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Clearing agents under the aegis Customs’ Manual Valuation

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Despite the introduction of the centralized national database, Vehicle Registry (VREG), and Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) for easy verification of Customs duty on vehicles at seaports, clearing agents under the aegis of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) have lamented that operatives of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) still subject importers and freight agents to manual processes at Tin Can Island Command and the Ports and Terminal Multisea.

This was revealed by Dr. Kayode Farinto, Vice President of the ANLCA, in an interview with TELEVISION NIGERIAN over the weekend.

Read Also:  COVID-19 Infection Caused Psychological Trauma in Me – FCT Minister

He, however, observed that there hasn’t been a Customs circular to sensitize the trading public that Customs has started the utilization of VIN.

According to Farinto whonis also the spokesperson of Shippers’ Association of Lagos State (SALS), the VREG platform has also ushered in novel challenges with the server unable to generate the VREG in the last three weeks.

His words, “The server has been down and it could be down for another 4-5days. Nobody is addressing freight forwarders from Customs as they say it’s not their making. VREG is domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Finance and the issue is believed to be between the consortium and the Ministry.”

Read also:  In Ogun, 30-year-old housewife stabs her husband’s 18-year-old nephew to death over broken mirror.

“It is very unfortunate that we are talking about trade facilitation and ease of doing business, yet it takes a minimum of 4 days to generate VREG to evacuate a vehicle. Most times, you make the payment and the status doesn’t change. Consequently, you’ll not be able to migrate to the NCS portal to generate the VIN that was introduced in January.”

While Farinto admonished the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed to look into the issues affecting VREG in order to simplify it and make the process seamless, he lamented that a lot of people are paying unnecessary demurrage and storage charges since the introduction of VREG.

“I believe that the sector doesn’t need VREG because it seems to be another means to extort importers. If the government wants data of vehicles cleared legitimately from the ports, all they need to do is to liase with the NCS. When experts posit that Nigerian seaports are bedeviled by numerous charges, this VREG is another issue that validates such assertion,” he stressed.

Farinto also asserted that findings on the data in the Customs portal, with regards to duties on vehicles, show that the figures are very outrageous.

Stating that the rates negate the principles of transaction value, he argued that the trading community has a legitimate right to ask questions on the mode of deriving Customs duties.

“We aren’t in a military era, so when I get the value as a freight agent, I should be able to ask how that value was derived. The World Customs Organization (WCO) and World Trade Organization (WTO) have said that Customs formations must make their operations open. Traders and the trading public should know how these things are done,” he posited.

Read Also:  Dangote Refinery will reduce African petroleum imports by 36%.

He also warned that the federal government’s propensity to prioritize only revenue generation from the maritime and port sector would kill legitimate port business, cause inflation and heighten land border smuggling as importers seek alternatives to the nation’s overlevied seaports.

Dangote Refinery will reduce African petroleum imports by 36%.

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The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, is expected to reduce petroleum imports into Africa by 36%.

Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil and gas producer. Since 1960, Nigeria’s economy and budget have been largely supported by income and revenues generated by the petroleum industry, and statistics as of February 2021 show that the oil sector accounts for roughly 9% of the country’s GDP.

“The Refinery will begin operation by the third quarter (Q3) of 2022,” said Aliko Dangote, president of the Dangote Group. On the mechanical front, we’re almost done, but we’ve started hydro testing, and we’re almost there. Hopefully, by the end of Q3, the operation will be completed.

Read Also:  Amaechi: Rail project Will Go Beyond Daura Before Buhari’s Tenure Ends

Recently, the African Petroleum Producers Organisation (APPO) stated that the establishment of Dangote Oil Refinery will bring about a 36 per cent reduction in the importation of petroleum productions into the continent.

Besides, the organisation expressed a belief that the success of Dangote Refinery project could incentivise the rise of similar projects across Africa despite the current focus on energy transition.

The secretary-general, African Petroleum Producers Organisation, Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim, in an interview said: Dangote Refinery shall be supplying over 12 per cent of Africa’s products demand when it becomes operational.

