Date: 2016-04-12

The postulations that says “There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up” and “You have lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you” by John holmes and John Bunyan respectively aptly captures the birth of a charity Organization ‘Victims of Violence’ which was inaugurated in Kwara on April 2nd Akogun Abdulrasheed was there.

One of the greatest wordsmith of African descent Prof. Chinua Achebe, the writer of the widely acclaimed masterpiece ‘Things Fall Apart’, in one of his evergreen quotes had this to say about charity and service to humanity, he said “While we do our good works let us not forget that real solution lies in a world in which charity will have become necessary”.

While Sam Levenson said “For attractive lips, speak words of kindness, for lovely eyes, seek out the good in people, for a slim figure, share your food with the hungry, for a beautiful hair, let a child run his fingers through it once a day”.

Nigeria a country of roughly 170 million people has more than 70 per cent living below $1 a day, the irony however is the abundant natural and human resources the country is blessed with, which if well harnessed, all citizenry shouldn’t have a problem living a descent life and getting the basic necessities of life.

According to Forbes magazine, Nigeria accounts for the highest number of black billionaires worldwide, this is a country where the gap between the rich and the poor is nearing the distance between Moon and the Earth.

It is however saddening that the country which has one of the highest concentration of people living without clothing and shelter also has numerous highbrow suburbs where a square meter of land cost millions of naira.

That is why in the face of glaring poverty ravaging the country, coupled with the alarming rate of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) occasioned majorly by the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East which has rendered millions scattered all over the country homeless, while some have now found abode Cameroun.

It is on this guise that people of like minds came together on November 2014, to establish a Charity Organization ‘Victims of Violence’, with the aim of giving a helping hand to the needy in the nooks and crannies of the country.

According to its National President, Mallam Sulaiman Gumi, who was in Ilorin on the 2nd of April to induct new members and inaugurate the kwara state chapter of the foundation, with the mandate of further widening the reach of the organization.

Gumi expressed elation that Nigerians nationwide are gradually waking up to their social responsibilities of lending a helping hand to those in need without primordial sentiments like ethnic, religious, sectional considerations, adding that the act of service to humanity is premised on rendering help and nothing else.

“In this organization, we are out to help victims of violence any where they might be, there are so many people in need of help, and our aim is to in our little way put smiles on their faces, we have so many programs ranging from Education, Health, provision of shelter, mobile toilet, clothing, food items, counseling etc.

“we have noticed that once people are displaced and they are concentrated at IDP camps, the educational pursuit of the children are totally forgotten, the handlers of the camps and donors  are usually preoccupied with the provision of foods, shelter and other immediate needs to the detriment of the future of the children, which is education.

“So we have made provisions for mobile schools, where as we go into the various IDP camps, we will apart from distributing relief materials, assemble the children and help them further their education, in recognition of our efforts since inception, Kentucky in the United States of America have declared every March 17th as a public holiday marking Victims of Violence day” he added.

The founder of the kwara state chapter of Ambassador Abdulfatai Yahaya Gambari, expressed shock at the discovery that there is no provision for indigenes of the state affected by the insurgency in the North-Eastern part of the country, adding that most of them who had being forced relocate to the state have no shelter of their own.

“With as little as N30,000 our brothers and Sisters forced back to kwara from the Insurgency ravaged Nort-East will have a decent shelter over their head, this will go a long way in helping them reintegrate back into their home state and start a new life” he stressed.

Speaking in the same vein the Kwara State Chairman of the foundation, Hajia Fati Abdulfatai promised the resolve of the state chapter to hit the ground running, adding that the chapter boost of professionals from all fields who are ready to dedicate their time and resources towards making sure the aims and objectives of the foundation is pursued vigorously.

“The reward for rendering selfless service is eternal, nobody can repay one back except the creator of the universe, the reward will extend beyond one’s sojourn on earth and our generations unborn will also benefit immensely.

One of the newly inducted members Comrade Orlando Odunjo described the 9 hours lecture preceding the induction as very educative and informative, adding that the training has broadened participant’s knowledge on how best to be of help to the less privileged.

Also the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the state’s chapter of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) Comrade Bamikole Oladele who was also one of the inductees promised the backing of the entire Kwara Youth towards the programs of the foundation, adding that with the itemized programs to be embarked upon by the NGO, it is glaring that the youth will be the utmost beneficiaries.