Okpebholo Foundation, Changing Lives
By: Oriaifoh Godwins
On Saturday, 28th January 2023, fate smiled on some handicapped persons in Esan North East Local government area of Edo state, when Odion Cedrack Okpebholo Foundation, a Non Governmental Organization, NGO, registered in the United Kingdom in 2001, inaugurated a monthly payment of stipends for the handicapped persons in Esan North East local government area to ameliorate some of the challenges the handicapped/disabled persons are facing.
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Speaking at the event, that held at the Esan North East local government Council play field, the founder of the NGO, Ambassador Odion Cedrack Okpebholo, said, the foundation is starting the exercise of paying stipends to the physically challenged from Edo state, and specifically from Esan North East local government area, but the exercise will be extended to other local governments in Esanland and Edo state, in time to come.
Ambassador Okpebholo said; '...the idea behind this Programme of paying monthly stipend to selected physically challenged and needy persons, is starting from Esan North East, but we hope to extend same gesture to other local governments in Esanland and Edo state...'
Continuing, Ambassador Odion said; 'the Odion Cedrack Okpebholo Foundation, is one that has the heart of gold for people living with disabilities as well as the elderly people in our society, who will be receiving monthly Disability Living Allowance (DLA) from the Foundation...' He added that a Nursing Care Home, NCH, will be built for the elderly people, as they are the most vulnerable in the world today, saying; 'if this can work in the United Kingdom and Canada, it can also work in Nigeria, if appropriate measures are put in place...'
Ambassador Odion Okpebholo who donated a land for building a structure for the elderly people, to be used as a Nursing Care Home, NCH, however concluded by drawing the attention of the government and all well meaning Nigerians to the fact that, the physically challenged and the aged People amongst us are human beings created by God and any country that fails to value and cater for them, is a dead country.