In fulfilment of its promise to always look out for people living with disabilities in Ona Ara Local Government Area of Oyo State, a non governmental organisation, the Funmi Obisesan Development and Empowerment Initiative (FODEI), on April 6, 2020, embarked on distribution of food items to members of the Ona Ara branch of the Disabled People Association and the underprivileged in Ona Ara community.
The distribution was part of efforts of FODEI to ensure life is easier for the underprivileged people in indigent communities within Ona Ara and reduce the burden of lack experienced by many low income earners as the nation fights the spread of coronavirus.
FODEI, through its founder, Funmi Obisesan-Fajemiseye, stated that the exercise was part of contributions to humanity during the challenging Covid-19 period and in fulfilment of the promise to the people of Ona Ara, especially those living with disabilities, following the organisation’s promise to always look out for them during an earlier visit.
This is not the first time FODEI will be touching the lives of people living with disabilities within Ona Ara communities, few weeks ago, the association had organised a vocational training programme for them to put them on the path of financial independence and lighten the burden of poverty within people in the community.
In order to ensure the beneficiaries are not exposed to infection, FODEI distributed food to them in strict compliance to laid down rules and regulations of social distancing by the World Health Organisation, the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control and the Oyo State Covid-19 task force.
Throughout the distribution, beneficiaries were not allowed to lump together and there were sensitisation talks on what Covid-19 is and how to prevent infection and community spread.
Youths in the community were also not left out of the distribution in order to curb cases of restiveness and unnecessary violence, as well as to encourage them to adhere with regulations put in place to curtail the spread of the coronavirus.
Speaking on why all her efforts seemed focused on Ona Ara communities, Obisesan-Fajemiseye stated that it is because Ona Ara is her home and charity must begin from home. She said: “My father, Oluwole, is one of the children of Late Papa Ariibi and Mama Abeje Obisesan, my late grandfather during his lifetime was one of the elders-in state at the Amuloko and Ile-Aperin (just to mention a few) with regards to critical decision makings in the interest of communities in Ona-Ara local government.
“The Obisesan family lineage is strongly rooted with sons and daughters of Ona-Ara, the descents of the Obisesan family are still Baales and Oba at various locations in Ona-Ara. As a daughter of the soil, I decided that my charity must begin from home; Ona-Ara local government and Ile-Aperin”; believing that the things I do will benefit my root. I have also been motivated to focus most of the philanthropic activities of FODEI at Ona-Ara because of the philanthropic leadership examples of philanthropists like Engineer Dotun Sanusi who sponsored the resuscitation of electricity at the Amuloko and Akanran community that before then, were cut off the national grid for 14 years, imagining how this singular gesture have improve the economic development of Ona-Ara; this is a great motivation for me.
“Also, Chief Olajumoke Akinjide-Balogun, Hon Akin Alabi, Senator Teslim Folarin, Engineer Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe and the state governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, who are also from Ajia in Ona-Ara local government, have all encouraged me with the great things they have done for Ona Ara. This influenced my decision to join these wonderful people in contributing my own little quota positively to the development of Ona-Ara local government, with the view that the more that people consistently join in the advancement of Ona-Ara local government via philanthropic activities, it will position the local government to become a force to reckon with,” she stated.
At the end of the distribution, over 100 people were reached and they could not hide their joy for being remembered at this period.
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