Surgeons from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, in the United States, have successfully carried out a transplant of a genetically modified pig heart on a 58-year-old man. The operation became the world’s second pig-to-man transplant in the latest milestone in a growing field of medical research, according to Voice of America. Transplanting animal organs into humans, called xenotransplantation, could offer a solution to the chronic shortage of human organ donations. More than 100,000 Americans are currently on waiting lists for organ transplants.   Both heart procedures were carried out by experts with the first patient dying two months after his transplant last year due to “a multitude of factors including his poor state of health” prior to the operation, the university said in a statement Friday. Prior to the operation, the patient Lawrence Faucette, said, “Nobody knows from this point forward. At least now I have hope and I have a chance.” The latest operation took place Wednesday following a report that Faucette was ineligible for a donated human heart due to pre-existing vascular disease and internal bleeding complications. Without the experimental transplant, the father of two and Navy veteran was facing near-certain heart failure. “My only real hope left is to go with the pig heart, the xenotransplant,” Faucette was quoted as saying prior to the procedure. “At least now I have hope, and I have a chance.” Following the transplant, Faucette was breathing on his own and the new heart was functioning well “without any assistance from supportive devices,” the university said. He was taking conventional anti-rejection drugs as well as receiving a new antibody therapy to prevent his body from damaging or rejecting the new organ. Xenotransplants are challenging because the patient’s immune system will attack the foreign organ. Scientists are trying to circumvent the problem by using organs from genetically modified pigs. In the past few years, doctors have transplanted kidneys from genetically modified pigs into brain-dead patients. The New York University Langone Hospital Transplant Institute in New York announced this month that a pig kidney transplanted into a brain-dead patient had functioned for a record-breaking 61 days. Early xenotransplantation research focused on harvesting organs from primates — for example, a baboon heart was transplanted into a newborn known as “Baby Fae” in 1984, but she survived only 20 days. Current efforts focus on pigs, which are thought to be ideal donors for humans because of their organ size, their rapid growth and large litters — and the fact they are already raised as a food source.

  The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Lagos has declared Rauf Olawale Sulaiman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the State House of Assembly, Amuwo-Odofin II Constituency election held on March 18, 2023. The tribunal court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS), while delivering judgment, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to present Sulaiman with the certificate of return as the winner of the election. The court held that the Electoral Act 2022 does not allow a candidate to be declared winner if the candidate did not fully participate in the election process. The court held that the Labour Party candidate (LP), Olukayode Doherty, that was issued certificate by the INEC did not appear on the ballot, noting that Tunde Fashina, who appeared on the ballot and got the majority of votes, was not qualified to contest. The APC candidate had filed the petition against INEC, Labour Party, Tunde Fashina and Olukayode David Doherty as the first to fourth respondents respectively. The INEC had presented the certificate of return for the Amuwo-Odofin Constituency II to the fourth respondent, Doherty. While delivering judgement, the three-man panel, headed by Justice Ashu Ewah, held that Doherty did not appear on the ballot and that the LP candidate, Fashina, who appeared on the ballot and got the majority votes was not qualified to contest. Justices Abdullahi Ozegya and M. A. Sambo, who are members of the tribunal, declared INEC’s presentation of certificate of return to Doherty null and void. The tribunal, in its unanimous decision, overturned the INEC result after considering the evidence presented by the petitioners and the respondents. The tribunal held that the petitioners filed to disqualify Fashina for not presenting the minimum academic qualification to contest the office, and also that his candidacy was not sponsored by the LP, and he did not win the number of majority votes in the polls held on March 18, 2023. The tribunal ruled that the second and third respondents, LP and Fashina, failed to provide an academic certificate to prove the LP candidate met the minimum academic requirement of a First School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent. As a result, the tribunal held that “It is determined that all the votes recorded for the second and third respondents in House of Assembly, Amuwo-Odofin Constituency II election are wasted votes, invalid and void on the grounds of the non-qualification to participate in the election.” However, the tribunal struck out the APC and Sulaiman’s ground of petition that the LP and its supported candidate, Doherty did not win the highest number of votes, for not sufficiently proving the claim. The petitioner counsel, Mr. James Ogunyemi had presented 22 witnesses during trial and in his final written address raised five issues for determination before the tribunal but respondents called four witnesses. Ogunyemi prayed the tribunal to determine whether Fashina was qualified to contest, having not participated in all the sections of the election before March 18 polls. The petitioner also argued that INEC gave the certificate of return to another LP member, Doherty, who did not participate in the election. The tribunal, therefore, held that the second respondent (LP), admitted to fact that the fourth respondent, Doherty not participating in the elections, and truly fielding the third respondent, Fashina, and thus needed no further evidence. “The Electoral Act 2022 does not allow for a candidate to be declared winner if the candidate did not fully participate in the election process,” the tribunal ruled. According to the tribunal, counsel to the second respondent, told the court that the LP made a decision to swap Fashina with Doherty in accordance with the “judgment in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/2115/2022 and the decision of the Court of Appeal in Suit No. A/ABJ/CV/253/2022.” The tribunal said it disagreed with the second respondent, as the Appeal Court decision it cited did not authorise for a swap or replacement of candidates, but directed the first respondent, INEC, to open its website and allow political parties to submit their candidate for the purpose of the general election.

