Category: Featured

Correspondent Toba Adedeji writes on how Osun State celebrated its 30th anniversay of creation and its projections for the future

Thursday, September 23, 2021 will go down in the history of Osun State as a day that simply stood out. It was a day former governors, but one stormed Osogbo, the capital, in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the creation of the state.

Of the lot, only the immediate past governor and incumbent Interior minister, Rauf Aregbesola, was absent. Although his absence was not noticed, there are strong indications that he may have been invited, but deliberately stayed away.

At the time of filing this report, Aregbesola is yet to publicly say whether or not he was invited. Sources close to Osun Government however, insisted that he was duly invited through a letter personally signed by his successor  Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. The copy of the letter was sighted by reporters. Besides, the documentary that was shown during the event featured Aregbesola prominently, just as Oyetola gave him adequate mention in his written speech on the day, which was rendered at the event. Personalities inside the hall, the Osun Banquet and Awards Evening clearly stood out.

Among the dignitaries who witnessed the occasion were former and sitting governors, including Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu; Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; and Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun,who were represented; Youth and Sports Minister Sunday Dare, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Lasun Yusuff; former governors of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande; Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola; Gen. Leo Ajiborisha (rtd.), who was represented; Col. Theophilus Bamigboye (rtd.);  Navy Capt. Anthony Udofia (rtd); former Ogun State Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel; former Oyo State Governor, Otunba Alao Akala;  Former Oyo State Deputy Governor, Chief Moses Alake; first class traditional rulers, including the Alaafin of Oyo, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi; the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi who was represented; Obi of Onitsha, His Royal Majesty, Igwe Alfred Achebe. Captains of industries were also not left out.

The Chief of Staff to the Osun Governor and Chairman of the 30th Anniversary Committee, Dr. Charles Akinola, set the tone for the evening with his address of welcome. He acknowledged the diversity of the audience, saying the diversity of the people at the event deserves to be celebrated.

He added that the diversity of the audience inside the hall, “fully aligns with the inclusive and participatory governance style of Governor Oyetola. We must thank Mr. Governor for his purposeful leadership, vision, large-heartedness, guidance and inspiration for this. “Dr. Akinola’s welcome was followed by the remarks by Dr. Bayo Jimoh, an Industrial Psychologist and immediate past Group Managing Director of Oduá Investment Company Limited, who was a member of the jury that worked day and night to come up with the 28 anniversary awardees.

He noted that the process of identifying the award recipients included defining the criteria for nomination of awards; thereafter, nominations were received for the awards, which was followed up by an extensive research and debate conducted among the Jury to determine selected awardees. He said the processes took place over a two-month period.

“It is instructive to state that our criteria focused on service to Osun and contribution to society and the world by indigenes and non-indigenes who have contributed to Osun. We placed no restriction on age, gender, religion, ethnicity, or tribe. After a most rigorous selection process, we ended up having a total of 28 nominees, covering four categories: Osun Merit Award – 7, Osun Distinguished Citizen Award – 13, Legacy Award – 2 and Lifetime Achievement Award – 11.

“The awardees, no doubt, consist of our finest individuals in the various fields of endeavours.

Read Also: Osun Governor Oyetola at 67

“As I conclude, I must note that a reality that confronted us during the jury process is the fact that our State is indeed blessed with some of our nation’s finest and most accomplished individuals. Of course, it was no mean feat arriving at the current list,” Jimoh added.

He further said membership of the jury is composed of such eminent personalities as Prof. Niyi Akinnaso, veteran columnist and a retired Professor of Anthropology and Linguistics from the Temple University, Philadelphia; Dr. Segun Aina, an internationally-reputed banker and President, Osun Development Association; his humble self, Dr. Jimoh – Former GMD, Oodua Investment Limited; the Chief of Staff to the Governor, a foremost scholar and a development expert, Dr. Akinola; Mrs. Funke Egbemode, former President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors and Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation; Ismail Omipidan – Chief Press Secretary to the Governor and Sola Imoru, Media Adviser to the Governor (Speech Writing).

Oyetola’s physical fitness was literally brought to bear on the day as he stood for close to two hours to honour each of 28 awardees who took turns to pose for a photograph with him after each of the session.

The honourees, under the Osun Lifetime Achievement Award, included Chief Bisi Akande (former Governor, Osun State); Pastor Enoch Adeboye (General Overseer, RCCG worldwide); Sheikh Abdur’rasheed Hadiyatulla (President, Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria); and General Ipoola Alani Akinrinnade, rtd. (former Chief of Army Staff, Nigeria from October 1979 to April 1980, and then Chief of Defence Staff until 1981 during the Nigerian Second Republic).

