Zika virus: What you need to know

The Zika virus, an alarming and disturbing infection that may be linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains, is spreading through the Americas.

Some areas have declared a state of emergency, doctors have described it as "a pandemic in progress" and some are even advising women in affected countries to delay getting pregnant.

But what is the virus, how is it spread and how can people minimise the chances of catching it? Tulip Mazumda explains.

The infection, which causes symptoms including mild fever, conjunctivitis and headache, has already been found in 21 countries in the Caribbean, North and South America.

It has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains and some countries have advised women not to get pregnant.

No treatment or vaccine is available.

The virus was first detected in 1947 in monkeys in Africa. There have since been small, short-lived outbreaks in people on the continent, parts of Asia and in the Pacific Islands.

But it has spread on a massive scale in the Americas, where transmission was first detected in Brazil in May 2015.

Large numbers of the mosquitoes which carry the virus and a lack of any natural immunity is thought to be helping the infection to spread rapidly.

Zika is transmitted by the bite of Aedes mosquitoes, which are found in all countries in the region except Canada and Chile.

In a statement, The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the regional office of the WHO, said: "PAHO anticipates that Zika virus will continue to spread and will likely reach all countries and territories of the region where Aedes mosquitoes are found."

PAHO is advising people to protect themselves from the mosquitoes, which also spread dengue fever and chikungunya.

It also confirmed the virus had been detected in semen and there was "one case of possible person-to-person sexual transmission" but further evidence was still needed.

Around 80% of infections do not result in symptoms.

But the biggest concern is the potential impact on babies developing in the womb. There have been around 3,500 reported cases of microcephaly - babies born with tiny brains - in Brazil alone since October.

PAHO warned pregnant women to be "especially careful" and to see their doctor before and after visiting areas affected by the virus.

Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Jamaica last week recommended women delay pregnancies until more was known about the virus.

Although officially PAHO says "any decision to defer pregnancy is an individual one between a woman, her partner and her healthcare provider".

Maria Conceicao Queiroz said there was a sense of fear where she lives near the Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro: "Every one is at risk, we're all scared of getting Zika.

"We're surrounded with dirty water, polluted water, but what can we do but put repellent on, to try to keep the mosquitoes away."Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Jamaica last week recommended women delay pregnancies until more was known about the virus.

Although officially PAHO says "any decision to defer pregnancy is an individual one between a woman, her partner and her healthcare provider".

Maria Conceicao Queiroz said there was a sense of fear where she lives near the Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro: "Every one is at risk, we're all scared of getting Zika.

"We're surrounded with dirty water, polluted water, but what can we do but put repellent on, to try to keep the mosquitoes away."

Prof Laura Rodrigues, a fellow of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said some data suggested that up to one-in-fifty babies had birth defects in one of the worst hit areas - Pernambuco state in Brazil.

She said: "Until November we knew nothing, this has caught us by surprise and we're trying to learn as fast as we can.

"Wherever there is dengue, there is mosquito, then it will spread and not just in Americas I think there is a very real chance it will spread in Asia."

PAHO advice is to ensure all containers that can hold even small amounts of water should be emptied and cleaned to prevent mosquitoes breeding.

And that people should protect themselves by using insect repellent, covering up and keeping windows and doors closed.

The director general of the WHO, Margaret Chan, said the outbreak was "extremely worrisome".

With BBC

Buhari to attend Olubadan’s funeral

President Muhammadu Buhari will attend the forthcoming funeral of the late Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Samuel Odulana Odungade.

Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimola, disclosed this to State House correspondents after meeting President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday, according to The Nation.

He also declared that claim by the Otun Seriki of Ibadan, Chief Adebayo Oyediji , to be  the next Olubadan of Ibadanland was an exercise in futility.

He said: “My mission here basically is to see Mr. President and intimate him of the recent transition of the Olubadan who passed away a couple of days ago.

“We had to wait for the traditional message from the palace before we could convey this to the President. I am glad that I have been able to convey it. You may even ask why conveying such to the President, at least he was just an Olubadan?

