Date: 2019-08-16

Former Minister of Youths and Sports, Mr. Bolaji Abdullahi, Wednesday said he would soon launch a N50m endowment fund to provide opportunities for young people in the state on the matters of education and basic health care.

He said the failure of people of the country to be brother's keeper and share opportunities among themselves as it used to be in the past is a major challenge to the quest to see the country out of penury.

The former Minister who spoke with newsmen shortly after special prayer session to mark his 50th birthday ceremony held at his residence in Ilorin GRA, said "a lot of people in the country who have had opportunity to be successful in life have refused other people the benefit of such opportunity."

He noted that pupils and students are normally encouraged to be serious with their academic pursuit so that they could be successful in life and excel above those who refused to be serious.

He said while this is true in the past when the economy is good and job opportunities abounded in the country, it is hardly true in the present time because economy is poor and job opportunities are scarce.

Abdullahi recalled that in 1988 somebody he did not share blood relationship with gave him the opportunity to write Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination for admission into university when that person made a gift of N40 to him to seat for the examination.

He said while he is a Muslim from Ilorin in Kwara State, his benefactor then was a Christian and an Ekiti man from old Ondo State.

The former minister advised that the people of the country should promote among themselves a brotherly love that encourages them to share opportunities that could check poverty andaid development of the nation.

The ceremony was attended by his associates such as Moshood Mustapha, a former House of Representatives member and Muyideen Akorede, former Senior Special Assistant to a former governor of Kwara State.