Others in the lifetime achievement category are Asiwaju Hammed Omidiran, Comrade Hassan Sunmonu, Prince Tunde Ponle, Professor Olu Aina, Chief Akinwande Akinola, Engr. Joanah Olu Maduka, and Chief (Dr.) Benjamin Adigun.

The State, under the Legacy Award category, also recognised Dr. Folorunsho Alakija (Chancellor, Osun State University and dynamic philanthropist), and the late Madam Susanne Wenger (a culture and tourism icon).

The Osun Merit Award honourees included Emeritus Prof. Ademola Oyejide, Chief Nike Okundaye, Professor Oye Gureje, Professor Isaac Adewole, and Mallam Yusuf Ali, SAN.

The Osun Distinguished Citizens Award honourees included Pastor Matthew Asimolowo, Alagba Yemi Elebuibon, Brigadier General Leo Segun Ajiborisha rtd (First Osun MILAD), Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), Asiwaju Khamis Olatunde Badmus, Prince Lawal Obelawo, Chief Moses Inaolaji Aboaba (First Osun H.O.S/SSG), Mr. Adewale Adeyemo (Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, US), Mr. Kola Adeniji and Mr. Mike Awoyinfa.

Oyetola, charged citizens to pull their collective strength to work, irrespective of their political differences and sentiments, for a greater tomorrow, saying that state-building is a collective enterprise.

Recall that the State had earlier announced that the Banquet and Awards ceremony would be the grand finale of the series of activities lined up to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the creation of Osun, where 28 distinguished and prominent citizens of the State would be honoured.

Describing the event as symbolic, Oyetola, who ensured a minute silence was obserbed in honour of the first Civilian Governor of the State, the late Isiaka Adeleke, said it was deserving to pay tributes to the illustrious men and women who have held sway as leaders of the people. “On behalf of the government and the good People of Osun, I thank our awardees for their monumental contributions to our dear State, the nation and the world, and for leading lives that inspire us and our posterity to build a greater Osun.

“State building is a collective enterprise.  Therefore, we all must, more than ever, pull our collective strength to work irrespective of our political differences and sentiments, for a greater tomorrow.

“We must consider it an urgent task to galvanise our diverse strengths, goodwill and resources to chart a pathway that delivers the Osun of our dreams. That is the least we owe ourselves and the generations coming behind us. We cannot afford to fail.

“I call on all to rise and let us build a better Osun that is reflective of our true potential as the cradle of humanity,” Oyetola said.

He also urged citizens to continue to collaborate with the government to achieve sustainable development promised and already being delivered.

“Let us drink and toast to our collective success and the avowed resolve of our administration to build a solid structure for trans-generational development in Osun. The journey to building a stronger and more prosperous Osun continues with greater resolve and hope from here. I invite you all to come on board”, he added.

Chief Bisi Akande, in appreciating the honours done the past leaders, commended the government of Osun for recognising the services and labours of the former governors.

He observed that the journey into the position of power was filled with the good and the bad as the past governors have experienced series of challenges while in power such as labour unrest and difficulties in payment of salaries of workers with the state’s meagre resources.

Akande congratulated and commended past governors for meeting these challenges despite the meagre resources that accrued to them from Abuja and called on the people of the State to continue to offer the necessary support to the Administration of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola in order to take Osun to an enviable height.

Akeredolu, said by giving his Osun State counterpart, Oyetola, another four years in office, the State would gain more from him.

The Ondo State helmsman, who said achieving milestone of 30 years was worth celebrating, noted that “it has been a wonderful celebration having identified those who built the State, the founding fathers of this State and those who have contributed to the development of this State is now being given award, I think the government is doing very well.

Read Also: Tinubu: Oyetola an unassuming trailblazer, astute manager

“I believe this State will turn around totally because the State is in very good hands now and as you can see, change is what is happening in the State. So, I am sure that with this foundation and giving the governor another four years after this four years, the State will stand to gain a lot from him.”

The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Adeyemi, on his part, commended the government of Osun on the awards, describing it as a welcome development because of its potential to ignite high hopes and hunger for diligence and excellence in the youths. He urged the people of the State to continue to support the Oyetola’s Administration because the governor has shown that he meant well for the people.

One of the high points of the event was the decoration of the former Military Administrators and Governors of the State since its creation in 1991 by the incumbent, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola.

