The Federation of African Medical Students’ Associations (FAMSA)
recently held the 32nd Edition of its General Assembly in November 2018.
This year’s conference which took place in Ibadan, Nigeria, equally
marked the celebration of her 50th year in existence with the theme
“Repositioning Healthcare in Africa for Sustainable Development”.For
several years now, FAMSA has been focused on inspiring generations of
healthcare students and participants to take charge and play active
roles in structuring the future of healthcare in Africa for sustainable
development. This conference unlike any other held in history, was such
an engaging conference experience where healthcare students were able to
meet with key industry experts, policymakers, academicians and many
more.The 5-day conference comprised of keynote addresses, plenary
sessions, workshops, scientific presentations, hackathons, training
sessions, exhibitions, cultural night, trade fair, sport friendlies and
City tours. With every discussion capturing unique pain points and
tackling healthcare issues throughout the conference, participants were
thrilled as the conference gained more momentum each day.After the
arrival of delegates, the conference officially started on Monday the
19th of November. Here are some Highlights of the conference:The Opening
ceremonyThe Opening address was given by Prof. E. Oluwabunmi
Olapade-Olaopa, the Provost of the College of Medicine, University of
Ibadan. He emphasised that the development of Africa is something that
must be understood by her youths and that even as youths try to ensure
greener pastures for themselves; they must endeavour to come back and
give back to Africa. This was followed by a welcome address by Professor
A.O. Omigbodun (Patron and Chair Advisory board). To give the keynote
address was a representative of the Regional Director for Africa WHO, Dr
Clement Lugala, (officer in charge WHO Nigeria) as well as a video
message from Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus (Director-General of the World Health
Organization).Plenaries and Breakout sessionsSustaining the momentum,
the conference featured various plenary and breakout sessions on topics
such as Infectious diseases in Africa: Are we really winning? The Burden
of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs): Taking a quantum leap, Mental
Health: Breaking the silence, Maternal and Child Health in Africa: The
Wages of Disconnect, Medical Education in Africa: Curriculum, research
and Mentorship, Social Determinants of Health: Connecting the Dots.These
topics were adequately discussed by seasoned professionals including
Dr. Clement Lugala (Officer in Charge WHO) Dr. Elsie Kiguli-Malwadde,
(Director Health Workforce Education & Development, African Centre
for Global Health and Social Transformation), Dr. Michael Kivwanga,
(Global Execution Lead, Mental Health and Special, Johnson & Johnson
Global Public Health) Adam Thompson (Co-founder of eHealth Systems,
Africa) and Dr. Stephen Obaro (Director Of International Paediatric
Research Program, University of Nebraska Medical Centre, USA) to name a
few. WorkshopsThere were several workshops which took place
simultaneously. They include;The Burden of NCDs and the Younger
Generation; Taking a quantum leap, by The Wellbeing Initiative.Mental
Health and the Health Care Student by the Mentally Aware Nigeria
Initiative (MANI).The Reso-Hackathon Challenge by the Contents
Team.Emergency Obstetric and New born Care/Wash by The Wellbeing
Foundation Africa.One of the key highlights from the conference was a
video address from Dr. Paulin Basinga, (Nigerian Country Director, Bill
and Melinda Gates Foundation). In his address, he informed the audience
about the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and went ahead to give 12
suggestions and key advice he believes medical students should know to
enable them excel in their careers. Another note-worthy moment was the
special session by Dr Ibraheem Badejo, Senior Director, New Ventures at
Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Boston who announced the challenge by
the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies; “Africa Innovation
challenge 2.0”. The challenge which is targeted at uncovering
entrepreneurs in Africa who have a creative solution to various pressing
local healthcare needs offers potential winners up to US$50,000 in
financial support and resources to help bring their ideas to market.With
over 600 attendees spanned across students, healthcare professionals,
NGOs, Policymakers, Researchers and Industry experts from 11 countries,
the conference was a fully packed, informative and educative forum that
stirred all who were in attendance to proffer solutions towards
achieving a better healthcare system in Africa.See photos from the event
below...
A Nigerian lady identified as Margaret, took to Facebook on Thursday, to
thank God after her brother survived a stray bullet that pierced his
stomach on his way to work last Friday.Sharing photos of her brother in a
hospital receving treatment for the bullet wounds sustained, she
wrote;"My sister's help me Appreciate God,, the Alpha and omega,,, the
unchangeable changer,, Jehovah overdo,, the ORIGINAL GOD,, delivered my
brother from a stray bullet (Accidental discharged) last week Friday on
his way to work,, bullet from nowhere hit him on his Abdomen entered and
came out through the back,,, God is wonderful,, because it's an
uncommon grace.. indeed our God is great..." 
