Danielle Steel Shares Isolation Experience by Francisca Ogar

Danielle Steel Shares Isolation Experience by Francisca Ogar

Best selling author Danielle Steel has shared her isolation experience in the ongoing pandemic.

The Author who shared her feelings in a Facebook post called on everyone to hang in there.

“I have not left my apartment in 7 weeks. I have not jogged, gone for walks, been in the fresh air, seen my loved ones, family or friends, I’m isolated and alone far from home. I’m working and finding it incredibly difficult. Sometimes I’m scared, sometimes I’m okay. After I watch the news, I’m anxious for days. I wake up in the night and don’t sleep much. I talk to my kids a lot. I’m worried much of the time about my kids. I pray. I walk in the house and try to keep busy, I cry easily and am not a crier usually. And it means the world to me when I hear from someone I love. This is HARD, for everyone, and for some people more than others, depending on the circumstances they are confined in. I’m comfortable, I have food, I can’t complain, but no matter where you are, this is tough, and it is stretching out with no idea for anyone when it will end. So, Friends, we’re in the hard part now. The lonely part. The endurance part. The part where you think you’ve run as hard and as far as you can, and you find out that you have to run twice as far as you thought, over rough terrain, with obstacles that look insurmountable. But there’s no turning back now. We can’t give up. We just have to keep going. And we WILL get to the finish line!!! Each one of us is tougher than we thought we were. We will prevail and the crisis WILL end!!! And we’re saving lives and stopping the contagion while we stay confined. A REALLY worthwhile cause!!”

Containing Intensity of Covid-19 by Halting Community Transmissiom by Dr Emem Omokaro

Containing Intensity of Covid-19 by Halting Community Transmissiom by Dr Emem Omokaro

The increasing reports of confirmed cases and deaths, long after the closure of international and inter-state boarders, reveal the glaring GAPS in the containment and mitigation strategies for COVID-19.

Increasing number of cases is proof of the intensity of coronavirus activity, where most people are still in doubt of the reality .

Infections are now showing up as sustained community transmission not just as common occurence, where hitherto, isolated cases were limited to import by arrivals from abroad and transmission to their contacts. Now, we see no new travels, yet the increasing incidence of infections, across the country.

Halting community transmission of the virus, through testing, isolation and contact tracing, is the mechanism for reducing infections; keeping to the minimum, the need for hospitalization and therefore reducing the pressure on the health system. Halting community transmission is to large extent, immobilizing the virus .

However, in Nigeria, the steep rise in the numbers of infections show that govt planners, community organizers and all concerned, must engage in very aggressive CAMPAIGNS, like it is done during political electioneering by politicians. Public enlightenment must be conducted from door to door, ward to ward within local governments , senatorial districts etc , to Inform & Educate the people about the virus. The intention should be firstly, to WIN their TRUST and then the community’s compliance.

It has been confirmed that imposing restrictions without people understanding why, would be perceived as punitive and as infringement of freedoms. Where , restrictions are imposed without proper strategies for the immediate meeting of the need for support services and proportional palliatives, there is a likelihood for a push back. Where for instance, governments on subnational levels disrupt society by closing markets etc far ahead of distributing critically needed provisions to support the community, the need for self preservation by staying indoors during the lockdown, may fail to win the argument against the need for self preservation through guarantee of FOOD Security.

Commuity transmissions have been fettered where governments have delayed the setting up of infrastructure for testing , Isolation, contact tracing and Lockdown. Some State governments are seen to have eased the lockdown for commercial and religious purposes and, have given permission in a few instances, to allow convergence of large crowds

Large crowds have also been noticed, when distributing food items in most cases, without monitoring to ensure, the crowd observe Social distancing.

Mass gatherings magnify the spread of infectious diseases within communities. It is a silent transmission.

The National Primary Health Care Agency working in collaboration with National Orientation Agency is critical in the promotion of public health measures in all local languages especially in the city slums and rural areas

Stopping Community transmission would demand that community based actions become more extensive and aggressive. States and Local governments, should be seen to utilize every social, political, traditional and religious leadership organ on multilevel and across all sectors to mobilize, sensitize and unify the call to members of the community to collective community action to contain and mitigate the virus.This is critical, especially given that cultural values, living circumstances, spiritual inclinations, and multi- dimensional poverty, may contradict and disrupt compliance.

States are signing Executive orders for the compulsory use of masks in public places. The intention is to contain transmission of

infections. Some countries where the use of masks have been found effective in reducing the spread of coronavirus, are known to have , deployed national strategies to promote, educate and in some cases ensure the supply of the proper masks to its citizens. The rate of literacy and engagement of the citizens in such countries have been confirmed to be among the determinants of the safety dividend. Information on the types of masks, the proper treatment of the mask when worn; keeping ones’ hands from adjusting the mask and probably picking up infections, should be the content of public enlightenment discours. Also the hygiene of taking off and disposing of the masks and the hygiene of maintenance where the mask in use, is not disposable.

