By Emeke Alexander
It was a huge relief for indigenes of Ogulagha Kingdom in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State, as trucks loaded with food items worth millions of naira from the Shedrack Agediga Foundation SAF, arrived their kingdom.
Chairman of the foundation, Ambassador Shedrack Agediga led other members of his team to ensure the distribution of the food items to communities in the kingdom particularly to the very poor and vulnerable ones.
Ambassador Agediga, who is also the Executive Director, Planning, Research & Statistics on the board of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), presented the food items to His Royal Majesty, Elder Capt. Joseph I. Timiyan (JP), Torububou I, Agbonu, the paramount ruler of Ogulagha Kingdom at his royal mansion in Obotobo I community.
Through the chiefs in the kingdom, the various community leaderships were assembled at the palace to take delivery of the share of the food items for their communities.
While presenting the food items, Ambassador Agediga commended the Ogulagha monarch for his development strides over the years and prayed God to continue to guide and protect him for sustained advancement of the kingdom.
He disclosed that his contribution aimed at cushioning the effects of the lockdown by the state government to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic was to complement arrangement by the political class in the council area to distribute food items to the people.
Agediga who noted that COVID-19 is real urged those still doubting its existence to have a rethink and adhere strictly to measures aimed at combating the spread of the pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as well as other steps being taken by the Delta State government.
The SAF boss opined that the impacts of the coronavirus call for collaborative effort from well meaning individuals and organizations adding that as a true son of Ogulagha Kingdom, he cannot afford to turn his back on his people.
He explained that the distribution of the food items was phase two of his foundation’s humanitarian and palliative gestures to the people, adding that the organisation would continue to ensure that the vulnerable, elderly and the disadvantaged ones are assisted in one form or the other.
Responding, the Ogulagha Kingdom monarch extolled the exemplary leadership qualities of Ambassador Shedrack Agediga saying he was not expecting such massive food items from him again, after recently dolling out millions of safety kits across the kingdom.
He urged him to continue on the path of helping and contributing to the development his people and Ogulagha Kingdom.
The Shedrack Agediga Foundation had recently spent millions of naira in buying and distributing face masks, liquid soaps, hand sanitizers, tap buckets, buckets and other sensitive preventive materials which were distributed to Ogulagha, Iduwini and Obotebe kingdoms in Burutu Local Government Area.