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Malaysia receives medical equipment supply from China

PUTRAJAYA: Backed by a strong relationship between the two countries, China showed its empathy to Malaysia in combating an invisible enemy, Covid-19, by contributing a consignment of medical equipment.

The consignment consisted of 100,000 units of n-Cov PCR test kits, 100,000 pieces of N95 Medical Protective Face Masks, 500,000 pieces of 3-ply surgical masks, 50,000 sets of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and 200 units of ventilators.

The consignment was handed over by Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia, Bai Tian to Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, at Wisma Putra here today.

Hishammuddin expressed Malaysia’s deep appreciation for the invaluable support of the Chinese government which clearly reflected the strong partnership between the two countries.

“This is an extraordinary contribution by a country to Malaysia, showing the close friendship, solidarity and consideration both Malaysia and China share.

“To China, it is my promise that Malaysia will make full use of these items and they will be immediately handed over to the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) so that our frontliners who have worked tirelessly will be prioritised in their distribution,“ Hishammuddin said at a press conference after the handover ceremony, here today.

He said, prior to today’s donation, Malaysia had received multiple donations from various provincial governments, non-government organisations, business community and individuals from China.

Meanwhile, Bai Tian said the Chinese government had paid very special attention when Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Hishammuddin expressed their worries about the lack of medical needs in Malaysia, and had succeeded in raising the most urgently-needed medical materials for this country.

“As a good neighbour and close friend of Malaysia, China feels how Malaysia feels, because in the past two months, China had also gone through a strenuous battle against Covid-19.

“The Chinese government and people will never forget how the Malaysian government and people had extended their helping hands during our darkest hours in the battle against Covid-19,“ he said.

Bai Tian said the batch of medical supplies had arrived in Malaysia, and hoped that these materials would help in the fight of the Malaysian government and people against the epidemic.

Besides medical supply, Bai Tian said China would also offer the support of a Covid-19 medical expert team from China, which could come here and work hand in hand with their Malaysian colleagues.

When asked how many and when would the doctors from China arrive here, Bai Tian said it all depended on the request from Malaysia.

“We want to know the actual need on the ground from the hospitals in Malaysia because we have experts from different areas like infection diseases, respiratory and ICU Cares.

“We are ready to offer the best practises and knowledge,“ he said. — Bernama

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March 28, 2020
Our new Vanguard Global Credit Bond Fund puts our experts to work for you

We’re introducing a new active bond fund that allows you to take advantage of Vanguard’s extensive global investment management capabilities and expertise.

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March 28, 2020
How to budget for COVID-19 response?

The COVID-19 pandemic requires sufficient public funding to ensure a comprehensive response. Reprioritizing public spending toward bolstering the economy and the health system requires timely action from government leaders and a supportive public finance environment. Highly-affected countries have taken various approaches to budgetary allocation, depending on their public financial management (PFM) and regulatory systems. Adjustments are required on the revenue side of budgets (e.g. loans) to account for these new economic and fiscal constraints. Quick decision-making on the expenditure side is also needed. That will be the focus of this blog. Every country must develop specific processes for allocating budget funds to the response. To inform budgetary response in countries where the pandemic may spread in the near future, a summary of observed budgetary practices in some highly-affected countries is provided below, with the aim of informing other countries about responses to three key questions:

1) What are the immediate spending actions that can be taken with existing budgets?

2) How to secure budget for COVID-19 response through revisions in finance laws?

3) What can be done to accelerate budget execution and funds release to the frontlines?

Please click here for the full article.

Authors: Hélène Barroy, Ding Wang, Claudia Pescetto, Joseph Kutzin

The authors acknowledge inputs received from Tomas Roubal (WHO Western Pacific Regional Office), Tsolmongerel Tsilaajav (WHO South East Regional Office), and Agnès Soucat (WHO Headquarters).

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This online network is a place to share information, find updates on new materials or events related to WHO’s work on health financing policy.

