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Amidst Coronavirus, Ogun Health Workers Underpaid By Tao Bakare

Tao Bakare

Tao Bakare

As the global pandemic continue to hold the world to ransom, nations all over the world continue to search for the ‘messiah vaccine’. Despite the fact that Covid-19 has successfully exposed even the supposed perfect and big countries in terms of inadequate health facilities, Cuba have come to the rescue.

However, Nigeria remains wanted in the battle for cure as the President have never for once failed to disappoint Nigerians.

Meanwhile, Ogun State, in the South-West region, which is one of the hotspot of the virus, has failed woefully in responding to the deadly situation.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic in Nigeria, Ogun State has recorded over three cases, while the state government has done almost nothing, but, mere cheap talk on radio, television and print. The governor has announced several millions of naira, while in reality, nothing is there to show for it.

Recently, Governor Dapo Abiodun announced that the state is working on an isolation centre in Ikenne Local Government. Good news, I am writing this piece from Ikenne right now, there is nothing in Ikenne. I call on Governor Dapo Abiodun to prove me wrong.

Also, with the state housing one of the major (but poorly funded) teaching hospitals in Nigeria, Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, one would think that the state will be more active in response to the pandemic. But the fact is that Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital cannot even boast of a broken ventilator, let alone a functional one. Shame on the state government.

It is also sacrosanct to note that the welfare of health workers in Ogun State especially at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital is nothing to write home about. Apart from the fact that these ‘warriors’ have to work restless shifts of about 10 hours everyday, they do not even have enough items to discharge their duties properly. The sad news is, it is in OOUTH that nurses run out of face masks, gloves and sanitiders amidst a deadly virus.

Another major point of call is the remuneration of these health workers. The administration of former governor, Ibikunle Amosun, paid just four months out of the nine months arrears owed workers by the Gbenga Daniel regime still the present regime of Dapo Abiodun continue to hover around the same trend.

Of course, it is reasonable enough that amidst this pandemic, the welfare of our health workers should be held paramount by any reasonable government. But in Dapo Abiodun’s Ogun State, the shadow is the reality.

On arrival of Dapo Abiodun’s administration, thousands of promises were made to the people but a lot has remained unfulfilled.

The situation in Ogun State is no different from scenes in horror movies as both doctors and nurses are lamenting underpayment and little or no remuneration at all.

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April 2, 2020
Legal Issues Arising From Management Of Covid-19 Patients By Ahmed Adetola-Kazeem

A lot of legal issues are bound to arise as an aftermath of the outbreak of Coronavirus otherwise referred to as COVID-19. There is therefore a need to shed light on some of the issues that may arise and how to navigate them. This article will x-ray the rights of patients, the rights of health workers and the basic minimum obligations of the government.

The Code of Medical Ethics in Nigeria 2008 lists acts that constitute professional negligence. Rule 29.4 of the Code outlines some of these acts as follows:-

a)      Failure to attend promptly to a patient requiring urgent attention when the practitioner was in a position to do so;

b)     Manifesting incompetence in the assessment of a patient;

c)      Making an incorrect diagnosis particularly when the clinical features were so glaring that no reasonable skillful practitioner could have failed to notice them;

d)     Failure to advise, or proffering wrong advice to a patient on the risk involved in a particular operation or course of treatment, especially if such an operation or course of treatment is likely to result in serious side effects like deformity or loss of organ, or function;

e)      Failure to obtain the informed consent of the patient before proceeding on any surgical procedure or course of treatment when such consent was necessary;

f)       Making a mistake in treatment e.g. amputation of the wrong limb, carelessness that results in the termination of a pregnancy, prescribing the wrong drug, or dosage in error for a correctly diagnosed ailment, etc;

g)     Failure to refer, or transfer a patient in good time, when such a referral or transfer was necessary;

h)     Failure to do anything that ought reasonably to have been done under any circumstance for the good of the patient;

i)       Failure to see a patient as often as his medical condition warrants or to make appropriate comments in the case notes of the practitioner’s observations and prescribed treatment during such visits. It also includes failure to communicate with the patient or with his relatives as may be necessary with regards to any developments, progress or prognosis in the patient’s condition.

Rule 11.2 of the 2008 Code of Medical Ethics in Nigeria provides that, “A physician shall preserve absolute confidentiality on all he knows about his patient even after the patient has died.”

             Rule 44 of the Code of Medical Ethics has extensive provisions on Confidentiality and when disclosure of information can be made. The Rule provides in part that:

“Disclosure of information on the patient by the doctor can only be made following an informed consent of the patient in writing. It is clear that the ethic covers even such information as induced abortion, venereal disease, attempted suicide, concealed birth and drug dependence but would exclude situations in which a discretionary breach of confidentiality is necessary to protect the patient or the community from danger and this must be made clear to the patient at the time of the confidential disclosure. Where statutory notification of disease is involved, the consent of the patient is not required.”

            Confidentiality: To Disclose Identity Of Covid-19 Patients Or Not To Disclose?

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. Most people infected with the COVID-19 will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.[1]

The Federal Ministry of Health confirmed the first case of COVID-19 in Nigeria on the 27th of February 2020. It is the case of an Italian citizen who works in Nigeria and returned from Milan, Italy to Lagos, Nigeria on the 25th of February 2020. In reaction to the report, the social was divided between those who want the name of the Italian disclosed and those that preferred it remains confidential. The outcry was even more when the Chief of Staff to the President tested positive according to reports from various media houses[2], but the Minister of Health decided to keep mute on the identity of the President’s aide who contacted the virus, citing confidentiality.