Public enlightenment is required to inform about the protocol of physical distancing, hand washing & respiratory hygiene to be combined with the facial masks and environmental cleaning. Persons living in remote and isolated communities should be reached.

This is the time to SENSITIZE and EDUCATE every community in order to ENHANCE understanding of the USE of the facial mask in all local languages.

Otherwise- the wrong use of the Masks might be a source of Community Transmission.

It is unfortunate that older persons & others with underlying medical conditions, as we are also beginning to see in Nigeria shall bear the brunt of Delayed or Failed measures

Tom Hanks & Rita Diagnosed with coronavirus

Tom Hanks & Rita Diagnosed with coronavirus

HOLLYWOOD A-listers have rushed to support Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson after they tested positive for coronavirus.The Castaway actor, 63, said the couple started to feel tired and suffered from “body aches” while filming in Australia before the diagnosis.The couple sought medical advice and tested positive for the deadly bug. They are now in isolation in a Gold Coast hospital.After telling Instagram and Twitter about their diagnosis, some of Hollywood’s biggest stars have rallied around Tom and Rita to offer their support.His brother Colin, 42, took to Twitter shortly afterwards to thanks fans for their support.The actor wrote: “We are so grateful for the outpouring of support from everyone.”My parents are receiving excellent care in Australia and are doing well (and in good spirits) given the circumstances.”Despite the fact that I’m in LA and haven’t seen them in over three weeks, we have been in constant contact and am confident that they will make a full recovery.”Tom has been in Australia filming an upcoming Elvis Presley biopic when he started experiencing symptoms of the virus.He said he felt like he had a cold, while his wife Rita, also 63, suffered from chills. They have both tested positive for coronavirus, he said on Instagram.In a statement, he added: “Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks’ will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?'”We’ll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!”Tom, a two-time Oscar winner and star of films including Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan and The Post, is the highest profile Hollywood figure to be diagnosed with the Covid-19 virus, which is sweeping the world.Moments before Tom posted to Instagram, Donald Trump addressed the US and announced a host of new measures, notably suspending all travel from Europe, excluding the UK, for 30 days starting from Friday.The entertainment industry is also reeling from the outbreak and a host of major events have been cancelled.Source: The Sun

Covid-19: Tobacco Smokers at Higher Risk- WHO by Francisca Ogar

Covid-19: Tobacco Smokers at Higher Risk- WHO by Francisca Ogar

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that smoking can increase ones chances of contracting the coronavirus.

In a tweet on its verified handle, the WHO on Wednesday warned that experts have said smokers with COVID-19 are likely to have more serious conditions that could lead to death.

“Smoking damages your lungs and other parts of your body, and it makes you more vulnerable to #COVID19 infection,” the agency tweeted.

It is the right time to No smoking symbol quit smoking for a safer and better health

“The tobacco industry is creating controversy & confusion about the risk of nicotine & tobacco product use and #COVID19.

“FACT: Health experts have warned that smokers with COVID-19 likely suffer more serious conditions that could lead to premature death.”

It claimed that “Tobacco lobbyists have tried to manipulate #COVID19 policy-making to get tobacco shops listed as ‘essential’ & offer free delivery of tobacco products to people in quarantine.

“Smokers likely face more severe symptoms if infected, leading to hospitalizations & premature

Source: Channels TV News

Football Must Think Creatively in This Pandemic_Raphael Ogar

Football Must Think Creatively in This Pandemic_Raphael Ogar

Football in England must think creatively or risk dire consequences, including civil war within clubs, says Fleetwood chairman Andy Pilley.

With football suspended as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, there is concern about the ability of clubs, especially in the lower leagues, to survive financially.

“I don’t think anything is off the table. We have to evolve,” Pilley told BBC Radio 5 Live . “Football has to think creatively and be inventive here, otherwise we run a real risk.”

He added: “We are stuck in our ways and have become very traditional, be it with dates or certain rules continuing because they always have done.

“But what is important here? It is not who achieves sporting success this year but having a healthy, long-term sustainable football pyramid.

“Our game is admired across the world and it is in a critical situation. We must find a way to save it.

“If it means pressing the reset button then that is what we must do because we don’t want to end up with another Bury or Macclesfield or Bolton situation.”

Pilley’s short-term hope is for a financial rescue package from either the Premier League, Professional Footballers’ Association or borrowed against future income.

his longer-term suggestions would prompt greater change to the structure of the English game.

Source: BBC

Queen Elizabeth Celebrates 94 Without Fanfare by Jessy Samuel Ejah

Queen Elizabeth Celebrates 94 Without Fanfare by Jessy Samuel Ejah

Today is the 94th birthday of Britain’s monarch, Queen Elizabeth II but the traditional gun salute was called off this year due to the coronavirus crisis.

