By Gabriel Sunday Afolayan, PhD
Saturday, September 5, 2026, was a day I will not forget in a hurry. Not because of the pomp and pageantry that characterised the beautiful outing we had during the 2026 Igogo-Ekiti Day Celebrations. Not because of the colourful dresses, melodious songs, energetic drummers and graceful dancers that filled the atmosphere with life.
Not even because the excitement was electric or the fundraising for the development of our beloved town was remarkably successful. Those are stories for another day. My story today is about the children whose silent presence spoke more powerfully than all the music and merriment around them.
I happened to be the Chairman of the Education and Award Committee saddled with the responsibility of organising competitions and selecting deserving candidates for the various awards, bursaries and scholarships instituted by families and successful sons and daughters of Igogo-Ekiti.
These initiatives, were designed to support outstanding and indigent students—from primary school to the university—and to give a helping hand to those whose circumstances had made the journey through education painfully difficult.
Among the awards was the special bursary instituted for orphans by a distinguished woman, Dr (Mrs) Ololade Olusola Ojo, former Chief Medical Director of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido-Ekiti, and wife of the Asiwaju of Igogo-Ekiti Kingdom, Dr Moses Kolawole Ojo. More than twenty pupils and students were presented to our committee from the four public primary schools and two secondary schools in the town by their head teachers or principal. It was supposed to be a day of celebration, yet the sight of these children introduced an unexpected and deeply painful emotion into my heart.
While many people arrived at the venue looking radiant and resplendent in beautiful and colourful attires, these children looked tired, hungry and worn down by circumstances far beyond their years. Their faces told stories their mouths could not tell. There was sadness in their eyes—a sadness so deep that one could feel it physically. Some appeared terribly unkempt, while the uniforms of others were torn, faded or threadbare. What broke my heart even more was seeing some of them at such a grand celebration without slippers on their feet. In the midst of the music, laughter, dancing and celebration, their quiet poverty was almost deafening. One of them in SS2 even won awards for the best student in English Language, Physics and Mathematics and came second in debate. Ironically, I was confidentially told that he may not likely proceed to higher institution because it was a group of teachers that often paid for his school fees and textbooks.
I could not help but wonder: how can such hardship still exist in a land of plenty? In a society where some families eat more than enough and dispose of surplus food in waste bins, there are children somewhere who go to bed without enough food to fill their stomachs. Children who should be dreaming about school, books, examinations and the future, are instead, confronted daily by the harsh realities of hunger and deprivation. It is a painful paradox. It is also a sobering reminder of the responsibilities we have failed to discharge as a society. The commonwealth that ought to provide a safety net for the vulnerable has too often been mismanaged by our leaders and squandered, leaving the weakest among us to bear the consequences.
That is why the gesture of Dr (Mrs) Ololade Olusola Ojo, the revered Yeye Oba of Igogo-Ekiti Kingdom, deserves commendation. Her decision to establish a bursary specifically for orphans is more than a financial intervention; it is a message to these children that somebody sees them, somebody cares about them, and their dreams still matter. By the time the bursary is disbursed, each beneficiary in secondary school will receive a minimum of ₦100,000, while those in primary school will receive ₦25,000. For a child whose educational journey is threatened by poverty, such assistance can mean the difference between despair and renewed hope.
I left that encounter with the orphans with a heart full of mixed emotions. The celebration had given us music, colour, laughter and excitement, but these children gave me something deeper—a painful reminder of the humanity that should bind us together. Their situation is a clarion call to all of us. We may not have the capacity to solve every problem, but we can lighten somebody's burden. A school uniform. A pair of slippers. A meal. A school fee. A book. A little financial assistance. What may seem insignificant to one person could become a lifeline to another.
If this gesture is judiciously utilised, it could rekindle not only their educational aspirations but also their confidence in life and the possibility of a better tomorrow. Perhaps, years from now, one of these children will look back and remember that on one particular day in Igogo-Ekiti, when life seemed to have offered very little, someone extended a hand of kindness.
Thank you, Ma, Dr (Mrs) Ololade Olusola Ojo, for giving these children more than money. Kudos to others, who extended their love to other beneficiaries in other categories. Ma, you have given them a reason to hope. And sometimes, in the life of a child, hope is the greatest gift anyone can give.
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Opinion