Zulum Signs Agreement Ceding General Hospital Hawul to Orthopedic Hospital

… Calls for More Federal Medical Centres in Borno

By: Our Reporter

Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, has urged the Federal Government to establish additional medical centres in the state to tackle emerging health challenges resulting from over a decade of insurgency.

Governor Zulum made the appeal on Thursday during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cede the General Hospital Azare to the National Orthopaedic Hospital in Abuja.

Zulum had last year during a visit by the Director Hospital Services of the Federal Ministry of Health announced the ceding of General hospital Azare for the establishment of the Orthopedic hospital and over 400 million naira for the rehabilitation of the facility.

Governor Zulum commended the Federal Government for establishing the orthopaedic hospital, noting that it would significantly improve healthcare access for residents.

Our people often travel to Kano for orthopaedic treatment, but with this hospital, they will now have access to affordable and specialised care,” he stated.

The Governor emphasised the need for more medical facilities in Borno, given the lingering effects of insurgency.

“I want to commend the federal government for the establishment of the hospital. Our people often travel to Kano for Orthopedic cases but with the establishment of this hospital, our people would now have access to affordable healthcare delivery, especially on orthopedic cases”, Zulum stated.

“We still have cases of insurgency ongoing in the state, however, the matter is critically being looked into. Due to the conflict, we are having many health challenges, so the need to establish more medical health centres in Borno State need not to be overemphasised,” he stressed.

Governor Zulum further revealed that Borno remains the only state in Nigeria without a Federal Medical Centre (FMC) and announced plans by his administration to construct a state-of-the-art hospital for eventual takeover by the Federal Government.

“Federal medical centres are vital to strengthening healthcare at the sub-national level, particularly in a state like Borno which is recovering from prolonged insecurity. If we can secure five more hospitals, I assure you that we will provide all necessary facilities for their immediate operation,” he pledged.

He also expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for facilitating the establishment of the National Orthopaedic Hospital in Azare.

In his remarks, the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, described Governor Zulum as “Nigeria’s foremost health-friendly governor” in recognition of his transformative investments in the sector.

He announced that the federal government have created additional 12 new tertiary health institutions across the country in the last two years including national Orthopedic Hospital, Azare.

“I consider you as the foremost health friendly governor in the country. That was affirmed when you hosted the 65th National Council on Health where you announced the increment in Salary of medical doctors to match what the federal government is paying, in addition to other transformation you have embarked on in the health sector,” Salako remarked.

Governor Zulum was accompanied on the visit by the Commissioners for Health, Professor Baba Malam Gana; Finance, Alhaji Umar Lawan Dalorima; representative of the State Attorney General, Chief Adviser and Coordinator for Sustainable Development, Partnership and Humanitarian Support, Dr. Mairo Mandara, and the Chairman Borno State Social Investment Agency, Hon. Yuguda Saleh Vungas.

Zulum Signs Agreement Ceding General Hospital Hawul to Orthopedic Hospital

NAF Obliterates Terrorist Enclave, Kill scores of ISWAP in Timbuktu Triangle

By: Zagazola Makama

The Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) has successfully conducted a precision air interdiction mission that neutralised scores of Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists and destroyed key logistics structures in the Timbuktu Triangle general area of Borno State.

Intelligence sources confirmed to Zagazola Makama that the airstrike took place on Thursday at approximately 1500 hours, targeting a known terrorist enclave in Chiraliya within the Timbuktu Triangle, a notorious ISWAP stronghold.

“Acting on credible intelligence and real-time surveillance, our platforms conducted a deliberate and highly coordinated air interdiction at the Chiraliya terrorists’ hideout,”the sources said.

“We achieved direct hits on multiple targets, including makeshift shelters, logistics stores, and enemy movement corridors.” he said.

The source explained that the Battle damage assessment revealed the effective neutralisation of several terrorist fighters and the destruction of critical infrastructure supporting their operations.

Survivors are observed abandoning positions and blending into the forest, indicating heavy losses and a successful disruption of their operational momentum,” he noted.

“The ISR footage clearly showed secondary explosions, indicating the presence of arms and fuel depots, while fleeing terrorists were tracked and eliminated through follow-on engagements,” the sources added.

The operation, part of sustained offensive air campaigns under OPHK, was aimed at disrupting ISWAP’s capacity to regroup and launch attacks on troops and civilian communities in the region.

NAF Obliterates Terrorist Enclave, Kill scores of ISWAP in Timbuktu Triangle

Another Pipeline Bursts

…Trans Niger Pipeline eruption in B-Dere community in Ogoniland

By: Michael Mike

The Trans Niger Pipeline erupted and triggered streams of crude oil flowing through B-Dere community, Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The incident happened on May 6th, 2025, and the cause of the explosion is said to be equipment failure.

Recalled that a similar explosion occurred in the Bodo community on the 17th of March 2025, which caused a massive fire that spread through the mangroves. 

These spils show very clearly the massive risks the communities will be exposed to if the desire of the federal government to resume oil extraction in Ogoniland happens. Many of the B-Dere community people have been internally displaced while those already impacted by the spill are living in fear over the health and safety.

On a visit by  HOMEF team along with other CSOs a visit to the spill site, we met distressed indigenes of the community who expressed the high level of pain and a sense of exposure and abandonment.

The woman leader of the community, Chief Mrs Augustina Biebie, stated that the level of restlessness in the community has only worsened. “The spill brought crude oil into houses of many of our people. The thick smell of crude oil has affected our health. Breathing has become a problem, and it has become difficult to even feed because some of us cannot light fires in our kitchens.” 

Pastor Kpobari Bani, whose house  was affected, stated that “Since this incident started, I have not been able to cook for fear of explosion. My mother has been displaced and has moved to a neighbour’s house for fear of the explosion. Shell said it has sold to Renaissance Oil, who now owns the pipeline. So we call on them to come and stop the spill. We also call on the government and other relevant authorities to come to our aid and bring remedy to the land.” 

The Executive Director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Dr. Nnimmo Bassey expressed disappointment over the level of neglect to communities. 

“We are in a disaster zone and further disasters can erupt from even an accidental a spark of fire. The slow response of government and oil companies underscores the lack of care for the people and the environment. This level of laxity is absolutely unconscionable. The fact that this spill that happened a week ago is yet to be  stopped sends a very strong point to why government should focus on cleaning up Ogoniland and not seek to open new oil wells. The old wells should be shut down, and decommissioned. Our communities must not continue to be sacrificed on the altar of petrodollars.” 

Bassey further calls on all relevant authorities to move into action to curtail the spread of the flowing crude. 

“The government cannot be silent at a time as this.  This is a time when all agencies should be here to stop halting the shit down the pipeline, stop the pollution  and carry out urgent clean up and remediation. We call on NOSDRA, NESRA, MENA and HYPREP to move into swift action to stem the unfolding ecological and human crises.” 

Also, Celestine Akpobari, an environmental activist, stated that “This is one of the reasons why we have rejected the idea of restarting oil exploitation in Ogoni. The exploitation has not started, but the situation is becoming more volatile with spills of this nature. This is supposed to be a remediation site, but as you can see it is an ecological crime scene. We are afraid that if this is not properly contained, the damage will be far worse than what we see.” 

HOMEF calls for a swift action to plug the leakage, remediate the land and carry out a thorough health audit on the exposed people of the community. Government must show that they care for the people and the environment. Aged oil facilities should be decommissioned and retired, and all alleged divestments should be nullified to ensure that those who have made our communities literal land mines do not walk away from accountability.

Another Pipeline Bursts