It will ordinarily be wrong to disclose the medical status of someone infected with COVID-19, for instancethe case of the Italian who was the index case. However in view of the proviso to Rule 44 of the Code of Medical Ethics 2008 which provides that a discretionary breach of confidentiality is necessary in order to protect the community from danger, I am of the view that the test results of popular figures who hold strategic offices like the Chief of Staff to the President or a Governor must be disclosed to guaranty public safety. This is necessary in view of the countless number of people from all works of life they come in contact with on a daily basis. It will be correct to have made their status public in the overriding interest of the public, since it will enable those who have come in contact with them isolate, just like we have seen in the cases of the British Prime Minister, the Bauchi State Govenor, Prince Charles, the First Lady of Canada and many more. We must commend those who announced their status in public themselves-it is the best thing to do in the interest of humanity

The World Health Organization (WHO) provides additional guidelines for the management of coronavirus patients specifically.[3]

Health workers should:

•follow established occupational safety and health procedures, avoid exposing others to health and safety risks and participate in employer-provided occupational safety and health training;

•use provided protocols to assess, triage and treat patients;

•treat patients with respect, compassion and dignity;

•maintain patient confidentiality;

•swiftly follow established public health reporting procedures of suspect and confirmed cases;

•provide or reinforce accurate infection prevention and control and public health information, including to concerned people who have neither symptoms nor risk;

•put on, use, take off and dispose of personal protective equipment properly;

•self-monitor for signs of illness and self-isolate or report illness to managers, if it occurs;

•advise management if they are experiencing signs of undue stress or mental health challenges that require support interventions; and

•report to their immediate supervisor any situation which they have reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to life or health.

Doctors and health workers in Nigeria must endeavor to digest the guidelines in the Code of Medical Ethics as well as the WHO Guidelines for management of Coronavirus victims and ensure they work strictly by their provisions. A breach of these duties have dire consequences.

Options Available To Covid-19 Patients Who Are Victims Of Medical Negligence

A Coronavirus patient who has suffered medical negligence has a number of options:

1. He could file a complaint with the regulatory body (e.g. the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, in the cases involving a Doctor). The Doctor will in the first instance be investigated by the Medical and Dental Practitioners Investigation Panel, after which he will be tried by the Medical and Dental Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal. If found culpable, the Doctor may be warned, suspended from practicing for a period not exceeding 6 months or in very serious cases, have his name can be removed from the Register of Medical Practitioners. The Medical and Dental Practitioners’ Disciplinary Tribunal does not award monetary damages.

2. A suit can be filed against the Medical Doctor, the Hospital, Agency or Government in the High Court for Medical Negligence and monetary damages will be awarded if the Defendant(s) are found culpable.

      3. If there is an element of Crime, a report could be made to the Police who would conduct Criminal Investigation and where the investigation reveals gross negligence, recklessness or wanton disregard for life of the victim, the police can prosecute or forward the case file to the office of the Attorney General of the State for possible prosecution in deserving cases.

A Need To Do More For Doctors And Other Professionals In The Health Sector

Health workers are at the front line of any outbreak response and as such are exposed to hazards that put them at risk of infection with an outbreak pathogen (in this case COVID-19). Hazards include pathogen exposure, long working hours, psychological distress, fatigue, occupational burnout, stigma, and physical and psychological violence.

During the outbreak of Ebola more than 500 health care workers died in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra-Leone alone. We also lost some of our finest doctors and health workers to the disease in Nigeria, the most prominent being Dr. Stella Adadevoh, who is credited with having curbed a wider spread of the Ebola virus in Nigeria by placing the index patient, Patrick Sawyer, in quarantine despite pressures from the Liberian government. As we speak, The coronavirus is waging a war of attrition against health care workers throughout the world, but nowhere is it winning more battles at the moment than in Italy and in Spain, where protective equipment and tests have been in severely short supply for weeks. In Spain 13.6% (6500) of those affected with the coronavirus are health workers and in Italy 10% (7400) of those affected with the virus are health workers. [4] In New York dozens of health workers have been affected with the virus, while hundreds are in quarantine.[5] According to reports filtering in as the time of concluding this article, three health workers have been infected with COVID-19 in Abuja, Nigeria.[6]

Human Rights Watch research into health system collapse in Hungary and Venezuela suggests the nations’ mismanaged, underfunded, and understaffed public healthcare system is poorly equipped to handle a COVID-19 outbreak. Patients and medical experts described a lack of basic hygiene protocol, lack of isolation rooms, and a shortage of health professionals, doctors and nurses, and medical supplies in general.

The situation is not too different in Nigeria at the moment and except something drastic is done we might be witnessing a devastating effect of the pandemic. Nigeria’s, public health capacity has been diminished by large scale public sector corruption. Medical personnel lack surgical masks and local supplies have been diverted and shipped to other markets partly due to corruption. Many states are ill-prepared to combat the impeding surge in patients. A senior health worker with a government hospital in Abuja, in an interview with Sahara Reporters, lamented the lack of quality Personal Protective Equipment for them, adding that government must invest in the protection of health workers at the frontline of the battle against the virus. He said, “The unfortunate thing is that the government is not providing us with what to work with. It is sad that our PPE are not up to the world standard and can be penetrated by viruses. Some of us (health workers) have to use our personal funds to purchase gloves as we do not trust the ones government supplied. Nigerians should please remember us in their prayers and government should provide us with what we really need to work.” [7]

There was report that in Bauchi State a Coronavirus patient rejected the isolation centre at the Bauchi Specialist Hospital and went back home while describing it as “too dirty”.[8]

It is disappointing to hear that the hazard allowance for doctors and health workers is N5,000 per month in Nigeria. The amount is very paltry compared to the risks and the attendant emotional and psychological stress suffered by the health-care workers (HWCs) particularly during monumental outbreaks like this. Unfortunately, when a patient is mismanaged, these doctors and health workers bear the burden of paying huge compensation and sometimes losing their jobs. More importantly, the brain-drain in the health sector is monumental, almost all my friends who are doctors, work abroad. Unfortunately, there are concerted efforts by the US Government to engage foreign Doctors to further fortify its health work force as COVID-19 ravages. Many young Nigerian doctors are already considering the offers because the Nigerian government has paid little attention to their welfare and the welfare of the general health workforce. To stop the exodus of our doctors, who are already in short supply, the government must act fast by improving their welfare packages in line with acceptable international standards.

