By TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO

With a view to radiating the joy of Christmas, a non-governmental organization, Emi-Kola Afolabi Foundation has distributed over 22 bags of rice to the less privileged in Osun State to mark this year's Christian celebration.
The rice were distributed on Thursday to the less privileged, prisons, church, schools, orphanage and some communities in Osogbo which include Kelebe community, Otan-Ayegbaju, Ayetoro, Kola Balogun, Oke-Onitea, Oyan among others.
Other beneficiaries of the good items are Ife prison, Ilesa prison, Little Angles Orphanage Home, Abiye Orphanage Home, Sarah Extension, Federation of Muslim Women Association in Osogbo, otherwise known as FOMWAN, etc.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Director and Founder of the organisation, Sir James Afolabi, said the annual Christmas Rice Distribution is one of the programmes of the foundation to mark Christmas.
He stressed that the initiative was borne out of the need to ensure that the residents who are mostly poor, have cause to celebrate and access resources to merry during the festive season.
Afolabi noted that the communities were selected based on the high poverty rate among the residents who could barely afford the price of things in market and for children who could not afford to go to school.
He appealed to Nigerians to use the opportunity of the season to support the less privileged, adding that this is the reason for the season as established by the Lord Jesus Christ.
"We founded the Foundation seventeen years ago to cater for poor the poor in the person of children who are given scholarship, the poor in form of widows and others who are sick.
"We thank God we witness this year's Christmas despite the hardship in the country. We know how many bags of rice we do share every year to people but this year, the price of things are so high and I thank God we are still able to come up with something to extend love to the poor. No matter the cost of price of things in the market, we will always extend love to the poor and others.
"I encourage others to use this opportunity of the festival to extend love to the less privileged in their community. If only all the rich people in the country are givers, the world would have been a better place for the poor. The Bible even says it and God created the rich because of the poor, so, I beg them to show love," Afolabi stated.
In his devotion, Rev Fr Michal Funso in charge of St. John the Baptist Parish, Osogbo, described Christmas as a period of celebration and putting smile on the faces of people, while thanking God for Sir James Afolabi whose philanthropic gesture has uplifted lives.
He called on other wealthy persons to emulate him as he prayed for its sustenance.
The cleric said, "I want to thank Sir James Afolabi on behalf of the Foundation for gathering us today.
"The reason for this gathering is to share the joy and love of Jesus Christ John 3: 16. Christmas is a time to celebrate the love and joy of Jesus Christ. we know all the cost of rice in the market and high price of other ingredients. We know things are really hard. We all know how much it was sold last year compared to what they are selling it now.
"So, If we consider the constant increase in the price of the immediate needs namely food, shelter, even health, if you go to hospital now, we have to think twice because you consider your health status and the bill that will come, may God save us in this country.
"All we need now is prayer, praying every minutes for the reign of Christ, praying that God keep on refreshing us, renew us and to remould us. God is the sign of peace, total simplicity and humility."
He added, "If we consider what we are or have, some of us will find it very difficult to relate with the immediate community, maybe because they are pastors or Alfas, but we are family and that is why the Emi-Kola Foundation has gathered us to extend love to everyone by giving out what they have to better people's lives. It is over a year now that we have been in this hardship; first, it was naira scarcity to fuel to high price of things but in His love and mercy, God saved us. The beneficiaries should continue to pray for the foundation so they can do more."
The representative of Otan Ayegbaju, Mr Anthony Samuel commended the Foundation, saying, “This initiative is quite uncommon in our community. We are grateful for the intervention coming at the right time. It will ameliorate the suffering of our people. Our prayer is that God will reward the contributors and this foundation.”
The person in charge of Little Angels Catholic Orphanage Home in Osogbo, Sister Mary Elizabeth Akinlotan, thanked God for the lives of the foundation for reaching out to the poor, widows, children among others.
She said the foundation has made Christmas easy for the poor by making them happy and fulfilled.
"We thank God for lives of Emi-Kola Foundation, for several years now, they have been extending their love to the needy during Christmas, Easter, Ileya. They are reaching out to the widows, orphans and the less privileged. We pray God will enrich those that are supporting them. Others should emulate them and this kind of gesture will go a long way in making people fulfilled.
In her remarks, the representative of FOMWAN, Mrs Adeyemi said the gesture would forever be remembered in her life, even as she prayed for the organisation to continue to wax stronger in its stride to make life more abundant for the downtrodden.