THE NATION, 20 JUNE, 2012

PROJ ECT

Corps member kits pupils

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WEDNESDA Y, JUNE 20, 2012

Page 25

NGO inspires less-privileged kids AGOS-BASED nOn-&OV-

Ali

e rn mental o rgilnisahon, obility Aid and Appliances Re5earch and Deyelopmen t Cent re (MAARDEC) has made child ren with d isabili ty feel loved again.

1he NCO organi5ed iI befitting pa rt y for c:hifdren living witfl various disabili ties, giving them enough 10 eal and drink 6ut lhe best J""rt was what the organiseJ'S told them and the larger $Cd-

"Y.

Preside nt of MAARDEC, Mr Cosma! Okoli, himseJI physi-

N

By Adeto Oavld

cally challenged, told the children they haveeverytlung 10 lead a successful life.

DkoH assured them thai in spitl! of ph~ical disability'. ~ can make a difference in life. TIle children who trooped in from different Khoo ls in lagos, looked happy and encour.lged.

The ,Pa rty was held on l h is year s Child ren's Day in Ijeshatedo, Itire-Ikat. local Council Development Area o f Lagos.. It is held every year.

Okoli lost the use of his legs as a result of polio and has been confined to a wheelchair, but he is not one to seek pity from anyone.

He lives what nil' preaches and runs the NGO quite well.

He IIlso knows exactly what people with disability need, and what the society should do to help them lead nonnal lives.

Okoli said children with disability need Jove and 5Upp?rt,.not pity, discrimination or exclUSIon. Ihe children turned up with their pa rents, guardians and teachers. But not aU the kids had physical challenges; milny were

able-bodied All plared and danced together, shanng food and drinkS and jokes.

Corporate: organisations were abo there, as wert' rep~ sentatives 01 the Federal ROad

Sorety eo.". (FRSC).

In his opening s~, Okoli said thert' Wa!I need to bring ch ildren wi lh disability together with their able-bOdied counterparts in order to eliminate: discrimination e:xdusion suffered by those liying with challenges.

Mr Ol::oli said parents are abo guilty of setting the stage fo r discnmina lion when they discourage their physically fil oContinued on Poise 26

o fewe( than 4.000 farm-

m and inelC lamibes have bc!Jlefilied from the Goronyo dam pro;ect in Sakato 5fa1r~ as theprqm ill not qui~ completed.

The!Chmw ha; Improved irrigation on their riUm5, boosting ~ cultivation of a ""Ide IiIIlP of crup5 including rice, tvater mdon A communlt] leader in Gidan 'Ya, Fan, MaU,m1 Muhammadu Mai \'lund. !lJld the dam hu hdped IM:r laming kbvitHs and shored up '00(1 r>uppll~ in the

...""

1hr dam l.S II hdenll Governprc;tct which hM enhanced the quality af Ufe In villages 5urroundmg GorcilYo. The commulIiy le.der w .. ~ speaking dunng thl' vish of I~ Minister 01 Wa'~ Re5ouraos, M"" Saroth Ochelpe to Goronyo com muruty whkh horus thr dam '"\o\'e hiI..'~beel cWdng good ~ oIlht dam f.:il,t} and have been producing more wllter melons, riCI' and othnVl"r1ab4e cropsduring dry sea...con, thl' community leader said The MlOi~let s..Ild the fedenll government is ••.'omrruued to thto transk:nmltion III the nation 's agncultw-e KCtor or sustainable deml'nl

v~opme1t

'"Prt'$iderll J ted to the ckv hoo farminl't p«l thai 5u,llIi

tum ilCtivtties, "" _.,..,. inR the NJ..8 bil r-alalia M'\ase II ronstrucbon fi She !;;ud goY ~

\iI.han q commit · opmtnt 01 inigAan Importmt

aT

~~I-~ear a~l­ ~~ Solid. ~. while"-,

10' Goronyo Dam lr\JfC"O awarded to n Gilmor 'Ounenl WilS con-

about t rnamtenan:e of the dam wh ,,"ill sreatly boost flood control e 10m.

Ochekpl" '>ill d~ Feder1tl Go\'f'rtUlleflt wrI I"ICft1Wd about !.Ill? auiyrom 1 il1d ~iorI­ ing of the stil.gt'~orA:!01 the pJUtt'l=I. ."fvising th"t I1f dam be' main tained In onte bl anil the $tillt' and the t'Ilh~ try 01 its ~ jtdt'd bt'ntofllS rod 5aYt' hosI communities puS!U:'le danSt'J'&.

-You MV'I;' ~ thll1k Of ways and

oMinllller of Water Resources, 101.1$. Suah (khek pe on inllpection villi t to Coronyo DlIm in Sokolo Stale

Sokoto agric scheme boosts rural life .4,000 farmers benefit from dam progres or • Fed Govt hails project galion the:

FrOm Adamu Sulelman. Solcolo Plt'asures 10 overcome avoidable problc~

llS'!IOCIal1!d WIth lhe dam In T1i!Iiny and dry ~ by mII10ng use of Ult' rac:::ilitie5 and inflilSlruc-

ture in ocder to protect &.nning comaround the dam. '" ou should maintain and utiliu

mlUUbe5

tht' dam facility maximaUy," she emphasised.

Thr MinISter WH impressed by

work al the tb.m irri-

site. and assured or government'slIUpport.lowards mas& production orfood m commerdaI quantity as well ensuring food security_ !ile said dry 5e!Son farming was

. Contlnued o ro r .ge 26

°Mlliam

~bi

Wundi

26

THE NATION

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20,2012

IN EWS49Jta NGO inspires less-privileged kids . COfllin u~

fro m rase 15

kids frorro pi lying with their less privile~ed Nunlerparts.

