Nigerians Get Message of Hope as Economic Hardship Deepens
Mary Nnah
Deacon Philip Okuabor, President, Grace Foundation, a welfare arm of House of Grace Church Satellite Town, Lagos has encouraged Nigerians not to give up on their hope, even as the economic situation in the country gets worsened day after day.
Speaking during the organisation’s annual reach out programme tagged, “Heads Up Nigeria,”, held on October 1st at the First Bank Sports Field, Satellite Town, to commemorate Nigeria’s Independence Day celebration, Okuabor, said, “In this time of economic hardship, we strongly believe that there is hope for all.”
While urging Nigerians not to lose hope, he noted, “Nigerians should keep working and doing what they know how to do best. Things are going to get better. We believe that no matter who takes over power come 2023 as the president of Nigeria, such person will not allow things to get worse than they are now but will make things better.”
He noted further that Nigeria’s problems are not difficult to solve only if those in authority were sincere and transparent in all that they do, adding, “Nigerians are not insatiable, with every little thing we get, we become happier, so Nigeria’s problem is easy to solve.”
“Today we are extending helping hands to members of our community in Lagos. We want to do more for the community because it is in the interest of the church that we do more for the community”, said Okuabor who revealed further that this year’s edition is the 9th.
“This is our little way of igniting hope in Nigerians and we hope that other people will also do little things to make people get back their hope. As you can see, we have given them some hope with our gesture today and a lot of people are happy with the little that we have done today.
“We do not have money to build roads but we have money to give them a little food and some clothing. We also do a medical checkups and also give them drugs. We have qualified medical doctors and personnel on the ground. So we are trying to see where the government is lacking and try to do what we can in those areas”, he said.
Speaking on why October 1st is chosen for the annual event, Okuabor said, “A lot of people are losing hope because of the situation in the country and our motto is, “We Give Hope”. And if we give hope, we should be able to ignite hope on Nigeria’s independence day.”
Okuabor revealed that 90 percent of the funds for the annual event come from the House of Grace Church members, adding, “That is the advantage of being attached to the church, noting that the organisation also gets support from some other organisations like Bright Eye Clinic, Happy Family Dental Clinic, Swiss Pharma Nigeria Limited, MOPSON Pharmaceutical Limited, Codix Pharma Limited among other partners.
Highlights of the day’s event included music, free health talk, free eye classes, free medical services, free foodstuff and free clothing materials.
