A concerned Nigerian Mom on Ebola and resumption of schools

Article below is written by a concerned Nigerian mum named Efe Farinre. It seems a lot of mums are against the resumption of primary and secondary schools on September 22nd despite the Minister of Health saying there's currently no single case of Ebola in Nigeria. Anyway read this mum's concern below and tell us what you think.

I just received a mail confirming that schools will re-open on Monday 22nd September, 2014. After reading it, I felt compelled to put on paper my thoughts since the announcement of same by the Federal Government. One thing that struck me is that I am yet to receive information about confirmed (not advised/suggested) nationwide measures that have been put in place to ensure the safety of our children from the Ebola virus upon resumption at school in two weeks." Continue...

The reason for moving the resumption date forward by three weeks was given as “containment of the Ebola virus in Nigeria”. How does that statement stand in view of the present situation in Port Harcourt?

I returned to Lagos from a week’s trip to Abuja on Friday 5th September, 2014. The first issue I had,which I mentioned to an airport official was that just before boarding the planes (in Lagos and Abuja), passengers (adults and children) are given a rub-down. The officials checking our bodies were wearing gloves. However, the same gloves were worn while touching a good number of people.
The officials were protected, but how about the passengers being touched with the gloves that had been used to touch many others? On arrival at the Abuja airport, the temperature of every passenger was taken before entry was granted into the Federal Capital Territory. Of concern is that on departure from Abuja, this was not the case. Worse still, Lagos State that had the index case of Ebola welcomed us without any precautionary measures of any kind. We simply picked up our bags and walked into the city. With instances where infected people have traveled from one state to another, we should be worried.

It is understandable that we want our children educated, but we need to be reminded that we can only educate the healthy and living. Ebola virus in Nigeria is an unprecedented occurrence that has to be handled as such. “Better safe than sorry” should be the motto here. So far, we have been blessed in the manner that no child has contacted the disease. Children play indiscriminately with one another.
A child of what age can be guaranteed to identify the symptoms of the Ebola and keep away from it? How many times do we have to remind our children not to put their hands in their mouths and cover their mouths when they yawn, cough or sneeze? How do we tell them not to play with their friends as they are used to or not to show concern if one of them gets hurt and is bleeding? How can we really be sure that our 3 to 16 year olds would be safe from Ebola in a place where we cannot control who they come in contact with; a place where they share toilets, eat and play with others. How about our babies at crèche who we can’t even attempt to explain this to and who cannot verbalize their day at “school”?

I am the typical “Nigerian Mum”….ensuring my kids are on top of their school work, home work and leisure activities. At this time, I must pause and realize that prevention is the only option here as there is no cure! If the children have to stay home a little longer while this epidemic is eradicated or contained NATIONWIDE then so be it. If this implies a shorter Christmas break this year or just four weeks of Summer break next year to make up for the lost education time, so be it.
One thing I am sure no parent wants to deal with is the anxiety if a child comes home with a fever. We all know that at school, children love to share all things with one another from the water in their bottles to the flu. Then again, which parents want to have to take their child to the hospital these days?

If the doctor in Port Harcourt could go to work for some days after being infected with Ebola then we should be more concerned. This was an educated person, in fact someone who knew the consequences of his actions more than most, but he still put others at risk. Worst of all, these were colleagues and patients who could not tell from his demeanor that he was sick. They trusted him and could never have imagined that he would expose them to a deadly virus.

To our leaders, I ask what control measures against Ebola have been put in place in ALL schools, particularly the government and state schools? I visited a private school in Abuja and before we could go in, our temperatures where taken. We should remember that even if private schools are well catered for, the children of our drivers, domestic helps and “junior staff” attend public schools.

How many infrared thermometers have been distributed across these schools in Nigeria? Who would be responsible for taking the temperature of EVERYONE going into ALL schools? Since a symptom of Ebola is sudden fever, how often would the temperatures of students need to be taken in the course of the day? What Ebola emergency responses have been set up by location of ALL schools in Nigeria? What awareness has been carried out in the villages and remote areas of the country, where we have schools too? How will adherence to control measures (if and when they are in place) against Ebola in Nigerian schools be monitored, by whom and how frequently? What steep penalties have been put in place for schools that default?

