PINK REPUBLIC/ MY BLOG IS A STORY MARATHON.

        Nasarawa State Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, has signed the State Procurement Bill into law. Engineer Sule signed the Nasarawa State Procurement Bill into law at a brief ceremony, which held at the Government House, on Friday. Speaking shortly after appending his signature to the draft bill, the Governor, described the event as not only historic for the people of the state, but that it signified that Nasarawa State has finally joined the league of elite states in the country, known for their transparency and accountability. Engineer Sule, who was visibly elated, said with the signing of the procurement bill into law, the state is now qualified to be recognized as being transparent and accountable, even at the level of the World Bank. The Governor however noted that signing of the procurement bill alone may not be enough, until government is able to put in place a team that will head the State Bureau for Procurement, that will monitor and enforce the tenets of the

     A housewife, Mrs Nene Fortune Stephens of number 18 Ogundola street, Bariga Lagos is cooling her heels at the Police station for murder. She was said to have tortured her maid, Miss Joy Akom Adole from Benue state to death over a dispute about salary arrears and stealing of Indomie noodles. After realising the girl had given up the ghost, she with the help of her husband hung the poor girl and went to the police with claims that she had committed suicide. The girls relatives who were aware of the acrimony between madam and maid raised an alarm and police investigations showed it was murder. The girl had numerous bodily wounds, her feet were on the ground. The Autopsy report later showed she was hung after she had given up the ghost. Mrs Stephens will soon be in court. Some people are simply heartless. One more photo below.

      A SPEECH OF THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF HEALTH, DR. OSAGIE EHANIRE AT THE PRESIDENTIAL TASK FORCE ON COVID-19( # PTF   OVID19) PRESS BRIEFING ON FRIDAY 24TH APRIL, 2020 PROTOCOL As of today, 24th April, 2020, 981 people in 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have been confirmed to have COVID-19. The 108 additional confirmations are as follows: 78 in Lagos, 14 in FCT, 5 in Ogun, 4 in Gombe, 3 in Borno, 2 in Akwa Ibom and 1 each in Kwara and Plateau. 197 persons have been successfully treated for COVID-19 and discharged home, while 31 deaths have sadly been recorded. 2.​The high number of new cases is due to on-going community transmission and active case search. From our test statistics, the most affected age group among the positives, is 31-40 years while the highest COVID-19 fatality rate is among the older generation above 50 years if age. 3.​We have now deployed COVID-19 starter packs to all tertiary institutions and Federal Medical Centers, to complement

     My dear Lagosians, I am happy to inform you that 10 more COVID19 patients; 3 females and 7 males including 3 foreign nationals, 2 Indians and 1 Filipino have been discharged from our isolation facilities at Yaba and Onikan to reunite with the society. The patients, 3 from Mainland Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba and 7 from Onikan Isolation Centre were discharged today having fully recovered and tested negative for COVID19 in two consecutive test readings. With this, the total number of cases successfully managed and discharged from our isolation facilities has risen to 117. What this shows is that as the number of confirmed cases rise, we are also maintaining a significant discharge rate of our active cases which unequivocally shows that our medical interventions and management of the cases are working. While I am encouraged by the support we have received so far from the good citizens of the State in the battle against COVID19, I urge you all not to relent, keep fai

      The Lagos State Government has shortlisted 10 firms out of the 32 eligible companies that responded to the call for Expression of Interest (EOI) and applied for construction of the Lagos Fourth Mainland Bridge. This disclosure was contained in a joint statement issued on Friday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Works and Infrastructure, Engr. Aramide Adeyoye and the Director-General, Office of Public-Private Partnershi ps, Mr. Ope George. The statement read, “Following the issuance of a request for qualification to the 32 shortlisted and eligible respondents to the Expression of Interest, we are pleased to announce that the Lagos State Government has received a total of 10 responses to the request for qualification (the applications) from the applicants”. “The Lagos State Government will now proceed to evaluate the applications in line with the evaluation criteria set out in the request for qualification and, thereafter, announce the successful pre-qualified bidde

         Happy Birthday to the Publisher of City Peoples magazine who turned 55 years today the 24th of April 2020.I want to use this opportunity to wish him well,long life and prosperity,hip hip,hurray.-Pink Republic.One more photo below.