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March 28, 2020
Cuepacs donates RM20,000 to Covid-19 fund

KUALA LUMPUR: The Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) will donate RM20,000 to the Covid-19 special fund to help ease the burden of those affected and in need of financial assistance.

Its president Adnan Mat also urged civil servants to contribute to the fund through April and May payrolls.

“We recommend a contribution of RM10 for implementers group and RM20 for management and professional groups and above. For top management groups, it is up them,“ he said in a statement today.

Adnan said Cuepacs had sought the permission of Chief Secretary to the Government Datuk Seri Mohd Zuki Ali to implement the proposal in a comprehensive manner involving federal, states, statutory bodies and local authorities personnel.

“The contribution is to help our colleagues who are in the frontline such as doctors, nurses, policemen, soldiers and so on,” he said. — Bernama

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March 27, 2020
Schistosomiasis elimination: refocusing on snail control to sustain progress
Substantial progress has been made during the past decade to prevent and control schistosomiasis (also known as bilharziasis) globally. The disease affects more than 230 million people, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.

Progress is mainly due to large-scale periodic treatment of affected populations with praziquantel, the only medicine recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) against all forms of schistosomiasis. Regular treatment cures mild symptoms and prevents
progression to severe, chronic disease.

“Through progressive scale-up of periodic large-scale treatment
to control morbidity in many endemic countries, we are closer to
achieving the minimum target of 75% global coverage of all school‐aged
children,” said Dr Amadou Garba Djirmay, who leads WHO’s global schistosomiasis control programme. “But
if we want to achieve elimination, we must go a step further to
introduce snail control in hot spots and in areas targeting elimination.
This is bound to increase impact and accelerate progress towards
interruption of transmission.”

Expansion of treatment is largely supported by donated praziquantel from Merck KGaA of up to 250 million tablets annually. In 2018, almost 78 million children were treated, representing 63% of all school‐aged children eligible for treatment.

Transmission: role of snails

Schistosomiasis is an acute, chronic parasitic disease caused by infection with trematode worms of the genus Schistosoma. It is prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas, especially in poor, rural communities that have little or no access to
safe drinking‐water and basic sanitation. Infection is transmitted when people suffering from schistosomiasis contaminate freshwater sources when evacuating urine and faeces containing the parasite’s eggs.

Once an egg comes into contact with fresh water, it releases miracidia (hatchlings) which enter a snail and produce hundreds of cercariae (larvae) daily. The cercariae enter the human body on contact with the skin and develop into adult worms.

Besides treatment with praziquantel, eliminating snail hosts and improving sanitation are important methods for sustainable prevention of the disease. Dam and irrigation projects are known to be potential sites for outbreaks of the disease. Snail management,
often achieved through mollusciciding, can help to reduce transmission by eliminating these intermediate snail hosts.

Vector control

In 2017, the World Health Assembly – WHO’s decision making body – adopted resolution WHA70.16 on the Global Vector Control
Response, calling on Member States to develop or adapt national vector control strategies and operational plans. The strategy aims to reduce by at least 40% the incidence of vector borne diseases, including schistosomiasis, by 2025.

In response, WHO is reinforcing snail control as part of its strategic approach to achieve the target of eliminating schistosomiasis as a public health problem and, ultimately, the goal of elimination of transmission. Snail control will complement mass
treatment campaigns and sustain the public health impact of this core intervention.

To facilitate implementation of snail control, in 2019 WHO published on specific, standardized procedures and criteria for efficacy
testing and evaluation and in 2017 a manual on the use of molluscicides in the field. WHO is also planning to strengthen capacities
of health staff in medical malacology in order to reinforce snail control activities in countries.

In the past, molluscicides (particularly niclosamide¹ based products) were widely used in schistosomiasis control programmes. For example, in China programmes largely relied on snail control for over 30 years to overcome the disease as a public
health problem. In other parts of the world, however, snail control programmes were gradually discontinued and competencies faded away.

“Snail control is a crucial component of the global schistosomiasis elimination strategy,” said Dr Rajpal Yadav, Scientist, WHO Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases. “It
is time we look for new snail control products that are cost–effective
and of low risk to humans and the environment. Some efforts are being
made to explore molluscicide compounds from plants, marine algae and
microorganisms.”

