Foreign News
WAHO DG Under Fire as Group Petitions ECOWAS President, Alleges Malpractices
There is disquiet in the offices of the West African Health Organisation(WAHO) following a petition to the President of Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS) President, Jean Claude Kassi Brou, by an international non-governmental organization (NGO), African Peoples Centre for Transparency & Good Governance .
The NGO in a petition to the President of ECOWAS Commission, datedJanuary 21, 2022 called on him to set up a panel to investigate allegations ofMaladministration and Abuse of Office levelled against the Director-General, West African Health Organisation (WAHO), Prof Stanley Okolo.
The petitioners, said they were compelled to send their complaint to the ECOWAS President as a result of “growing concerns” about the way and manner in which Professor Okolo, a Nigerian, “has been running the affairs of this great Institution since 2018 when he assumed office.
”The letter, titled “PETITION AGAINST PROF STANLEY OKOLO, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WEST AFRICAN HEALTH ORGANISATION (WAHO) FOR MALADMINISTRATION AND ABUSE OF OFFICE,” was also copied to the Auditor-General of ECOWAS, Alfred Braimah.
A copy of the petition, which was received and acknowledged by the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja on February 3, 2022, was obtained by a correspondent of a Bourkina Faso-basd international online medium, Net Afrique.
The 5-page petition, jointly signed by six different nationals across West Africa, reads in part:
“Our concerns are predicated on the following acts of nepotism, misconduct and favoritism, arbitrary recruitment, private gain, and impediment to efficiency by the Director-General, which constitute clear Maladministration and abuse of office:
1. ‘Anglophonization’ and ‘Nigerianization’ of WAHO through arbitrary recruitment:
Since Prof Okolo took over the management of WAHO as Director-General, he has hijacked the recruitment process, which has been favoring anglophone countries – mainly Nigerians, without recourse to established due process nor on the basis of merit. By hijacking the recruitment and promotion processes, the DG himself decides on the scoring so as to favor his protégés.
The staff and in fact all concerned citizens of ECOWAS believe that there should be fairness and justice in the recruitment to fill the various vacancies and whoever is recruited after following the due process will be accepted; this, we believe, cannot happen with the current Director-General.
2. Playing of nepotism card
The Director-General brought his sister-in-law as his Executive Assistant, a situation nobody has qualm with by virtue of the fact that he is free to appoint whoever he wants to this position. His term of office is about to expire and he wants to impose his sister-in-law (who is a supposedly trained nurse) as the new Professional Officer in charge of Nursing; the incumbent officer is retiring by the end of January 2022.
The Director-General also plans to impose another relative for the position of Communications Officer. This relative, who is highly inexperienced, is the fiancée of his brother-in-law (the wife’s brother), according to sources. He imposed this lady from day one without proper recruitment process. The lady was later asked to leave WAHO at the request of the ECOWAS Commission. Somehow, he found a way to bring the lady back for six months and her job was to manage the Twitter account with a monthly pay of US$6000. The lady left after the six months but again the Director-General found a way to bring her back with the excuse that she was coming to help the team for a period of three months and this was during the peak of COVID-19. The lady stayed in Abuja and supposedly worked online and was paid between US$6000 – US$8000 a month. This is the lady he wants to bring in as a permanent Communications Officer. This is the caliber of person the Director-General wants to impose on WAHO.
The Director-General frustrated all those who he felt were occupying positions he ‘earmarked’ for his protégés, and they resigned.
There’s another project called SRH/FP (Sexual Reproduction Health/Family Planning), which is being funded by DEMSAN. When the contract of the project’s Coordinator – Niger national, expired in 2020, the DG attempted to replace her with his own candidate from his Enugu state (Nigeria) by refusing to renew her contract. It took the intervention of the Government of Niger Republic before the DG reluctantly agreed to renew the contract.
3. Misuse of public funds:
We are also worried about the Director-General’s behavior concerning the use of public funds.
For instance, the DG brought in another lady from his Enugu town (Nigeria) to be organizing all activities of WAHO. The lady is being paid huge sums of money by WAHO, whereas, before the coming of Prof Okolo, Programme Officers/Coordinators were handling the organization of such activities themselves at less cost. For instance, in November 2021, the lady managed the Annual Health Ministers (AHM) meeting held at the Sheraton Hotel in Abuja, Nigeria, where she was paid over $40,000 as her fee for organizing the event.
