ONYEOMA EMMANUEL HELP FOUNDATION GIVES TWO-DAY FREE MEDICAL CHECK/TREATMENT TO EKUKU-AGBOR
By Patrick Gbuchanye
Onyeoma Emmanuel Help Foundation (OEHF) has recorded a large turnout to mark its inauguration with medical outreach. The two-day free medical examination and treatment was held at Ekuku-Agbor Community Primary Health Care Centre, Ika South Local Government Area, from Saturday, October 19 to Sunday, October 20, 2024, with children, young and old, attending.
Speaking with newsmen, the Chairman of OEHF, Mr Nwaka Emmanuel, said that his special thanks go to the Mission Accomplished-Achalla Foundation, whose collaboration made the dream of the medical outreach a reality to give back to the society. According to him, “I am becoming a fulfilled person in life because from childhood, I have always been inspired to render help, and with OEHF, which was founded in 2022, my desire to care for people is coming through.
“OEHF assistance covers moral teaching, monetary, food and education towards building a better society for all. Our foundation in the U.S.A. has sustained the burden of sponsorship since my initial source of income from the local palm oil milling could no longer cover the huge expenses incurred.
“We started OEHF with the offer of educational scholarships to indigents and best-performing school children from Ekuku-Agbor, Ute-Okpu, Otolokpo and Owa-Alero Communities. Although we take charge of the tuition fees of the indigent school children, we also visit their school for feeding, pay for their extra mural lessons, provide a mini library and follow up to ensure that they come out among the best-performing school children.
“With OEHF, our school children are in safe hands to become somebody in life. OEHF stands in the gap for all, just like the free medical outreach where children, young and old are being attended to. It is all-round free medication and those with serious cases are referred for further treatment.
“Just as charity begins at home, OEHF free medical outreach is taking off from my hometown in Ekuku-Agbor for Ika nation, where buses are provided for neighbouring communities to come for checkups and treatment. The attendance has indeed been massive to our expectation but we came prepared so that everyone was attended to”.
Continuing, Mr. Emmanuel further stated that he is inspired to save lives and enjoin the beneficiaries to take advantage of the free medical outreach to know their health status for treatment to reduce mortality rate in Ika land.
“I want to use this opportunity to announce that we have over 120 school children under the OEHF scholarship scheme with some being in the secondary school level of education. It is of interest to know that OEHF takes pride in the sponsorship of school children from the primary level for a sound educational upbringing, and our dream is to take them up to the tertiary level.
“OEHF is not tired because the foundation has undertaken the renovation of some community town halls. Finally, I also want to appreciate the man of the people, Hon. Hilary Ibegbulem and all other supporters for their moral and financial input. My unreserved gratitude goes to the entire board members of OEHF at home (Nigeria) and abroad (U.S.A). Thank you all for your sacrifices”.
Expressing joy, Adviser to OEHF, Dr. Mrs. Mininim Oseji who is also the Permanent Secretary, Delta State Ministry of Environment said she was introduced to become an adviser to OEHF by a foreign partner, Mrs. Tess Raya through whom we have collaborated in so many community-based projects.
“I am here to oversee and encourage OEHF on further ways forward. The medical outreach is a good one, especially in this time of economic hardship when many people cannot afford basic healthcare to live longer. It is a welcome development. The turnout of the people is much and impressive but I wish every Ekuku-Agbor person not to miss this great opportunity to access the medication that has been brought to their doorsteps free of charge.
“OEHF has done very well raising funds for this exercise, and the number of medical personnel on ground is something commendable, and I am very impressed. I want to urge the OEHF to always train its members on NGOs and Foundation management for successful implementation, execution, evaluation and documentation for further events and references. I also enjoin Ekuku-Agbor people to continue to offer prayer for OEHF to do more”, she admonishes.
On his part, the President-General (PG), Mr. Samuel Okocha, appreciated their son, Mr. Emmanuel, for initiating OEHF, which, according to him, has turned into a blessing for them. He described the free medical outreach as marvelous owing to the crop of medical personnel both home and abroad that turned out for their sake. According to him, “Ekuku-Agbor Community is very grateful and saying big thank you to our son, Emmanuel and his entire team of OEHF at home and abroad for their good deeds towards humanity.
Responding, a patient, Mrs. Lucy Okwuazun, said she was joyous and thanked the OEHF for the free medical outreach, saying that access to good health is the biggest wealth anybody can have.
Mrs. Emeke Ifeanyiuwan prayed the good Lord to bless Emmanuel for remembering home, even as she thanked the team of OEHF for making their health a priority.
Also, Catechist James Nkwor Okorocha of St. Luke Catholic Church, Ekuku-Agbor thanked the parents of the Chairman OEHF for bringing him up well to remember them. According to him, “The free medical outreach is a good thing for an agrarian community like Ekuku-Agbor to remain healthy and strong, especially during this time herdsmen have taken over our farmland, which is the source of our income to access good healthcare. I see this medical exercise as a rescue mission for us to live longer”, he said.
Chief Isaac Ozornuwa from the neighbouring community of Ndemili, commended OEHF, saying he heard of the medical outreach and he is returning home happy, having been treated with drugs given to him. He appealed for subsequent medical outreach, saying that the majority of the people cannot afford the quality health service given to them free of charge.
The founder of Mission Accomplished-Achalla INC, Silvia Obianuju Aninye, who is also the U.S.A based Board member of OEHF, said she had done a duty to be present to see how they can further improve the medical facilities at Ekuku-Agbor Primary Health Care Centre for the people to access better healthcare. According to her, “We have recorded a successful medical outreach with about a thousand persons treated. The turnouts of boys, girls, and women are encouraging, but many of the men seen only present themselves when their condition gets worse before seeking medical attention.
“I want to use this occasion to raise the alarm about Prostate cancer, the common illness among men sixty years and above. But men who go for regular medical check-ups, especially the prostate gland, can be safe from the illness. In all, I want to encourage our men, both young and old, to make themselves available for medical checkups and treatment to live healthy and happy lives.
“The people need continued health education to know that the common illnesses such as prostrate problems, High Blood Pressure, and Sugar level problems are deadly if not diagnosed early.
“We have been briefed on the situation of the healthcare centre to know their pressing needs. Firstly, we are going to sink a borehole that will provide clean water to check the transmission of germs through the water. Every healthcare centre deserves a clean water facility. This will follow with health education in the nook and crannies of the community, just as all other needs will be addressed step by step”.
Also, the Achalla Community U.S.A based Medical Doctor; Dr Mary Onuorah also reiterated the need for men to regularly go for checkups while assuring that the medical needs of Ekuku-Agbor people will be attended to one after the other, saying that firstly they will replicate the borehole project in Achalla Healthcare centre as take off for other needs, such as Ambulance in emergency cases that require mobility.
The U.S.A based OEHF Adviser, Mr. Robert Dizon, congratulated the home-based OEHF successful medical outreach while appreciating all their support in achieving the great feat of the inaugural medical mission and expressed optimism for bigger events to put smiles on the faces of the people.
High point of the ceremony was the visit of the OEHF team to see the Ugbo of Ekuku-Agbor and his subjects. There was also a dinner party to bring to a close the free medical exercise held at Fountainhead Resorts Owa-Ekei.