RSG To Partner NGOs For Empowerment

Newly elected officers of Rivers State Council of NUJ taking their oaths of office after election last Friday.

The National Clergy Forum
(NCF), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has distributed refrigerators, power generators and other equipment to 150 persons as part of its empowerment programme to alleviate poverty among members in Rivers State.
At the presentation ceremony at Igwuruta recently, the Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Hon. Emeka Woke said that one of the cardinal objectives of the present administration in the state was to alleviate poverty among the people through different forms of empowerment scheme.
Represented by his Special Assistant Hon. Prince Obi Wali said that government would partner and support any organization with this objective.
He commended the managers of the National Clergy forum for taking the bold step to help the people via its empowerment programme and promised the government’s support to the Forum to enable it sustain the programme.
The Chief of Staff said that government would accord special recognition to organizations with similar objectives and encourage them, adding that the NCF would be provided with the necessary machinery that would ensure sustainability of its programme.
“Government will give NCF every machinery to recover this money and we assure you that more things will come your way to continue to empower people from all nooks and crannies to check youth restiveness in the state,” he said.
In his speech, the National President of the NCF, Bishop Hyginus Ndukaife reiterated the aims and objectives of the organization which include the empowerment of members through loans and provision of equipment to encourage them to be self-employed.
According to him, the facilities are repayable but urged beneficiaries to work hard to meet up the deadline for repayment.
Earlier, the state Coordinator of the NCF, Bishop-elect Emmanuel Onyebuchi, had assured all registrered members of the organization of equal treatment as overyone would be carried along.
One of the beneficiaries, Mrs Blessing Emmanuel, expressed profound gratitude to the leaders of the NCF for deeming  it necessary to come to the aid of members, pointing out that the refrigerator and generator given her would go a long way to change her living condition.

Shedie Okpara