As a parent I want to see action and not hear words! In a country where a nurse can flee quarantine and a primary contact with the index case can evade detection, with both of them traveling across state lines, I demand action from government before our children are asked to return to school. It’s not enough to ask “Ministries of Education in the 36 states of Nigeria to appoint desk officers on Ebola before resumption or that they should ensure that at least two staff in each school (public and private) are trained by appropriate health workers on how to handle any suspected case of Ebola, should in case there’s one or workers should embark on immediate sensitization of teaching and non-teaching staff in schools on preventive measures”, ALL STATE MINISTRIES OF EDUCATION and SCHOOLS (PUBLIC & PRIVATE) MUST be MANDATED and SUFFICENTLY EQUIPPED with ALL RESOURCES to ensure Ebola virus does not hit our children.

In Nigeria, it’s just schools that are closed. In some other African countries, communities are closed-in.

Now is the time to speak up, so that never happens to us. In my opinion, there are still too many unanswered questions and too many checks to be put in place before schools can resume. Parents, let’s preserve our lineage. Government, let’s preserve the future of Nigeria. Together, let’s preserve the lives of ALL Nigerian children.

Bill Gates Donates $50m To Fight Ebola In Africa

As the whole world continue to wage war against the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa, American business magnate, Bill Gates and his wife, Melinda Gates, have joined hands in the fight against the dreaded disease.
Acting in response to the devastating Ebola outbreak in four West Africa nations, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced on Wednesday, 10 September, 2014 that it has pledged $50 million to help combat the epidemic.

Bill Gates in Africa

According to a news release by the foundation, founded by Bill and Melinda in 2000 to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty, the money will be made available to United Nations agencies and international organizations involved in effort to fight Ebola in West Africa and the continent as a whole.
The grant is meant to enable such agencies and national governments to purchase “needed supplies and scale up emergency operations in affected countries,” the foundation said.
It was also gathered that the grant will also be used to develop therapies, vaccines and diagnostic tests to treat patients and prevent further transmission of the often-fatal disease.

“We are working urgently with our partners to identify the most effective ways to help them save lives now and stop transmission of this deadly disease,” said Sue Desmond-Hellmann, CEO of the Gates Foundation. “We also want to accelerate the development of treatments, vaccines and diagnostics that can help end this epidemic and prevent future outbreaks.”

Ebola Outbreak in Africa

It would be recalled that theU.S. and officials of the World Health Organization, WHO, have warned that the Ebola virus is spreading faster than health workers in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone can work to contain it.
According to WHO estimates released Tuesday, it put the West Africa toll from Ebola at more than 2,200 deaths and 4,200 infections, primarily due to a surge of new cases in Liberia.
WHO officials estimate that another 20,000 people could become infected with the virus, which has a mortality rate that can approach 90 percent.
Meanwhile, an American medical missionary being treated at a Nebraska medical center for Ebola infection is showing signs of improvement, according to the hospital.
The patient, Dr. Rick Sacra, 51, of Massachusetts — the third of four U.S. health-care workers infected by the deadly virus in West Africa — arrived Friday at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. He is undergoing treatment in the hospital’s 10-bed isolation unit.
According to Dr. Phil Smith, director of the Nebraska Biocontainment Patient Care Unit, the doctors at the hospital are pleased with Sacra’s progress.
“The physicians “continue to be encouraged by what we’re seeing up to this point,” Smith said.
Also, the fourth American health-care worker who became infected with Ebola in West Africa continued his second day of treatment Wednesday at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. The patient, who was airlifted in on Tuesday, has yet to be identified for privacy reasons.
The Atlanta hospital last month successfully treated two other U.S. medical aid workers who had contracted Ebola in Liberia. Dr. Kent Brantly, 33, and Nancy Writebol, 59, were flown in from Liberia in August for aggressive treatment at Emory. Both recovered and are no longer contagious.

