LAGOS TO CHECK SPREAD OF SWINE FLU

 *FASHOLA COMMEND EX-CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE FEDERATION

Lagos State Government has taken  steps to checkmate
the spread of the disease, Influenza AH1N1, also known as ' Swine Flu', which
claimed its first casualty in the center of excellence last week.
The steps taken by the state government was as a result of the death of a 38
year old woman that died recently as well as eight others who tested positive  to
the disease.
The State Governor,Babatunde Raji Fashola who spoke to reporters at the presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos on arrival from Abuja explained that the state could not have
taken less steps in view of its population and position in the country, because
it could not afford to allow the deadly disease to flourish in the metropolis.He explained that as a responsible government, the state has empowered the Ministry of Health and its team to to direct Lagosians on the appropriate hygeinic steps to be taken, even as relevant sanitary materials have been provided in
prescribed centers across the state to curb any spread of the disease.Only recently, the state government carried out laboratory tests on some persons suspected to have contacted the disease, out of  46, eight  were confirmed positive of Influenza AH1N1.Fashola said : " With what the  Commissioner for Health said, the number of  medical officers in this state , have done, I am sure we are  on top of the situation.He has indicated to  members of the public the number of people that have beenscreened. I think they are 52 and I think eight persons  tested positive, what he is doing also to effect treatment and also  the public campaign that has been in place to ensure preventive steps are taken so that we don’t contaminate or spread this global infection.
Fashola further said : " We are, one of the first  state to alert the public about this outbreak very early last year, even before any case was ever recordedin Nigeria .We were acting very pre-emptively and proactively in the discharge of our responsibilities to protect life and property.There are hand cleaning liquids, there are  hand washing facilities that we have put in place in anticipation of it.So we are on top of our job, we are on top of the situation. And I urge people to remain calm and follow the advice of the  commissioner and we will overcome this as this is not unique to us.Much more powerful nations and countries have been subjected to this and they have done basically what we are doing. So it now behoves us really as citizens to
ensure that this doesn’t become an epidemic by following simple rules of
hygiene."

On the controversy surrounding the swearing in of the new Chief justice of the Federation, Fashola commended the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Idris Legbo Kutigi  for the hounourable role he played
in accelerating the swearing -in of a successor without creating a vacuum or elongating his tenure as some people will do under the circumstance.
According to Fashola, such noble role could only come from an illustrious and honourable member of the learned profession, who will at all times uphold the tenets of the constitution  as it affects tenure of appointed public officers.
Fashola challenged other legal luminaries to emulate the discipline of the eminent jurist who he said has
been properly documented in legal history.He remarked, "The CJN, is a very member of the judiciary.His
illustrious judicial career have been appropriately documented and will also be documented by judicial correspondents and judicial historians.But I think what I want to take away is for us to sit back and reflect that, what if  this man-Justice Kutigi had behaved like some of us had behaved in the past.
What if at that time when we were unsure of what will happen, he had said maybe they
should elongate his own tenure too.What if he had said okay, I have finished and I am going away, you solve the problem? He refuse to do all of that, he stood behind and gave us a new Chief
Justice. There will be debatable legal opinion about what happened.But there is a Supreme Court now to decide that point, if it comes up. We could probably not have had a supreme court if he choose to walk away. And I think that we must all salute his courage, we must salute his character.
I want to commend that kind of conduct at a time when there seems to be no
facts. All of us were looking at what will happen by 31st of December, 2009.
What will happen to the Judiciary? What will happen to the executive? Who was
going to lead? That man showed courage. I think he deserves to be saluted."