An integrated control strategy involving mass treatment with praziquantel, snail control and environmental modification, wider access to sanitation and safe water, economic and environmental development, health education and poverty-alleviation can greatly
contribute to sustainable control and elimination of schistosomiasis.

WHO’s new road map on neglected tropical diseases for 2021–2030, due to be launched later this year, advocates enhanced financial and political support to achieve the target of interruption of transmission. Additional research to address gaps,
develop tools and optimize the impact of existing programmes with snail control will complement the core strategic approach.

Schistosomiasis: forms of the disease

There are two major forms of schistosomiasis – intestinal and urogenital.

Intestinal schistosomiasis usually results in diarrhoea and blood in the stool; enlargement of the liver and of the spleen and portal hypertension are common in advanced cases.

Urogenital schistosomiasis is characterized by the presence of blood in the urine. Chronic infection results in fibrosis of the bladder and ureter that can evolve to hydronephrosis and create conditions for bladder cancer.

In women, urogenital schistosomiasis can cause vaginal bleeding, pain during sexual intercourse and nodules in the vulva, a condition now described as female genital schistosomiasis. In men, urogenital schistosomiasis can induce disease in the seminal
vesicles and prostate.

¹Limitations with the use of formulations based on niclosamide include restrictions on the usage of water immediately after application and temporary toxicity to non-target aquatic organisms including
fish, amphibians and invertebrates.
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March 27, 2020
US Returnee Suspected Of Having Coronavirus In Ondo Tests Negative

A man named David, who came into Nigeria from Maryland, United States of America, and was suspected of having Coronavirus, has now tested negative for the virus.

This was confirmed by a senior staff of the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Ondo Town, Ondo State, where the man had been kept under observation all the while.

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The man had travelled into Ondo to visit family members when he fell ill and showed signs of the virus.

“His test returned negative. He does not have the virus” the source said.

With Thursday’s revelation, any fears initially raised by news of his suspected infection have since been erased.

Meanwhile, management of the hospital on Thursday announced a shut down of activities as a result of the continued spread of the virus.

In a statement, management of the facility said that all units except accident and emergency ward will be closed to the public in order to reduce the risk of patients and staff being infected with the virus.

Patients on admission, who are in stable conditions, have been advised to go home and continue with prescribed medication.

The statement said, “The management of University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Ondo Town, has decided to partially shut down its normal activities as a precaution to steam the spread of Coronavirus.”

Nigeria now has 65 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and one recorded death.

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March 27, 2020
Socso launches programme to assist workers who have lost jobs

KUALA LUMPUR: The Human Resources Ministry, through its agency, the Social Security Organisation (Socso), has launched the Employment Retention Programme (ERP) to assist workers who have lost their jobs.

Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan (pix) said the programme which was introduced as part of the 2020 Economic Stimulus Package, will be implemented through the Employment Insurance System.

“The assistance will be provided in the form of temporary financial benefits and employment services,” he said in a Public Service Announcement today.

In this connection, Kumpulan Wang Pembangunan Sumber Manusia (KWPSM) also launched a 2020 Training Stimulus Package which will benefit more than 40,000 local workers in the hotel, tourism management and air transport sectors which have been affected by Covid-19.

Saravanan reminded employers not to impose employee pay cuts or force employees to use their annual leave during the length of the government’s Movement Control Order aimed at containing Covid-19.

“It is the responsibility of employers to ensure the well-being and health of their workers,” he stressed.

The minister also called on Malaysians to abide by the Movement Control Order which took effect on March 18 and was recently extended to April 14.

“Stay calm, stay home,” he urged. – Bernama

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March 26, 2020
Country’s clinical waste increases by 17% since Covid-19

PUTRAJAYA: Clinical waste at various medical facilities has increased by 17% since early February, in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak, said Environment Minister Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man (pix).