According to Ibrahim, to appreciate the impact that the Dangote refinery is going to have on African economies and especially on the supply of petroleum products, and to some extent the conservation of scarce foreign exchange, a look at some statistics on the continent’s petroleum products demand and supply is in order.

“Currently, Africa’s daily petroleum demand is 4.3 million barrels per day (mbd). Of this volume, 57 per cent is produced locally (on the continent) while 43 per cent is imported. When Dangote is fully onstream, the percentage of Africa’s products import shall drop to 36 per cent. This is even as the total volume of products demand rises to 5.4 mbd. You can therefore see the huge impact that Dangote refinery shall be making to overall products supply in Africa. Dangote shall be supplying over 12 per cent of Africa’s products demand.

Read Also:  COVID-19 Infection Caused Psychological Trauma in Me – FCT Minister

“That is huge savings for a continent that has scarce foreign exchange and little to export. We shall save from buying abroad and from shipping and insurance costs. Furthermore, the success of Dangote could incentivise the rise of similar projects, the noise about energy transition notwithstanding,” he pointed out.

Ibrahim also hailed Dangote’s decision to go ahead with the construction of crude oil refinery despite a campaign against fossil fuels, adding that the demand for fossil fuel is going to continue for several decades to come.

“We believe that Dangote made a very wise decision to proceed with the project, despite the campaign against fossil fuels. There will be demand for petroleum products for many decades to come. Indeed, we see petroleum products prices rising steadily in the next few years for at least two decades.

“This is because new refineries are not coming up in Europe and North America, where Africa imports 34 per cent of its supplies, because their governments have embraced energy transition, some willingly, others due to pressure. So, some of the sources of Africa’s imports are going to dry up. At the same time, Africa will not be in a position to fast track the development of non-fossil fuels.

“In fact, even the developed countries will not be able to move as fast as is projected. We see Africa and many regions of the world continuing to rely on fossil fuel energy at a time when deliberate decisions are being made to stop funding fossil fuel projects. The world risks abandoning fossil for renewable, but in the end not getting the renewables, and at the same time losing the fossils due to deliberate neglect,” he explained.

Read Also:  APC youths seek unity, leadership opportunities at the convention

He urged African refiners to invest more on technology and develop the right expertise to manage their refineries, which are going to serve the continent as western refiners halt the establishment of more refineries.

“African refiners have no cause to worry about their investments. All they need to do is to ensure that they have developed the right expertise to manage their refineries, get honest managers and staff to run their business and come together to join APPO’s initiative to establish foundries and other equipment manufacturing plants to service their refineries. Once they have these, the market is there for their products.

“For the next three decades or more, Africa shall continue to use fossil fuel-driven vehicles and with its population projected to double within that period, there will be a huge market for petroleum products. Africa cannot rapidly transit into electric vehicles, as the bulk of the vehicles on our roads today and in the next 20-30 years are going to be non-electric. There is the market, and we should not be discouraged from thinking positively,” the APPO scribe noted.

He disclosed that APPO is working with its Member Countries to construct cross border energy infrastructure like pipelines for crude and products as well as for oil and gas terminals, depots etc.

“Once we have this infrastructure on the ground, the markets for African refiners shall not be limited to their home countries. Fortuitously, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which came into force in 2021, is there to support this initiative,” he added.

Read Also:  2023: After consultations in UK, Tinubu returns to Nigeria

Dangote refinery is a 650,000 barrels per day (bpd) integrated refinery and petrochemical project under construction in the Lekki Free Zone near Lagos, Nigeria. It is expected to be the Africa’s biggest oil refinery and the world’s biggest single-train facility, upon completion.

The Dangote refinery will process a variety of light and medium grades of crude to produce Euro-V quality clean fuels including gasoline and diesel as well as jet fuel and polypropylene. The integrated refinery and petrochemical project are expected to generate 9,500 direct and 25,000 indirect jobs.

2023: After consultations in UK, Tinubu returns to Nigeria

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Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), has returned to Nigeria after meeting and consulting in the United Kingdom about his presidential ambitions.