The psychological needs of doctors and health workers are also often ignored. Unsafe working conditions contribute to health worker attrition in many countries due to work-related illness and injury and the resulting fear of health workers of occupational infection, including from HIV and Tuberculosis. The 2006 World Health Report – Working Together for Health reported on a severe health workforce crisis in fifty-seven countries, most of them in Africa and Asia. [9]

Protecting the occupational health of health workers is critical to having an adequate workforce of trained and healthy health personnel. Governments at the Federal and State levels are urged to do more by complying fully with the World Health Organization’s guidelines regarding the Rights of Health Workers while combating COVID-19. Some of the rights are:

·         assume overall responsibility to ensure that all necessary preventive and protective measures are taken to minimize occupational safety and health risks;

·         provide information, instruction and training on occupational safety and health, including; Refresher training on infection prevention and control(IPC); and Use, putting on, taking off and disposal of personal protective equipment(PPE);

·         provide adequate IPC and PPE supplies (masks, gloves, goggles, gowns, hand sanitizer, soap and water, cleaning supplies) in sufficient quantity to healthcare or other staff caring for suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients, such that workers do not incur expenses for occupational safety and health requirements;

·         not be required to return to a work situation where there is continuing orserious danger to life or health, until the employer has taken any necessary remedial action;

·         allow workers to exercise the right to remove themselves from a work situation that they have reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to their life or health. When a health worker exercises this right, they shall be protected from any undue consequences;

·         honour the right to compensation, rehabilitation and curative services if infected with COVID-19 following exposure in the workplace. This would be considered occupational exposure and resulting illness would be considered an occupational disease,

·         provide access to mental health and counselling resources; and

·         enable co-operation between management and workers and/or their representatives. Etc.

In conclusion, professional care givers for COVID-19 patients should uphold four basic principles formulated by Beauchamp and Childress in their book ‘Principles of Biomedical Ethics’ in order to protect themselves from liability for negligence. The four basic principles are autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice.

Autonomy: People have the right to control what happens to their bodies. This principle simply means that an informed, competent adult patient can refuse or accept treatments, drugs, and surgeries according to their wishes. People have the right to control what happens to their bodies because they are free and rational. And these decisions must be respected by everyone, even if those decisions aren’t in the best interest of the patient.

Beneficence: All healthcare providers must strive to improve their patient’s health, to do the most good for the patient in every situation. But what is good for one patient may not be good for another, so each situation should be considered individually. And other values that might conflict with beneficence may need to be considered.

Non-maleficence: “First, do no harm” is the bedrock of medical ethics. In every situation, healthcare providers should avoid causing harm to their patients. You should also be aware of the doctrine of double effect, where a treatment intended for good unintentionally causes harm. This doctrine helps you make difficult decisions about whether actions with double effects can be undertaken.

Justice: The fourth principle demands that you should try to be as fair as possible when offering treatments to patients and allocating scarce medical resources. You should be able to justify your actions in every situation. For instance, it will amount to a professional misconduct for a Health-care Worker to remove a poor man from the ventilator because a Senator was rushed in.

Ahmed Adetola-Kazeem is a partner in Adetola-Kazeem Legal Practice and specializes in Medical and Health Law

Email: aadetolakazeem@gmail.com;aadetolakazeem@gaklp.com

[1] https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1(Accessed on the 28th of March 2020)

[2] https://businessday.ng/coronavirus/article/abba-kyari-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-buhari-negative/

https://www.channelstv.com/2020/03/24/buharis-chief-of-staff-abba-kyari-reportedly-tests-positive-for-coronavirus/ (Accessed on the 28th of March 2020)

[3] Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19) Outbreak: Rights, Roles and Responsibilities Of Health workers, Including Key Considerations For Occupational Safety And Health”. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-rights-roles-respon-hw-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=bcabd401_0   (Accessed on the 26th of March 2020)

[4] https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/collapsing-virus-pummels-medics-spain-italy-69789413 (Accessed on 26th March 2020)

[5] https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/covid-19-hits-doctors-nurses-emts-threatening-health-system/2020/03/17/f21147e8-67aa-11ea-b313-df458622c2cc_story.html (Accessed on 28th of March 2020)

[6] http://saharareporters.com/2020/03/28/exclusive-two-nurses-one-doctor-infected-coronavirus-abuja-hospital

[7] Supra

[8] https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/coronavirus-patient-rejects-bauchi-isolation-centre-returns-home.html (Accessed on 28th March 2020)

[9] https://www.who.int/occupational_health/topics/hcworkers/en/(Accessed on 26th March 2020)

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April 2, 2020
Anyone concealing family members exposed to Covid-19 will face action: Home Ministry

KUALA LUMPUR: The Home Ministry warned today that those who conceal family members who have been exposed to the Covid-19 virus clusters from the authorities will face stern action.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin said this latest action is to send out a clear and stern message to those who continue harbouring high-risk individuals who have been exposed.

“We are into the second week of the movement control order (MCO) and this is our first warning,” he said at a press conference after a meeting with Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador and other police top brass at Bukit Aman this evening.

“Those who know of family members who were exposed to the clusters, such as the Tabligh event, and have not disclosed this to us will face severe action. They should come forward and get themselves tested for the virus. We are not going to arrest them, we just want them to get tested.”

When asked on action to be taken, Hamzah declined to elaborate but said: “When we do, the media can come and see for itself what action we take.”

He said although the police have identified about 10,000 people who attended the tabligh even at a mosque in Sri Petaling, there are still an undetermined number of those who are yet to come forward.

Hamzah said the authorities are focusing on the tabligh event cluster as those infected there make up more than 50% of the current recorded cases of the disease.

The minister also warned those who stoke disarray among the races by associating the disease with any particular race.

“The Covid-19 does not target a particular race, religion, position or social status. It can infect anyone. We also wish to warn those who post hurtful or sensitive comments that can cause chaos and disunity among the multi-races that we will take action on them as well. We as Malaysian must stand by each other regardless of race. We want to build and develop this nation together,“ he said.

Hamzah said he also discussed with police ways to enhance enforcement of the MCO as there are still many who are defying the order.

He said among the plans was to increase the number of roadblocks nationwide, adding that 3,125 people have been arrested for defying the MCO, of which 246 have been charged in court.

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March 31, 2020
HEDA Tells Nigerian Government To Stop Harassment Of Sowore

The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has asked the Nigerian Government to stop the harassment and intimidation of SaharaReporters Publisher, Omoyele Sowore.

The group said Sowore was kept in detention amidst a rash of court orders — none of which guaranteed his freedom in recent past.

It said there were concerns in the human rights circle that in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, Sowore’s life may be at risk.

Recall that Sowore had raised the alarm over plans by the authorities to rearrest him to a military barracks where he alleged he would be tortured and infected with COVID-19.

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Sowore said he had written through his lawyers to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to inform him of plots by the Nigerian Army to detain him for revealing “classified information on SaharaReporters”.

SaharaReporters had reported that Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, tested positive for Coronavirus.