    The United States government has described the late Chief of Staff to the President, Malam Abba Kyari as a dedicated public servant and respected interlocutor for the American government. In a condolence message to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Tibor Nagy, eulogized the important role played by Kyar i in the repatriation of over $300 million in funds stolen by former head of state, Sani Abacha. ‘‘Kyari was a valued and respected interlocutor for the U.S. government and particularly for our leadership team in Abuja. ‘‘We appreciate working with him on many important matters, including the return to the Nigerian people of over $300 million in funds stolen by Sani Abacha. ‘‘He envisioned the funds going to three geographically disparate infrastructure projects as a way to unite Nigeria economically,’’ Nagy said. The U.S. Assistant Secretary noted that this vision, encapsulated by the late Chief of Staff, was a reflection

     Happy Birthday to Prince Louis who is celebrating his second birthday yesterday.   🎈 🎂 Prince Louis is The Queen’s seventh great-grandchild. These photos were taken by his mother, The Duchess of Cambridge {Kate Middleton } earlier this month.More photos below.

      The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on April 23, 2020 secured the interim forfeiture of a three-bedroom bungalow and a Honda C50 motorcycle with number plate, GBK 283 US, traced to Emmanuel Agana James who is being investigated by the EFCC for fraud. The order was granted by Justice Sampson Itodo of a Benue State High Court, Makurdi following an ex-parte application by the Makurdi Zonal Office o f the EFCC. The Commission’s counsel, G. G. Chia-Yakua, had in the application, dated March 31, 2020, prayed the Court for an Interim Order, forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria the three-bedroom uncompleted bungalow situated on a plot of land with an area measuring 470.421m2 and a scale of 1:500 at plot 3090 Genabe Mega Layout Phase (II), Apir, Makurdi. Also included in the forfeiture order was a Honda (Motorcycle) (Blue Color) C50 with Registration No. GBK 283 US, Engine No. C50E-0075597 and Chasis No. C50-0075192. They were acquired in the name of Jame

      With people reluctant to touch knobs and door handles in public places due to fear of catching the novel coronavirus, Finnish supermarkets have installed hands-free door handles to avoid the spread of germs during COVID-19 outbreak.I will like Nigerian Government to also look into this technology being experimented by the outside world.This technology will really curb the spread as the infected and non infected are sometimes made to open the doors of stores.Once your hand is not infected,you might be free to touch your face. More photos below.

  Volunteers make protective masks at the Lille town hall in Lille, northern France, April 23, 2020. Lille town hall is transformed into a factory of protective masks from the beginning of this week. More than 60 volunteers here are able to produce 1,500 to 2,000 fabric masks each week for local hospitals.More photos below.

      Iran and Britain have started training dogs to sniff out coronavirus infections in humans. The charity who initiated the project in the UK has already trained canines to detect the scent of malaria, cancer and Parkinson’s. If the project works, the detection dogs could be deployed to screen unwitting carriers at public places. Iran has started training sniffer dogs to detect COVID-19 in a training programme supported by the military, according to the semi-official  Mehr  news agency. Iran is currently the most-affected country in the Middle East with almost 86,000 reported cases and Over 5000 recorded deaths, although one parliamentary report suggests the figures are higher. Hamidreza Shiri, the project’s spokesperson, yesterday told  IRNA : “Since dogs can detect odours 20,000 times better than humans, they have already been trained to detect some diseases, including malaria.” The project has been running for two weeks, “In the first phase of the research, we proved that

