Government at all levels have been tasked to start making special provision for reputable orphanages across the country in their respective annual budgets.
A women rights advocate, Mrs Funmi Falana (SAN), who gave the advice also called on the federal government to further come up with policies and programmes to ease the pains of the present economic hardship on Nigerians.
Mrs Falana, who is the Director, Women Empowerment and Legal Aid (WELA) spoke in Iyin Ekiti, Ekiti State, after her annual Christmas party with the children of Erelu Angela Adebayo Children’s Home.
The wife of human rights activist, Femi Falana (SAN) said the period and the occasion is always dedicated to show love and give hope to the children that the future belongs to them which should be the practice of all-well-to-do Nigerians.
Mrs Falana who presented cash gifts, food items, soft drinks and beverages to the children, said such special budgetary allocation will enhance the effective running and management of such homes.
She said, “It will also add to what kind hearted people and philanthropists are doing for them. You will agree with me that places like this requires such allocation. Huge amount of money is being allocated to members of the national assembly who are less than 500 in the annual budget, the government can do well to allocate adequate funds to the homes for the good and benefit of the less privileged there.
“So, this provision should be made for orphanages like this in the annual budget. It is very important, so that they will not solely rely on the little they are getting from Nigerians. Such people cannot take over the responsibility and duties of the government.
“Every money at the disposal of the government is kept in trust for all Nigerians, the less privileged and the vulnerable persons like these ones. So , it should be used to take care of them and be part of beneficiaries of the money”.
On the economic situation in the country, Mrs Falana said, “The harsh economic situation in the country is biting hard on the people and our governments must do something urgent to address this and ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians so that they will not be seen as failure.
“They must find solutions to the challenges and respond appropriately to the yearnings of the people. Women are crying and children are weeping. I was telling somebody that I don’t know how an average Nigerian is surviving with the increasing price of petrol and other petroleum products in the country, a bag of rice is about N120,000.
“Everyone knows that one of the children’s staple foods is rice, even garri and there is no food item that is not expensive now in Nigeria. The government should find solution to all of these problems. Poverty is kind of being weaponised in our country”.
She attributed the recent stampedes which claimed children and others people’s lives in Ibadan, Anambra State and Abuja to poverty.
“Those who died in Ibadan were asked to come and collect N5,000, less than 3 American dollars, and because they are hungry and need the money, they rushed there. I even learnt that some parents were throwing their children across the fence to benefit from the largesse.
“This is part of the ripple effects of the economic hardship in the country. The charity organisations that facilitated the programme meant well but it turned sour because of the level of poverty in our country. It is very sad’.
The Director of Child Development Department, Ekiti State Ministry of Women and Social Development, Mrs Bolanle Asubiojo and the orphanage Matron, Mrs Modupe Ajayi in their remarks appreciated Mrs Falana for her over ten years supports for the children and the orphanage
Asubiojo said, “As you are doing this for the children, you are doing this for the children, you are doing it for God and God will abundantly reward you with in blessings of long life and prosperity”.
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