TELEVISION NIGERIAN has learned that the former Lagos State governor, who arrived in Lagos on Sunday, hosted Ade Omole, the party’s leader in the United Kingdom (UK), and the Nigeria Diaspora for Asiwaju (NDA) team in London.

Read Also:  As China delays, FG seeks a N5.9tr loan to complete multiple rail projects.

According to AbdulRasaq Danjuma, Mr Omole’s personal assistant, the meetings in London were to consult with the NDA and “critical APC stakeholders” in the UK on Tinubu’s presidential bid in 2023.

Danjuma in a statement said that contrary to media reports, Tinubu was hale and healthy.

‘’Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is in good health and excellent spirits.

“He is in good health, hale and hearty. He will be returning to Nigeria within a few days after necessary consultations here in the UK,” he had said.

Read Also:  APC youths seek unity, leadership opportunities at the convention

It would be recalled that immediately he travelled out of the country, the rumour mill was agog with the story that Tinubu travelled out of the country to seek medical treatment in the United Kingdom.

But in a swift reaction, Tinubu’s spokesperson, Mr. Tunde Rahman, debunked the rumour, saying his principal was fine and in excellent spirits.

Rahman did explain that the former governor of Lagos State travelled overseas to hold some meetings and further consultations in line with his 2023 presidential ambition, saying the APC chieftain would return to Nigeria the following week.

Rahman had said, “Asiwaju’s trip to the UK (United Kingdom) is not to rest or because of any illness.

“While abroad, Asiwaju is maintaining a vigorous schedule of meetings and consultations on a range of important matters.

Read Also:  In Ogun, 30-year-old housewife stabs her husband’s 18-year-old nephew to death over broken mirror.

“Whether at home or abroad, the daily schedule of Asiwaju is vibrant and full. Most people couldn’t sustain his high level of activity. This speaks to his exceptional intellectual energy and his commitment to achievement

“Asiwaju will return to Nigeria next week once this set of meetings and talks abroad is completed.”

In Ogun, 30-year-old housewife stabs her husband’s 18-year-old nephew to death over broken mirror.

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Cynthia Olukiowu, a 30-year-old housewife, was arrested by men from the Ogun State Police Command for allegedly stabbing her husband’s 18-year-old nephew, Habeeb Aremu, to death.

On Saturday, the suspect, who lived at 2, Apogidonoyo Street, Jafa Agbado, in the state’s Ifo Local Government Area, was apprehended.

Olukiowu was arrested following a distress call received by policemen attached to the Agbado divisional headquarters, according to the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP, Abimbola Oyeyemi, in a statement on Sunday.

Read Also:  APC youths seek unity, leadership opportunities at the convention

He said the police were told that his uncle’s wife stabbed a boy in the neck after the deceased allegedly broke a mirror.

Oyeyemi said, “It was revealed that a mirror being used in the house got broken and the deceased was alleged to have broken it.

“It was the allegation that led to a disagreement between the deceased and his uncle’s wife, subsequent upon which the suspect took a kitchen knife and used it to stab the deceased in his neck.

“Upon the distress call, the DPO, Agbado division, CSP Kehinde Kuranga, quickly led his men to the scene, where the suspect was promptly arrested, and the victim, who was in a pool of blood, was rushed to a hospital.

“He was unfortunately confirmed dead by the doctor on duty and his corpse was deposited in the Ifo General Hospital mortuary for an autopsy.”

Read Also:  As China delays, FG seeks a N5.9tr loan to complete multiple rail projects.

The PPRO said the state Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, had ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department for further investigation and diligent prosecution.

APC youths seek unity, leadership opportunities at the convention

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The youths of the All Progressives Congress from the South-South zone have called for unity among party members ahead of the party’s national convention on February 26.

They also demanded that young people be given opportunities to hold positions of leadership in the party and government.

Read Also:  I’ll return power to youths – Sani Musa: APC chairmanship

The APC South-South youth leader, Gabriel Iduseri, praised the Governor Mai Mala Buni-led Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee during a zonal youth leadership, sensitization, and capacity building meeting for newly elected youth leaders of the party in Benin City.

