The Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Chief (Mrs) Monisade Afuye, has assured the residents that his principal, Governor Biodun Oyebanji would sustain the fight towards alleviating poverty ravaging the poor masses of the state.
She revealed that the governor is passionate about executing his well articulated policies and programmes to disentangle the poor masses from the hook of poverty through relevant empowerment initiatives.
Applauding the massive defection of new members into the ruling All Progressives Congress, the Deputy Governor, warned the old members against discrimination, to strengthen the party at the ward level.
Mrs Afuye spoke in Ikere Ekiti, while distributing cash gift worth N1.5 million to 130 indigent elders across the 11 wards in Ikere Local Government Area of the state, as part of her monthly social security safety net for the elderly.
Mrs Afuye stated that the programme being solely financed by her, was conceived to support the social security scheme for the indigent elderly and other strata of the society that had been rolled out by Governor Oyebanji at the state level.
The Deputy Governor, in a statement by her Media Aide, Victor Ogunje, was emphatic that Governor Oyebanji’s six -point agenda, which serves as a guide for programme and policy implementation, was principally tailored towards reducing poverty among the masses.
She assured the people that no section of the state would be neglected or sidelined in the government’s desperate action to rid the state of the scourge of poverty.
The Ekiti’s number two citizen, stressed that fighting poverty would help in bolstering the masses’ standards of living and facilitate improved life expectancy, where Ekiti is rated as having the highest in the country.
She said: “If you dissect the six point agenda of our government, it was geared towards reducing poverty and all the strata of the society; the old, the young and the sick will be adequately captured.
“What I am doing is not the state government-funded social security scheme; I am the sole financier of this programme. I am only doing it to support indigent population to give them sense of belonging.
“I want to assure you that everybody will be captured. I had instructed the party leaders at the ward level to rotate among the beneficiaries. I had told them to ensure that only the qualified people should be enlisted as beneficiaries and it should be done without bias.
“If you check the records, the poor people are the main target of our policies and programmes. If you look at those that were being employed through our recruitment exercises, those without political influence are the major beneficiaries.
“This showed that the government of Governor Oyebanji doesn’t discriminate against anybody. We are for all citizens regardless of status”.
Speaking on behalf of the APC’s State Working Committee, the party’s State Chairman, Paul Omotoso, represented by his Deputy, Sola Elesin, commended Oyebanji’s government for being pragmatic in bailing the indigents out of wanton poverty.
Omotoso added that the Deputy Governor’s gesture further accentuated how passionate the APC-led government is to extend the dividends of democracy to all the citizens.
“You can all see that APC remains the best and the only option for Ekiti populace. You can see how Governor Oyebanji had demonstrated commitment to serve the people. He had succeeded in demystifying the governorship position by his closeness to the masses.
“He has elevated our belief that good governance can be realised in our society. We are particularly happy that all his policies benefit the poor majorly and that is the essence of governance”.
Some of the beneficiaries, Mrs Wura Adeusi, Victoria Owoyemi, Florence Adeniyi,Taiwo Yusuf and Kola Owolabi, praised Governor Oyebanji and Mrs Afuye for prioritising the welfare of the elderly.
They pledged their continued support and loyalty to the Oyebanji-led government for its commitment towards banishing poverty among the indigent elderly in the state.