Peter Dada
The Gbenga Fawehinmi Foundation has called on governments at all levels to take urgent measures to alleviate the suffering of citizens, stating that existing poverty alleviation programmes are insufficient.
The foundation, which distributed food items to 750 residents of an Ondo community, also urged wealthy Nigerians, as well as private and corporate organisations, to collaborate with the government in its efforts to ease the suffering of the less privileged in the country.
The foundation’s CEO, Mr Olabanji Fawehinmi, made the statement on Friday in Ondo town, Ondo State, during the donation of food items worth millions of naira to beneficiaries.
He said, “We want to call on the government to take urgent steps to reduce the suffering of the people. Though the government is doing something, they should do more.
“However, we always talk about the government, and we all know that it (the government) cannot do everything. People have to come out and assist the government too. I’m not a government official, but I believe there are government policies and programmes initiated to alleviate the suffering of the people.
“Like in agriculture, I believe governments from the federal to the state levels are putting in enough effort into agriculture, and I think that will reduce poverty, allowing people to go to their farms and feed their families. But we need more of this.”
Regarding the food donation, Fawehinmi explained that it is an annual event for the organisation to reach out to the people during the Christmas period as part of its contribution to addressing the severe hunger and hardship caused by rising food prices in the country.
“If you look critically, things are not easy in the country. So, we have this notion that every December, we’ll give back to the people and the community. What we are doing now is a food relief programme that will donate food to 750 households in Ondo. Our target is 750 households in Ondo and beyond. We all know that food items are costly now due to economic factors like inflation,” he stated.
Fawehinmi also explained that the group focuses on education by assisting indigent students through scholarships, emphasising that every life matters and should be positively impacted.
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