Olubadan lauds Fed Govt on ageing policy, says it’s long overdue
The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Lekan Balogun, Alli Okunmade II, yesterday, lauded the Federal Government on ageing policy, which gave birth to National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC), describing it as a long overdue policy.
Oba Balogun gave the commendation during a courtesy visit on him at his Alarere residence by the Oyo State Forum of the agency in company of the United Nations Independent Expert on the Enjoyment of all Human Rights by Older Persons.
The monarch, in a statement made available to journalists in Ibadan by his Personal Assistant (Media), Oladele Ogunsola, said the Centre, which came into being through an Act in 2017, could not have come at the right time in view of its relevance to the needs of the elderly people who had suffered neglect over the years.
“The elderly people in the country had over the years suffered neglect as if they do not belong to the society again, not minding whatever might have been their contributions to the country in the past. Fortunately, it is a stage everybody aspires to attain and we are all subjected to the same fate at our different times of getting old.
“We must acknowledge the initiative by this administration through the Act, which is a way of correcting the past wrong done to our senior citizens. I urge the Centre to ensure that its activities are made to reach every nook and cranny through sensitisation and awareness campaign. The Centre’s activities must be for everybody, irrespective of one’s past or background,” the Olubadan said.
Meanwhile, Director-General of the Centre, Dr. Emem Omokaro told the Olubadan that the purpose of the visit was to introduce the Centre to him as a body with a mandate to identify the needs of senior citizens and to cater for them.
Also, the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Officer, Claire Natheuie, who represented the UN Independent Expert on the Enjoyment of All Human Rights by Older Persons, in her remarks, commended the monarch for hosting the team, insisting that the older people equally have rights to whatever dividends of any government that are available to the younger generation.
In her short remarks, Permanent Secretary in Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Mrs. Grace Oderinde, applauded the team for the visit to the state.
She said the state government had bought into policy and programmes of the NSCC as all the relevant non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are being encouraged to register with the appropriate body.