    He told us he would be back at his desk soon. I believed it. But now, it would never happen. Not tomorrow, not next week, not forever. Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, has gone the way of all flesh. Our last contact was on Friday, March 20, 2020.President Muhammadu Buhari was scheduled to meet with the Chairman of Ecowas Commission, Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, by 3 p.m. Such meetings hold in the diplomatic room of the presidential office complex. The protocol is that aides invited to attend any meeting must be seated 15 clear minutes before the President walked in. I was in the diplomatic room at the required time. A seat had been designated for me, next to that of the Chief of Staff. Few minutes later, Mallam Abba (as he was often called by us) walked in. I rose to greet him. “Femi, how are you? They have said we should not shake hands again,” he responded. Rather jocularly, he extended his right foot. I touched his foot with my own, and we both laughed. Leg-shake

     As Muslims around the globe commence the Holy month of Ramadan fast, the Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has enjoined Muslims to take full advantage of the Holy month with renewed faith in Allah and engagement in only the activities that are in consonance with the essence of Ramadan, and not just abstaining from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset. Governor Abiodun said the fast should purify and spi ritually rejuvenate the souls, serve as a reminder about the tenets of Islam, instil empathy about the conditions of those less fortunate in the society and the need for generosity, and provide a veritable opportunity to earn bountiful rewards for all acts of worship. He urged the Muslims to use this year’s Ramadan, which is peculiar coming at a time of an unprecedented global coronavirus pandemic, to seek divine mercies and intervention to halt the spread of the virus and heal the afflicted. Whilst noting that the virus has regrettably created the need to imp

     ... Cautions Against Stigmatising Facilities With Confirmed Cases The Lagos State Government has urged members of the public to disregard a list of hospitals and health facilities going viral on social media as being exposed to COVID-19 cases in the State. The Executive Secretary, State Health Facility Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA), Dr. Abiola Idowu disowned the fictitious list attributed to the Ministry of Health, stating that HEFAMAA, being the accreditation agency, never issued any statement advising the public not to patronise facilities contained in the document circulated on social media. "This is the handiwork of mischief makers and fake news merchants who are bent on causing panic in the community and eroding the successes recorded in the battle against COVID-19. I urge all residents to disregard the list in its entirety and rely solely on the State Ministry of Health and HEFAMAA for information on the operation of health facilities and manageme

     The Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, donated some relief packages to the Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transporters of Nigeria (ATBOWATON), Lagos State Chapter. The food items were presented to the Association through the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), the regulatory body for water transportation in the State. The gesture according to the General Manager of LASWA, Mr. Damilola Emmanuel, was in continuation of the State Government's efforts to cushion the effects of the lockdown on different clusters of individuals and groups across Lagos metropolis. He expressed the Governor's concern about the effect of the stay-at-home order on the businesses of members of the Association who are largely daily income earners. "This gesture is to assist members of (ATBOWATON) and their families cope with the effects of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on their businesses", the General Manager said.Responding, the National

      Mohammed Atiku-Abubakar, a son of Nigeria’s former vice-president, has being moved to Intensive care unit were he is battling for survival as his case for coronavirus worsen on Wednesday, Ebonyitvnews learnt. Mr Atiku-Abubakar who is 31, tested positive for the virus on March 19. He was subsequently moved to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, where most COVID-19 cases around the Nigerian capital are treated. After undergoing all the necessary medication, including antiretroviral and immune-boosting vitamins, he has continued to test positive 35 days on which is quiet very strange. Medical experts knowledgeable with COVID-19 cases have said the virus can last for 37 days. But Mr Atiku’s son at 35 days, is now the longest carriers of the virus so far in Africa.One more photo below.

     The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Thursday 23rd April 2020 released its daily COVID-19 Case Update which confirmed the first index case in Plateau State. According to the Commissioner of Health Dr. Ninkong Lar Ndam, the COVID-19 test was conducted on one suspected person that came into Jos from Kano on 17th April 2020 and has been on quarantine since arrival . Upon exhibiting symptoms, nasal and oropharyngeal swab was taken and sent to NVRI Vom Laboratory for COVID-19 testing. Sadly, the result which was released on Thursday, 23rd April 2020 returned positive thereby making the patient the State index case. The patient has since been isolated and is stable and good medical condition. The State Surveillance Team has immediately commenced contact tracing to investigate the case further and institute other Public Health measures to curb the spread of the disease in the State. Governor Simon Lalong has implored the public not to panic, but to continue to imbibe good