A non governmental organization; MACT Foundation has donated medical equipment and books worth several millions of naira to the General Hospital in Okemesi Ekiti.
Moved to tears at the presentation of the modern medical equipment and thousands of books to secondary schools in Okemesi, one of the NGO leaders, Mrs. Ayodele Obaro disclosed that “the donation was as a result of our experience following my father’s stroke. Our family charity organization decided to assist to make sure nobody goes through such an undignified way of care.
This, according to her, made her and her husband, Professor Obaro, a radiologist, to make up their minds that they would live the rest of their lives helping the needy through donations of lifesaving medical equipment to different hospitals across the country.
Okemesi General hospital is a beneficiary of this gesture, being the home town of Mrs. Obaro. Ayetoro Gbede in Kogi State is also beneficiary being home town of Prof Obaro. But is that to say these are just the two benefitting towns? The Nigerian trained nurse based in the United Kingdom provided the answer to this. According to her, “though I’m from Okemesi by birth, that’s not the only reason for providing all these equipment. We have done this for several hospitals in the northern Nigeria and we felt our hometowns should also benefit.
“I grew up in Zaria and went to Amadu Bello University where I studied nursing before travelling abroad. We just felt we should give back to the society that made us. My husband and I already came to Nigeria two ago to find out the needs of those hospitals across in the benefitting towns”, Mrs. Obaro further explained.
The Owa Ooye of Okemesi, Oba Michael Adedeji Gbadebo, who was present at the occasion showered encomium on Mrs Obaro, describing her as a patriotic Okemesi woman who did not forget her place of birth. The monarch implored all Okemesi indigenes to emulate her “so that this town can reclaim its lost glory.” He also appealed to the government to provide basic amenities that will make the equipment usable to the hospital. He lamented the poor power supply and insufficient manpower in the general hospital.
Oba Adedeji Gbadebo who said government Aline could not provide the needs of the people called on the citizens to rescue the town from poverty by assisting the youth. He commended the Kayode Fayemi led administration for renovating the hospital during his first term in office and pleaded that the place be provided with necessary amenities.
Receiving the equipment on behalf of the State government, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media, Akogun Tai Oguntayo thanked the donor for her philanthropic gesture.
Going through the memory lane, the governor’s aide noted that it was not the first time the Okemesi-Ekuti born nurse would be making such donation to the hospital.
Oguntayo who is also an indigene of Okemesi assured the donor that the government would make judicious use of the equipment assuring her that a proper acknowledgment of the donation would be done by the government.
The governor’s aide however instructed that an inventory of the massive equipment should be done by the officers in charge at the hospital in collaboration with the hospital management committee “as this will guide the government in future while considering other needs of the hospital and the necessary staff to handle the equipment”
All these equipment were donated by Prof. & Mrs. Obaro under the aegis of MACT Foundation which she said “is to seek and work with individual, government and non-governmental bodies and institutions to bridge the between the western African sub region and the West in the fields of Medicine, Agriculture, Culture and Technology.”
The Commissioner for Health in Ekiti Stste was represented by the Director Of Nursing Service, Ministry of Health, Mrs. Yewande Akute while the permanent secretary in the Ministry of health was represented by Dr. Olagbaju Adebayo. Others at tge event are; SSA on Electronic Media to Governor Fayemi, Mr. Kanmi Olatoye, President of the Federation of Okemesi Improvement Unions, Alhaji Bayo Ajijola, foremost veteran journalist, Deacon Dare Babarinsa, Alhaji M.K Lawal among others
