south-west Nigeria.
Two public primary schoolchildren have allegedly died
from complications after being dewormed in the ongoing deworming
exercise embarked upon by the Ogun state government
According to reports, the pupils developed reactions after being
administered with the deworming drug where the state government
targeted about 700,000 pupils from fourteen endemic local
government areas of the state
The duo – Omolaso Keyede (aged 8, primary two) and Eniola
Oyeyemi (aged 9, primary 4) who were pupils of St James African
Church Nursery and Primary School, Idi – Ape, Abeokuta, died after
reported hours of stooling and vomiting.
It was gathered that they had taken deworming drugs during the
school hours on Tuesday only to fall ill in the evening.
One of the pupils was rushed to a private hospital Apata – Iye
Clinic and Maternity Hospital, Odo Oyo, in the state capital where
she confirmed dead while the second pupil was equally taken to same
hospital few minutes later but was declared dead on arrival.
The pupils hailed from the same neighborhood at Ademola Street,
opposite African Church, Idiape, which is a stone-thrown from the
school they attended.
This development has sparked off speculations that the deaths
may have been as a result of the administration of the drug, a
situation the state Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker has
dismissed saying that the drug is not poisonous
According to the commissioner, the drug was administered on over
200 pupils at same school, but only the two from the same
neighborhood were affected.
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“The deworming drugs being administered on school-age children
in 14 local government areas in the state are in no way poisonous,”
she said.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker, who made this known
in the wake of the news making rounds that two school children in
Abeokuta died from complications occasioned by the drugs, said the
same drug was administered on her alongside other top government
functionaries at the flag-off of the exercise.
She said that the drugs were administered on 249 pupils of the
said school out of which two children who lived within the
same compound were said to be stooling and vomiting on
getting home, saying that these signs were not part of the symptoms
of side effects if the deworming drugs
“It was discovered that the episode of Gastro enteritis suffered
by the two children suggests a possible water borne disease,
cholera.
“Investigation led by the Ogun State Commissioner for Health
along with officials of the Federal Ministry of Health and
Abeokuta South Local Government, revealed that the children died of
severe case of vomiting and diarrhea.
“The government in its bid to stop the spread has put in place
community sensitisation and advocacy. We have sent Cholera alert to
all health facilities in the state and engaged in prepositioning of
materials for case management in government hospitals,” Coker
noted.
Read more https://swordpress.com.ng/2020/11/21/two-schoolchildren-die-in-ogun-during-deworming-exercise/
The Federal Government on Friday agreed to exempt the Academic
Staff Union of Universities(ASUU) from the Integrated Payroll and
Personnel Information System pending when the university lecturers
will complete the development of its own payment platform- the
University Transparency and Accountability Solution (UTAS).
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The government also agreed to ASUU’s demand to pay their
members’ salary arrears from February to June through the old
salary payment platform – the Government Integrated Financial and
Management Information System.
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After weeks of negotiations and foot – dragging, the government
offered to raise the Earned Academic Allowances to university staff
from N30bn to N35bn and the revitalisation fund from N20bn to
N25bn.
Cumulatively, the government, through the Accountant – General
of the Federation, offered the lectures N65 billion to call off
their eight-month old strike.
The government also shifted grounds on a number of issues,
including the insistence that all the academic staff of the federal
universities must be paid through the IPPIS platform.
Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, who read out the
communique at the end of a seven-hour negotiation with ASUU members
in Abuja, the funds will be shared by all the registered Trade
Unions in the universities after providing necessary evidence of
having earned the allowance.
“Responding to the demand for immediate payment of 50% of the
initial amount allotted for the purpose (revitalisation) which
translates to N110 billion, the FG stated that this is not possible
because of paucity of funds.
“The government, however, offered to pay N25 billion based on
the Memorandum of Action (MoA) of 7th February, 2019 signed with
ASUU or in the alternative, urged ASUU to accept N30 billion with
the reduction in the earlier Earned Allowances. Between the
revitalisation and earned allowances, the FG has offered a
cumulative sum of N65 billion.
“The Accountant-General of the Federation offered to immediately
release N40 billion or in the alternative N35 billion to be shared
by all the registered Trade Unions in the universities after
providing the necessary evidence of having earned the
allowance.
“The FG reiterated that her offer of N40 billion or 35 billion
whichever is accepted by ASUU was for all the universities unions:
ASUU had proposed that N40 billion be paid immediately for all
unions ,” the communique said.
The breakthrough in negotiations is expected to end the
eight-month strike embarked on by the university lecturers.
Before the new offer by government, ASUU had demanded N110
billion for revitalisation which should be paid in tranches.
The union also told the government that the N30 billion EAA was
for only ASUU members, a position the government rejected, citing
lack of funds to meet ASUU’s financial demands.
On his part, ASUU president, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi said that the
union has received the new proposals by the federal government and
that it will go and consult with it’s organs before taking a
position.
“I don’t really have much to say as the minister had said it
all. Government has given us offers and we have promised to go back
to our organs to brief them and then come back to government. We
acknowledge that progress has been made,” he said.
Ogunyemi said that ASUU will need till Friday next week to meet
with its organs before reverting to government.
The meeting was therefore adjourned till next Friday.