A group of Arsenal stars have been embroiled in a “hippy crack” storm
after they were filmed inhaling nitrous oxide at a private party which
took place at the exclusive Tape Club in London’s West End. The video
which was released by The Sun on Thursday night shows Mesut Ozil,
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Matteo Guendouzi
using balloons to inhale nitrous oxide before the start of the season in
August.In the footage, Ozil and Guendouzi appeared to lose
consciousness after inhaling from a balloon. 
Other
players who were also captured in the video are midfielder Henrikh
Mkhitaryan, Shkodran Mustafi and Sead Kolasinac. The three players
didn't take the drug. 
The
Arsenal football club is yet to react to the video. But other Premier
League players who have been embroiled in “hippy crack” storm in the
past are Raheem Sterling, Saido Berahino and Jack Grealish.The Advisory
Council on the Misuse of Drugs has said the drug 'has the potential to
cause harm to users, including 'death', with nitrous oxide responsible
for 17 fatalities between 2006 and 2012.
Speed Darlington has narrated a recent encounter he had with a former
high school crush who he "gave all the signals" back in school but she
didn't respond.Speed Darlington, who has been filmed using his
much-talked-about Mercedez Benz as a Taxi, said in the post that he
pretends to be a Taxi driver just to pick up beautiful women only.He
claims that he was acting as a Taxi driver when he ran into the lady who
refused his advances back in school. She now has two kids and he picked
her up and charged her for the trip. But she didn't have enough money
so he decided to use that opportunity to exact revenge for the way she
refused him back in 
school.Read what he wrote below. 
As he shared on Twitter.
Amidst reports that his marriage to wife, Osas, is in crisis, Nigerian
actor/Model, Gbenro Ajibade has replied an Instagram user who asked the
wherabouts of his wedding ring.Ajibade had posted he photo above on
Thursday night asking his followers to join him as he celebrates his
birthday in Miami tomorrow, when a follower questioned him on where his
wedding ring was.''Where is your ring young man" @Mandacyndi wrote.Read
their exchange below. 
NBA star, Russell Westbrooks and his wife Nina Westbrooks have shared
first photo of their adorable twin girls, Skye and Jordyn.The couple who
already have a one-year-old son named Noah Russell Westbrook welcomed
the adorable twin girls back in September. Russell Westbrooks' wife Nina
shared the gorgeous black-and-white photo and captioned it"Mommy &
Daddy's Girls."
Miley Cyrus lost her home to the California wildfires and weeks later,
her guitars worth $10,00 were stolen. But she hasn't lost her joy and
her ability to be sassy.The singer stepped out looking very eager and
excited to meet fans. She had on a black turtleneck top, a black leather
mini skirt and black boots. She went braless under the top, leaving her
nipples on display as she took photographs with fans and signed
autographs.See more photos and video below. 
Basketball star and Khloe Kardashian's babydaddy, Tristan Thompson has
been fined $15,000 for flipping the middle finger at fans during
Cleveland Cavaliers-Brooklyn Nets gameThe 27-year-old power forward who
plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers was on Monday seen flipping off
courtside fans at the Brooklyn Nets' Barclays Center.The incident
happened towards the end of the game after the Nets missed the
basket.The Nets were attempting to score a three-pointer before the game
buzzer rang, with the Cavaliers winning the game by two points - 99 -
97 against the Nets.On Thursday, NBA disciplinary officials said the
athlete was fined $15,000 for 'making an inappropriate gesture toward a
spectator,' via People. 
A male fugitive has become a viral sensation after he replied to a
Facebook post shared by police declaring him wanted.As part of its
"Wanted Wednesdays" bulletin, the Richland Police Department posted an
ad announcing that Anthony Akers, 38, was wanted by the Washington state
Department of Corrections for failing to comply with sentencing. The
Facebook post read:Wanted Wednesday! Anthony Akers (38) is wanted by the
Department of Corrections for Failure to Comply. If you have any
information please call 509-628-0333 
Few
hours after the post was shared, Akers replied and told the police
to "calm down" that he was going to turn himself in.He wrote:Calm down,
I'm going to turn myself in.However, when Mr Akers did not show
up Richland Police reached out via the same comment thread, informing
him that they still haven't seen him. They also made him aware of their
hours of operations and a non-emergency number he can contact if he
needs transportation. He then replied to the police:Thank you, tyding up
a couple loose ends since I will probably be in there for a month.