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HEDA’s Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, said the organisation was worried about the fate of Sowore in the light of growing lockdown occasioned by COVID-19 spread.

Suraju said the group was also touched by the recent outcry from Sowore over alleged plans to endanger his life.

Suraju said, “The Federal Government can better guarantee protection for Sowore and other citizens by issuing a stern and clear warning to officials of government to refrain from any form of political or unwarranted arrest of citizens under the current situation.

“At this period of COVID-19 pandemic, this is a difficult moment for Nigerians who are free. For those in detention, their ordeal will multiply.

“They fall into the category of those that would have been vulnerable if in detention. We are worried about precautions taken by the government to protect Sowore and other citizens from repressive actions of government officials.”

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March 30, 2020
Accept Your Failure and Leave Sowore Alone, Odumakin Tells Buhari

President, Centre for Change, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, has called on the Nigerian Government to steer clear of its plan to rearrest human rights activist and journalist, Omoyele Sowore, saying such move would be counter productive.

Sowore had raised the alarm over moves by the Nigerian Army to secretly secure an order from the Federal High Court, Abuja, to rearrest him over SaharaReporters publication revealing that President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, had been infected with Coronavirus.

Odumakin said such attempts by the government was tantamount to taking Nigeria back to the dark age and total into abyss.

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She said the President should concentrate on finding solutions and remedy to the problems created by his failure and negligence in tackling Covid-19.

In a statement on Friday, Odumakin said, “Our attention has been drawn to the alarm raised by Publisher of SaharaReporters, Mr Omoyele Sowore, that the Federal Government was planning an onslaught on him for reporting that Mr Abba Kyari was Coronavirus positive.

“Does it mean that our government would have concealed Kyari’s status and allowed Coronavirus unchecked among the top echelon of Nigerian society?

“If the status of UK Prime Minister can be made public, who is Kyari that his status must not be known?” she queried.

Okei-Odumakin said SaharaReporters had done a great service to the country by making the information public.

She advised government to begin to remedy its failure by doing whatever it can to provide services for citizens.

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March 28, 2020
Does a high viral load or infectious dose make covid-19 worse?

Does being exposed to more virus particles mean you’ll develop more severe illness? Data suggests the relationship between infection and severity may be complex

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March 27, 2020
BREAKING: Sowore Raises The Alarm Over Plot By Buhari’s Regime To Re-arrest Him After SaharaReporters Exposed Coronavirus In Aso Villa

Omoyele Sowore

Omoyele Sowore

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Rights activist and journalist, Omoyele Sowore, has raised the alarm over a plot by the Nigerian Government to detain him over revelations by his news outlet, SaharaReporters, that Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, tested positive for Coronavirus.

On Monday night, SaharaReporters had exclusively reported that Kyari was ill and had contracted the deadly virus.

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The online news medium went ahead on Tuesday to break the story of three of Kyari’s staff contracting the virus from him.

Till this moment, the Presidency has been unable to deny any of the reports, instead plotting to turn their anger on Sowore and SaharaReporters.

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In a message to his followers on Facebook on Thursday, Sowore said his lawyers had informed him of a high-powered delegation sent to the Federal High Court in Abuja to obtain a detention order.

Sowore said, “Folks, it is important to inform you that we are facing some unusual circumstances and the days ahead might be very tensed and difficult, but we will conquer.

“Following the revelation by SaharaReporters that the Chief of Staff to Buhari, Abba Kyari, contracted Coronavirus and subsequent revelations about the criminal conducts/negligence that has brought Nigeria to the nadir of this global pandemic, the Buhari regime today sent some high powered delegation to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria to help procure a detention order against me.

“The courts are reportedly on break due to COVID-19 pandemic. This was leaked to our lawyers a few minutes ago. They plan this time is to use the Nigerian Army for the sinister plot.

“The plan is to obtain a court order and then send soldiers to shoot up my residence in Abuja by claiming that I resisted arrest with armed colleagues.

“If I am arrested alive, they would take me to a military barracks in Abuja to be tortured and or infected with COVID-19.

“I am not raising the alarm to scare anyone, it is to inform our compatriots that we should brace for difficult days ahead.

“However, rest assured that we are in high spirits and are totally convinced that we may be turning a historic corner in the face of brutal repression.

“I am urging all to stand firm, unbowed and unbroken.”

Recall that Sowore was first arrested in the early hours of August 3, 2019 by operatives of the Department of State Services for calling on Nigerians to take to the streets in peaceful demonstrations on August 5 to demand a better country from the administration of President Buhari.

He was kept in unlawful detention from that period until December 5, 2019 when he was finally released on bail despite two court orders earlier sanctioning his freedom.

In a twist of event, DSS operatives invaded the Federal High Court in Abuja on December 6, 2019 to rearrest him without any court order.

He remained in unlawful detention until 18 days later when he was released by the secret police for the second time.

At the resumption of his trial in a case brought against him by the Nigerian Government, the prosecution failed to prove accusations against him and even went ahead to dropping seven of the charges earlier preferred against him.

Groups and high-raking individuals from around the world have described the charges against Sowore as baseless and a waste of time.

The journalist remains confined to Abuja as one of his bail conditions forbids him from leaving the city or speaking with journalists until the end of his trial.

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March 27, 2020
COVID-19: Should Education Hit A Pause Or Are We Just Unprepared In Nigeria? By Olabisi Deji-Folutile

Olabisi Deji-Folutile

Olabisi Deji-Folutile

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The world is facing its most trying and unprecedented times as the last few weeks have been most challenging for almost everybody. What started in Wuhan, China, as an epidemic, has put the entire world in disarray. Major streets across the globes have become empty. Both the rich and the poor are being ravaged by the plague of COVID-19, which the World Health Organisation has rightly described as a pandemic. Work places have been shut; religious and social gatherings banned and many countries are on total lockdown, in a bid to curb the spread of this viral disease. Expectedly, schools are also affected across board. Every day people are being told to embrace social distancing and suddenly things like human contacts, hitherto considered as free gifts of life, are becoming very expensive.

No one knows when this whole chaos will end, so people are making different kinds of adjustments to cope with the situation while it lasts. Many companies have shifted their operations online. Likewise, many schools have opted for e-learning, making use of available technology for teaching and learning.