He said the Department of Environment (DOE) had a comprehensive clinical waste management system (SW404 scheduled waste) in which all clinical waste is separated first at hospitals and clinics, before being collected and transported by special vehicles for disposal in 12 incinerators nationwide.

At the moment, Tuan Ibrahim said, seven companies were licensed by the DOE to manage clinical waste from medical facilities (hospitals, clinics and medical institutions) – this comprises the collection, transportation, treatment and disposal of such waste.

“Clinical waste management is controlled to ensure the waste is properly managed and does not cause harm to public health,” he said in a statement, here today.

Tuan Ibrahim said all treatment and disposal facilities of the seven companies were licensed under section 18 of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 and were subject to strict conditions stipulated in the DOE licence compliance schedule.

The companies are Radicare Sdn Bhd, Edgenta Mediserve Sdn Bhd, Medivest Sdn Bhd, Sedafiat Sdn Bhd and One Medicare Sdn Bhd, which are concessionaires appointed by the government through the Health Ministry to manage clinical waste from public medical facilities, while Kualiti Alam Sdn Bhd and Future NRG Sdn Bhd manage all clinical waste from private hospitals and clinics.

“Treatment and disposal facilities are essential services that are allowed to operate during the imposition of the Movement Control Order,” he explained, adding that the illegal management and disposal of scheduled waste including clinical waste without a licence, was an offence under Section 34B of the Environmental Quality Act, which carries a penalty of a maximum of five years in jail and a fine of not more than RM500,000. – Bernama

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March 26, 2020
Justice For Sambo Abdullahi, Victory For Whistleblowers In Nigeria By Chido Onumah and Godwin Onyeacholem

Whistleblowers are the first line of defence against corruption, crime and cover-ups, according to a 2019 paper by the All–Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on whistleblowing in the UK.

For Sambo Abdullahi, head of internal audit at the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET) Plc, it has been one long tortuous journey. Over the past two years, he has been at the receiving end of the retaliation whistleblowers around the world, including in Nigeria, face for shining the light on malfeasance around them: denial of wages, job losses, expensive court cases, abuse, psychological trauma, blacklisting across their sector, and sometimes death.

Abdullahi has been denied his salary and other allowances since December 2017, threatened, blacklisted, arrested and sued. All of this for acting professionally and responding patriotically to the call of the Nigerian government asking citizens to join the fight against corruption by blowing the whistle on corrupt practices and other forms of wrongdoing in the country.

In two separate courts, in Ifo, Ogun State, and Okitipupa, Ondo State, where in a most brazen abuse of judicial process, Abdullahi was summoned to answer charges of defamation levelled against him by his boss, Dr. Marilyn Amobi, Managing Director of NBET, he easily walked through the doorway of victory. Both cases were struck out on account of Dr. Amobi’s lack of seriousness in prosecuting.

The crisis of corruption in NBET has been going on for almost three years and the government appears not to have any solution. The appointment of Dr Amobi as the second substantive MD/CEO of NBET signified doom not only for Abdullahi as head of internal audit but also for the entire staff of the company. The MD withheld Abdullahi’s salary and other emoluments just because he exercised the right to decline participation in her fraudulent activities and rejected an unwarranted deployment to a new department unilaterally created by the MD to continue to perpetrate fraud.

Abdullahi, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), graduated in Accounting from a reputable university and has over two decades of experience. He acquired experiences from both the private and public sectors before joining NBET. He was the pioneer Head of Internal Audit of NBET in 2012; a position he held till 2016 when Dr Amobi joined the company.

Within one month of Dr. Amobi’s assumption of office, Abdullahi discovered the illegal over-payment of N2 billion to two generating plants, Omotosho Power Plc and Olorunsogo Power Plc, both of which have no Gas Supply Agreement (GSA) and Gas Transportation Agreement (GTA) as required by industry agreement. The implication of this fraudulent transaction is that electricity consumers on a monthly basis pay N2billion in excess of what they ought to have paid if this fraud is averted. It is on record that the very first month the fraud was detected, Dr Amobi assumed the role of internal auditor by signing off the payment vouchers.