  The Anambra State Chapter of The South East APC Young Progressives Forum has described Governor Soludo’s flags-off of free education as a deceit. In a statement signed by the group’s National Convener, Pascal Candle said the official declaration of the purported free and qualitative education for students in nursery and basic classes (covering Primary 1 to JSS 3) and the attendant joy is not about “tuition fees” as this has long been made free by the previous administrations starting from Dr Chris NGIGE down to Governor Obiano. Recall that Governor of Anambra State, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo last week flagged off what he described as ‘free and qualitative education across all government owned nursery, primary and junior secondary school classes in Anambra State’. According to the governor, all fees, dues and levies running into several thousands hitherto being paid by students in these basic education classes have now been scrapped. The statement reads, “We are therefore perplexed on how Governor Soludo will launch with fanfare a programme that is supposed to be existing since 2004. Let’s assume Governor Soludo met a practice on ground where students in primary 1-6 and JSS 1-3 that were not meant to pay any fees were made to pay illegal fees in violation of the UBE Act (as domesticated by Anambra State), why did it take him a year and 5 months to put a stop to it. “Let us make it clear to Ndi Anambra, The official declaration of the purported free and qualitative education for students in nursery and basic classes (covering Primary 1 to JSS 3) and the attendant joy is not about “tuition fees” as this has long been made free by the previous administrations starting from Dr Chris NGIGE down to Governor Obiano. “Before today and in spite of the tuition free regimes, a Primary school pupil in a public school in Anambra State pays 1,500 to 3,000 Naira per term depending on the school and location of the School. This long list of these illegal levies totaling about 10 items covered such dues as; exam fee, portal fee, library fee etc. “The Anambra State Chapter of South East APC Young Progressives Forum wants to task the governor to answer the following questions: 1. The several thousands of Naira in termly fees and levies that students in primary 1-6 and JSS 1-3 were paying before now, which purse were they entering? who authorised them? 2. Did Anambra State access the UBE 50% marching grant from the Federal Government meant to assist states ensure basic education is free in their schools? If yes, why did the state government still allow students to be exploited and fleeced? 3. Now that you have abolished all fees, we want to know if you have also stopped PTA levies in all public primary and junior secondary schools? This is another area where corruption thrives in Public Schools. 4. Has the APGA led Government in Anambra been providing Students in Anambra State in the basic education category textbooks in the 4 and 5 of the core subject areas of primary and junior secondary schools respectively mandated by the UBEC as part of what UBE grants to states covers? “This is crucial because education is not just about going to school but having instructional materials to learn with. We are aware that most primary schools and many secondary schools in Anambra lack decent school libraries without adequate textbooks for the students to use. We therefore ask Governor Soludo to give specific answers to the SCOPE of the free basic education he reintroduced. This is for the sake of accountability and transparency. “We are also constrained to highlight the very poor state of our public schools across Anambra State. Anambra public primary and secondary schools are fast becoming antiquities with no concerted efforts by the state government to carry out total overhaul of structures in our schools to meet modern standards. We see the kind of model schools poorer states like Borno, Gombe etc are building for their students and wonder why it seems a taboo to build modern, aesthetic schools in Anambra State. It simply means there is zero political will to build such. “The South East APC Young Progressives Forum also want to use this opportunity to ask Governor Chukwuma Soludo why the state government is not contemplating creating more schools in view of the ever expanding population across the state and the need for more standard public schools to cater for the qualitative education needs of the growing population in many cities, towns and villages. For the past 18 years, no single new public secondary or primary school have been built by the APGA led government in Anambra State. This is very unfortunate and must be addressed. “In conclusion, we want to appeal to the good people Anambra State and civil society organisations to step up vigilance and demand for basic accountability and transparency from the Anambra State government and Governor Charles Soludo especially on this issue of free education declaration.

