50th Birthday: I’ll devote rest of my life to charity, service to humanity — Gani Adams

The Aareonakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Abiodun Ige Adams, has said he would devote the rest of his life to charity and service to humanity.

Adams, who turns 50 today (Thursday), however, said he is dedicating this year’s birthday to God and to the memory of those that have lost their lives to the raging COVID-19 global pandemic.

In a statement on Wednesday by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Aderemi, the Yoruba leader said he would be focusing more on charity to the poor and the less privileged people in the society even as he promised to continually touch the lives of the people positively.

Iba Adams, who marks his birthday annually with several activities, including visits to motherless babies homes, informed also that Nigerians, especially from the South West, would begin to feel his impact through initiatives that would add value to their lives.

He explained further that the idea was to concentrate more on building the future of the people through skill acquisition programmes and human capacity development initiatives.

Iba Adams said: “I am not getting younger.

“Attaining this glorious age is never by my power or might.

“It is simply by the special grace of God.

“God has been so wonderful to me and the rest of my family.

“Therefore, at 50, I think I need to do a lot more in enriching the lives of the poor people in the country.”

“As the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, it is important to look beyond the present situation in the country and see how we can be of help to people that have lost hope.

“It is wonderful putting smiles to the faces of several people through charity.

“It is quite interesting impacting people’s lives positively and that is exactly what I want to live my life for.

“I want to impact humanity through empowerment programmes and human capacity development initiatives.

“These are some of the areas I would be focusing on now.

“Apart from my usual social activism and crusade, I would like to use my social networks and influence to change the narratives, particularly in the South West.

Iba Adams also reiterated the need for an egalitarian society, saying the challenge before the leadership of this country now is the struggle for a better society.

He urged the Federal Government to enhance social equality and equal rights for all and sundry, pointing out that social equality remains the nexus of an egalitarian society.

He said: “We need to do our job at all times, playing the role of watchdogs to the government in the overall interest of the people.

“We need to tell our leaders the truth, especially on issues that have direct impact on the lives of the people.

“The way the health crisis of the Coronavirus global pandemic was managed in Nigeria as well as the attendant social and inequitable distribution of palliatives to the people, really exposed the failures of the government.

“It shows the level of our leaders’ insensitivity to the plights of the people and that is the reality of our situation.

“And at this point in time in our country, we need to inculcate the idea of putting the interests of the people first before that of ours.

“A society thrives where there is justice and social equality.

“And that is the essence of an egalitarian society.”