Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, on Monday inaugurated a Sickle Cell Centre to provide comprehensive care for people living with sickle cell disease and unveiled a new office complex for the Kano State Centre for Disease Control.

The governor also flagged off the distribution of 300 customised digital blood pressure monitors to public servants and political appointees.

He also opened the symbolic distribution of free maternal and Accident and Emergency commodities, as well as new hospital bed sheets, at the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital, Kano.

Speaking during the inauguration, Yusuf said the Sickle Cell Centre was established to provide free diagnosis, counselling, treatment, follow-up care, patient education, health promotion and specialised management of sickle cell disease under one roof.

“The Sickle Cell Centre will provide comprehensive care for people living with sickle cell disease, including free diagnosis, counselling, treatment, follow-up care and health education.

“We are committed to ensuring that patients receive the medicines and support they need to improve their wellbeing,” the governor said.

Yusuf also inaugurated the newly constructed office complex of the Kano State Centre for Disease Control, describing it as a major step towards strengthening the state’s disease surveillance and emergency response system.

He said the facility would enhance the state’s capacity to prevent, detect and respond promptly to epidemic-prone diseases, including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and meningitis.

“In the name of Allah, today, Monday, August 3, 2026, I am delighted to commission this centre, and it is my prayer that it will be judiciously utilised for the benefit of the people of Kano State,” the governor said.

He commended development partners for their contributions to the establishment of the centre.

The governor explained that the distribution of 300 customised digital blood pressure monitors was prompted by growing concerns over sudden deaths linked to hypertension among public officials.

“We procured these digital blood pressure monitors to encourage regular health checks among public servants and political appointees. Early detection and proper monitoring will help prevent avoidable deaths associated with hypertension,” Yusuf said.

He also reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to sustaining the free maternal and Accident and Emergency commodities programme, saying the initiative had already saved thousands of lives across the state.

Yusuf commended the state Commissioner for Health, the management of the Kano State Hospital Management Board, healthcare workers, traditional rulers and development partners for their contributions to improving healthcare delivery in the state.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr Abubakar Yusuf, said the administration had made significant investments in the health sector since assuming office.

He noted that the newly commissioned disease control centre was conceptualised, completed and inaugurated under Governor Yusuf’s administration to strengthen disease prevention and emergency response across the state’s 44 local government areas.

“Our healthcare facilities have witnessed remarkable improvements under this administration.

“Maternal mortality has dropped significantly from over 1,300 recorded cases in 2023 to about 300 in 2026, reflecting the impact of the government’s interventions.

“We appreciate the governor for his continued support in enabling the centre to discharge its mandate of preventing, detecting and responding promptly to epidemic-prone diseases across the 44 local government areas,” the commissioner said.

Also speaking, the Executive Secretary of the Hospital Management Board, Dr Mansur Nagoda, described the governor’s intervention as a major boost to healthcare delivery in Kano.

“The governor’s support will benefit thousands of residents. The Abba Gida-Gida administration has transformed the health sector to an unprecedented level through sustained investments in healthcare infrastructure, equipment and essential services,” Nagoda said.

The inauguration forms part of the Kano State Government’s ongoing efforts to strengthen healthcare services through improved access to specialised treatment, disease surveillance, maternal healthcare and preventive medical interventions.

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The National Broadcasting Commission has approached the Court of Appeal in Abuja, seeking leave to file a fresh appeal against a Federal High Court judgment that barred it from imposing fines on broadcast stations.

The application follows the Court of Appeal’s June 17, 2026, decision striking out the commission’s earlier appeal because it was “fundamentally defective” and incompetent.

In a motion filed by its counsel, Mr Dapo Akinosun (SAN), the NBC asked the appellate court to extend the time within which it can challenge the January 10, 2024, judgment delivered by Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court.

The case arose from a suit instituted by Media Rights Agenda challenging the commission’s decision to impose fines of N5m each on Multichoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DSTV, TelCom Satellite Limited, Trust-TV Network Limited and NTA Startimes Limited.

In a statement issued on Monday and signed by the communications officer of Media Rights Agenda, Idowu Adewale, he said that the sanctions were imposed after the broadcasters aired documentaries on banditry and insecurity in Zamfara State, which the NBC alleged undermined Nigeria’s national security.

In her judgment, Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia held that the commission acted unlawfully and unconstitutionally in imposing the fines, ruling that the NBC lacked the authority to sanction broadcasters because it is not a court of law.

The commission’s initial appeal was, however, struck out by the Court of Appeal after the appellant was described in the court documents as the “Nigerian Broadcasting Commission” instead of its statutory name, the “National Broadcasting Commission.”

In its fresh application, the NBC argued that the judgment raised issues of exceptional public importance concerning its statutory powers to regulate broadcasting and enforce compliance with broadcasting standards in Nigeria.

The commission warned that allowing the judgment to stand without appellate review could create uncertainty regarding its regulatory powers and weaken the framework governing the country’s broadcasting industry.

According to the NBC, “the subsisting judgment is capable of creating significant uncertainty regarding the commission’s regulatory powers and its ability to effectively discharge its statutory mandate.”

It further argued that a weakened regulatory framework could encourage non-compliance with broadcasting standards and lead to the spread of false, misleading and unverified information capable of causing public anxiety, panic and social unrest.

The commission also claimed that the absence of effective oversight could embolden irresponsible broadcasting practices and facilitate the misuse of broadcast and digital media platforms to disseminate sensational or inflammatory content.

The NBC maintained that its proposed appeal raised substantial issues affecting not only the parties in the suit but also the integrity and orderly regulation of Nigeria’s broadcasting ecosystem, with implications for broadcasters, content creators and media consumers.

The commission told the court that it had instructed its lawyers to appeal Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia’s judgment immediately after it was delivered and that the appeal was filed on March 18, 2024, within the period prescribed by law.

It attributed the failure of the earlier appeal to what it described as an inadvertent error by its lawyer in misdescribing the commission’s statutory name in the notice of appeal.

The NBC is also seeking leave to raise a fresh issue on appeal concerning the legal capacity of Media Rights Agenda to institute and maintain the suit before the Federal High Court.

No date has been fixed for the hearing of the application.

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