Oyetola was in turn decorated by  Olagunsoye Oyinlola.

Before the Banquet and Awards event, the state had held a colloquium, with the theme:  “Celebrating a Milestone: Building a Prosperous Future,” where Akande served as the keynote Speaker, while the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence, Sa’ad Abubakar, chaired the occasion. The Sultan remarked that “the massive and sustainable development strive and inclusive governance strategy of the present governor of the state is obvious. Osun is in the right hand and is headed in the right direction.  I throw it as a challenge to the government and people of the state that they should prepare for that task of State building ahead.”

The colloquium, which was moderated by Akinnaso, had Dr Segun Aina, Professor Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, Dr Yemi Farounbi, Dr. Reuben Abati, Ms. Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, Professor Siyan Oyeweso, Mr. Babajide Kolade-Otitoju, Steve Nwosu, and Zainab Okino, as panellists.

 

• Anambra poll threatened •DSS vehicle, Igbokwe’s house burnt •Governors, Ohanaeze, leaders meet

By Emma Elekwa, Onitsha; Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja;  Nwanosike Onu, Awka; Damian Duruiheoma, Enugu; Chris Njoku, Owerri and  Sunny Nwankwo, Umuahia

The Southeast has again been put on the edge as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has renewed its vow to shut down economic and social activities in the region for a month.

IPOB said it would only back down on the threat if the Federal Government gave a firm assurance that its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, would be brought to court on October 21 for trial.

The latest warning by the group coincided with the rampage of gunmen in Nnewi, Anambra State, at the weekend.

The hoodlums killed two, injured one, and torched a Department of State Service (DSS) vehicle as well as the home of a Lagos-based All Progressives Congress(APC) chieftain, Joe Igbokwe,  in the town.

They also struck at the Federal Road Safety Corps and Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH).

However, Southeast governors and other leaders of the zone are scheduled to meet tomorrow in Enugu to,  seek an end to the killings and destruction of properties in the region.

They are also expected to discuss measures to encourage residents of the zone to go about their businesses on Mondays since IPOB had called off Ghost Mondays.

In spite of the troubleshooting by the Southeast governors, IPOB restated it would from October 21 enforce the one-month sit at home because of an alleged plan by the government to continue to incarcerate Kanu.

The group solicited the support of other ethnic nationality agitators for the sit-at-home.

In the statement by its Media and Public Secretary, Emma Powerful, IPOB urged all agitators to put their differences behind them and rise like one people to defend their ancestral land against their common enemy.

The statement reads in part: “Following our earlier declaration of one-month lockdown of Biafraland should the Nigeria Government fail to bring our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, to the court on October 21, we, the global family of the Indigenous of Biafra, requests our brothers and sisters in the Oduduwa Republic and Middle Belt, including Igbo and Biafra businessmen and women, traders who are doing business outside Biafra land to shut down their business to demonstrate our resolve for the emergence of our new nation, Biafra, and support for our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, and others who are facing a similar fate with us to join us in sympathy protest.

“All lovers of Biafra, including Christian communities in the North and other parts of Nigeria, who receive unnecessary humiliation, intimidation, and killings from terrorists, bandits, and murderous herdsmen should understand that time has come for all victims of impunity and atrocities to unite together for resistance.

“We need to put our differences behind us and rise as one people to defend our ancestral land against our common enemy and show… that Nigeria belongs to all of us all and any Biafra man residents in Kano, Kaduna, Jos, Gigawa, and other parts of North and western parts of Nigeria must shut down their shops in support of this fight for freedom and release of our leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

Read Also: Ebonyi people will not obey IPOB’s `sit-at-home’ order on Oct. 1 – Umahi

“We cannot afford to abandon him at this point after sacrificing so much for us all. We must not fail to understand that the Federal Government dreads Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Ighoho. two heroes for freedom, and that is why it wants to keep them out of circulation. But we must resist the evil plot.”

However, a top police officer, who pleaded anonymity, told The Nation that  “ the Force will soon be launching a massive, well-coordinated, target-oriented and intelligence-driven operation aimed at neutralising this threat.”.

The security situation in Anambra State however, worsened with gunmen running a rampage in the Nnewi metropolis.

They shot one dead at point-blank while videoing them and torched the DSS vehicle parked along Eme Court Road in the town.

The  second was killed by the  gunmen at the Traffic Junction area of the town before they  headed  to

Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) office and  NAUTH where one person was injured.