Also, when WAHO organized an activity in Lomé, Togo, the DG, Prof Okolo, brought his wife as a resource person. The cost involved in bringing her over to Lomé (air tickets, accommodation, stipends and honorarium) were borne by WAHO. The question is: Is it allowed? Is this not a conflict of interest and abuse of office?
We believe the Director-General needs to be checked and adequate measures taken to prevent such occurrences in the future and abuse of power.
4. Poor performance of health programme activities:
Since the assumption of office of Prof Stanley Okolo as Director-General in 2018, the performance of health programme activities has dropped drastically. Key Programme Managers of SWEDD, SMNTD, REDISSE, have all resigned and left because of frustration. One factor was that he arbitrarily reduced their contract from one year to six months.
5. Staff Training Programme:
Another programme that has failed since 2018 when Prof Okolo assumed office, is staff training. This was a yearly programme, but when Prof Okolo came in, he cut down the budget to a size that can no longer accommodate staff training. Even those that could be accommodated, when they applied, were rejected by him. He refused to approve their training for reasons best known to him.
6. Improper handling of COVID-19 Funds:
The Director-General, Prof Okolo, is believed to have stultified efficiency in the management of COVID-19 fund by using a company called VANGALION for the purchase of COVID-19 personal protective equipment (PPEs) without recourse to due process in procurement. He is also said to have used the proceeds from the deal to purchase a personal house in one of the African countries.
7. Engagement of the Director-General’s Sister-in-Law as Executive Assistant:
The lady is a trained Nurse without cognate experience in public health. Prof Okolo wants to impose her as professional officer (PO) Nursing and Midwifery – a position that is going to become vacant soon. The Director-General is bent on imposing her by trying to manipulate the recruitment process to favour her. Already, he has cooked up a job description that would make the lady the only selectable candidate – at the expense of other more suitably qualified candidates in West Africa.
8. Illegal signing of contracts without following due process:
The DG had in April 2020, single-handedly signed UNDP project contract valued at $6.6million, which was later queried by the Finance Controller. This, in our view, constitutes a gross abuse of office with a potential for abuse of office and related corrupt act and, as such, the Director-General must be stopped.”
In their prayers, the petitioners urged the President of ECOWAS Commission to order for:
a) Immediate freezing of all recruitments until after the new administration gets on board and anybody including the current Director-General’s protégés should be allowed to apply and treated fairly and equally;
b) A probe into the management of COVID-19 funds under Prof Okolo as Director-General of WAHO;
c) A policy directive requiring the incumbent and successive DGs to always ensure that WAHO, being a regional institution with high level of integrity, is not reduced to a Nigeria outfit where nepotism and favoritism are used in the administration and management of the institution and its resources;
d) Investigation into other matters incidental to the proper, efficient and transparent management of the affairs of WAHO from 2018 to date.
They expressed the hope that their petition would receive prompt attention and necessary action(s) “in order to save the integrity and future of WAHO and ECOWAS as a whole.”
“In this regard, we invite the President to take note of Article 3 of the Revised ECOWAS Treaty, which provides that the overall objective of WAHO is to act together with the other Community Institutions and nationals so as to contribute to the attainment of the ideals of the creation of an Economic Union of West Africa,” they concluded.
The signatories to the petition are: Souleymane Adama, Fatoumata Mamadou, Azagba Obaseki, Kokou Oji, Anildo Anselmo and Tunde Olanrewaju.
The petition is coming on the heels of recent revelations that WAHO’s major development partners, including the World Bank and USAID, have decided to pull out in protest the against Professor Okolo’s style of leadership.
As gathered, the development partners have indeed concluded plans to form a parallel body known as Partnership for Health Security in West Africa (PHSWA), through which they intend to challenge the funding support that was hitherto given to WAHO.
The grouse of the development partners, according to sources, is that since assumption of office as Director-General of WAHO, Professor Okolo has totally ignored them, operating, instead, in isolation.
The impact of WAHO is normally measured in terms of the number and quality of programme activities executed in any given year.
A former senior staff from one of the English-speaking member states, who reacted to the petition as reported by Net Afrique, an online news platform based in Burkina Faso,said he was not surprised at the allegations made against Prof Okolo by the petitioners, pointing out that “the man has a reputation for arrogant impunity.”
“Take for instance, WAHO has a permanent house for all the DGs but when he (Prof Okolo) reported to duty, he requested that the house should be renovated to his taste before he will move in. This was done at a high cost, but he later rejected the place and went to hire another house at the expense of the institution.
