The governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, announced on Friday that he has set aside at least N1 billion every month to offer meals to vulnerable Christians in the state for the next three months.
He also mentioned a comparable initiative for individuals of the Muslim faith in the state
Obaseki revealed this during the official launch of phase one of the Edo State Food Support Programme.
Expressing concern about the increasing number of people in the state unable to afford a meal each day, the Governor consulted with Christian leaders on the best approach to address this alarming situation.
Obaseki explained that to avoid any perception of political influence, he decided to involve Christian leaders instead of political officeholders in reaching out to vulnerable Christians in the state.
The governor, who mentioned that the state government already had data on the vulnerable population, emphasized the challenge of maximizing outreach to them, hence the decision to involve churches in executing the program.
He remarked, “I was concerned about the rising number of people who cannot afford a square meal in a day. So, I pondered how to resolve this issue. This is not a political matter, I assured myself.
“I then convened a meeting with the chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and others to explain my intentions. That's how we collaborated to devise this program.
I informed them that I will provide N1 billion every month. Let's try this for the first three months and assess the outcomes.
The governor clarified that the program aims not only to provide meals for the vulnerable, but also to gather more data about people in the state to create employment opportunities for them and offer government assistance where needed.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Organisation Committee and CAN Chairman, Apostle Irekpono Omoike, expressed gratitude to the governor for the initiative and disclosed the purchase of 60,000 bags of 10kg rice for distribution across the state's three senatorial districts.
He specified that 27,000 bags of the rice would be distributed in the seven local government areas of Edo South, 15,000 bags in Edo Central, and 18,000 bags in Edo North.
Omoike indicated that 3,000 bags would be distributed to each of the 18 local government areas, totaling 54,000 bags, while the remaining 6,000 bags would be allocated to churches not covered under CAN.