There was no casualty at the  FRSC office, but the personnel on duty were forced to flee due to sporadic shootings by the hoodlums.

It was learnt that the gunmen left the town before an Armoured Personel Carrier(APC) arrived.

Southeast governors and other leaders are meeting tomorrow in Enugu to seek ways of ending the killings and destruction of properties.

They are also expected to discuss the measures to encourage residents of the zone to go about their businesses on Mondays since the IPOB had called off its Sit-at-Home.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ikenga Tochukwu, who confirmed the incident, said the command had not received the full details

He said: “At about 2 pm, of 3rd Oct 2021, the command received a distress call of a fire incident in Nnewi. The Police Operative are currently on the ground and the area has since been cordoned off.”

Igbokwe, confirmed that his home was razed, blamed it on IPOB.

“IPOB invaded my house in Nnewi. I am sure they raised down the house, giving the jerrycans of petrol I saw being offloaded from their Toyota Sienna via CCTV,” he wrote on his Facebook page.

Igbokwe, who is also the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Gutter and Drainage,   thanked God  for keeping him “alive”, but added that the loss of his  study room to the incident is his .” greatest regret”.

The APC chief, recently accused IPOB of killing Dr. Chike Akunyili, the husband of the late former Information Minister Prof. Dora Akunyili.

Read Also: Tension in Southeast over IPOB’s Oct 1 sit-at-home order

The worsening security in the Southeast, especially ahead of the November governorship election in Anambra State, has precipitated another round of  “urgent meeting” by SOutheast governors.

A memo by the governors’ forum Chairman, Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State, showed that other political leaders, Ohanaeze Ndigbo leadership, some religious leaders, and traditional leaders would attend the meeting.

Umahi pleaded with his colleagues to be personally present at the meeting.

The memo partly reads: “ request all governors of Southeast to please, be present .. .and not on representative capacity so that together we should reach some decisions to salvage our region that is presently battling with a high rate of insecurity.

“May I, therefore, request that you please endeavour to attend this meeting for the sake of Ndigbo”.

A source to one of the governors told The Nation that the governors would most likely discuss the delay in the takeoff of the regional security, Ebubeagu, in most of the Southeast states. They may also discuss Kanu’s incarceration and trial.

But a group,  the Igbo National Movement (INM), said Southeast governors were “sleeping on duty “ over insecurity in the zone.

It said the governors, as chief security officers of the zone, had failed to show leadership.

The  INM, in a statement by its   National Coordinator, Anthony  Okolo, said: “If our elected government officials presiding over our people all over Ala’Igbo are leaders in any true sense, this “Aka Enwe” would never have evolved into the human hands on triggers threatening and killing innocent Igbo sons and daughters in their own homeland today.”

Commercial banks operating in Umuahia, the capital of Abia State, and the Aba, the commercial nerve of the state, at the weekend removed the national flag from their premises.

The removal followed a warning by IPOB   that it does not want to see the nation’s flag anywhere in the Southeast.

A bank official told The Nation yesterday that they were monitoring the situation to know whether or not to hang back the flags today.

 

• CBN plans massive local production to save $2b spent annually

By Nduka Chiejina, Abuja

Wheat used to produce many staple food items, including bread and biscuit, will soon join the list of items restricted from official forex allocation by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), it was learnt at the weekend.

The implication of this is that any firm that requires imported wheat for its operation will seek alternative source of forex after the imposition of the restriction by the apex bank.

The CBN said at the weekend that $2 billion is spent annually to import wheat, thereby depleting the country’s foreign reserves.

According to the apex bank, only one per cent (about 63,000 metric tonnes) of wheat out of the five to six million metric tonnes (MT) of wheat consumed in Nigeria is produced locally.

To fill the gap, the CBN plans to jump start a massive local production of wheat.

A CBN source said: “Any moment from now, wheat will be added to the forex restriction list”.

The government, the source explained, has imported hybrid wheat seeds for dry season farming as part of efforts to boost local production.

He said the CBN’s arrangement is to put wheat farmers in a position to meet the high demand for the item.

Wheat’s flour is used to make bread, noodles, pasta, biscuits (cookies), semolina and some beverages like wheat beer and Malted milk.

Director, Development Finance Department at the CBN, Mr. Philip Yila Yusuf, told a wheat conference and stakeholders’ engagement in Abuja at the weekend.

“Wheat is the second highest contributor to the country’s food import bill putting pressure on the country’s foreign reserve”.

