Rotary Club PH Seaport Fourth Anniversary: Polio Survivors Empowered with Walking Aids
By Precious Ahiakwo
Succor came to some Polio Survivors in Rivers State as they received wheel chairs and clutches to aid their movement.
The aids were donated to seven Polio Survivors by members of the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Seaport, as part of activities to celebrate the club’s fourth Anniversary.
President of the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Seaport while presenting the walking aids to the Polio Survivors who mostly are from the Cheshire Home, said despite the fact that Nigeria is now Polio free, there is need to rehabilitate the survivors.
“Poliomyelitis is not a death sentence. Now that Nigeria is polio-free, we should take care of the survivors and sustain our preventive measures.
” This is why members of the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Seaport decided to empower some survivors with these walking aids to make life easy for them. We believe the survivors have a right to life too.
“We want these survivors to live normal life. We don’t want them to beg on the streets for anything. We discovered that they are talented and we are empowering them to be useful to themselves and the society,” she said.
On her Part, Past District Governor and Board of Trustee elect of The Rotary Foundation, Ijeoma Pearl Okoro while speaking on the theme “The Beauty of The Rotary Foundation” said donations by Rotarians and non-Rotarians into the Rotary Foundation are turned into projects that addresses needs all over the world.
“The Beauty of the Rotary Foundation is that what we get is far above what we donated. And Rotary Clubs in Nigeria have immensely benefitted from it in areas of executing projects. The Rotary Foundation is tremendous, I find it very amazing and it has come to stay. I’m also happy to see clubs do their own projects to compliment what the Rotary Foundation do about polio. With this kind of commitment from Rotarians, we will definitely get polio out of the world”, she said.
Past Assistant Governor and Past Governor of the Rotary club of Port Harcourt Seaport, Rotarian Chief Hamilton Odum said the club was fulfilling one of the seven areas of focus of Rotary International with the empowerment.
He said “the war against poliomyelitis can be finally won if the survivors have a sense of belonging like others in the society,”
One of polio survivors Jeremiah Victor who spoke on behalf of others expressed joy over the gifts, he said members of the Cheshire Home have been living and surviving in the facility and kind gestures from various Rotary clubs who have reached out to improve their welfare.