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Esan group vows to improve education, quality of life in Edo

By Odita Sunday
15 November 2019   |   3:20 am
In a bid to improve education and standard of living for the people of Edo Central part of the state, a nongovernmental organization ‘Esan Development And Transformation Initiative...

In a bid to improve education and standard of living for the people of Edo Central part of the state, a nongovernmental organization ‘Esan Development And Transformation Initiative (EDATI) has pledged more support for the indigenes through its various empowerment programme.

The organization through some passionate indigenous sons of Esan Central part of Edo State has been putting smile on faces of many people in their community.The chairman of the group, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo and other prominent members has further pledged to invest and improve the quality of life in Edo State, specifically in Edo Central as well as executing community investment projects.

Pastor Ighodalo made this disclosure in Lagos at the ‘Fund Raising Project And Soft Launch Event organized by the organization. Speaking about the activities and vision of EDATI, the chairman said: “Our greatest vision in this group is to help our people to develop our Esan land as well as to make sure that when our government fail and could not support, we will give the necessary support to our people.

“I come from Esan land and I have always been interested in development, not just of Esan land or Edo state but the development of Nigeria as a whole and that is why I showed instant interest when I was approached that we needed to do something for our people because a lot of people in our generation are yearning for some kind of development”.

Ighodalo further note that a lot of time Nigerians talk negatively on all the problem and challenges rather than providing solution to it.

“I have made up my mind not to do that, but do the best I can in my own corner and do what I can to make life better for my people.“I have also initiated something similar in my mother hometown, Oke-Igbo which we called the “Oke-Igbo Development Association.

“While we were planning and doing EDATI, some people from Sagamu came and they said they will be starting a Sagamu Economy and Development Association to do almost the replica of what we are doing.“Over the last two years we have been raising money and we have been consulting people taking some serious membership and free donations. Sometimes, mid last year, we did our first project and went back to work in Esan land.

“We gave out 10,000 text books to different schools, five generator sets to police stations, one generator per station, we gave out solar power light to five clinics, and the response was overwhelming.“We saw that our people need road, scholarships, healthcare, employment, school’s equipment and many things that somehow the government has not being able to provide. “We were motivated to ensure that we can provide all these things as best as we can for our people; we want to go into economy, agriculture, solar power for the entire region, building schools and education because we believe education is the bed rock of any society,and the difference between why some people are wealthy and why some people are not, is education.”

Also, Mr. Mathew Ibadin, the secretary of the group and one of the delegates of EDATI who distributed materials to people in Esan community said the experience was amazing.Ibadan said “ I count it as a privilege because the level of poverty I saw over there cannot be explained on the pages of newspapers.

“Some people could not even write in school because they don’t have books and even the Area Commander of one of the Police Station we visited was so emotional because he said since he came to that community, he has never seen a group or organization coming to give to them without such gift without them writing to them. He added that in the history of that station there has not been any generator and they don’t even have light ;they usually take sensitive documents to town for typing .

“When we got to the hospitals to supply them with the Solar Energy, the story was nothing to write home about and while we went to distribute books at the schools, the pupils and principals were just amazed at what we were able to do.”

He however reinstated that the group would outlive the founders because of the structure through which it’s built. “ The organization is not about promoting any individual capability or self interest, it’s about promoting what EDATI stands for, he said.

Others at the event include Mr. Erabor Okogun, Hashim Zain, Kingsly Odiana, Tope Odigie- Mark among other dignitaries.

The vice- Chairman of the association, Dr. Okojie, further added that the organization EDATI is into the humanitarian service following the realization that the government cannot do everything and the people are yearning for development, education and empowerment. Okojie also said the organization is planning to teach their children indigenous languages.

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