This year’s celebration of the queen’s birthday is void of pomp and parade which usually features a 21-gun salute fired by the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery from either Hyde Park or Green Park, followed by a 62-gun salute at the Tower of London by the Honourable Artillery Company

The monarch was said to be marking the occasion with her 98-year-old husband, Prince Philip, at Windsor Castle, west of London. The couple, whose age puts them in a high-risk category for COVID-19, have been following the government’s lockdown orders and maintaining social distancing rules during the pandemic.

To celebrate the monarch, the Royal Family today released home videos of the Queen, as a young Princess Elizabeth, playing with her younger sister Margaret. The clips show Elizabeth playing with a pram as a toddler, on a seesaw and playing in a garden and dancing on a yacht with Margaret.

Other senior royals have been housebound at their residences around Britain, so publicly wished the queen a happy birthday on social media instead.

“Wishing Her Majesty The Queen a very Happy 94th Birthday,” her son and heir to the throne Prince Charles and his wife Camilla posted on Twitter alongside a selection of photographs of his mother through the decades.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall’s Twitter account also sent its birthday wishes, with a collection of touching archive photos of Charles and his mother.

Buckingham Palace said on Saturday that the queen would not celebrate her birthday with a traditional gun salute given Britain’s struggles to contain COVID-19.

The country is among the worst-hit in the world by the virus, registering nearly 17,000 deaths in hospitals and almost 125,000 cases to date.

“Her Majesty was keen that no special measures were put in place to allow gun salutes as she did not feel it appropriate in the current circumstances,” the palace said.

Source: Guardian

President Buhari Loses Personal Bodyguard by Jessy Samuel Ejah

President Buhari Loses Personal Bodyguard by Jessy Samuel Ejah

President Muhammadu Buhari’s has lost his personal bodyguards, Warrant Officer Lawal Mato.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, confirmed that Mato died on Tuesday after three years of struggling with diabetes.

According to him, the military officer had been working with President Buhari for many years before he won the election in 2015.

The President who mourned the officer, described him as a “very thorough, trustworthy and dependable soldier who carried out his duty with diligence and focus”.

He prayed that Allah would ease Mato’s passage to paradise and grant his family, as well as the government and people of Jigawa State the fortitude to bear the loss.

Shehu said Mato was part of a team restored to President Buhari as personal security by late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

He added that the late warrant officer had been off full duty for three years, treating diabetes

Trump Admin May Redirect WHO Funds to Samaritan’s Purse Red cross by Jessy Samuel Ejah

Trump Admin May Redirect WHO Funds to Samaritan’s Purse Red cross by Jessy Samuel Ejah

The White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) may redirect funds from the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) to charitable groups such as Samaritan’s Purse and the Red Cross, the New York Post reported Thursday.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump ordered a 60-day hold on U.S. funding to the W.H.O., asserting the organization failed to vet information about the novel coronavirus coming out of China, and ultimately covered up the seriousness of its effects because of its friendly relationship with that nation.

The New York Post noted the funds would be redirected to charities, such as the Red Cross, and Christian organization Samaritan’s Purse, led by its president, Rev. Franklin Graham:

An administration official told The Post that efforts were underway to redirect “every single pot of money” from the WHO to other organizations. Large international relief organizations already are in many cases doing similar work, they said.

The administration official said that the White House Office of Management and Budget would send any necessary notifications to Congress when there are decisions to redirect funds, though in some cases that may be unnecessary

Source:Brietbart

Africa:THE NEW FRONTIER FOR GLOBAL STRATEGIC POWER PLAY. By Jessy Samuel Ejah

Africa:THE NEW FRONTIER FOR GLOBAL STRATEGIC POWER PLAY. By Jessy Samuel Ejah

“The continental experience in respect to other continents has been one of exploitation pre-and post-colonial era, an event that must never be allowed to ever happen again.” In the past few decades, the African continent has tried to assert herself in the global scheme of things as they push to end the era of military dictatorship and authoritarian regimes in the continent, an optimism that was greatly welcomed across the globe which did open the door for investment in the financial, Infrastructure and oil and gas sectors .However, while the continent was enjoying this new optimism she quickly found herself caught up in the massive corruptions, and ethnicity wars that raised the insecurity level to the highest, the rise of kidnapping and political unrest followed swiftly.

The situation became unacceptable as years went by leading to a great reduction in investment from Europe and America with companies leaving in great numbers. At these times, the tag of insecurity and high risk for business Investment became the continents label creating a big vacuum. However, the vacuum created as a result of these meant someone had to fill the gap created by the Western world to save Africa’s economy with loss of jobs in their numbers, and that was China.

The Chinese came in with so much investment funds not minding the high risk involved, in the process bringing hope and some form of relief to countries in the continent, focusing on infrastructural development and other forms of investments that brought jobs instantaneously.

