Tuesday News Na Wah!

Good morning : Here are  things you need to know this morning:according to dailypost

-Based on Federal Government’s request, the United States has announced the cancellation of the training of a battalion of the Nigerian Army. A statement issued from the Information Office of the US Embassy in Abuja, on Monday, said the early termination of the programme was regrettable as the aim was to train the army on counter terrorism.

-President Jonathan’s visit to the Obafemi Awolowo University continues to cause more problems at the institution as six students of the school were injured in a clash between two factions. While one of the factions is reportedly anti-Jonathan, the other is in support of the President.

-Gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram on Sunday night, stormed the Federal Prisons in Ado Ekiti and set their members in prison custody free. Report says the gunmen succeeded in killing one person suspected to be a prison official, and also set freed their injured colleagues in prison.

-Several people were killed in both Damaturu, the Yobe state capital and Maiduguri, the Borno state capital when gunmen invaded both state capitals in what appeared like a coordinated Boko Haram attack. While the Damaturu attack was an attempt to take over the government house, the Maiduguri blast was a suicide attack at the Monday market.

-Justice Ahmed Mohammed on Monday granted an ex parte application seeking leave by the PDP to commence its suit against Tambuwal. PDP is seeking the removal of Speaker of the House Representative, Tambuwal since he is no longer a member of the PDP that sponsored him to the House, having defected to the APC.

-A former Federal Commissioner for Information and South South leader, Chief Edwin Clark has cautioned governors of Rivers and Katsina states, Rotimi Amaechi and Ibrahim Shema to be careful with their political statements that are capable of heating up the polity. While he faulted Governor Chibuike Amaechi’s statement on Wednesday, November 19 during the Salvation rally in Abuja by the All Progressives Congress, APC, he scolded Shema for referring to those in other political parties as cockroaches that must be crushed.

-A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the release of the detained five officials of the All Progressives Congress, terming their continuous detention as illegal. The detained staff include Chinedu Atuche, Fayemi Olaposi, Augustine Onuchukwu, Ebun Ilori and Esther Enem who were arrested by the Department of State Services during a raid of the APC data office in the Ikeja area of Lagos on November 22.

-Ex-militant leader, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, otherwise known as Tompolo, has denied recent allegation levelled against him, that he was behind the abduction of 14 journalists in Gbaramatu Kingdom, Delta State. He said the allegation was not only untrue but misleading. He denied the allegation in a statement he personally issued.

-Report says Mr. Odia Abraham, father of Master Omonigho Abraham, the four-year-old boy, who was attacked by two dogs in Igando area of Lagos State, against experts’ advise discharged his son from the hospital. Odia removed his son from the Burns and Plastics unit of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, where he was receiving specialist care, insisting that healthy granulation tissue growing on his son’s skull must not be removed.

-Report says wife of the Vice President, Namadi Sambo, Amina, is currently mourning as she reportedly lost few of her family members in the multiple explosions that hit the Kano Central Mosque on Friday last week. Mrs Sambo hails from Kano state.

600,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in Kaduna

The Kaduna State chapter of Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, on Monday announced that no fewer than 600,000 persons are living with HIV/AIDS in the State.

The network blamed the state government over what it termed as non-challant attitude towards the welfare of its members.

According to the network, failure of the state government to rise and respond to this call within reasonable time, would escalate the number of affected persons at geometric rate, which may not be good for the economy and socio-political status of the state.

Expressing his disappointment on Monday, the state Coordinator of the Network, Mr. Benjamin David Angboson, said, “Kaduna State was having prevalence of 9.2 per cent from initial 4.2 per cent, indicating that over 600,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS in Kaduna State, according to NACA 2012 reports.”

According to him, people living with the virus were now spending between N8,000 and N8,500 to access the drugs on their own.

“Imagine someone who is not working and has been struggling on how to get what to eat and now has to combine the money for the Retro Viral Drugs. That shows such a fellow will go into dubious business include prostitution and the virus will continue to increase at geometric rate.

“We are also looking at the area of skill acquisition programme to equip people. We learn that the state governor has been training people under SURE-P and applied. Since then, four months now, our own has not been approved,” the coordinator stated.

Over 15,000 persons living with HIV/AIDS in Port Harcourt – Expert

Though the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Rivers State may have reduced from 3.1 percent to 2.1 percent, Port Harcourt, the state capital is still being threatened with the spread of the virus.

This is even as more revelations emerged from the commemoration of the World AIDS day, on the rising case of gay practice in the State.

Coordinator of HIV and AIDS management at the Braithwait Memorial specialist Hospital, Dr. Nyemelem Michael told DAILY POST that the hospital has about fifteen thousand HIV/AIDS patients.

He disclosed that five thousand of the figure were currently on the anti-retroviral drugs, stressing that the problem of stigmatization had played role in scaring AIDS patients from visiting the hospital.

According to Michael, “If you are talking about those who we are seeing that are positive in Port Harcourt, we have close to 15,000 people. Out of that figure, only about 5,000 are currently taking the anti-retroviral drugs”,

Meanwhile, Chief Medical Director of the Rivers state Hospitals Management Board, Doctor Okikere Iragunimah, who represented the state Commissioner for health, said the state government was committed to winning the war against HIV/AIDS.

“I have to tell you that Rivers state government is committed to winning the war”. he declared.

However, persons leaving with HIV/AIDS had mentioned stigmatization as the major challenge facing them.

An AIDS patient, Peace Elijah, who shared her experience with our correspondent, said the issue of stigmatization was still very high in Rivers State, adding that it was worse than the virus itself.

Elijah, who is also the coordinator of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, said expert clients were being used to help curb the issue of stigmatization.

She noted that though HIV is a permanent virus, persons living with AIDS could still live a normal life.

She said, “As for me as a PLA, HIV has made me to have wonderful friends. When I checked my status, I was privileged to disclose it to some persons.

“Until you accept HIV as you accept diabetes and high blood pressure in our society, that is the only way you can cope well with it”.