|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
By Akanji Alowolodu, Bauchi
A Non Governmental Organization (NGO), Northern Youths and Students Front for Ogbonnaya Onu 2023 has donated clothes and other materials worth over N125m to orphans and other vulnerable children across the country to mitigate against their needs.
National spokesperson of the movement, Comrade Abubakar Ismail, while speaking to journalists in Bauchi shortly after donating the items to Bauchi orphanage, Correctional Center and rehabilitation center said that the aim is to bring succor to the children and other vulnerable individuals to make have a sense of belonging.
He explained that the NGO was formed by old students taught by Ogbonnaya Onu while lecturing at the University of Port Harcourt as well as other youth from the North. “We came together to do something in his name considering what he did for us. We want him to aspire for the presidency come 2023”.
He added that, “in all the Northern states during the last Ramadan fasting we distributed food items, in the remaining states, we are visiting orphanages, Correctional and rehabilitation centers to donate clothing and money to them because they need sense of belonging like other children with parents”.
Abubakar Ismail stressed that the group will continue to agitate for Ogbonnaya Onu 2023 until he agrees to run under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) pointing out however that the Minister of Science and Technology is not in anyway connected with the movement.
While justifying the reason behind the movement, he said that, “Ogbonnaya Onu was the first South Eastern Governor to appoint a Northern Muslim into his cabinet, he also ensured that Muslims were fairly treated and giving their full recognition as Nigerians. In fact he made sure that the Muslim Pilgrim welfare board was established to enable Muslims from Abia state performed pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia”.
In his response, the Acting HOD Child Protection of BASOVCA, Adamu Abubakar thanked the group for the donation saying that it will go a long way making the children have a sense of belonging as well as ginger them to accept life the way it is for them.
He then assured that all the items donated will be judiciously used by the children because according to him, “you can see that each child was given what was his/hers. We will do as has been directed by the donors for the good of the children”.
The children expressed their joy and happiness for the kind gesture appealing to other well meaning Nigerians to come to their aid, not that they lacked attention by the government but they want to be seen as part of the society.