Universities around the world are making use of communication technology to ease the effects of the global pandemic on their academic calendars.   In China, universities are going for online teaching instead of in-class teaching; the ones in Australia have moved their classes online just as UK universities have suspended face-to-face teaching.  Turkey started its remote university classes on March 23. In Kenya, universities have activated communication between lecturers and students via social media platforms and emails while classes have gone totally online in the Philippines and Kyrgyzstan. Teachers in France have been working with their students on Zoom.

Just a few days ago, Ghana’s President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, directed the ministry of education to collaborate with the ministry of communications in rolling out open learning programmes in response to the closure of all educational institutions in the country. In the same vein, Mount Kenya University’s Vice-Chancellor Peter Wanderi, has announced the extension of online teaching platforms for regular students to facilitate the learning process. And to take care of the over six million students that have experienced disruption to their studies, ten North African and 12 Arab countries have begun work on an e-learning initiative to facilitate open and online education.

These are some of the steps being taken across the globe to bridge the gap created by school closure in the wake of COVID-19. Unfortunately, while all these activities are going on in other parts of the world, Nigerian government has not said anything about steps being taken to take care of its students’ community. Rather, the only message from the Federal Government was a total closure of all tertiary institutions and FG-owned unity schools till further notice. A statement issued by the National Universities Commission simply said universities would remain   shut   for one month while the Education Minister, Adamu Adamu, said tertiary institutions would remain shut indefinitely.

Assuming government has been overwhelmed by the burden of controlling the spread of COVID- 19, hence its silence on options for learning for its teeming student population, one would have expected the higher institutions themselves to at least say something, but as it is, they too are not helping matters. The silence in our universities has been deafening. To worsen the situation, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, decided to choose this time, of all times, to embark on an indefinite strike. One wonders how the academic body   manages to feel comfortable being on a strike at a time when researchers across the globe are busy looking for solution to a pandemic that is ravaging the entire world. This kind of action makes one query the essence of having Research and Development as a core component of tertiary education in Nigeria when researchers can be nowhere to be found at a critical time of societal needs.

By now, our researchers should be adding their voices to the various efforts being made towards developing a vaccine or cure for COVID-19. After all, universities are expected to proffer solutions to societal problems.  This is a wrong time for ASUU to embark on an indefinite strike. This should be a time of strategising and proffering solutions. This is really the time for everyone to get involved. Besides, I think Nigerian universities should also be more forthcoming on their responses to the challenges posed to their students by COVID-19.

As it is, religious organisations are doing far better in terms of their responses to the effects of this pandemic on their primary constituencies. Many of them have devised other means of getting the attention of   their members following several government directives prohibiting either gatherings or limiting the number of people allowed to congregate at a time. Almost all the churches have switched to online platforms for their services. How come religious organisations are working hard to keep their flocks and both government and higher institutions in Nigeria are just moving on as if all is well? No word on how to keep the students busy or keep them engaged using available online technology! Should teaching and learning be restricted to the classrooms alone in this 21st century?

Nigeria has always been described as a religious society. Corona Virus has further exposed the smartness of our religious bodies and the dullness of those in charge of our public educational institutions. This is not an attempt to blame any religious organisation for having the foresight to deploy technology in reaching their audiences. Instead, it is a wakeup call to managers of our educational institutions to adopt and use available technology to help their students at a time like this.

Apart from the National Open University of Nigeria, which basically runs online, I doubt if there is any other public university in the country that has capacity for online teaching. This is in spite of the launch of the Nigerian Communication Satellite known as NIGCOMSAT by the Nigerian Government first in 2007 and then NIGCOMSAT-IR in December 2011, to provide critical ICT backbone infrastructure to support e-learning, among others in the country.

What is the essence of investing so much money in a communication satellite if it cannot be deployed at a time of need?   Those in charge of NIGCOMSAT, the commercial arm of Nigeria’s space centre, have consistently claimed that the technology has the capacity to cover the entire Africa. If that is the case, why is the country still struggling to deploy internet connectivity facilities to its schools to aide e-learning? If we are truly a serious country, by now, all the schools in urban and rural areas should have been connected to the e-learning services.

No doubt, COVID-19 has exposed Nigeria’s unpreparedness for e-learning. But, we can’t afford to remain where we are. That is why it is important for every institution to start thinking of how to deploy available technology in the world for the good of their students at this critical period. Universities should as a matter of urgency migrate online. This shouldn’t be another season of waiting and probably wasting for the Nigerian student. There is no reason why any higher institution worth its name should suspend all academic activities until the end of Corona Virus with all the available resources and technology in the world today. The minimum expected of them is to upload teaching resources online for students to have access to them. At least this will give the students the opportunity to learn on their own.

This is also an opportunity for telecommunications companies like Glo, MTN and the rest of them to make a difference in Nigeria’s educational institutions. They can as part of their corporate social responsibility decide to boost internet facilities in universities and other educational institutions; or provide data at cheaper rates to help poor students have access to the internet for online learning.

I know there are obvious stumbling blocks to digital learning in Nigeria. Many students don’t even have access to devices while the cost of buying data is still high. These challenges and others have provided   telecommunications companies a huge opportunity of making a difference in Nigerian higher institutions by providing e-learning solutions and broadband connectivity to universities and other higher institutions.

They can as part of their corporate social responsibility decide to boost internet facilities in universities and other higher institutions; or help poor students who have limited or poor internet access to enhance online learning.

Olabisi Deji-Folutile is the Editor-in-Chief of Franktalknow.com and member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. Email: bisideji@yahoo.co.uk

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March 27, 2020
Inside Story: How Obasa Was Forced To Reinstate Suspended Lawmakers

Mudashiru Obasa

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At the resumption of plenary on Thursday at the Lagos State House of Assembly, Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, announced the reinstatement of two suspended lawmakers, Moshood Oshun and Raheem Kazeem.

The two lawmakers were suspended alongside Deputy Majority Leader, Olumuyiwa Jimoh; and Chief Whip, Rotimi Abiru, who were demoted on grounds of misconduct, insubordination and action that could destabilise the Assembly on March 9.

However, two days after the meeting of the Governor’s Advisory Council, the suspended lawmakers were reinstated to the House.

SaharaReporters had exclusively reported that at the meeting, a former governor of Lagos State, who also doubles as Chairman of Lagos State Governor’s Advisory Committee, Bola Tinubu, supported the Speaker as he asked him to use his discretion to direct the affairs of the House.