“I am aware that the Office of the Auditor-General of ECOWAS did carry out an investigation of this among other normal accounting audits at WAHO and indicted the Professor on the house issues. Yet, nothing has been done about it, and may be because the rumor that the President of ECOWAS has soft spot for the WAHO DG,” he recalled.
It was not clear at the time of this report whether or not the ECOWAS Commission President had acted on the petition, especially given the seeming weight of the allegations contained therein.
A source close to the Commission however feared at the weekend that Professor Okolo was in the good books of the President of ECOWAS and the Nigerian President as well as some heads of other ECOWAS institutions, who might try to save the neck of the embattled WAHO Directir-General.
According to the source, this feared might not be unconnected with the fact that “very unlike the tradition in ECOWAS, that petition should have been acted upon under two weeks of its receipt by the Commission.”
The petitioners had requested a full investigation into the purported financial impropriety allegedly committed by Prof Okolo and to stop him from recruiting personnel at WAHO, “the DG still goes ahead to put machinery in place to carry out the recruitments,” another source knowledgeable about the ECOWAS health institution told a Correspondent of Afrique Net. (First Reported by Net Afrique)
Oil prices rose above $110 (£82.78) a barrel after Iranian media reported an airstrike hitting a facility on the world’s largest natural gas field.
The Brent crude oil benchmark hit $112 a barrel in early Thursday trade in Asia, more than 5 per cent higher than Tuesday’s prices.
The price has since fallen slightly.The benchmark UK gas price also jumped by 6 per cent to 143.
53p a therm before falling back to around the 140p mark.The surge followed reports Iran’s petrochemical complex on the South Pars gas field had been hit. Several hours later, Qatar reported that there was “extensive damage” at the Ras Laffan industrial site following threats from Iran.
While the price of both oil and gas spiked, they remained below highs seen earlier in the conflict.
Oil reached $116.78 a barrel on 9 March, while UK gas reached 162.55p a therm on 3 March.
Iran’s oil ministry said a fire at the petrochemical complex was under control, according to Tasnim, a news agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Iran’s military warned it would take “decisive action” in response to the strike on its energy infrastructure.
“As previously warned, if the fuel, energy, gas, and economic infrastructures of our country are attacked by the American-Zionist enemy, in addition to a powerful counterattack against the enemy, we will severely strike the origin of that aggression as well,” the military said in a statement published by Tasnim.
“We consider targeting the fuel, energy, and gas infrastructures of the countries of origin legitimate and will retaliate strongly at the earliest opportunity.”
Qatar also operates facilities on the gas field, which it calls North Dome.
But the country, which produces a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas, had halted production earlier in March in response to the conflict.
Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said strikes against energy infrastructure “constitutes a threat to global energy security”.
Just after 1815 GMT, the Qatari interior minister said it was responding to “a fire in the Ras Laffan area following an Iranian targeting”. Qatar’s petrol firm Qatar Energy later said there was “extensive damage” at the site.
The interior minister said just after 1900 GMT that it had “initially brought the fire in Ras Laffan under control, with no injuries reported”.
Ras Laffan was among the sites listed by Iran in a warning that it would take “decisive action” after its South Pars gas field facilities were reportedly hit by Israeli strikes.
‘Energy markets will likely remain volatile’
AJ Bell’s head of financial analysis Danni Hewson said the attack and retaliation by Iran had “helped dial up the temperature once again and put renewed upward pressure on oil prices”.
“Any solution to the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz looks pretty distant at this point and until there is progress on that front, energy markets will likely remain volatile,” she added.
The White House on Wednesday responded to the rising oil price by saying it was suspending the Jones Act, a 1920 law that says only American-made ships can be used to transport goods between US ports.
US Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the 60-day waiver of the rules, which are intended to boost shipbuilding, will allow “vital resources like oil, natural gas, fertilizer, and coal to flow freely” as non-American-made ships can now be used.
However, maritime groups in the US said the effect would be minimal, noting that oil prices, not shipping costs, are behind rising prices at the pump.
Experts say earlier efforts by world leaders to ease price pressures, including an unprecedented release of oil reserves, have done little to reduce oil prices.
Meanwhile, Iran has also suspended the flow of gas to Iraq to shore up domestic supplies, a senior Iraqi official told Reuters.
The vast majority of Iran’s gas supply 94 per cent is used domestically, according to data from the Gas Exporting Countries Forum.
From Sylvia Udegbunam, Enugu
A health specialist and founder (O.A.K) diabetic foundation USA, Uche Emeson has charged women to take care of their health so that they can take care of others and be available for their family and community.
