• As economic crunch threatens gains
• Managers beg for urgent intervention!
Kingsley Abavo (Managing Editor), Benin
The Centre; 'Home for the Needy Foundation' Uhogua, Edo State cares for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), orphans and other vulnerable children, widows and people who are in need.
Established in 1992, it has metamorphosed through various phases and challenges to become a home to the homeless, giving succour and keeping alive the hope of a better tomorrow; in the in-mates who are well over three thousand population according to the management.
They comprise mostly children and young adults of school age, which comes with its unique burden.
Interestingly, though the centre is down south Nigeria, the greater percentage of the population consists of the IDPs and the vulnerable from the northern part of the country, particularly during the height of the insurgency.
At the head of the management team, is the vision bearer; Pastor Solomon Folorunsho who God has used to lay a very solid foundation.
In spite of the huge population of diverse backgrounds; culture, beliefs, education, religion and home upbringing, the management team have been able to establish a very coordinated system that runs seamlessly in a serene and peaceful environment.
Over the years, amidst daunting challenges, the hard work put into the affairs of the centre is beginning to yield some beautiful fruits, with a good number of the children in-mates growing up to become responsible adults.
Many who hitherto lost hope of living a better life are now in different Universities and some have graduated with first class and second class upper degree in enviable fields like engineering and medicine.
With the template already set, the children in the centre now look at those ahead of them as models, to be copied no matter the obstacles.
This again has thrown up another kind of challenge to the management team to grapple with; as every year, no less than a hundred of the children write the WAEC Senior School Certificate and JAMB examinations preparatory to be admitted to the University.
But today, all of these good narratives are threatened with the very harsh economy that has thrown at citizens, a galloping inflation with its attendant beyond the roof cost of living, causing ravaging hunger among Nigerians.
In the reality of the time; the Centre faces an acute shortage of food amidst many other basic necessities of life, and unless a substantial intervention from all quarters of the society happened; an unimaginable crisis looms!
Pastor Evelyn Omigie, one of the supervisors of the centre; on Thursday, 28 March, 2024 took our reporter through the true state of affairs with the in-mates.
In her narrative, she painted a very emotional picture of the situation threatening the wellbeing of everyone at the centre; particularly the in-mates.
A gloomy situation she lament; was brought about by the serious short fall of the usual support; financial and otherwise which hitherto had kept the centre on a balance.
However, the joy of seeing the people come out of trauma and vulnerable life, has continued to be the driving force for the management team, Pastor Omigie asserts.
"Although there are challenges, but the joy of seeing a child positively transform, the child who was highly traumatised, who was in the streets and now going to school through to the University; that is the joy that keeps us going.
"The management team truly is confronted with a lot of challenges; circumstantial ones particularly with those from the insurgency in the north, because of what they saw and went through, they were highly traumatised!
"We had to work on their psyche and by the grace of God, 80 to 90 percent have been able to come out. But it took us a lot of effort to achieve this!"
Also, the centre faces challenges in the area of feeding and clothing of the in-mates, she added.
"It is not easy feeding one person let alone thousands of people especially with the highest population here being children. They eat more than adults and we had to feed them all the time. We have had a lot of challenges feeding them."
Other areas of challenge she said include inadequate accommodation as the available hostels are congested and beddings are unavailable.
Providing clothing and footwear for them; especially those who are children and the female folks; who requires sanitary pads, is a huge challenge, she added.
Pastor Omigie further narrates that availability of water is a big challenge too; as the cost of running the generator plant with fuel and diesel to pump the bore hole for water, is overwhelming with the prevailing high cost of the pump price.
Hence the centre solicits donation from any quarter of a solar powered lighting system, to help reduce the burden, she appeals.
Asked to give the rough estimate of the cost of feeding the huge population at the centre monthly, Omigie laughed and said; "it is over a N100m."
"Feeding thousands of people including children is not easy especially at this time.
"There were times we had no food, there were times we had to go to the market and buy food on credit. We owe such a huge amount of money!
"I have not spoken about school fees. To pay school fees for over two hundred under graduates and most of them are studying professional courses.
"Over two hundred of them registered for this year's JAMB and you know what that means!
"This is not talking about school uniforms, footwear, notebooks and text books, not talking about our staff salary.
"So I am calling on well meaning Nigerians, Government at all levels, NGOs, in-fact good people of the world please come support this work.
"They are our children! Whatever you invest into a child is for the whole nation and all humanity!
"So, I call on every one out there please come support us; foodstuffs, clothes.
"We need foodstuffs of all kinds; in-fact the feeding of these children have drastically reduced!
"Yes, we don't have food, so whatever we have, is what we cook for them."
It was soul touching when she disclosed that at 13:45 p.m on the day of our visit, nobody had eaten in the centre even when they were not fasting.
"What time is it now? Ok 13:45p.m, as at this time of the day, we have not cooked for them."
She appeals again and again for the support of everyone saying; please we need scholarship for our children in the higher institution so that they can achieve their academic goals!
"We don't want any child to drop out by reason of failure to pay school fees."
Pastor Omigie reveals that some of the children were not allowed to write their terminal examination "because we are owing the schools huge sums of money."
"Hence we solicit scholarship for the children; that will lessen the burden."
She added that even the centre is owing their teachers, salary and some of them have stopped coming to school.
"In-fact, anything that is good for humanity is needed here! Even sanitary pads for the females.
"We appeal to people who can provide us solar powered lights and bore holes to come help.
"Beddings for the children, more hostels to decongest the ones we are having."
In an emotion laden voice, Pastor Omigie appeals: those who have been supporting in their own way we need more, those who have been coming, we appreciate you! It is just that what is at our disposal is never enough!
"I want to passionately appeal to well meaning people of the world, the Government at all levels and corporate bodies to come help the situation"
On how the team copes with the pressure of the gloomy situation, the vision bearer, Pastor Solomon Folunrosho said it is only by God's grace otherwise, it would have been overwhelming.
"I don't allow it to weigh me down; I am always in prayers trusting God who started His good work will not abandon it.
"This is because the testimonies are always there for all to see. When you see children who could barely write are now first class degree holders; these are the things which keep us going!
"We thank God for everything, if you have no hope, you cannot survive.
"We thank God for people who despite their own challenges, they still find time to come here."
Asked if the centre is captured in the Edo State Government proposed monthly one billion Naira for the needy and vulnerable people using both the Moslem and Christian Clergies?
Pastor Folorunsho said though they read the story in the media but the modalities; they do not know.
Saying they were happy about the development, he added that if such a thing is well organised and administered, the Centre: 'Home for the Needy Foundation' should be well captured.
If such a program is truly executed, the Government will save a lot of people he said; disclosing that despite all the challenges the centre is going through; even people from the neighbouring communities comes to ask for food support.
"If the Governor truly does it he will live to be remembered and it is our prayers that they remember us
Pastor Folorunsho in his Easter message preaches love, love and love!
"Jesus Christ left heaven to earth because of love even though it was not convenient for him.
"Hence people should not say when it is convenient for me. When it is convenient, then it is no more love, love is sacrifice!
"Jesus has demonstrated that, people who sinned against God, He so much love and died for their sake.
"Love makes one move out of one's convenient circle to reach out to those in need; so let us emulate Jesus Christ!"
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