Buni’s leadership qualities and activities, he said, contributed to the successful conduct of ward, local government, and state congresses, culminating in the national convention.

He said, “We, the youths of the APC in the South-South zone are ready for the next level the party is going to. We have come together as one family and preaching unity and working together for the progress of the party and the country. We are also clamouring for inclusiveness in the party and in the governance of the country.

“We all know that the journey of the APC in the last four years has been a bit difficult with divergent interests but here we are standing together again, ready to carry on and change the narratives of our zone.

Read Also:  As China delays, FG seeks a N5.9tr loan to complete multiple rail projects.

“There is nothing that is as strong as a united house, a united party, and a united zone. My message to the leaders of APC in the South-South zone is that they need to be united in their political approach because a divided house cannot achieve anything meaningful, just as nothing good can come out of a war-torn zone.”

Speaking in the same vein, the South-West APC youth leader, Kolade Paff, said, “It is the aggregate of the productive capacities of our youths that will determine where Nigeria will be among nations of the world. Therefore, the youths have their role to play while the country also has its overall role to play.”

As China delays, FG seeks a N5.9tr loan to complete multiple rail projects.

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Because China has been slow to release funds for Nigeria, the federal government is turning to the British market, where it hopes to raise at least $14.4 billion (roughly N5.993 trillion) for multiple rail projects.

Standard Chartered Bank has already agreed to provide a $3.02 billion (N1,256 trillion) loan to fund rail projects, according to reports. There are signs that such a move could reduce the country’s reliance on Chinese loans.

Read Also:  Buhari sent messages of congratulations to Amaechi, Danu

Nigeria is seeking $14.4bn loans for the Port Harcourt to Maiduguri rail line as well as the Kano to Maradi (Niger) rail project, Amaechi told Bloomberg in June last year. 

According to the Director General of the Debt management office (DMO), Patience Oniha, loans from China to Nigeria were largely concessional with no collateral. As of September 30, 2021, Chinese loans in Nigeria stood at $3.59bn, representing only 9.4 per cent of Nigeria’s total foreign debt stock of $37.9bn.

“Nigeria’s total debt stock as at of September 30 was 37.9 billion dollars, this figure comprised the external debt stock of the Federal Government, 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory,” Oniha stated.

According to a Reuters report, Nigeria has approached Standard Chartered Bank (STAN.L) for funding of two rail projects. The Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi said this is after delays from Chinese lenders.

President Muhammadu Buhari has made upgrading transport networks and improving outdated power grids the pillar of his administration, with a view to boosting agriculture and other non-oil industries to cut dependence on dwindling crude revenues. But funding has been a major constraint.

Its parliament last year approved several billions of dollars in project-tied loans from the Chinese and other international lenders but funds have yet to materialize.

Read Also:  2023: Igbo women assure Yahaya Bello of 25m votes, plan biggest rally in Abuja

“We are actually waiting for the Chinese to give us the loan we applied for and they kept delaying us,” he told reporters in Abuja. “Will we wait for them forever? The answer is no.”

Nigeria has been negotiating a mix of loans from Chinese and European lenders to fund railway projects in the country.

In June 2021, Amaechi said Standard Chartered had agreed to fund $3.02 billion for the ongoing Port Harcourt-to-Maiduguri railway project. He also said at the time that Credit Suisse was expected to fund the Kano-to-Maradi line, which will connect northern states Kano, Jigawa and Katsina.

“We have gone to Standard Chartered Bank. They have not done financial closure but they have approved some level of funding for Kano-Maradi,” the minister said.

Nigeria’s poor transport and power networks have stymied economic growth for decades, holding back the distribution of wealth in Africa’s biggest economy where 40% of people live below the national poverty line.

Amaechi said the cabinet approved $187.7 million for contractors that will supervise the three or four rail projects in the works.

Read Also:  In Kaduna, terrorists kidnap Catholic priest, murder his aide

Also speaking, an expert on infrastructure planning, Okoli Ochuwa, stated that the move by Nigeria to turn to other multilateral donors was a laudable one.