Emeson made this call during the celebration of International Women’s day by Refreshing hope unique women at New haven Enugu, noting that women take their health for granted because they are the caregivers of the family.
She encouraged the women not to neglect themselves no matter how much they give to others, advising them not to be the last one to take care of themselves but rather go for annual physical exams.
According to her “Are you in a healthy relationship? I know you take care of someone that is your children, families, communities but at the end of the day, you don’t take care of yourself. You have to be alive and healthy to take care of others”, she said.
Refreshing hope unique women are there to empower women to take care of their community but at the same time, they are the centre of that community. Be in a healthy relationship whether they are married, single or young. Make sure your health counts so that you can give your best.
She further advises women to know their family history. “If cardiac arrest, diabetes or any sickness is in your family, it is very important that you trace it from your mother, grandmother, sisters and your siblings. If you find out that you have cardiac arrest in your family, you make sure you check your blood pressure at least every month”.
“If you know your family history early, you will start to manage it with lifestyle modification. Check the kind of food you eat, the portion of food you eat, if you have to increase your physical activities, monitor your numbers, know the nutrition plans you are giving to your family.
The Chief executive officer of Refreshing Hope Initiative, Adaena Ngozi said that the organization commemorates the women’s day annually which is known as Refreshing hope unique women.
She noted that it is a celebration where women and youths gather to align with what every woman is doing. A period to encourage, appreciate women and check and see how far they have gone in the struggle and fight to be heard, seen and given the opportunity to develop and be a part of developing Society.
However she pointed out that giving is not only cash or material things but one can give out time, advice, commitment, sacrifices and smile to someone depending on the need at that period.
The founder Heroine Foundation, Onyinye Mama in a panel discussion explained that this year’s International Women’s day themed “Give to Gain” connotes Justice, actions and Right. One has to give out something before gain.
“Whatever you expect to get from another person and you have not given to the society, you don’t have to demand for it. You have to give out justice, action and right to another person in your own small living circle so that you can gain something also.
She further advises women to exhibit good character in their various homes stressing that it is the spice of every marriage.
The event featured panel discussion, presentation of goodwill messages and dance by Solidarity school new haven Enugu.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is planning to delay a high stakes visit to China later in March by about a month because of the Iran war.
“We’ve requested that we delay it a month or so,” he told reporters at the White House, adding that it was important that he remained available to oversee the war.
The meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is currently set to take place between 31 March to 2 April, following their last face to face talks in October last year.
Chinese foreign affairs spokesman Lin Jian said yesterday that Beijing and Washington are in talks over “the timing and related matters of President Trump’s visit to China”.
China also rejected any connection between the delayed meeting and issues around the Strait of Hormuz a critical waterway for global energy shipments from the Gulf.
“We have noted that the US side has publicly clarified these false reports by the media, stating that the relevant reports are completely wrong, and emphasised that the visit has nothing to do with the issue of the open navigation of the Strait of Hormuz,” Jian said.
On Sunday, Trump told the Financial Times he might postpone the meeting if China did not help unblock the Strait of Hormuz. But on Monday, he said he had proposed the delay solely to make sure he was around to manage the war.
“I’m looking forward to being with him,” he said, referring to Xi. “We have a very good relationship.”
“There are no tricks to it either,” Trump added. “It’s very simple. We’ve got a war going on. I think it’s important that I be here.”
The Iran war has eclipsed most of Trump’s other foreign policy priorities, faced with an intensifying conflict and disruptions to the global oil supply, which has threatened to raise prices in the US.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that the meeting’s delay would not be due to Washington’s request that Beijing help in the Gulf, or any trade disagreements.
Bessent said: “The President wants to remain in DC to coordinate the war effort. Travelling abroad at a time like this may not be optimal.”
Trump’s remarks come as frictions between the world’s two largest economies have grown, fuelled by the Iran war.
Beijing is a major buyer of Iranian energy exports and has criticised the US and Israeli strikes against the country.
Washington also announced it would investigate trade practices among a list of countries, including China, after Trump’s signature tariff policy was struck down by the Supreme Court in February.
Representatives from the US and China have met in Paris in recent days for negotiations, such as over investments, tariffs and economic sanctions.
The sides reached consensus on some issues and will carry on with negotiations, Chinese trade representative Li Chenggang was quoted as saying in state media outlet Xinhua on Monday.
US representatives briefed their Chinese counterparts on changes to Washington’s tariff measures, said Li.
Chinese negotiators expressed “serious concern” about Washington’s plans to probe the country’s trade practices and urged the US to maintain economic stability, he said.
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