Read Also: Group lauds CBN’s economic policies

Rice, which is now on the restriction list, is the highest.

Yusuf said the apex bank’s intervention had become critical due to rising local demand for wheat and the inability to meet that demand.

He said: “The CBN plans to address key problems in the value chain through financing massive production of wheat in Nigeria and seeks to facilitate sustained availability of high yield seed variety in the country and to improve general productivity.

“There was enormous challenge before the CBN, which would require concerted efforts to address.”

He said there was enormous potential in wheat value chain enough to make significant impact in the agricultural sector.

The CBN will focus attention on the wheat value chain for 2021/2022 dry season planting, after sustainable progress made across the rice and maize value chain”.

Other imported agricultural items that gulp a lot of foreign exchange but are on CBN’s Forex restriction list are rice, poultry products and fish.

At the conference, Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, urged the CBN to expedite action on releasing funds, stressing that partnership among stakeholders in wheat production value chains remained critical to boosting Nigeria’s quest to be self-sufficient in wheat production.

Ganduje, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, appealed to stakeholders to be transparent in their dealings and to commence preparation for both farming and production of wheat.

Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Mohammed Abubakar, who was represented by Abdullahi Garba, expressed dismay that the country’s wheat import bills had continued to increase in recent years.

He urged stakeholders to collaborate to reverse the trend by investing more in the value chain.

 

Orphans and other children that were separated from their biological parents or families are often housed in an orphanage, a residential institution devoted to their care. In social terms, they are said to be an underprivileged group. It was in the bid to make them have a sense of belonging and feel like other advantaged children, the Sister in the Deen (SID) Foundation Orphanage was inaugurated on Nigeria’s Independence Day celebration at Harmony Estate, Ogba area of Lagos State. The orphanage will not only serve as hope for the children, but will also serve as new lease of life to the inmates of the orphanage. CHINAKA OKORO reports.

Social experts have maintained that “the world and global society benefit when we help orphan children”.

They also suggested that “instead of allowing them to harm themselves and others, they grow up to be responsible, healthy adults that give back to society they live in instead of taking away from it”.

Orphans are said to be children who are socially and familiarly unprotected because their parents have passed on.

It is the right of every child to be protected, taken care of physically, psychologically and emotionally. And these rights ought not to change when they become orphans, for which they are not at fault. However, this is mostly the case of orphans in Nigeria.

Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development estimated that there are 17.5 million Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) in Nigeria.

The World Bank, in a July 2021, report estimated that 4,000 Nigerian children lost one or both parents between March 2020 and July 2021 due to COVID-19-associated deaths.

According to the report, nearly two million children have been orphaned since the global pandemic began last year, and “by the end of June 2021, because of COVID-19, our estimates show that nearly two million children aged less 18 years, would have lost a mother, father, and/or grandparent caregiver who lived in their household.”

Orphans face enormous challenges relating to their health and development and it is estimated that 95 per cent of OVC do not receive any type of medical, emotional, social, material, or school-related assistance.

Also, they are mostly at risk of malnutrition, and some societal ills such as robbery, cultism, prostitution, and other social ills. This is attributed to the fact that orphans mostly have no source of income or a guardian to take care of them.

This informed the decision of  the Sisters in the Deen Foundation Orphanage, which first began as Truth Bearer, a platform consisting of Muslims, with the aim of nurturing their faith and make themselves better representative of true Islam virtues, to set up the orphanage.

So, on Friday, October 1 2021, all roads led to Harmony Estate in Ogba, in lkeja area of Lagos State where kind-hearted Nigerians pull their resources to build a befitting home to cater for the orphans and other vulnerable children in society.

Among the dignitaries that attended the opening ceremony were  the Managing Director, LOTUS Bank, Hajia Kafila Araoye; Chief Missioner, Ansar-Ud-Deen Society; Sheikh Abdulraham Ahmad, Chairperson, Sisters in the Deen Foundation Orphanage (Baytu Sakeenah), Dr. Nurat Akinlabi Babalola;  Mr. Kola Abiola and Chairman, Ibeji Foundation, Alhaji Rafiu Adisa Ebiti.

Others were wife of Senator Abiru, Mrs. Feyisola Abiru, National President, Association of Orphanages and Homes Operators in Nigeria, Dr. Gabriel Oyediji, Executive Director, LOTUS Bank, Alhaji Al Hassan Abdulkareem, Mr. Lanre Adisa and members of the orphanage home and well-wishers.