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EXCLUSIVE: Tinubu, GAC Back Lagos Assembly Speaker, Obasa, Over Suspension Of Lawmakers, Corruption

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However, Obasa tracked back on the decision of the GAC and reinstated the lawmakers following intervention by some bigwigs of the All Progressives Congress including Rauf Aregbesola, Minister of Interior; and Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos.

Sources privy to the happenings within the party confirmed to SaharaReporters that the Speaker was directed to reinstate the lawmakers after having a separate meeting with them.

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BREAKING: Lagos Assembly Recalls Suspended Lawmakers After SaharaReporters Story

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“Some members of the GAC, dissatisfied with the treatment of the oppressed members of the Assembly, including the governor of the state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, made a counter move between Tuesday and Thursday by securing a special appointment with Tinubu for the affected members of the Assembly to present their cases.

“An appointment was fixed for Wednesday morning with Tinubu where the affected Assembly members presented their cases to the former governor.

“Among those who intervened was the immediate-past governor of Osun State and current Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, who had a long telephone conversation with Asiwaju (Tinubu) and succeeded in convincing his boss on the need for an immediate reversal of Obasa’s autocratic decision against his colleagues.

“The Speaker was subsequently directed by Tinubu to reverse his decision and return to original status,” sources disclosed to SaharaReporters.

Meanwhile, Obasa, according to insider sources, is likely sitting on a time-bomb as moves are ongoing by some members of the APC to remove him as Speaker of the Lagos Assembly.

Some strong members of the political dynasty, beyond the reach or influence of Obasa, seem to be amalgamating forces against him.

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Obasa, who is not unaware of the ploy, is suspecting Governor Sanwo-Olu of secretly leading the lawmakers to impeach him.

“The Speaker once nursed strong animosity against the governor, accusing him of sponsoring members for his impeachment.

“This also stems the suspicion against the suspended principal officers,” sources in the Assembly said.

A former member of the Assembly and ‘kingmaker’, who is now a member of the Senate, is also making a separate move to report latest action of the Speaker to Asiwaju.

As at the time of filing this report, the senator is still in the process of securing an appointment with Tinubu.

The senator used to be the sponsor and major backer of Obasa but they fell apart when Obasa decided to be his own boss and also reduce the influence of the kingmaker.

The aim was to reduce the returns shared between them which is part of hundreds of millions allocated to the Assembly as monthly running cost.

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March 27, 2020
The Political Economy Of Coronavirus By Kunle Wizeman Ajayi

The most powerful person in Aso Rock, Abba Kyari; who is the chief of staff to the president, has tested positive to Covid19. No government official can reach President Buhari without him. There is a ripe suspicion that the kitchen cabinet might have been infected. Likewise in Europe, the most powerful person, Angela Merkel the chancellor of Germany, has been quarantined. While Trump and Boris Johnson took the same path in trying to ignore the pandemic, their governments are in deep crises of the damages and exposures their neglect has caused the citizens.

As I type, the fear of corona virus is the beginning of real wisdom as governments are now banning even churches and mosques from gathering. The Nigerian federal ministry of health has announced 42 cases so far. And even the mass of working people who have hitherto doubted our thieving class so far, are now more wary and precautionary over their immediate safety without relying on the failed health institutions. People seldom shake hands now. Corona waves na the way to greet now! That corona virus has turned a corruption racket is what will be duly discussed another day.

Industries are closing down as Wall Street falls like pack of cards. US President Donald Trump is shouting “cuts” for the working class and bail-outs for industries and big business. Whereas, Socialist presidential aspirant Bernie Sanders is calling for “healthcare for all” as well as pay for all US citizens staying at home during the pandemic days. The globalised trend of the corona virus needs a global understanding and lessons of how the world is being ruled everywhere. The way US rulers have failed to care for the poor and invest in proper and compulsory healthcare for all but private pharmaceutical companies who make healthcare a commercial quantity that only the rich can afford, is the same way Nigerian rulers failed to build hospitals and kept allocating between 4 to 6% budgetary spending on education while them and their children spend billions on medical tourism. Also, Boris Johnson’s UK government is renting “beds at hospitals.” This is unlike Spain that has nationalized its healthcare!

The price of crude oil has fallen globally. The global stock exchange has crashed as workers can no longer go to work and make great wealth for their casino. Coronavirus has superceded SARS with its speedy spread and effects globally. So the world economic crises have been, for the first time, propelled by a health crisis. What can the Left and the revolutionaries in Nigeria make out of this global crises that could leave no island untouched?

Naomi Klein, the author of the classic ‘The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism’ has come up to warn that “if you’re a hard-core free-market economist, you understand that when market fails it lends itself to progressive change much more organically, than it does (when) the kind of deregulatory policies emerge. Political and economic elites understand that moment of crises is their chance to push through their wish list of unpopular policies that further polarize wealth…”

I argue that while the government in Nigeria has reduced the cruelly expensive cost of petrol by just #20, and there is lipservice to building new hospitals, there is a larger probability of massive corruption as the federal government has already declared #2trillion intervention fund. Why we the working people have to very much care is because the same elements who created the crises (whichever ways) would end up profiting largely from the crises. This just as many military officers and politicians are billionaires courtesy the Boko Haram war.

The interplay of methods of these corruptive accumulations on one hand, and the trajectory of working class resistances is critically assessed weighing up why and how the working people were at the loosing ends at the 2008/9 global economic crises that made the Central Bank under the Soludo/Sanusi bail-outs policies made the criminal banks even richer than before. Though a few bank MDs and top officers were detained on “hospital beds” and such other “ajebutter” prisons; no bank owner was even questioned.

The fact that both the US and Nigeria are rich governments that have bad healthcare policies, discussing social infrastructures as class struggle under this system of “primitive accumulation” needs to be knocked up as perspectives to guide millions who want an end to crises and build another world that would be for all and not a tiny thieving few.

A CLASSLESS PANDEMIC

The corona virus has shown that the gap between the rich and the poor is just an artificial creation. The nature of humans is more communal than competitive. Plenty of the rich mouth the fact that we are all equal, but some are more equal than others. This virus is a threat to all and shows that the world can organize together and defeat any virus that attacks it. Crises like this shows that there is no policy that is pro-rich that can save society. Most of the capitalists who rule our world have been saying that government cannot help all and cater for the needs of majority. They tend to tell us that getting “healthcare for all” is rocket science. Corona virus has proved that all that is wrong!

