Disturbed by abject poverty ravaging most Nigerians, some public-spirited professionals of Kwara state origin, have created a platform to address the situation.

The concerned professionals plan to achieve their dream of making life abundant for all Nigerians, especially Kwarans through Kwara Citizenship Development Initiative, a non political and Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO).

The initiators of this noble idea according to the blueprints on KCDI “feel the deafening calls of successful Nigerian governments for partnership in all spheres and all levels, and the cries of Nigerian masses for help as they live below one dollar a day (about N160/day) or what can clearly be termed abject poverty”.

It was therefore, not surprising  to find the likes of the former President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Mustapha Akanbi, former Chief Judge of Kwara state, Justice Saka Yusuf and Brigadier General Salihu Bello in the midst of dignitaries that attended the inauguration of KCDI last Saturday in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital.

Shedding more lights on the goals and objectives of the latest NGO in town, the chairman, Board of Trustees of KCDI’s, Dr Amuda Aluko, the founder of the first private hospital in Kwara state said that the initiators of the NGO felt they need to give back to the society which he said, had given them good education and good job placement during their youthful years.

“The Kwara Citizenship Development Initiative is an initiative of my age mates and those closer to my age. It’s not a political organisation; the purpose is to create awareness so that people don’t slip on their rights

“I have been practicing Medicine since 1961. In my days when I was in school, I started from the middle school here (now GSS, Ilorin) before going to Barewa College. I must say that even until I finished my medical training, my parents did not pay a kobo. So the good people of Kwara thought that the society has done so much for us and the time has now come for us to pay back to the society. In my days, we are even given pocket money every Friday. Even when I was in the middle School in Barewa College and so on. Today, where has that money gone to?”, he asked.

The BoT chairman insisted that, Nigeria is not a poor country even before the advent of petrol but because of the greed, corruption at the highest level, what  we regard as the things that should be given to the society are not given to the society, and members of the board of trustees felt that we cannot just fold our arms and   continue to watch. The time has come for us to pay back what the society has done  for us by creating an awareness, making people to realise that the government they deserve is what Almighty Allah usually give to them.

Aluko who was a gubernatorial aspirant of the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC) in the state, advised Nigerians to resist imposition of leaders at all levels but should choose their leaders based on personal convictions.

He added, “of course, I am saying this with all emphases that it deserves, that imposition should be a thing of the past, people should be allowed to choose who is going to lead them. I will give you example, when I was a young Medical officer, I was posted to Katsina, now the capital of Katsina state where I met Alhaji Musa Yar’Adua, the father of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua. He was then the minister for Labour Affairs. I am sure if you go down the memory lane, Musa Yar‘Adua hasn’t gotten a parcel of land nor a building in Lagos and this I can vouch for all people who governed this country at that time; they governed with the fear of God but what do you see today? Whether we like it or not, everything that has got a beginning must have an end, a day is coming when we will be answerable to the Almighty God. I am trying to play my own role now, it is up to you to play your own part.

“Nigeria is not a poor country, yet we have people suffering in abject poverty. Majority cannot even boast of two square meals in a day. I have read it in the papers and I don’t  believe until recently  that people are really hungry, people are really hungry. I repeat, people are hungry, it shouldn’t be. By the grace of God, as I have said, this organisation is non-political. We have people from SDP, PDP, APC and so on and the on lookers, people who are not even interested in politics. The major thing we are trying to do is to create awareness, to educate our people for them not to sleep on their rights.

Aluko while emphasising the need for Nigerians to strive to defend the nation’s hard earned democracy, said that there is no system of government that is better than democracy “provided, I repeat, provided that we stop imposition of leadership.”

“Look, if you have a good leader, what is corruption, what is kidnapping? Everything will vanish, because he will be a symbol for everybody to emulate. Corruption is from the top. I am now playing my role and I am appealing to you journalists too, to play your own role. Expose those that you should expose; you know them, so that Nigeria can be a peaceful and prosperous country for all of us to enjoy”, he said.

Also speaking at the ceremony, the pioneer chairman of  the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offenses Commission(ICPC), Justice Mustapha Akanbi urged wealthy Nigerians to use resources at their disposal to alleviate poverty among Nigerians. He stressed the need for the rich to give back to the society by assisting the needy and applauded the KCDI’s resolve to empower the widows, Orphans and the indigent to make life comfortable for them.

He charged the initiators of the project to discharge their affairs with fear of God .

He called on wealthy individuals to support such initiatives for the betterment of the people and the society at large.

In his remark, one of the founding members of the association, Engineer Sunday Babalola said the purpose of the initiative was to support the people.