Her defence for this unlawful violation was that the mandatory GSA and GTA had been waived. The questions for her are, who approved the waiver? Why was the waiver not extended to other thermal plants? And why did the waiver idea come only after the head of internal audit had uncovered the fraud?

Other transactions that made Abdullahi to incur the wrath of Dr. Amobi was his refusal to endorse other payment vouchers for illegal procurement of alcohol using taxpayers’ money, proposed monthly payment of N2.5million to one Engr. Achinaya (an ex-staff of both NEPA and PHCN) without procurement process, procurement of legal advisory services of Azinge & Azinge and Aelex law firms in gross violation of the Procurement Act, and payment for return flight ticket from London for Dr Amobi to resume work in NBET in violation of the NBET Board-approved benefit compensation packages just to mention a few.

As a retaliation against Abdullahi for doing his job professionally, which to Dr Amobi connotes standing in her way, she colluded with the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation to get rid of Abdullahi and his colleague Waziri Bintube. Both were removed from their duly appointed and NBET Board- approved functions as head of internal audit and Chief Finance Officer respectively. While Abdullahi’s salary was stopped, Bintube was sacked.

In response, the duo wrote a petition to the Ministry of Power in 2017. The ministerial committee report was released in March 2018 and vindicated them, while indicting Dr. Amobi. But despite the minister’s (Babatunde Fashola) directives that Abdullahi’s salary should be restored and Bintube reinstated immediately, and in fact that both workers should enjoy the rights of NBET staff, Dr. Amobi refused to comply with the directives.

Till date, she denies Abdullahi his salaries and Bintube has not been called back. Dr. Amobi heads a government agency supervised by a Ministry, but her insolent defiance of a Ministerial order is unprecedented in the history of public sector administration in Nigeria. And it is strange that this is happening under a government that claims to prioritize due process and accountability in the public sector.

As if the stoppage of salaries and sacking were not enough, Dr Amobi got Abdullahi and Bintube detained in the facility of the State Security Services (SSS) for more than twenty-four hours. Several directives by Babatunde Fashola, then Minister of Power, were rebuffed by Dr Amobi who insisted that as an appointee of President Muhammadu Buhari she would only take directives from the president.

While the issue of salary suspension remained unresolved in spite of interventions from the Ministry of Power, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the office of the Vice President, among others, Abdullahi approached the National Industrial Court in December 2018, twelve months after the unlawful stoppage of his salaries, with Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, Dr Marilyn Amobi (MD/CEO), Hon Minister of Power and the Ministry of Power as defendants.

On March 11, 2020, Abdullahi (the claimant) once again walked the path of victory with the court delivering judgement in his favour. According to Hon Justice O. O. Oyewumi, the act of the suspension of the claimant’s salaries from December 2017 till date was wrongful; the denial of the claimant’s 2017 and 2018 leave was wrongful; the 1st and 2nd defendants, contrary to its terms and conditions of service, withheld the claimant’s salary and other emoluments wrongfully. The judge ordered the payment of Abdullahi’s salaries and other allowances, noting, “All sums awarded in the judgement is to be paid within 30days of the judgement, failure upon which it attracts 21% interest thereon per annum.”

While the case lasted in court, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Auditor General of the Federation and the Bureau of Public Procurement all issued reports indicting Dr Amobi while recommending her immediate prosecution. Sadly, some higher powers are preventing this from happening.

Governance problems are commonly found in federal government agencies due to either lack of a Board or total collapse of the governance structure. The Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Alex Akoh, noted in a letter to the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, dated January 7, 2020, that “for the past 14 months, no Board meeting of the company (NBET) was held, a situation which has serious consequences on the corporate governance of the company”. Truth is, no Board meeting of NBET has held since August 2018 when Professor Yemi Osinbajo, then Acting President, ratified the reconstitution of the NBET Board of Directors recommended by Kemi Adeosun, the immediate past Minister of Finance.

