The Kwara State Government has introduced a new standardised health counselling system aimed at ensuring residents receive uniform and accurate healthcare information across hospitals, communities, and outreach programmes.

The initiative, launched in collaboration with Society for Family Health, centres on the deployment of an Integrated Health Facility Flip Chart for frontline health workers, State Mobilisation Officers, and community volunteers across the state.

The development was announced in a statement issued on Thursday by the Press Secretary of the Kwara State Ministry of Health, Saad Hamdalat, a copy of which was made available to The PUNCH in Ilorin.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Amina El-Imam, said the intervention is expected to address inconsistencies in health communication, improve public understanding of healthcare services, and strengthen behavioural change campaigns at the grassroots level.

Represented at the launch by the Director of Public Health, Dr. Fakoyode Oluwatosin, the commissioner stressed that the state was prioritising a unified approach to health education as part of efforts to improve healthcare outcomes.

She said, “Health promotion remains the backbone of effective public health interventions. Without it, we cannot achieve meaningful or sustained impact.”

“This tool will help drive behaviour change and improve how communities engage with health services.”

El-Imam explained that the flip chart would serve as a structured visual guide to help health personnel deliver clear and consistent counselling messages during antenatal clinics, immunisation exercises, community outreaches, and household visits.

According to her, the initiative is expected to strengthen public awareness and service uptake in key areas such as maternal and child health, routine immunisation, skilled birth attendance, malaria prevention, exclusive breastfeeding, hygiene, sanitation, and diarrhoea management.

She added that State Mobilisation Officers in all 16 local government areas would coordinate the deployment of the tool at the community level.

Also speaking, the Reproductive Health Coordinator at the Kwara State Ministry of Health, Dr. Kafayat Kofo, said the flip chart harmonises messaging across reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent healthcare services, as well as selected non-communicable diseases.

“This is more than a communication tool. It is a standardised behavioural change resource that ensures communities receive the right information in a clear and relatable way.”

Kofo noted that the initiative would help eliminate conflicting health messages and improve the quality of counselling provided by frontline health workers across the state.

In his remarks, the MIS Adviser for Society for Family Health, Mr. Adetayo Adedotun, said the initiative aligns with broader efforts to strengthen primary healthcare communication systems and improve programme performance.

“This initiative supports the delivery of consistent, high-quality health education and aligns with efforts to improve service uptake and overall programme performance.

“It also provides a unified approach to counselling across facilities and communities,” he said.

The state government expressed optimism that the initiative would improve community engagement, strengthen trust in public healthcare messaging, and enhance overall healthcare delivery across Kwara State.

US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was still in place despite an Iranian attack on three American destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz that fanned fears on Friday that the truce was faltering.

The US military said it carried out strikes on Iranian military targets in response, although Tehran charged that it was Washington that had initiated the exchange of fire.

The latest violence threatens to unravel a fragile truce in effect since April 8 that brought an end to weeks of US-Israeli attacks on the Islamic republic, which has retaliated with strikes across the Middle East and by blocking the strait, a vital route for oil and gas shipments.

The United Arab Emirates said Friday that its air defences were “engaging missile and drone attacks originating from Iran”.

Asked in Washington on Thursday if the Iran ceasefire was still on, Trump said: “Yeah, it is. They trifled with us today. We blew them away. They trifled. I call that a trifle.”

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a post on X that Iranian forces launched “multiple missiles, drones, and small boats” at the three US warships, but none were hit, and that it “eliminated inbound threats and targeted Iranian military facilities responsible.”

“CENTCOM does not seek escalation but remains positioned and ready to protect American forces,” it said.

For its part, Iran’s central military command accused the United States of violating the ceasefire by attacking an oil tanker and another ship, saying Tehran’s forces “immediately and in retaliation attacked American military vessels.”

Trump this week fueled hopes of a deal, saying an agreement could be near even as he again threatened to return to bombing if Tehran refused to back down.

He doubled down on that stance after Thursday’s clash, posting on his Truth Social platform: “We’ll knock them out a lot harder, and a lot more violently, in the future, if they don’t get their Deal signed, FAST!” he said.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Tehran would communicate its position to mediator Pakistan “after finalizing its views.”

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had struck an optimistic tone prior to the exchanges of fire on Thursday, saying in televised remarks: “I firmly believe that this ceasefire will turn into a long-term ceasefire.”

Lebanon talks

But, inside Iran, civilians were cynical.

“Neither side in these negotiations is really capable of reaching an agreement,” 42-year-old photographer Shervin told AFP reporters in Paris, messaging from Tehran.

“This is another one of Trump’s games; otherwise, why are so many warships and military forces being sent toward Iran?”

