dead.
Further sources were reporting a Chinese medical team had been sent to North Korean capital Pyongyang.
Hours ago a Japanese weekly called Shukan Gendai claimed the North Korea’s dictator was in a vegetative state after complications from heart surgery.
A Chinese doctor – who is believed to have been part of the team sent to treat Kim Jong-Un – was reported as saying a delay in a simple heart procedure had left the leader severely ill.
Further specific details were unknown.
Reports of Kim’s death sparked fears of major civil unrest in North Korea – believed to be a nuclear-armed state.
It comes after insiders claimed China has sent a team of doctors to North Korea to determine the status of Kim Jong-Un’s health.
The Chinese delegation left Beijing for North Korea on Thursday included doctors and CCP officials, according to three people familiar with the situation told Reuters.
The nature of China’s delegation was not announced and Beijing has so far refused to comment.
On Monday, speculation spread the North Korean leader was in ill health after undergoing heart surgery on April 12 after unconfirmed reports emerged – which were swiftly denied.
South Korean government officials and a Chinese official with the Liaison Department have challenged subsequent reports suggesting that Kim was in grave danger after surgery.
They said they had detected no signs of unusual activity in North Korea.
And on Thursday, US President Donald Trump also downplayed earlier reports that Kim was gravely ill.
He said: “I think the report was incorrect,” before declining to say if he had been in touch with North Korean officials.
On Friday, a South Korean source said their intelligence was that Kim was alive and would likely make an appearance soon.
The person said he did not have any comment on Kim’s current condition or any Chinese involvement.
