Former Nigerian Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has told President Abdourahamane Tchiani of Niger Republic to refrain from making infantile and puerile allegations that Nigeria is conniving with France and the Lakurawa terrorists to destabilize his country.

Tchiani had, during an interview with Radio-Télévision du Niger on December 25, accused the Nigerian government of using the sect, with the help of foreign security forces notably from France, to wreck havoc in his country, insinuating that President Bola Tinubu had been paid by the France government to allow their military to establish a base in Borno State.

He also alleged that Nigeria, acting in collaboration with the French government and the terrorist group, was responsible for an attack on the Niger-Benin oil pipeline on December 13, 2024, in Gaya, Dosso Region of Niger Republic.

But in a statement he posted on his official X handle on Sunday, Fani-Kayode who is popularly called FFK, said Nigeria does not need the help of France and thr Lakurawa terrorist to destabilize Niger Republic.

FFK insisted that Nigeria is not part of the western powers sponsoring terrorists organizations to wretch havoc on the West African sub region.

“If Nigeria wanted to destabilise Niger Republic, I do not believe that we would need France or any terrorist organisation to do so,” the politician wrote.

He noted that on the contrary, western powers are the ones behind terrorist organizations operating in the region and other parts of Africa.

“I have maintained that the western powers are behind the terrorist groups that have plagued the West African sub region over the last 15 years and for the last ten years I have publicly stated this and given my reasons.

“I am equally certain that Nigeria, being one of the major victims of these terrorist organisations, has had no part in it and that no Nigerian President, past or present, has indulged in such grave and dangerous actions.”

He went on to advice Tchiani against provoking Nigeria with unguarded and infantile utterances capable of stoking Nigeria against his country.

“The Nigerien Military Head of State, Abdourahamane Tchiani, would do well to be careful not to provoke our wrath with his absurd assertions and remain mindful of the fact that the defence budget for his country, Mali and Burkina Faso COMBINED is not up to 25% of Nigeria’s.

“Tchiani’s grave allegations that President Tinubu and NSA Nuhu Ribadu have been bought by the French to destabilise Niger Republic, that our Government is jointly sponsoring a terrorist group with France to do same and that there are French military bases in Nigeria are infantile, puerile, mendacious and asinine.

“It is a squalid attempt by the Nigerien Head of State to sow the seeds of dissention in our country, to alienate our people from constituted authority, to divide our people and to undermine the Tinubu administration,” he added.

“It is also highly provocative and the FG should consider the possibility of taking other more extreeme measures if this reckless provocation continues.

“We are under no obligation to show restraint when we are being undermined and maligned.

The Zambian Ministry of Health has reported a second case of Monkeypox, popularly known as Mpox, in Kitwe region of Copperbelt Province.

Acting Health Minister, Douglas Syakalima, who made the announcement on Friday during a press conference in Lusaka, revealed that the Ministry is intensifying contact tracing and surveillance to curb further spread of the disease.

Syakalima who also addressed the ongoing cholera outbreak in Nakonde, Muchinga Province, said thus far, seven cases have been confirmed.

“The second Mpox case involves a 34-year-old female from Ndeke, Kitwe, who presented with symptoms including rash, fever, swollen lymph nodes, and oral ulcers on December 21,” Syakalima said at the press parley.

He noted that there was an initial misdiagnosis with chickenpox in Lumwana, North-Western Province, but laboratory tests on December 26 confirmed that it was Mpox.

Syakalima added that the patient’s husband, who works in a neighboring country with confirmed Mpox cases, had experienced similar symptoms earlier this month.

“Both patients are now stable and under close monitoring. A rapid response team has been deployed to trace contacts and prevent further spread,” he said, adding that eight close contacts of the couple are currently under observation, while nationwide surveillance has been heightened.

The Health Minister added that on December 26, five cholera cases were confirmed at Nakonde Urban Clinic with the first three patients, a husband, wife, and their son, admitted on December 24 with symptoms of diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration, and shock.

“Today, two more cases have been reported, bringing the total to seven confirmed cholera cases from the same household,” Syakalima stated.

He explained that Nakonde’s location as a border town with high cross-border movement poses a risk for the disease to spread to other parts of the country.

The Minister however, assured that the Ministry has deployed teams to trace contacts, chlorinate water sources, disinfect affected homes, and activate Incident Management Systems at district and provincial levels while surveillance has been heightened, and contact tracing is ongoing for 33 individuals.

“The government remains committed to preventing further spread of these diseases,” Syakalima assured.