Adamawa Youths, Vigilantes Kill 80 Boko Haram Members

 
In a fight to take over their towns back from Boko Haram, reports coming in from Adamawa state is that about 8o members of the sect have been killed by youths and vigilantes in Muchika  and Madagali local government of the state on Tuesday night, September 9.

According to Punch the dreaded Boko Haram armed with sophiscated weapons who have been wreakingg continuous havoc in the Northern states most especially Adamawa and Borno fled into the rush after running out of arms and ammunitions.

Igbinedion's granddaughter writes about him as he turns 80 today

Sir Gabriel Igbinedion's granddaughter, Osasu, wrote this sentimental message to her grandfather on her Instagram as he turns 80 years old today September 11th. Happy 80th to him.

What Happens After the U.S. Bombs ISIS?

When President Obama lays out details of his war plan against ISIS on Wednesday he’s expected to authorize U.S. airstrikes against the terror group in Syria. But beating ISIS out of the Middle East won't be simple.

On one level, bombing ISIS is easy. The U.S. knows where the group operates. There’s no need for a ten-year hunt like the one for Osama bin Laden. The terror group has two capital cities, Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria. Al-Qaeda never had such an obvious home address.

News analysis

Finding a justification to attack ISIS is also simple. It has threatened to carry out another 9/11, beheaded two American journalists, slaughtered thousands of Iraqis and Syrians and is a danger to U.S. allies in the region. Many in the U.S. military believe ISIS needs to be immediately, and repeatedly, smashed by American drones and warplanes.

But what then happens to the Middle East – this seething cauldron of competing interests, religious passions, ethnic tensions, long memories and oil? The key question now, as before the Iraq invasion, is what happens after the U.S. starts bombing.

ISIS controls a territory roughly the size of Maryland where 8 million people live. If it’s attacked and toppled, who will fill the void? In Iraq, it will be the Kurdish fighters or the Iraqi army. The two don’t trust each other and have different objectives for the territory they control. The Kurds are laying the foundation for a future independent state. The Iraqi army is increasingly an Iranian-guided, Shiite force.

The U.S. spent billions of dollars to build a secular, professional national Iraqi army but failed because, despite all the U.S.-supplied guns, tanks and planes, the Iraqi military fell apart when challenged by a band of terrorists. President Obama wants to reconstitute it now as part of his ISIS strategy. Why would it work this time when it didn’t before, even as U.S. troops were standing next to Iraqi soldiers in Baghdad, shoulder to shoulder?

In Syria, the question is even more vexing. In Iraq, at least, Washington can work with the independence-minded Kurds and unreliable Iraqi soldiers. In Syria, there is no partner on the ground at all. The moderate Syrian rebel group – the Free Syrian Army – that Obama wants to partner with has withered and died. It was starved of weapons and support despite three years of promises from Washington that the aid was coming.

In lieu of moderate rebels, the administration could rely on President Bashar Assad’s army to do mop-up operations once the airstrikes against ISIS begin. But the Syrian regime has been monstrously brutal to its people and is largely responsible for allowing ISIS to grow in the first place. The other ground forces in Syria are Hezbollah, Iran and a panoply of Islamic groups, some of them just as Anti-American as ISIS.

The cost of doing nothing against ISIS is high. The group is vicious, ambitious and, according to every security official I’ve interviewed, should be not allowed to have a safe haven anywhere. However, the cost of trying to dislodge ISIS is thinking about what replaces it. It means reviving moderate rebels, as Obama says he will do, rebuilding the Iraqi army the U.S. already built once and trying to balance competing interests across the Middle East over the future of Iraq and Syria.

Bombing ISIS is easy. It will be popular, at first –- at home and even the Islamic world. Who wouldn't want to bomb a group as odious as ISIS? But filling the vacuum, after ignoring the war in Syria for three years, could easily become the main foreign policy preoccupation for this administration for years to come – and there are few assurances of success.