“If you know, the Olubadan is not an ordinary King. Apart from the fact that he worked for the Federal Government, he was once a Minister of Labour under Alhaji Tafawa Balewa‘s government when he was prime minister, he worked as a parliamentarian and a minister, told The Nation.

“He was part of the delegation to Britain for the Nigerian Conference, therefore, he was a national figure, hence he was honoured with a CFR. He contributed immensely to the development of Nigeria, so he stood out as a king.

“I am glad to say that having seen the President, he has assured me that he would be attending the burial ceremony.”

‘Plot to smear Tinubu in full swing’

The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, says there is a deliberate plot by some individuals to rub his name in the mud through fictitious reports in various blogs and the social media, according The Punch.

He said the smear campaign was tagged, ‘Destroy the reputation of Tinubu and his relationship with Buhari’.

Tinubu said this in a statement by his media aide, Mr. Sunday Dare, on Tuesday.

He said most of those behind the act were aggrieved members of the Peoples Democratic Party that had failed to recover from the defeat in the 2015 election, told The Punch.

Tinubu alleged that some of them were being probed for corruption and had decided to push him into the controversy to whip up public sympathy.

He said, “The individuals behind the plot are mostly scared PDP elements made frightened by the Buhari anti-corruption campaign. They direct this falsehood at Tinubu in the futile mission of trying to drive a wedge between the President and Tinubu to disrupt the progress being made against corruption and to destabilise the APC.

“But their PDP is already something by-gone, buried under the mass of its corruption and wrongdoing. They fight for a cause that has no cause. They are mercenaries of all the ills and defects that the people want excised from our body politic. Thus, we must do the people a public service.”

The former governor of Lagos State said he never granted any interview regarding President Muhammadu Buhari’s plan to run for re-election in 2019.

He also denied reports that he partook in the $2.1bn arms scam.

Tinubu said he had a list of the blogs that were carrying the false news and would soon expose their sponsors.

He said, “In the last six weeks, the Tinubu Media Office has monitored the stream of false, distorted media accounts written against Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We have learned that there is a concerted, wilful campaign tagged, ‘Destroy the reputation of Tinubu and his relationship with Buhari.’

“As part of this ugly plot to cultivate the worst of lies against the national leader of the APC, several blogs and online sites recruited to launch this smear campaign have manufactured stories to advance this sinister plan to taint the public mind with gross lies disguised as news reports and interviews.

“Fallacious headlines such as ‘Reasons why I collected N9m-Tinubu’ and ‘I will not return N9m-Tinubu”. “I am afraid PDP will stop Buhari in 2019 – Tinubu,’ are being paraded. Try as hard as they can the creators of these false tales and misleading headlines will fail miserably.

“Their stories cannot stand up to the slightest scrutiny. They are patently false and we condemn in the strongest terms those involved in this anti-Tinubu racket.”

Tinubu said such a smear campaign was nothing but libel and would not be taken likely.

The APC leader said some of them had even gone as far as cloning the letter head of his media office, warning that those behind the campaign would soon be brought to justice.

He added, “While these fellows may think themselves cunning, they might have outwitted their very selves. In writing these stories, they have committed clear libel. In abusing the media office letterhead and name, their misrepresentations amount to forgery.

“They laugh now but walk on thin ice. Soon, that ice will break and they shall have nothing but the weight of their wrongdoing to blame for their predicament that will soon come.

“After identifying the bloggers and paid hatchet writers perpetrating these wrongs, the Tinubu Media Office is taking the step to alert the public to beware and be weary of hatchet writers, false prophets and paid bloggers. The Tinubu Media Office has the names and online sites recruited for this campaign and will not hesitate to make them know if they do not desist from their negative mission.”

Bayelsa Election: Dickson punished 500 workers for supporting APC

There were indications yesterday that the Seriake Dickson-led Bayelsa State government has allegedly compiled the names of 500 workers for punishment for “supporting” the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last December 5 and January 9 governorship polls in the state.

