By Modupe Gbadeyanka
About 150 residents of Oluyole in Ibadan, Oyo State will receive N30,000 each from the federal government to help them cushion the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The money was facilitated by a lawmaker representing Oluyole Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, Mrs Tolulope Akande-Sadipe.
About two years ago, the world was hit by the virus, causing many countries to shut down their economies and restrict the movement of people.
It was not different in Nigeria, where President Muhammadu announced a lockdown in Lagos and other cities from March 29, 2020.
For more than two months, Nigerians could not go out for work as efforts were put in place to control the spread of the deadly virus. This brought untold hardship on citizens.
In order to cushion the effect, the federal government came up with the COVID-19 Relief Fund, while corporate organisations came together to donate food items to Nigerians.
For Mrs Akande-Sadipe, she did her best for her constituents and recently, she facilitated the COVID-19 support funds for 150 constituency members.
In a statement on Tuesday in Ibadan, the lawmaker said that the fund would provide a sort of relief to her constituents, noting that the N30,000 would go a long way to help beneficiaries.
She underscored the need to reach out to members of her constituency through the support of the federal government, saying the pandemic has rendered many jobless at this time.
She stated that the beneficiaries were drawn from all the wards in Oluyole Federal Constituency, adding that, “The fund is meant to cushion effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nigerians and I hope the funds will be used to generate revenue to alleviate the economic hardship brought on by the pandemic.”
Mrs Akande-Sadipe, however, urged continuous observation of all precautionary measures that the government and health authorities have prescribed, to stay safe.
She called on Nigerians to still be on the lookout for mild symptoms that are associated with the virus, such as common cold, headaches, dry cough, itchy throat, difficulty in breathing and general body and joint pains, among other symptoms.
Adedapo Adesanya