“Although as it is, China loans are no cause for alarm yet in Nigeria, however, if we continue to depend on them, we may have no alternative. So I believe it is a good move for Nigeria to seek other infrastructure financing means. It should even look inwards in Nigeria for private partnerships. As long as the government respects agreements, there are ready investors,” said Ochuwa.

I’m contesting for the House of Reps seat in 2023 to expose politicians’ lies—Obaseki’s former aide

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coic
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Andrew Momodu, a former aide to Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki, has stated that his desire to educate Edo citizens about the complexities of democracy and politics motivated him to run for a House of Representative seat in the upcoming general elections.

Momodu, who served as Obaseki’s Special Adviser on Security and Public Order in the past, announced this in a statement issued on Sunday in Benin, the state capital.

The aspirant, who wants to represent Etsako Federal Constituency in the Green Chamber, also boasted that he would lead Edo State Contingent victorious members back to the National Assembly in 2023 after their victories.

Read Also:  COVID-19 Infection Caused Psychological Trauma in Me – FCT Minister

According to him, he was in the race to the Federal House of Representatives in 2023 to deliver the people of Etsako federal constituency from political enslavement and misrepresentation.

The statement read, “I am in the race to win. I am in the race as a response to the call to service by the Etsako people. I am in the race to provide leadership to my people. I join the race to the National Assembly to enable me to expose the black box of politics and revealed inconvenient truth against the convenient lie that has been used to mislead and misrule our people.

“We are tired of representatives who begged Etsako constituents to bear with the Federal Government. A representative that ought to articulate the aspirations and pains of the people to the government for intervention has rather turned the other way.

Read Also:  In Kaduna, terrorists kidnap Catholic priest, murder his aide

“The duty of representative is not to lament with the people but to bring the people out of lamentation. I am in the race to bridge the gap and provide job opportunities to our people, deploy legislative influence through zonal intervention projects to develop our communities, and attract federal presence across our land.”

In Kaduna, terrorists kidnap Catholic priest, murder his aide

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coic
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Terrorists attacked Ikulu Fari, a Catholic parish in Chawai, Kaduna State’s Kauru Local Government Area, on Sunday night.

During the attack, the terrorists kidnapped the parish priest, Rev Fr Joseph Shekari, and killed an unidentified cook working in the parish house.
When the marauders stormed the place at 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, the cook was killed.

Details will be provided later…

Read also:  COVID-19 Infection Caused Psychological Trauma in Me – FCT Minister

Breaking: APC youth leader dies in a ghastly car accident.

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coic
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Kola Bello, a youth leader for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Iseyin, Oke-Ogun, Oyo state, has died.

Bello died in a car accident on the Ibadan-Iseyin road over the weekend while returning home from the APC’s ‘Southwest Progressive Youth Festival’ in Ibadan, according to TELEVISION NIGERIA.

His body has been deposited in a state morgue.

On the social networking site Facebook, people have been mourning. “ANOTHER SAD LOSS,” wrote Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in response to Bello’s death.

It took me time to accept that my brother and young friend,Kolawole Bello is gone the way of all mortals.We grew up under the same roof at Oke Alafia in Iseyin while I schooled at the Anwar Ul Islam High School. His father,the legendary G.A.Bello was our English Language teacher. Kola was a chip of the old bloc. A patriot always brimming with ideas to improve the society. He loved his hometown Iseyin like very few does and was an Oke Ogun irredentist and a politician of the progressive hue.

Read Also:  Wike: PDP Can Only Support Candidate That Will Unite Nigeria – 2023 Presidency

Hardworking,ebullient and forthright,he was the ideas man in any gathering he found himself; social,cultural,religious or political. It is a shame that such a devoted,committed and patriotic Ambassador was denied the opportunity to represent the people of Iseyin again and again and again until he breathed his last. As it is said, Nigeria kills its brightest stars. The circumstance of his death is more painful because Kola had survived a near fatal accident on the same Ibadan-Iseyin road many years back.