Should be in there in the next 48 hours.But after 48 hours passed and Mr
Akers still did not turn up, social media users who had been following
the conversation got interested. "Has he turned himself in," one
Facebook commenter posted. "He has not," the police replied. 
Akers
then responded again with an apology, writing:Dear RPD, it’s not you,
it’s me.I obviously have commitment issues. I [apologise] for standing
you up. I will be there no later then lunchtime tomorrow, I know you
have no reason to believe me after what I did to you, but I promise that
if I don’t make it on my own by lunchtime tomorrow I will call for a
ride to assist me with my commitment issues.Thank you in advance to your
response if you are patiently giving me another chance with us, I know i
don’t deserve it.P.S. You’re beautiful.But he still did not show
up, so the police department responded once more asking for the public’s
help in finding him. 
The
police wrote:We waited, but you didn’t show. After you stood us up, we
reached out again — this time offering you a ride. You replied and said
you needed 48 hours.The weekend came and went. We are beginning to think
you are not coming. Please call us anytime and we will come to
you."Akers ended up keeping his promise. On Tuesday, December 4, at 3:29
p.m., he turned himself in to Richland police and posted about it on
Facebook.Sharing a selfie he took at the police station, he wrote:Here
for our date sweetheart. 
The humour has won him the hearts of local police and social media users.
Instagram user, @miss_titilayomi, has shared the sad story of how she
found the corpse of a man on the road and no government official
attempted to remove it. Sharing the photo above on her IG page, she
wrote;Saw this man lying on the side of the road while on my way home
from work. Must be exhausted I thought, definitely doesn’t have a home
for an afternoon nap...What a pity! Until I looked closer...He’s dead!
Why is he not breathing?! I call the attention of a LASTMA Officer who
was mindlessly controlling traffic. Please check that man, I urged.
‘Madam he don die o, na so I dey here since morning, him never move’.
Mouth agape, so many questions, none voiced. ‘Ah madam e dey happen like
that, na so they just fall dan die like that’. By they, I’m sure he
referred to the homeless, the mentally challenged, the less
privileged.What struck me about this scene was the presence of a
presidential campaign poster for the current government just inches away
from the deceased. ‘Progress’ it read.I looked at the lifeless body
once more, flies parading his body, ants all over his face...even in
death he’s still ignored. #temporarypost #prayforNigeria 
A married woman in Rivers state whose husband is allegedly molesting
their three-year-old daughter, is seeking help on how to get justice and
escape from her marriage.A chat she had with a certain Ben where she
poured out her pain and also sought advise, has since gone viral. Read
the chilling chat below. 
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos office, on
Thursday, December 6, 2018, arraigned Adewale Dalmeida, Ibrahim Lawal
and Lukman Adam, who are employees of Dangote Cement, Ibese, Ogun State,
and one Afeez Olaniba before Justice O. J. Bamgbose of the High Court
of Ogun State, Abeokuta on a two-count charge bordering on conspiracy
and stealing to the tune of N15m (Fifteen Million Naira). This is
according to a statement released by the anti-graft agency. Read part of
the statement below.The complainant, Dangote Cement, alleged that
Dalmeida, a Fleet Analyst; Lawal, Chief Driver; Adam, a Ghanaian driver
and Olaniba, who is an agent of a contractor to the company, diverted
nine trucks carrying 800 bags of cement each valued at over N15m.The
defendants were said to have diverted the trucks carrying the bags of
cement, which were meant for the company's customers in Togo, using fake
identification cards and number plates.Count one reads: " That you,
Adewale Dalmeida, Ibrahim Lawal, Afeez Olaniba and Lukman Adam, between
May and August, 2018 at Ibese, within the jurisdiction of this
honourable Court, conspired amongst yourselves to commit felony, to wit:
stealing of the sum of N15, 940, 800.00 00 (Fifteen Million, Nine
Hundred and Forty Thousand, Eight Hundred Naira) property of Dangote
Cement Place".The suspects pleaded not guilty to the charge when it was
read to them.In view of their pleas, the prosecution counsel, Idris
Mohammed, asked the court for a trial date and also prayed that the
defendants be remanded in prison custody.The prosecution counsel also
told the court that the defendants had not filed any application for
bail before the court.Consequently, counsels to the defendants prayed
the court to move oral application for bail on behalf of their clients,
arguing that “they have been in the EFCC custody since September.”The
defence counsels further urged the court to remand the defendants in the
EFCC custody pending the hearing of their bail applications.However,
the prosecution counsel opposed the prayers of the defence counsels to
remand the defendants in the EFCC custody.Justice Bamgbose remanded the
defendants in Ibara Prison custody, Abeokuta, Ogun State and adjourned
till December 17, 2018 for hearing of the bail applications and
commencement of trial.
