Constituency projects and empowerment are usually Nigerian lawmakers way of giving back to the members of their constituents. Whether at the state or federal level, the lawmakers planning to empower their people usually consider vocations or facilities that are of major interest to their people from which they can eke out a livelihood after the empowerment. And in some cases, the lawmakers dole out cash to the people to be used for whatever they feel could generate income from.
But a federal lawmaker from Oyo State representing the people of Ibadan Northwest/Southwest Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives in Abuja, Hon. Adedeji Stanley Olajide popularly known as Odidiomo , made news recently after giving out live goats to the members of his constituents as a form of empowerment. And as soon as that unusual effort of the lawmaker was posted online by some concerned citizens, it has been generating mixed reaction on the social media.
Meanwhile, Odidiomo, a member of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a report sighted by this Journalist, rationalised his decision to give out goats to his people for empowerment. According to him, he gave out the goats on popular demand. He contended that the least amongst about 300 widows and aged women between 55 and 60 years who felt having goats in their backyards would make them financially stable since the she-goats, he actually gave them, were of special breeds and could produc between three to four offsprings twice a year. And he even asserted that due diligence was applied by his
team in choosing their breed of goats as they worked in conjuction with Department of Animal Husbandry Services Federal Ministry of Agriculture Rural Development. And he emphasised that the “goat empowerment were for the women folk only. “I facilitated and empowered majorly women/widows and the indigenous females within my constituency with breeding and caring of animals, he said in the report. Odidi omo further pointed out that, contrary to the position of his
critics over the empowerment in question, giving out of the goats was indeed, a novel
idea in addition to other empowerment programmes he had carried our like donation
of cars, educational support programmes including cash awards as bursaries; training
of over 500 youths in paint making and marketing amongst others.
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