  The Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, has vowed to use non-kinetic approach to resolve security challenge in the South East region by appealing to people causing bloodshed to embrace peace. The President-General of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, disclosed this during a World Conference it organised to announce the programme for Sept. 29 Igbo Day Celebration on Saturday in Enugu. Iwuanyanwu, who described the killings and bloodshed in the southeast as ‘strange’, said as a father, “I am tired of the death of my children and they have given me the responsibility to lead them”.   According to him, each time I hear anybody killed, I feel sad because most of them are doing what they are doing because of hunger and unemployment. “I am not saying that hunger and unemployment will make one to be a criminal but not everyone has capacity to endure hunger”. The president-general maintained that security of every place in Nigeria was the collective responsibility of everyone pointing out that the Federal Government alone could not handle it. He said that during the Igbo Day Celebration he would announce the non-kinetic approach to end insecurity in the zone. “As a father, I will call and appeal to everybody to embrace peace and the non-kinetic approach requires everybody’s support both state and the federal government for us to have peace in southeast. “Whatever sacrifice to bring non-kinetic approach to bring an end to bloodshed and killing in Igboland, I will do it. “I am going to reach these people by any means to beg them or even given my life if they want it; I will surrender it to ensure peace reigns in the region,” the Igbo leader said. He said he would send a delegation to Finland and other places to beg those causing bloodshed in the southeast. “We are not going to arrest or kill them. I don’t want to kill any of our children; we are going to appeal to them to tell us what they want us to do. “Those who are hungry, we will find them something to do to keep them happier but letting of bloodshed and killing should stop. “It is not easy to stop a hungry person who has found means of getting livelihood through guns but as a father, I will go and cry to them and I am praying God that these my approach work out well,” he said. He added that he would also resolve all the political crisis among the political leaders in the zone by reconciling them to move the region forward. The Igbo Leader appealed to the federal government to assist the zone with the reconstruction of railways, creation of seaports and more international airports to ease their businesses. “The issue of sharing rice as palliative does not have any meaning to any Igbo man but what you can do for him is to give him opportunity to make a living for himself,” he said.

  No fewer than five people have died and more than 100 others sustained injuries in a fire and subsequent explosions at a golf ball factory in southern Taiwan. An official said five people are still missing in the fire incident that started on Friday night at the factory in Pingtung County and raged overnight. According to CBS, three firefighters were the casualties while the injured have been taken to the hospitals.   The authorities said an investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the fire. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen in a speech in Taipei on Saturday expressed her condolences to the families of the victims. She promised to travel to Pingtung to visit those affected by the disaster, according to CBS. Tsai said the Pingtung County government had set up an emergency operation center to offer assistance to those impacted by the fire. Chou Chun-mi, magistrate of Pingtung County, said in a Facebook post that the cause of the fire was still under investigation. “Facing the grief of the family members, I could not say anything except to bow deeply, apologize, and express my deepest condolences,” she said in the post, after visiting the funeral home and meeting with victims’ families.

  The Coalition of Northern Groups, CNG, has called on President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to, as a matter of urgency, wade into security challenges bedevilling the northern part of Nigeria just as it demanded urgent action in securing the release of female students of Zamfara University, Gusau abducted last week. CNG spokesperson, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, made the call, yesterday, at an emergency meeting of the National and State executives of the CNG in Abuja. He said, “The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has taken stock of events unfolding in Northern Nigeria in the last few months noting especially, with utter perplexity and concern, the disturbing increase in banditry and kidnapping activities, especially in rural areas of Zamfara and the frontline states of Katsina, Niger, Sokoto and Kaduna. “We remain firm in our stance that President Tinubu must display a genuine commitment to addressing the security challenges in the North, departing from the usual approach. To show this determination, prompt action is required. “We call the attention of government to note the growing frustrated and mounting anger across the North and in particular the North-West arising from the general and pervasive insecurity being experienced while those charged with the responsibility of securing the lives and properties of citizens appear helpless or ill-prepared to act.”