However, in the past decade, the Chinese vastly increased her Involvement in Africa most significantly raising eyebrows across the Western world and causing an unease amongst the powerbrokers in the capital of Brussels and Washington prompting them to review their strategy on their involvement in Africa especially at this crucial and critical time when China is strategically using her influence in the continent to her geopolitical advantage aside the overbearing consequences of their investment on the citizens of Africa, both economically and politically which will be fully addressed in the next article.Though China loaned a whopping $95.5bn to the continent between 2000 and 2015, researchers at the China Africa Research Initiative found most of this was spent addressing Africa’s infrastructure gap. Some 40% of the Chinese loans paid for power projects, and Another 30% went on modernizing transport infrastructure. The loans were at comparatively Low interest rates and with long repayment periods.

CHINESE PERSPECTIVE

China overtook the US as Africa’s largest trading partner for several years now but in recent times their strategy of helping to end Africa’s international marginalisation seems to be back firing significantly with the anti-china sentiments rising across the continents strategically, Especially as regards Chinese focus on oil, which has proven to have mutual advantage for China And African state elites at the expense of their people.Secondly, offering aid without preconditions, China has presented an attractive alternative to conditional Western aid and gained valuable diplomatic support to defend its international interests. However, a generally asymmetrical relationship differing little from previous African–Western patterns, alongside support of authoritarian governments at the expense of human rights, make the economic consequences of increased Chinese involvement in Africa Mixed at best.“Does the risk for African borrowers relate to the project’s profitability? “Will they Be able to generate enough economic activity through these projects to repay these loans? Or are the projects seen more as ribbon-cutting opportunities? A very legit question so many people are asking today including the reputable CARIDIRECTOR DEBORAH BRAUTIGAM. In fact, in a wider context and global perspective, the view from the European and American capital sees Chinese strategy in Africa as a long-term ambition for world domination both politically and economically using the continent as a platform to forge that quest, a suspicion which has seen them rationally lending support to voices of local pro-democracy or environmental movements that label some Chinese ventures in Africa as purposive plunders of resources in poorly governed and mismanaged African Moreover, smart Asian economic power houses like Japan, India and South Korea whose Large population is in ardent search for agricultural, energy sources and raw materials were clever to act swiftly by following China and expanding their economic influence too in the continent leaving Europe and America scrambling to find their foot back in the continent. Nevertheless, in the past three years the continent is quickly becoming the new frontier for geo-political power tussle between the West and the Chinese and their allies, Russia and now Turkey, whose President is pushing to have influence in the Sahara. For the Russians, they created an economic park called The BRIGS ECONOMIC FORUM and just last year started creating a platform for AFRICA–RUSSIA economic park which I believe will lead further to Military park which in my view must not be allowed to happen else, we will be seeing a new Africa’s re-colonization that will enhance authoritarianism amongst political elites since none of the aids or economic assistance usually proposed by China and her allies (especially world power Russia) comes with no pre-conditions.Africa’s time is now, the post Brexit Britain is eager to comeback, including the more pragmatic Americans, all ready to swing in but the question remains, how can the continent harness this global presence to her future advantage without being recolonized or short-changed by theVery political elites who are selling their interest to China with Russia waiting in the wings. Few examples of such greed, shown by the political elites is in Nigeria, where the elites whoare currently in power mostly from the northern part of the country supported by few Southern elites did use the mineral resources from the south as collateral for long-term Loans to develop the north while the motherland where the resources came from are left underdeveloped. Most tragically, the elites in power had made it more difficult for citizens to speak out with widespread threats to the lives, properties, and businesses which some of us had experienced in the past while others lost their lives in the process.Therefore, it will be appropriate for like minds and top technocrats across the continent both at home and in diaspora to work together, joining forces with other interest groups worldwide to create an impeccable structure at the very heart of this new surge for the continent, beyond the current existing non-political think -tanks that will generate ideas for the leaders on the continent driven by the people not by the government or any of her surrogates that is centred on “knowledge sharing and creative thinking. Our time to boast our global influence is knocking at our doorsteps! Let’s stand up and be counted! Are we up for the task ahead?

Aguilar to Join Man City 2021

Aguilar to Join Man City 2021

Manchester City have agreed a deal to sign 16-year-old Peruvian defender Kluiverth Aguilar from Alianza Lima.

Aguilar will remain with his current club until he turns 18 in May 2021.

City officials said the right-back is almost certain to begin his career with the Blues on loan away from the Etihad Stadium and at present would not qualify for a work permit.

Alianza described it as “the most important transfer of Peruvian football to Europe in recent years”.

Aguilar said: “My goal is to become an outstanding player in the first team,.”

Aguilar made his first-team debut in November after being picked by Peru for the South American Under-17 Championships earlier in 2019, when he was 15.

Source BBC