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FG to spend N9bn on generator purchase, maintenance

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The Federal Government plans to spend N9.05bn on the purchase, maintenance and fuelling of generators across the Ministries, Departments and Agencies nationwide.

The government also earmarked a separate N75.4m for maintenance and fuelling of generators in some of its foreign missions abroad.

The details are contained in the 2020 budget proposal which was submitted to the National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday.

Sunday PUNCH, however, reports that the sum to be spent on generators may be much higher as several agencies such as the Independent National Electoral Commission and the National Health Insurance Scheme which have offices nationwide, failed to provide a breakdown of their budgets.

The government has budgeted the sum despite claims that power had improved drastically.

The N9bn earmarked for generators by the Federal Government is more than the Internally Generated Revenue of Bauchi, Abia, Zamfara, Kogi, Anambra, Bayelsa, Jigawa, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Katsina, Kebbi, Borno, Taraba, Yobe and Gombe states in the first and second quarters of 2019.

The agency of the government with the largest single budget for generators is the Nigerian Army which set aside N518.3m for fuelling of generators alone while no amount was earmarked for maintenance.

In the second position is the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission which is asking for N64.5m for maintenance, N166.6m for fuelling of the generators and N82.2m to purchase a new generator, a combined N313.4m.

The EFCC’s generator budget is 10 times higher than that of its sister agency, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, which budgeted N10m for generator maintenance and N24.2m as generator fuel cost (N34.2m)

Holding the third position is the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation which is asking for N255m to fuel its generators and another N27m to maintain the generators, a combined N283.7m.

The Nigeria Defence Academy comes fourth with a budget of N273.7m for maintenance of generators (N133.5m) and fuelling of the generators (N140.1m).

In fifth position is the Nigeria Police Force with a budget of N222.9m for maintenance and fuelling of its generators across its formations and commands in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory while the Nigeria Police Force Academy, Wudil, seeks a separate N31.7m for the same purpose.

The Nigeria Correctional Service (formerly known as Nigeria Prisons Service) budgeted N214m for the fuelling and maintenance of its generators while its sister agency, the Nigeria Immigration Service, seeks N95m for the purchase of a new generator and a separate N109.1m for fuelling and maintenance of its existing generators- a total of N204m.

The Federal Ministry of Health and its agencies comprising 88 federal teaching hospitals, medical centres and agencies have the highest budget for generators at N1.5bn.

The ministry and its agencies budgeted N173.7m for generator maintenance and N1.1bn to fuel them while a separate N220.8m was earmarked for the purchase of new generators.

The University of Benin Teaching Hospital and University of Calabar Teaching Hospital planned separate procurements of one 500KVA generator each at N25m; Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi budgeted N20m for two 500KVA soundproof generators.


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The Peruvian Government Has Officially Classified Transgender, Nonbinary And Intersex People As “Mentally ill”

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According to the country’s ministry of health, the controversial decision was made to ensure the country’s public health services could “guarantee full coverage of medical attention for mental health” for the trans community.

It also categorises “dual-role transvestitism,” “fetishistic transvestism,” and “other gender identity disorders” under the same bracket of mental illness.

The new law will change language in the Essential Health Insurance Plan (PEAS) to reflect the view of trans and intersex people as a mental health disorder.

Trans groups across Peru have loudly condemned the decision as a step backwards for the country’s already complex relationship with LGBTQ+ rights.

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Math Teacher Accused Of Having Sex With 2 Students And Getting Pregnant For One Tearfully Reveals The Baby Was Taken Away From Her

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The UK teacher who had a baby with an underage student while on trial for having sex with another teenage boy broke down in court after revealing her newborn baby girl had been “taken away” from her.

Manchester math teacher Rebecca Joynes, 30, sobbed to jurors over how her baby was taken “24 hours after being born” this past January — and now she only sees her for nine hours a week, Joynes told jurors on Monday, May 13, according to the Manchester Evening News.

“At the moment I have contact with her three times a week for three hours and that’s it,” she said through tears.

Joynes was arrested and released on bail on orders not to have unsupervised contact with anyone under 18 after allegedly grooming her pupil, known as Boy A in court, by buying him a $430 Gucci belt before bringing him to her apartment for unprotected sex.

She was suspended from school and eventually fired, but soon after, she began having a relationship with a 15-year-old boy, known in court as Boy B, whom she had a baby with in January.

Joynes, who has denied having sex with either boy when they were underage, told the court that when she learned of the allegations against her she had gone to the second boy in a “panic” and he deleted all of her phone’s content.

The former teacher denied having a sexual relationship with the second boy until after he turned 16 and she was already suspended from teaching.

According to her narration,

She said he had added her on Snapchat twice, which she only accepted the second time because she thought he “wanted to tell her something.”

Joynes said a friendship developed and he quickly became her “best friend” even though the boy would make flirtatious and sexualized comments toward her when he was drunk.

She told jurors that it wasn’t until after his 16th birthday that he messaged her saying “I’ve left school now” with a winky face.

After she received notice that she had been dismissed from her job, he went to her apartment, where following an emotional conversation, they had sex.

The two then entered a relationship that Joynes described as “quite toxic” telling the court how the teenager was “very controlling.”

After discovering she was pregnant, Joynes hid love notes for the boy to find around her apartment.

The notes eventually led to a piece of baby clothing that had the words “I love my daddy to the moon and back” written on it.

The court was told that she gave birth to their baby girl in January, but following an emergency court hearing, the newborn was taken away from Joynes.

Joynes has denied two counts of sexual activity with Boy A; two counts of sexual activity with Boy B; and two counts of sexual activity with Boy B while being a person in a position of trust.

Her trial is ongoing.

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First Man To Receive Pig Kidney Transplant Has Died

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The first Man to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died two months after the operation.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), which carried out the procedure in March, announced Sunday, May 12, that Richard “Rick” Slayman, 62, has died.

They said there was no indication his death was a result of the transplant.

Transplants of other organs from genetically modified pigs have failed in the past, but the operation on Mr Slayman, who was suffering with end-stage kidney disease, was hailed as a historic milestone.

In addition to kidney disease, Mr Slayman also suffered from Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

In 2018, he had a human kidney transplant, but it began to fail after five years.

Following his pig kidney transplant on March 16, his doctors confirmed he no longer needed dialysis after the new organ was said to be functioning well.

“Mr Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation,” MGH said in a statement.

Xenotransplantation is the transplanting of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another.

MGH said it was “deeply saddened” at his sudden death and offered condolences to his family.

Mr Slayman’s relatives said his story was an inspiration.

“Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” they said.

“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever.

“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers,” they added.

While Mr Slayman received the first pig kidney to be transplanted into a human, it is not the first pig organ to be used in a transplant procedure.

Two other patients have received pig heart transplants, but those procedures were unsuccessful as the recipients died a few weeks later.

In one case, there were signs the patient’s immune system had rejected the organ, which is a common risk in transplants.

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