ABOUT 1,000 less-privileged people who are residents of Lagos and Ogun states have benefited from eye treatment exercises organised by the District 404B1 of Lion Club International at Ota, a suburb of Ogun State.
The programme, tagged: ‘Vision first, preventing blindness related to profession’, was organised by the non-profit oriented organisation to mark 2019 World Sight Day celebration.
Features of the exercises were the donation of white canes to the blind; free eye screening; donation of eye glasses, welding masks/glasses, eye drugs; sight preservation awareness talk/ enlightenment; and a game competition between the schools of the blind.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Chairman, Ogun State Chapter of the Nigerian Association of the Blind, Mr Michael Ebonhor, stressed the need for every human being to protect their eyes.
He said: “It is highly imperative for all human beings to protect their eyes against any danger that could affect them as all Nigerians are living in hazardous environments.
“A leper can quickly crawl to hide in a safer environment on sighting a war, but it’s impossible for a blind man to do that except with the assistance of another person.
“I am appealing to all human beings to ensure that their eyes are pampered and protected diligently to guarantee pure vision”.
Ebonhor appealed to governments and individuals to stop neglecting people with disabilities. Hands of love and fellowship should be stretched to them in order to create a sense of belonging for them in the society.
In his welcoming address, the programme committee chairman, Mr Mustapha Olayiwola Ajelara, said: “The World Sight Day is a special/annual event set aside by LIons Clubs as health advocacy and awareness. It is celebrated globally to focus on preventable blindness, vision impairment and other sight related problems”.
The Olota of Ota, Oba Abdulkabir Adeyemi Obalanlege, commended Lions Clubs for championing the cause of rendering assistance to the less-privileged in the society.
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