The governance collapse in NBET has entrusted the fate of about 80 million electricity consumers in Nigeria in the hands of Dr Amobi who sees herself as not only untouchable, but also a sort of “Alfa and Omega.” She formulates and executes policies at will, such as changing the company organogram whenever she sees any staff as standing in her way. The entire senior management has passed a vote of no confidence in Dr Amobi but despite this and other fraudulent activities traceable to her, no action was taken by the government to ameliorate the problem in the power sector and curb the continuous fraud being perpetrated in NBET.

The Minister of Power of Power Engr. Sale Mamman, in December 2019, made a daring move to respond to the situation by suspending Dr. Amobi from office indefinitely. But curiously, he was overruled by President Muhammadu Buhari in less than two weeks and Dr. Amobi was returned to office.

This forced the Minister to fire a letter dated January 8, 2020, to Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, detailing investigations by the ICPC, EFCC and the reports of the Auditor General of the Federation which implicated the NBET boss “for breach of due process in the award of contracts and several financial wrongdoings.” In that letter copied to President Buhari, the Minister reminded the SGF of “the additional baggage which the suspended MD carries in the light of the anti-corruption stance of the Federal Government.”

If this government wants to be seen as genuinely fighting corruption, the NBET case is a golden opportunity to faithfully demonstrate that conviction. Dr. Amobi has been indicted for corruption by government anti-corruption agencies. The place for her, therefore, is the courtroom, not a cushioned seat of a government agency.

Meanwhile, before Dr. Amobi’s prosecution, government should direct her to obey without delay the judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction in the suit filed by a whistleblower, Sambo Abdullahi, the head of internal audit of NBET.

In addition, government should realize that all whistleblowers deserve full and effective protection from all kinds of retaliation, without which its whistleblowing policy will not succeed as an instrument for reducing corruption in the country.

Onumah and Onyeacholem are with the African Centre for Media & Information Literacy (AFRICMIL)

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March 26, 2020
Sultan Nazrin consents to setting up of Special Zakat Distribution Fund

IPOH: The Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin Shah (pix) has consented to the Special Zakat Distribution Fund, involving RM11.95 million, to ease the burden of the people affected by the Covid-19 outbreak and assist efforts by various quarters in addressing the crisis.

Perak Islamic Religious and Malay Customs Council (MAIPk) chief executive oficer Shahrul Azam Shaari said the special fund was set up by the council, with the cooperation of several of its strategic partners.

This special fund, involved RM11.11 million from the zakat allocation, RM30,000 from SP Setia Foundation chairman and RM800,000 in tithe from the corporate sector,“ he said in a statement here today.

He said Sultan Nazrin consented to the setting up of the fund so that it could be used to help those who are affected by the enforcement of the Movement Control Order (MCO) which has been extended until April 14.

“Sultan Nazrin is concerned and aware that the Covid-19 pandemic has a direct impact on the lives of the people, especially among those with unstable income and those in the low-income group,“ he added.

Shahrul said the special fund would cover the cost of the Food Box Aid, involving RM240,000, which would be channeled through the Covid-19 Operations Room under the respective District and Land Offices tin the state.

He said RM5.8 million would be for the Emergency Survival Assistance, which is targeted for households earning RM2,000 and below whose income were affected due to either termination of employment, unpaid leave or other reasons.

A total of RM2 million is allocated for Special Capital Assistance to assist MAIPk traders, hawkers and entrepreneurs whose business were affected by the MCO; RM100,000 for management and welfare assistance to Perak students studying abroad and RM100, 000 to provide food supply to students at public and private institutions of higher learning in Perak who are still at their respective colleges, he added.

Shahrul said a special contribution of RM500,000 would be made to the Perak Health Department, the Royal Malaysia Police, the Malaysian Armed Forces and other agencies for the welfare of their Covid-19 frontline personnel.

RM1 million is for health and medical equipment to be donated to hospitals in Perak, RM1.5 million for purchase of medical equipment to combat Covid-19, like face masks, gloves and disinfectant to be distributed to mosques, suraus and the general public, and RM710,000 for contingency plan, he added. – Bernama

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March 25, 2020