I pray that God holds mama ,his young wife and children and siblings. May God forgive his sins and grant him eternal life. Adieu ,my dear brother.”

Similarly, Shina Peller, the lawmaker representing Iseyin/Itesiwaju/Kajola/Iwajowa Federal Constituency in Oyo State at the House of Representatives, wrote: “My heart is heavy; my mood is gloomy, my voice is weak, my eyes are swollen. It is a mourning moment for me as I lost my Legislative Aide (LA), Comrade Kola Bello, to a fatal accident on his way from Ibadan to Iseyin yesterday. We buried him today in Iseyin.

Kola Bello wasn’t just my LA, he’s my brother, and his immense contributions to my political activities, right from the campaign period preceding 2019 general elections till when he exited the world, remains valuable to me.

Read Also:  Wike: PDP Can Only Support Candidate That Will Unite Nigeria – 2023 Presidency

Kola Bello is an illustrious son of Iseyin, political icon and grassroots mobilizer who would always agitate for, initiate and support every course that will boost the development of Iseyin and the Oke Ogun region as a whole. Without doubt, he will be greatly missed by me, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Oke-Ogun indigenes and residents at large. I pray that his soul finds peace with God, and that God consoles us all. Amen. Adieu my brother, Kola Bello.”

Dapo Lam Adesina, a colleague of Peller’s, wrote: “This is yet another tragedy.”

You were a rising star, but only God knows the best for you.

We will continue to fly the flag.

“You will be greatly missed.”

Kola Bello, rest in peace.”

COVID-19 Infection Caused Psychological Trauma in Me – FCT Minister

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Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has recounted his three-week ordeal after being diagnosed with COVID-19 on December 31, 2021.

“I thank God Almighty that I received the first and second doses of the COVID vaccine, because I tested positive for COVID-19 on December 31, 2021, and despite being told it was mild, I know what I went through.”

Read Also:  Niger Delta Group Vows To Mobilise Youths For Protest Over NDDC Board

“I was quarantined in my home for three weeks, despite not being hospitalized, because I tested positive twice after taking the medication.”

“It was the third time I’d received a negative response. If I had not taken the first and second doses, probably what has happened to many of my dear ones would have happened to me.

“I tell you, even the mildness of the disease was something else because it hits you in many directions.

“When I had it, no matter how strong I felt during the day, for about 15, 20 minutes around 6pm, when I’m seated, I just drop asleep and then after 15 minutes, I’m able to turn up again.

Read Also:  In January, Lassa Fever claimed lives of 40 Nigerians – NCDC

“This is aside of the sore throat, the headaches and all the weakness you get, especially in your joints. I had to change my course of medicine after the first 10 days.”

“For three weeks, I was not productive. I didn’t go out of the house, I never had a chance to do my work and the multiplier effect was tremendous because even now, I’m just trying to cope, to clear all those files that I was not able to handle when I was under quarantine.”

The Minister thanked the Federal Government for ensuring the availability of the vaccines for Nigerians, advising residents of the Federal Capital Territory to get vaccinated because the vaccines save lives.

“I tell you, from the figures I get from our Public Health Department, a hundred percent of the deaths that we experienced in the FCT during the last few weeks as a result of COVID-19 were from those who were not vaccinated. So, the thing is that for those that are vaccinated, chances are that their cases will be mild, like my own case.

“So, my message to us is let us all get vaccinated. For those who have been vaccinated for the first and second dose, I advise them to go for the booster.

“I will take all the recommended shots because I don’t want to go through what I went through again.”

Read Also:  2023: Igbo women assure Yahaya Bello of 25m votes, plan biggest rally in Abuja

The Secretary for Health and Human Services of the FCTA, Dr. Abubakar Tafida said that a total of 433,000 people in the FCT have taken the first dose and 286,000 have had the second dose and so far, about 12,000 have taken the booster shot.

Dr. Tafida said that since the 30th of November when he assumed office as the Secretary for Health, a total of 16 deaths had occurred as a result of COVID-19 and none of the victims had been vaccinated.

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