Senegal’s First Ebola Patient Makes Full Recovery

Dakar (dpa/NAN) – Senegal’s Ministry of Health on Wednesday said the country’s first Ebola patient, a 21-year-old student from Guinea, has made full recovery.

The ministry’s Director of Disease Control, Idrissa Talla, told newsmen in Dakar.

According to the director, the unnamed male student is free of Ebola symptoms and tested negative to the virus on two occasions.

Report said the student arrived in Dakar in August by road from Guinea, where the epidemic first erupted in December 2013.

Senegal is the fifth West African country to be affected by the outbreak.

However, the recovered student is one of three confirmed and suspected cases in the country.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Kashmir families lose everything in floods

Rebuilding isn’t anywhere close to being on the government’s list of short-term goals [Faiz Jamil/ Al Jazeera]

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Hundred shelter in relief centres set up by government after floods washed away homes, possessions, and livelihoods.

Raj Kumar shouts “I won’t go back! I won’t go back!”, in Hindi so loudly that I almost stop the interview so he can calm down.
It’s hasn’t been easy for the 56-year-old, or the four dozen others in the relief centre. Their mud huts on the banks of the river near Jammu city in Indian-administered Kashmir had been hit by flooding before. But on Saturday, the river took everything: homes, possessions, livelihoods. The clothes they were wearing and the donated blankets and the sheets they’re sitting on, are literally all they have left.
Thirty-year-old Neetu (she only has one name), gives me a similar statement. She won’t go back. The water rose chest-high, and she almost lost one of her two children that were with her when the flood water struck. She’s thankful for the food the government is giving them, and for the relief centre, which is usually reserved as a guest house for religious pilgrims. As for what’s next, is something that clouds most of her other thoughts.
“What about my children? What about their schooling, what about clothes for them?” she says. The desperation and utter fear for the future is a shared disillusionment in the group.
Kumar says he was so scared of the river now, even being a grown man, that he would never go near it again.
He wants the government to give him and the others plots so they could rebuild. At this point though, rebuilding isn’t anywhere close to being on the government’s list of short-term goals.

Our team travels north to another part of the Jammu district, where a bridge has been washed out by the waters, cutting off 150,000 people in dozens of villages on the other side. The water has receded somewhat since the rain stopped on Monday. Still, it’s hard imagining the water rising high enough and being strong enough to knock out a chunk of a modern concrete bridge.
Since Saturday, people from the cut-off side have been coming to the edge, shouting that they have no electricity, and their supplies of food, water, and medicines are running low. The army has arrived here half a day before us, and has started building a temporary bridge, which is almost two-thirds done. Boat rescues have already begun.

The commander is polite enough to let us get close to film, but declines being interviewed. He’s just too busy, and there too much to do. Many on our side of the river agree with that assessment.

Karan Singh Raja is also trapped, but on our side. Him, his wife, and daughter were arriving back from a trip to Madhya Pradesh on the weekend when they found the bridge had been washed out, and they were cut off from their home. They’re a lower middle-class family, economically speaking, and are camping out on this side, because they have nowhere else to go, and don’t have the money for a hotel or to travel elsewhere. They’re now waiting for the army to finish the bridge so they can go home.

Since word got out that I was in the region, I’ve been receiving phone calls, texts, and emails from Kashmiris overseas, worried about their relatives. Mobile phone networks are in-and-out in this area, and completely out in other areas since Sunday, so there are no officials numbers on how many people are in trouble.

Estimates in the local media say 400,000 to 600,000 people are still trapped in and around the region. One of the worst affected areas is the capital Srinagar, where the team is travelling to next, and where reports are that many people, hundreds, even thousands, are trapped on the roofs. And with no phone connectivity there, people are worried about their families and friends.

As we leave the area where the army is building the bridge, I can't help but think that these people are the fortunate ones. For them, help is here. For many others, it’s not even in sight. Just then a military helicopter flies overhead. I’m a little more optimistic now.