Okoli said thai this state of affairs is """Ide worse by the lack o( II platform C"r non-disabled children and disabled children to inter.tct and $(oc:ialise together "Childheri know each other,

love each oUit:r. and play with each othcr'l he sald ...Last year childr«tn. '1 110 attended the

MAARDECfI OUldren's Day eelebr.dion hav~ doubled this year," he said.

Without these children. "we have no futu"e," he said, advocating that ,lhe society will do weU 10 glvlE! disabled Children _

sense ofbell 'n~g.

He said 0\ er the years his

0(-

ganisation has identified with people living with disability.

He ask~ --why is it that the societr is 00( doing the right thing to mamblin ~re with disabirtty? For l'unpki. when we build roads. walb..."ys. public buildmgs. wh) II!"! liley not asccesible

to ~5 v ' lln. disabilities? The mam problem is education. It cui· ture tFtatlS n.,1 established in Iu.~ £ood car! ,;){ people with disabili'iies. culture fhafsay you put people with dwbilitJes at home and take car ~ .ll !hem.. " He said F" ~ons with disabilities are supposed 10 live fulfilling lives. mO"e around do their thing like every other pernol1 He died Cf'untnes liJi;e Uganda

oOkoli (se;oled. middle), with !he kids. membe1'1l of !hI!!

and other developin~ countries all over the world" which reserve a certain ~tage of jobs, even In legislatlve parliaments, 10 pe0ple with dISability.

Okoli thanked partldpanls at this year's MAARDECs Children s Day celebration. He also appreciated the support of corporat~ organisations for thell sup-

port.

An electrifying moment was the mtrolduction of Amanda Odoh, a staff of the organisation. who

orz~iNtion

;ond SUe!IIis lit thl!! event

spoke at the event Amanda. a graduate of UniYers lty of 'badan, i~ v15ually challenged. In her speech. she said thaf she bega.n to lose her sight when she was IJl prunary schOol At some point, s~ was unable to see what the teachers wrote on the blackboard.

• "But I managed to pass through my primary School, though my seCondary $chool was very diffi(:\111 as people helped me write down what 1 asked them to write..

-But I ~ all my papers with

Abayomi Adegbesan. said the

JAMIf and got admitted to the

education and enlightenment of the public, training drivers as well as providing rellective jackets and hand-bands to children Ul primary and secondary schools thioughout the country".

He re-aHirmed the Corps' commitment injrovlding adequate Iramms an manpower to preyenl accidents among children which may lead to death or dis· ability

good grades and alsO sat once lot'" command is commilled to the

University of lbadan. I graduated with the 6es1 result In my department Amanda adYised the children not 10 gIVe up no matter their circumstances and try to Ii"e nor· mal lives in spite of their disabili· tios.

The sector commander Lagos Slatl! fRSC, Mr. Nseobong Akpabio who was represented by

Sokoto agric scheme boosts rural life oContinued from p;oge 25 Important b«ause it sustauu food production. creates employment and poverty reductim Nigenans.

- The Phase II protect ('OIT\~ five sectors: T~. Mai Iy;dl,. Gidan Siillhu, Tsitse and Tulusld imgabon

"mons

-~ ~Us. Od'I8:pe urged the three lien of governments to collaborate in transformmg the agriculturt' Sl'ct0t by utilising ihe dam facility particu· larly at the rur-I! levels. "local governments should be alive to thetr responsibilitles in that diftction," Ckhekpeabio noted ~t ~ wen! high expectabons from aU ~ ecp\aming that government was f.Jst. tracking policies and prognlmmes

.... """'6'

that would launch the even spread of for commissioning by Audevelopment acnJS5 aU !I«tOI'5 of the gust 201 before the unprecedented Inddena: of Sepk-mber 2010 1I00d economy.

Explatning to the Minister, Gilmor that ClIused the damagES that was rePrqed Manager Mr. Dubi f-Iatz saKI paired under the remedial meas.the dam embankment and the U~ · l.eevma Goronyo. ~ aha visT.kakume irrigation worb had ited neighbouring Gidan 'Var FU<1I ~ 98"J" romplebon. ilddmg that when axnpleled. aboul 20,(0) J.nn- community to samplr the reidt!nts' po!Iibon on the project. illg families will benefit Gidan 'Var Fan. rommuru, leader, The Ptqect Mana~explainal that 5tage one oC the p~ which com- Mallam Muhammadu tI--ta1 Wundi expressed joy al the- measures taken pri~ Rim/!! Main HeMlworks. COIlcrete conduit (O.70kml, Rima Main by government to averl the recurCanal (l.ookm). Rima Branch Canal floodequally applauded the The '" leader (l.85t..ml. lIS wdl as Sedor I covenng """ upgrade 01 the dam. wfUch ~ said TakaIwme have bee'! completed.

Ill1tz told the. M"lI\isler - In actual brought enormous benefits to tMIr community and othen. f~cl, the. entire stage t with about 700hI (net) _ virtually completed But he. also brought the pressmg

challenge of the community to the attention of the Miruster lack of good link TOiId Hesaid It has been difficuJt for theuf~ to get their produce to markets Ol.Itsu:le their community. Such a road will comt! to handy StilL the joy of theo dam IS almost

overwhelmirlg '"We have been makmg good use of theo dam facility by produong water meJon. ria' and othrr "'l:etable crops during df)' xason," he said Aa:ording to Gilmor Project Manager, "about 4000 fMmmg familie5 ~ aJrrenlly t!flJOYU\8 from the dam

fBCihtie:s especially during my se-son Im~tion f;ormms wtudt h.;as a capaoty produCbon Of s(o) tonnes of rice annually "

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There were high expectation froIlnd.r-quarters which Ochekpe explained that government was fas t tracking responsive policies and programmes that would laundl even spread of development across all sectors of the economy

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