Aides of Senate President Bukola Saraki in Kwara State have provided materials and cash for 200 people in Ilorin East Local Government Area of the state.

The gesture, said to have cost about N3.6 million, was to help the beneficiaries start up their businesses in the council. The event which took place at the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Isale-Koko, was attended by the council chair, Abdullateef Okandeji and Senior Legislative Aide to the Senate President, Alhaji Saka Onimago.

One of the legislative aides for Magaji Are 1, Basambo Abubakar, who spoke with The Nation said:"We are here today to give empowerment to our people. As legislative aides to the senate president we have some responsibilities; one of such is to ensure that our people have a sense of belonging and feel the impact of the Senator Bukola Saraki. Today some people will be empowered with some amount of money to start their own businesses; others will be given educational materials.

"No fewer than 200 people will be proud beneficiaries of the empowerment scheme today. I want us to know that the empowerment is the collective efforts of all the legislative aides to Senator Bukola Saraki from Ilorin East local government area of the state. We have expended about N3.6 million on the project. Hitherto, we had splashed over a million naira on the APC ward and local government exco members.

Also, a group known as Egbe Omo Ibile Igbomina in the state has given bursary awards to 25 indigent students of Igbomina extraction in eight tertiary institutions in the state.

The group also said it has floated a-N2 million Education Endowment Fund, immediate past President, Egbe Omo Ibile Igbomina, Chief Samuel Atolagbe told The Nation shortly after handing over the cash totaling N500,000 the beneficiaries.

The group's membership is drawn from three local government areas in Kwara state and two from Osun state.

Said Atolagbe: "We are particular about the development of our youths because they are the elders of tomorrow; and from the look of things now many of them are becoming frustrated. Frustrated in acquiring education; frustrated in seeking for employment, frustrated in realizing their ambition and we feel we should come in.

"For somebody to be admitted into the university, polytechnic and college of education and he or she is disadvantaged is not acceptable and some of these chaps are very brilliant. I happen to know much about scholarship and bursary because I was the secretary of the Kwara state scholarship board between 1977 and 1982.

"I felt you could do something for the indigent students; so I approached the youth assembly to help me find out those that are already admitted into higher institutions but are financially disadvantaged.

"For a start, we began with 25 students for the bursary award which cost us N500,000. That is what we have just celebrated today. Apart from that my executive has floated N2 million Education Endowment Fund, that means it is even more than bursary, when we have more the award can transform into full scholarship. In fullness of time we will call on people from time to time to donate to us.

"For instance, during Igbomina Day celebration last year, one of our invited guests donated about N3 million for the group; that is where we extracted the N2 million for the endowment fund.

"I therefore appeal to philanthropic-minded people to donate towards the endowment fund so that we can extend the award to our kiths and kin that occupy two local government areas in Osun state. We have covered all the three Igbomina local government areas in Kwara state, but we still have Ila-Orangun and one other local government area in Osun."

Also speaking, President of Igbomina Youth Assembly, Shuaib Oyewole added that the students cutting across eight tertiary institutions in the state are the beneficiaries of the bursary awards.

"This is the first of the its kind organized by the assembly. The subsequent one would be enlarged to accommodate more schools and beneficiaries. All the beneficiaries are from public owned schools."