Besides the punishment, it was learnt that the affected civil servants had not been paid since last October.

The government is said to be unhappy that the civil servants worked against Dickson’s re-election and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the polls that were marred by widespread violence.

The government’s action is said to be generating tension with the affected civil servants planning to seek redress in court.

Dickson was declared the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) after defeating former Governor Timipre Sylva of the APC and Moses Siasia of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM),  according to The Nation.

It was gathered that the government set up “a special committee” in each of the eight local government areas to monitor the activities of pro-APC civil servants before and during the elections.

Workers in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) within grade levels eight to 17 are said to be affected by the government’s action.

The order to sanction the “indicted” civil servants was said to have emanated from the committee’s report.

It was learnt that the names of the affected persons were forwarded to the Due Process Bureau, which operates the automated payroll system of the state government, for appropriate action.

The directive reportedly emanated from the Office of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) through the Office of the Head of Service (HOS) to the Due Process Bureau.

The bureau, headed by Dickson’s Special Adviser on Treasury Matters, Mr. Timi Seipulo, was reportedly asked to implement the order.

It was also gathered that workers in the state’s broadcasting corporation and the sport council were the worst-hit.

A source, who spoke in confidence, noted that there was a deliberate effort by the government to flush out those considered APC members in the civil service.

“Right now, a fresh verification of workers is ongoing for this singular purpose. Most of these workers have not received their salaries since October, last year. While pro-PDP workers are receiving their salaries, those perceived to be APC members are not,” the source said.

One of the affected workers, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said the accountant in his establishment told them their names were missing from the payroll.Dickson was declared the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) after defeating former Governor Timipre Sylva of the APC and Moses Siasia of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM).

It was gathered that the government set up “a special committee” in each of the eight local government areas to monitor the activities of pro-APC civil servants before and during the elections.

Workers in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) within grade levels eight to 17 are said to be affected by the government’s action.

The order to sanction the “indicted” civil servants was said to have emanated from the committee’s report.

It was learnt that the names of the affected persons were forwarded to the Due Process Bureau, which operates the automated payroll system of the state government, for appropriate action.

The directive reportedly emanated from the Office of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) through the Office of the Head of Service (HOS) to the Due Process Bureau.

The bureau, headed by Dickson’s Special Adviser on Treasury Matters, Mr. Timi Seipulo, was reportedly asked to implement the order.

It was also gathered that workers in the state’s broadcasting corporation and the sport council were the worst-hit.

A source, who spoke in confidence, noted that there was a deliberate effort by the government to flush out those considered APC members in the civil service.

“Right now, a fresh verification of workers is ongoing for this singular purpose. Most of these workers have not received their salaries since October, last year. While pro-PDP workers are receiving their salaries, those perceived to be APC members are not,” the source said.

One of the affected workers, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said the accountant in his establishment told them their names were missing from the payroll.

DasukiGate: Don’t give suspects media trial, Adebanjo tells FG

A chieftain of the pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has urged the Federal Government to arraign the persons indicted in the $2.1bn arms scandal.

The elder statesman noted that the eventual court judgments would determine whether they were guilty or not and not by trying them on the pages of newspapers,according to The Punch.

Adebanjo, stated that the proper thing to do was for the Federal Government to proceed to court with the evidences against the accused, told The Punch .

While commending efforts of the current administration in tackling corruption, he added that the government must follow constitutional procedures in pressing charges against the suspects.

He said, ‘‘You cannot be the accuser, prosecutor and judge in your own case. In as much as I appreciate efforts to rid the country of corruption, things must be done constitutionally. All the people indicted in the arms deal case are innocent until proved guilty by competent courts.’’

Some individuals and members of the Peoples Democratic Party had been indicted in the mismanagement of the funds earmarked for the procurement of arms for the Army to fight the violent sect, Boko Haram.

The funds were allegedly distributed to the individuals by the embattled former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who served in the regime of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan.