Retrenched Kadpoly guards decry non-payment of arrears

Kebbi 4thwith newborn deaths - UNICEF

About 650 security personnel employed under Lynx Security Consultants Limited by Kaduna Polytechnic have protested the non-payment of over four months’ salary arrears after they were The Plateau State Police Command has said an alleged misunderstanding between the University of Jos and Naraguta, its host community did not lead to tension as earlier speculated.

Daily Trust reports that the Sarkin Naraguta, Engineer Mohammed Bello Ahmed had told journalists that the recent ownership of a brick factory by University of Jos and attempt to demolish alleged The Management of the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, has denied reports that some newborn babies died at the hospital while some striking members ofJoint Health Staff Union (JOHESU) were picketing. sacked eight months ago by the new Rector, Professor Idris Bugaje.

The chairman of the committee constituted by the retrenched staff, Danladi Audi, said each staff is being owed N60,000, amounting to N39 million.

“There was no warning, all we heard encroached structures by the police had created tension between the institution and its host community.

However, Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Tyopev Terna said the Commissioner of Police had sent the DPO in charge of Anguwan Rogo to the area with a court order detailing how the people had encroached on the land which now belongs to the institution.

ASP Terna said last week’s visit to the area by the police did not lead to violence.

Some of the union members were reported to have gone to the hospital to ward off staff that reported for duty despite the industrial dispute between the union and the Federal Government.

Public Relations Officer of the hospital, Jacinta Achonu, told our correspondent on Friday, that though there was a scuffle was that we have been sacked and our replacements had already been drafted to the school,” he said.

When contacted, the Bursar of polytechnic, Garba Ya’u Nabayi said: “I assumed office as bursar of the Polytechnic in January this year, so I am not aware.”

‘No tension between UniJos, host community’

Kebbi State has been rated fourth among states with highest cases of newborn death in the country. Zamfara, Gombe and Jigawa states were in the first, second and third positions in the UNICEF newborn mortality ranking.

The UNICEF Chief of Health, Dr Sanjana Bhardwaj during a one-day Technical Consultative meeting by the state Ministry of Health in Birnin Kebbi said Kebbi State recorded 32,514 deaths of children under the age of five yearly.

She added that there was steady drop in Nigeria’s mortality rate and the case of Kebbi was worrisome.

The Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Umaru Usman Kambaza said it was clear that all is not well with the health sector in the state, given the indices.

No baby died at FMC, management says

between some senior staff and striking union members, the issue was resolved when a security officer attached to the hospital alerted his men for reinforcement.

JOHESU chairman, Imo State, Nzenwata Francis Iheanach, confirmed the incident but said it has been brought under control.