On the inspiration behind the orphanage, Chairperson, Sisters in Deen Foundation, and Custodian to the Orphanage, Dr Nurat Babalola, described the home as a story of gratitude.

She said: “This home is a story of gratitude, in the sense that Allah says in the Holy Quran that when you are grateful, I’ll bless you and multiply you.

“There is also great responsibility that comes with taking care of orphans. There are very strict guidelines when it comes to Islam and taking care of orphans. And we, as a helping hand for relief and development, understand and take them seriously.

“Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be upon Him–PBUH) was himself an orphan. There is great importance set in the Quran and Sunnah (the teachings of the Prophet (PBUH)) in the treatment of orphans.

“Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) said ‘whoever caresses the head of an orphan in affection, solely for the sake of Allah, a good deed will be written to his account for every hair over which he passed his hand.’

“He said: ‘I and the person, who looks after an orphan and provides for him, will be in paradise like this,’ putting his index and middle fingers together. So, the whole idea is to fulfill the will of Allah.”

On the capacity of the home, she said it was built to accommodate 18 orphans, comprising six boys and 12 girls.

“That’s the capacity for now. We pray that in the shortest possible time, we would be able to get a bigger place with the support of Allah and the general public. This is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) founded for the sake of God and benefit to humanity.

“We don’t discriminate; we take children from any lineage, tribe, and religion. Because they are all humankind like us and their situation isn’t their making. Being vulnerable doesn’t mean we should now be trivialising their situation.”

On mode of admission, she said: “We receive the children only by recommendation from the government agency in charge.

“We can’t do anything without the government. So, we admit only children sent to us by the government. Even if you find a child you must go to them, it’s in their discretion to decide where they want the child to go.

Read Also: Delta community lauds free school donation

The Chief Imam of Ansar-Ud-Deen Muslim Society of Nigeria, Sheikh Abdulrahaman Ahmad said it was a religious duty to care for the orphans because of their vulnerability.

“Caring for the orphans is a very important part of the religion of Islam, so much so that the Prophet said ‘I and whoever cares for the orphans are bound as one.’

“The Prophet himself was an orphan, and there are so many verses of the Quran that talk about caring for the orphans, providing a home for them, allowing them to grow in an environment of love and acceptance for them to have quality education, and not become a burden on the society.

Continuing, Ahmad said: “Today is a moment of sober reflection because in our closest, we have the best we can ask for.

“Meanwhile, there are children who are out there orphaned and vulnerable. Some of the children are orphaned by no fault of theirs. The children lack basic things. Every child is entitled to necessity of life. This is a challenge and Allah is telling us to take care of them.

“This is commendable, something that should be emulated and something we need because if orphans and other vulnerable children are properly taken care of, society will be better for it.”

The MD/CEO, Lotus Bank, Mrs. Kafilat Araoye said the initiative was one to be encouraged.

“We should have more of this happening. Because what this is doing is that, it’s taking our children off the streets. Children that are hopeless and could become miscreants. It’s helping our society to become a better place.

“A few women have come together to do this. It has to be supported, it has to continue and others have to come in and support by ensuring that it’s not just a place for children to live in but they have a feeling of home filled with love, care and attention. This is a message of hope to everybody,” she noted.

In a chat with reporters, Chairman, Modesty Capital Limited Mr. Sheriff Yussuf said the establishment of the orphanage was a voluntary intention to serve and give back to the society and, by helping the homeless children, nurture them, and give them a chance to live.

“I think it’s a beautiful coincidence that its Independence Day when we are marking the 61 anniversary of Nigeria with all the challenges the country is groping with, and this orphanage is also being launched to help the society.

“Wide spread poverty and joblessness are some of the major challenges confronting Nigeria right now.

“If every unit that God has blessed to have wealth is able to offer an initiative such as this, it will take away a huge proportion of the poverty that we are talking about.

“Those orphans that could have become hopeless and helpless now have a chance to be able to stand on their own sometime in future.

“Once you are able to equip them educationally, give them a sense of belonging and a feeling of love and care, they will not rebel against society. The bandits and criminals of today are rebelling against the society,” he noted.

The Chief Executive Officer Capital Assets Limited Ariyo Olushekun called for multiplicity of such gestures, even as he lamented the country’s current economic situation which has indirectly created more orphans, some who lost their parents to insecurity or robbery attacks.

“Nigeria is 61 but we are not even acting like we are 16 yet. So, this should be encouraged and I will like to call on those who have been blessed by Allah to support this and even set up more orphanages, especially the Muslim communities,” Olashekun said.