On Tuesday December 3rd, wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, lamented
that two powerful personalities have constituted themselves as a clog in
the wheel of speedy development of the country. Mrs Buhari, who spoke
at a conference organized by Project 4+4 in Abuja, however, did not
mention the names of the powerful persons.The First Lady explained that
the government had achieved a lot but could have achieved more or even
achieved all it had planned for in one year but for two people in
government who will never allow things to move fast.She said that she
was disappointed in men who rather than fight these two men, go to them
in the night begging for favours.Watch video of Aisha Buhari alleging
that two powerful personalities are holding her husband's government
down View this post on Instagram Video of Mrs Aisha Buhari
alleging that two powerful personalities are holding her husband's
government down
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, today December 6th
2018, arraigned the former governor of Kebbi State, Usman Saidu
Dakingari alongside two others before Honourable Justice Basse Onu of
the Federal High Court sitting in Kebbi. They were arraigned on a 13
count charge of Conspiracy and Money Laundering to the tune N450,000,000
(Four Hundred and Fifty Million Naira) only. Dakingari was arraigned
along with Sunday Dogonyaro and Garba Rabiu Kamba for allegedly
conniving to collect the sum of N450 million (Four Hundred and Fifty
Million Naira) being part of the $115,000,000 (One Hundred and Fifteen
Million Dollars) warehoused in Fidelity Bank and shared by the a former
Minister of Petroleum Resources, Deizani Alison-Madueke for the purpose
of influencing the 2015 general election. One of the charges reads that:
"Usman Saidu Dakingari on or about the 27th March 2015 at Kebbi within
the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court made a cash payment of the
sum of N49,640,000 (Forty Nine Million, Six Hundred and Forty Thousand
Naira) only to Alhaji Haruna Haruna without transacting through a
financial institution and thereby committed an offence contrary to
section 18 (a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 (as
amended) and punishable under section 16 (2)(b) of the same Act”.The
defendants pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to them.Counsel
for the prosecution Jonson Ojogbane requested a date for trial in view
of the plea of the defendants.But counsels representing the dependents
moved applications for bail on behalf of their clients and respectively
urge the court to admits there client to bail.Ojogbane opposed the bail
applications with counter affidavits urging the court to refuse the
application of the 1st and 2nd defendants. Ojogbane, however, did not
oppose the bail application of the 3rd defendant who has been constantly
reporting to court since the first time the case came up of
arraignment.The first and second defendants on the other hand had
initially refused to appear before the court even after the court
threatened to issue a bench warrant for their arrest.After listening to
the arguments exchanged between the parties, Justice Onu adjourned the
matter to December 10th , 2018 for ruling on bail application.The
defendants were ordered to be remanded in EFCC custody pending the
outcome of the ruling on bail application.
Ecuador's president has said that the UK government has assured him that
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will not be extradited to any country
where his life is in danger.Julian Assange, an Australian computer
programmer, has been living under asylum at the Embassy of Ecuador in
London since August 2012, after he leaked highly sensitive government
information provided by Chelsea Manning on his website, WikiLeaks, in
2010.WikiLeaks has been used for the release of thousands of classified
US military and diplomatic cables. Assange says that he faces charges
under seal in the US for revealing sensitive government information on
WikiLeaks, though the exact charges against him remain unclear.Assange
has remained in Ecuador's embassy in London for fear that he will be
extradited to countries where he is wanted or that he will be arrested
in the UK for the criminal offence of breaching his bail
conditions.Ecuador's president, Lenin Moreno, says the UK has now
provided sufficient guarantees for Julian Assange to leave his
government's embassy in London. He added that his government had
received written assurances from the UK government that they will
not extradite Assange to any country where he would face the death
penalty. 
Lenin
Moreno President Lenin Moreno told reporters today:The way has been
cleared for Mr Assange to take the decision to leave in near-liberty.He
did not say he would force Assange out of his country's embassy but said
Assange's legal team is considering its next steps. 