Meanwhile, many Nigerians are debating as to the cause of corona virus, and why it has drawn more attentions than malaria that kills about 800 everyday and child mortality that murders about 300 women daily. These debates became rife when Ibrahim Magu; head of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) asserted that “corona virus is caused by corruption.” His position, while quite misleading, is correct to the point that the virus is actually caused by the greed of man in unsettling the animal and forest lives. Most of the viruses live in the wildest of forests but humans go in and destroy their habitats. These make the virus homeless and have to migrate to live with humans.

The corona virus has also made the Nigerian politicians to have no escapist lives again. Most of them used to go abroad for medical tourism. But there is nowhere to run to now! This is why revolutionaries must use this chance to support striking doctors and demand for free, functionally standard and compulsory healthcare for all. We do not want a situation where the ruling class would use state wealth to build defence and cure for corona virus, only for the rich, instead for all. We must avoid repeating case of the last economic meltdown where what we could see is socialism for the rich and leave the poor uncatered for. This is why we must all reject the paltry #20 that was reduced from oil price as well as condemn the full devaluation of the naira. These policies will make the rich eat their cake and have it. Petrol price should be reduced to at least #45 while naira should be strengthened. The time to consider the #RevolutionNow demands of an “economy for the majority” is now!

2008/9: A FLASHBACK

When the 2008 global economic meltdown stormed Nigeria, the rulers ordered “technocrats” to adopt the Obama measures in bailing out the banks and their thieving managers. After prosecuting five CEOs of Afribank, Oceanic, Finbank, Intercontinental, and Union bank, The CBN went ahead to put #460bn as bail-outs for the banks after recovering just #70bn. The CEOs lost their posts for giving out #700bn loans without collateral. The loans portfolio of the bank, according to CBN, is #2.8tn. The richest guys in the country were involved in this public racket and were never touched. A good instance is Aliko Dangote who had a loan worth $15m with Oceanic Bank but got elected to replace Ndi OKereke as Nigerian Stock Exchange president. The same person has the monopoly of trading in rice, salt, sugar, textiles, and vegetable oil. The same persons who created the crises in the same place got rewarded after the crises. This is what Naomi Klein is warning about. For the rich, socialism is never good for the majority. The rich, in the time of corona virus and other disasters, want bail-outs but never for the working people. Just as Omoyele Sowore noted; “when crises arises, capitalism retires and socialism becomes the messiah!

We must start asking for Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) from the federal government. Every Nigerian must each be paid at least #100,000 monthly as the corona virus effect billing. We should also demand a standard hospital per 5 streets with the doctors and nurses paid appropriately!

THE TRUMP/BUHARI DISORDER

President Buhari’s address to Nigerians has failed to address the pandemic. Trump’s tweets are of the same mental disorders like those of the ministers and officials of Buhari’s government.  Trump boasted that the “virus is under total control…The market will take care of itself,” he had to recant after the Dow Jones Industrial closed with its worst one-day decline since 1987; “The market will be very strong as soon as we get rid of the virus.”

“But even as he was doing so, Trump maintained that he hadn’t said the virus was “under control,” which is something he has most definitely said on many occasions — along with other attempts to play down fears” CNN noted.

Garba Shehu and other spokespersons of President Buhari have also been speaking from all sides of their mouths. They first downplayed the effect of the virus by revealing that malaria has been killing hundreds…Until they made some allocations of about $1.2trillion to the virus effects. The question remains the goals of the government. Many Nigerians do not trust the same government that has never given as much as 8% budgetary allocation to healthcare since the Buhari regime came into place, just like the PDP governments before it. While the president is one of the most sick, he prefers to betray electoral promises and visit private hospitals in the UK for months instead of building standard public health care.

Working people in US,UK, and Nigeria should look beyond their reactionary rulers and make real political demands that will make sure the same rogues who cause the crises don’t come back to claim to be the super heroes of the same crises. The case of Ebola and Lassa in Nigeria are classics in this regard. While Nigeria was lucky to get over the Ebola case with the sacrifice of health officials; Lassa fever has killed thousands so far loosely tackled because rodents most likely cannot enter luxury houses.

Nigerians should be aware that both Buhari and Trump are exponents of crazy capitalism and prefers to give false answers to real threats and would only be falsely apologetic later. We must understand that the rulers are neither interested in our well being nor our future. Their fear is that the virus should never become for all. They prefer crises for just the masses. But oga corona no mind. This is why despite Trump trying to call it Chinese virus or Buhari trying to boycott addressing the country, nothing matters to the working people than having a healthy society. Arms in arms, we will have to care for one another and defeat the most dangerous virus ever in the history of the world!

OPIUMS ON THE CROSS

Pastors in Nigeria, aside the ban on public and mass gatherings, are seriously on trial! Many a youths are asking what their “God” would do in this time of corona virus to save the followers from untimely deaths. The first pastor to become so fearless had predicted that he would go to China to cure the virus. But by the time the Italian became the first case in view; the pastor got admitted in a hospital for unknown reasons.

Also, the mosques are closing shop. Even many are contemplating drinking alcohol to help in preventing corona virus. Despite the fact that many a churches and mosques become well attended public places, the belief in better life and a prosperous world without danger have been the egg tacts around the building of these beliefs. Saudi Arabia has stopped religious visitations. Government everywhere is banning all worshipping junctures. If these bans have been summoned by political demands of the left, it couldn’t have sailed through but the struggle is being marshaled by a pandemic. Bernie Sanders was seen as too extreme but most of those pro-establishment strollers must be shitting in their yanshes now!

Karl Marx was very clear that “religion is the opium of the masses, the soul of the soulless.” The realizations of the fact that the immediacy of the problems of society can only be derailed if the people think that there is an umbrella or belief that can make some magic. With corona now, even the state that employs religion is not apologetic in banning its public activities. Sadly, many priests still in shock as to a possible demarketing have kept on lying to their congregations. A viral video shows a pastor saying “coronavirus cannot enter Nigeria where there is corrosive anointing;” so cocky in ignorance.  Such public ranting must be condemned.

