Minister of Tourism allegedly poisoned, fights for life in hospital

Lola Ade-John, Nigeria’s minister of tourism, has been hospitalized in Abuja after suffering acute poisoning from unknown origins.

60-year-old Lola Ade-John was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Jabi, shortly after she started manifesting symptoms of her poisoning, as her family members fear time is running against their efforts to save her life.

According to family sources familiar with her ordeal, she has spent four days at the facility as of Friday morning.

According to our sources, Ms. Ade-John, a career banker and IT investor, has been on a breathing machine.

However, was unable to determine what chemical she drank and how she ingested it.

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Her deteriorating condition has pitted her family against the government, with the permanent secretary of her ministry reportedly divided about whether she should remain in a public hospital or be transferred to a better-equipped private facility downtown.

Ngozi Onwudike, the permanent secretary, was said to have insisted that the minister not be transferred because the FMC is a public hospital and its services would not incur significant expenditures for the government, a position her family rejected.

However, they remained with her since they were unable to obtain finances to transfer her to a private hospital, according to our sources. On Friday morning, the permanent secretary’s phone number did not work.

President Bola Tinubu appointed Ms. Ade-John as a minister in August. She was immediately lauded for being one of the few cabinet members appointed from outside the political establishment. She spent years in London before the president asked her to return to the country to serve.