Any agreement between the United States and Iran could also help lower tensions in Lebanon, where a separate truce was under renewed strain after an Israeli strike on southern Beirut killed a commander from militant group Hezbollah on Wednesday.

A US State Department official confirmed on Thursday that the new Israel-Lebanon talks would take place on May 14 and 15.

It will be the third meeting in recent months between the two countries, which have technically been at war for decades and have no diplomatic relations.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that a peace deal between the two sides was “eminently achievable,” insisting Hezbollah was the sticking point, rather than any issue between the two governments.

Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Ships, crew stranded

A ceasefire between the two countries, and including Hezbollah, was extended after the last round of talks in Washington, but Israel has kept up its strikes on the group, which has claimed attacks of its own on Israeli forces occupying parts of Lebanon’s south.

Lebanon’s health ministry reported at least 12 people killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes on Thursday.

Following the start of the war with US-Israeli attacks on February 28, Iran largely shuttered the Strait of Hormuz.

Around 1,500 ships and 20,000 international crew are now trapped in the Gulf region because of the conflict, the secretary-general of the UN’s International Maritime Organization, Arsenio Dominguez, told a Maritime Convention of the Americas meeting in Panama.

Trump had this week briefly launched a naval operation to force open the strait to commercial vessels, only to stand it down within hours, citing progress on negotiations with Iran.

The US president — who has lambasted Europe for not backing his war against Iran—said Thursday he had a “great call” with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, saying they were “completely united that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.”

AFP

The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights has called on the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project to comply with the judgment of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in the defamation suit filed by two operatives of the Department of State Services.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the group said respect for court judgments remained essential to the preservation of democracy and the rule of law.

The statement was jointly signed by CDHR President and Secretary of the Board of Trustees, Debo Adeniran, and the group’s National Publicity Secretary, Jeremiah Onyibe.

CDHR stated that although advocacy groups and citizens have constitutional rights to freedom of expression and public criticism, such freedoms must be exercised responsibly and within the limits of the law.

According to the organisation, the court, after considering the evidence presented before it, concluded that the publication against the DSS operatives was defamatory and damaging to their professional reputation.

The group urged SERAP to comply with all lawful directives contained in the judgment pending the outcome of any appeal process.

“The rule of law remains the foundation of every democratic society. Human rights advocacy must coexist with accountability, fairness, and respect for due process,” the statement read.

CDHR also cautioned against statements or narratives capable of undermining judicial authority or deepening public distrust in state institutions without credible evidence.

The organisation further stressed that while security agencies should remain open to lawful scrutiny, no organisation or individual is above the law.

Meanwhile, the Centre Against Injustice and Domestic Violence also criticised SERAP over its reaction to the court judgment, accusing the organisation of attempting to ridicule the decision of the court.

In a separate statement signed by its Executive Director, Gbenga Soloki, CAIDOV alleged that SERAP continued to maintain on its X handle claims that DSS operatives invaded its Abuja office on September 9, 2024, despite what the group described as a misrepresentation of facts.

Soloki noted, “We in the human rights community should lead by example. We should not be seen as the very persons breaching human rights in the name of free speech.

“Human rights is universal. It is for everybody. We should not trample on the rights of others simply because they chose to be security agents.”

CAIDOV argued that the N100m damages awarded against SERAP for defamation should not be considered excessive, citing sanctions imposed on international firms over misconduct.

“Very big corporations around the world have at one time or the other been caught lying or cheating.

“Just last year, Deloitte, PwC and EY Netherlands were fined $8.5 million for cheating, while KPMG Netherlands was fined $25 million in 2024 for widespread cheating on training exams. What then is the big deal in a Nigerian court imposing a N100 million fine on SERAP for defamation?” the statement questioned.

The organisation added that it was ironic for SERAP, which had frequently relied on the courts to hold public institutions accountable, to question the judiciary because the verdict did not favour it.

The DSS had earlier clarified that the defamation suit was instituted by the two operatives in their personal capacity and not by the agency itself.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Deputy Director of Public Relations and Strategic Communications at DSS Headquarters, Favour Dozie, the Service said the officers sued SERAP after alleging that the organisation falsely accused them of invading its Abuja office and harassing staff on September 9, 2024.

The DSS said it conducted an internal investigation into the allegations before approving the officers to seek legal redress personally.

The FCT High Court subsequently ruled in favour of the operatives, awarding N100m damages against SERAP and directing the organisation to publish public apologies on its website, in The PUNCH and Vanguard newspapers, as well as on Arise Television and Channels Television.

The court also ordered that the damages would attract a 10 per cent annual interest from May 5, 2026, until full payment.

SERAP, however, rejected the judgment, describing it as flawed and announcing plans to challenge the ruling at the Court of Appeal.

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