CONFUSION BREAK BONE; NAIJA HEALTH IN CRISES

When the deposed emir of Kano, former CBN governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, was banned to Awe in Nassarawa State; the town has two (2) doctors to two hundred thousand (200,000) people. Such is the metaphor of health care in Nigeria.  Most doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel have migrated to other climes in an unprecedented brain drain. As Yusuf posited “7 out of 10 Nigerians live on less than $1.25 (~500 Naira) a day and they also live in a country where 70% of health expenditures are out-of-pocket payments. Nineteen years after the Abuja Declaration where African Union states pledged to allocate at least 15% of their annual budget to health, Nigeria continues to default. With over 23,584 public primary health care facilities, 8,290 private primary health care facilities and 200,000 patent and proprietary medicine vendors (PPMVs) in Nigeria, yet the country’s health indices and other health indicators continue to remain abysmal without any significant improvement compared to other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Citizens are condemned to self-care using several unregulated drugs and African raw herbs. The yearly allocations to health care in the budget never rise beyond 6 and 8%. This is despite the fact that Aisha, wife of President Buhari once publicly complained that Aso rock clinic has no syringe! At the Teaching hospitals, one has to pay heavily to get health care as the state has been practicing health care commercialization. The medical equipments are really not there while there are so poor remunerations of medical personnel. Yet, when Ebola came knocking in 2014, the health workers paid the sacrifices.

Corona virus is global and has now halted the medical tourism of the rich class of whom President Buhari is the chief. If not for Covid-19, he would have gone visiting his London doctors for the umpteenth time!

The health workers’ unions have been fighting for a better system for years. This has been led by the Joint Health Staffs Union (JOHESU) and the Nigeria Medical Associations (NMA.) JOHESU has led enormous strikes and pickets but the neo-liberal policies of the ruling class keep ignoring these strikes. As I write, doctors in Abuja are on strike. The rulers are now in a quagmire. This is the time for the unions to collaborate with the civil society and revolutionary movements to take up the state and fight for “free health care for all.”

THE EXAMPLE OF CUBA

Fidel Castro’s people are the certified global doctors today!

A small island at the backyard of the United States of North America; Cuba is a state-capitalist economy led by revolutionary socialists. While the state have yet boomed since 1959 as a result of the prevailing capitalist globe, it has been vociferous on social welfarism especially education, food, health, and housing. This has been the minimum with which the Communist Party has been working on since the revolution. With its third president in charge now; Cuba is the country that is now rescuing the world from the genocide of corona virus. The vessel that is wholly affected by the virus has been shipped to the Cuban shore and Cuba has been treating the patients on board. Italy is receiving about 200 Cuban doctors and nurses as the catholic country leads the population of casualties. The Cuban health statistics shows that 98% is living healthily just as education is 98.5%.

Cuba stood by the world on hurricane Katrina; by South Africa against apartheid; by Angola against imperialist Portugal, and now that “God-forsaken communist country” stands by the world with the best of its great medical care against corona virus. This is a lesson that we need to abide by and make the world a socialist island. The current system of “greed and power” is a pandemic. It is ruled by political viruses that live mainly on primitive accumulations of the sweat and blood of the majority. The working class of all lands should unite and fight capitalism to the ruins and replace it with a world led by the people who make the wealth, not those who do nothing but steal the wealth.

IN ALL; THIS PANDEMIC WILL FALL

The struggle for a safer world is in danger of that “common ruins of the contending classes.” Italy, Nigeria, Spain, China, US, and some others have recorded deaths through corona virus. It is currently rumoured that some senators and members of the House of Representatives have contracted the deadly virus. We have 582 deaths in US and 46,145 cases with only 295 recoveries. One death has been recorded in Nigeria with 46 cases recorded. 6,777 are dead out of 63,927 cases in Italy. China has 16,578 dead in 382,570 incidents. Germany has 29,056 with 123 people dead. German chancellor, Angela Merkel has been quarantined. India with over 1 billion population has about 500 cases with no deaths.

The Indian case is very peculiar in lessons for Nigeria. Public health care in all tiers is free and subsidized for those below the poverty line. The Indian health sector encompasses 18% of total outpatient care and 44% of total impatient care. Middle and upper class use public health care less than those with a lower standard of living

The Covid19 pandemic has exposed big countries like Britain, US, China, Nigeria, and others. The pandemic have also exposed capitalism as an idea that is deficient to the mass of working people. The idea does not care for the majority but the thieving minority. The rich continue to be richer while the poor becomes poorer. We need labour and civil society to work together and reconstitute revolutionary relationships to make sure that working people does not be at the receiving end of this pandemic. We must remember that those who destroy the country must not be allowed to continue with their madness after the covid19. We must demand for #FreeHealthCareForAll!

We must also demand that world-class hospitals are built massively all over the country and we leave the madness of neo-liberalism in the dustbin of ruins. To do these works, we need a movement of the working people dedicated to the revolution that will build a country for all like the Take It Back movement and the Coalition for Revolution (CORE). Socialist organizations like the Socialist Workers and Youth League (SWL) serve as the political tribunes that remind us all on the ideal and alternatives to the rot that is causing pandemics and wars to the world today.

Capitalist presidents that combine neo-liberalism and fascism are in deep shit today as the covid19 has exposed their inefficiencies and monumental social infrastructural dangers. The health of the world is the safety net to our wealth. Why would we allow those who care about the wealth alone to continue to rule us? Why should we continue to allow those who think of only the individual and never the collective to continue to rule us? When Greta Thunberg was leading the climate change campaigns, Donald Trump was scolding her. Bernie Sanders, Jeremyn Corbyn, Omoyele Sowore, Elvo Morales, Bobbi Wine and other revolutionary change-seeking eggheads have all campaigned for another world; the point is for we the working people and all oppressed, in unity and action, lead #RevolutionNow to get a life warranty of #FreeHealthCareForAll!

Nigerians should demand for Cost of living allowance (COLA) of at least #100,000 in order to survive as the country is being locked down. We all must observe hand washing regularly; social distancing; avoid touching of faces, and other sophisticated parts of the body. Government should provide water, gloves and hands sanitizers to all. There is no electricity just as there is very poor housing for the majority of the people. We need the majority of empty house in cities and towns to be massively redistributed. Electricity must be renationalized.

With all unity and actions, we will defeat the yet another genocidal virus. This also tells us that we must choose to build the world for all and not for the few as the threat of grand barbarism stares us all in the face once again. Rosa Luxembourg would be rolling and smiling in her grave as we are condemned to learn from her battle cry: “socialism or barbarism!”

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March 25, 2020