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The lawmaker representing Oluyole Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon Tolulope Akande-Sadipe, has empowered her constituents with grants.
The lawmaker distributed the grants and financial support to members of her constituency at Podo, Oluyole Local Government, Ibadan, Oyo State on Saturday, October 22, 2022.
Akande-Sadipe also witnessed the graduation ceremony of beneficiaries of three other entrepreneurship programmes which commenced earlier in the week.
The lawmaker had earlier in the week partnered with National Directorate of Employment (NDE) on training programmes for women and youths in three different agricultural entrepreneurship areas.
She said the skills acquired include post harvest losses/reductions of staple crops; development of seedlings for ginger/tumeric; potatoes/sweet potatoes and cocoyam/yam; fingerlings production and hatchery management.
The legislator, during the distribution of financial support to the trainees, said beneficiaries cut across all communities and ethnic groups living in Oluyole Federal Constituency.
“We empowered a set of beneficiaries and concluded the training and empowerment of some other people in my constituency today. The empowerment programme commenced earlier this week; I pray the participants will benefit and improve their socio-economic circumstances with this opportunity.
“This is not our first empowerment programme in Oluyole. We have empowered so many people, through assistance from different agencies of government.
“After the completion of the three programmes, we empowered the participants with business start up and expansion funds to start or expand their businesses in the competency areas,” she said.
The NDE South West Zonal Director, Mr. Ayodele Lasisi, commended Akande-Sadipe for her unrelenting assistance to her constituency.
Lasisi, who monitored the exercise, described it as the best way to reduce unemployment and be self-reliant.
“We must commend Rep. Tolu Akande-Sadipe for partnering with the NDE. Her zeal, including her checks and balances to ensure that the grants get directly to the actual beneficiaries is also commendable,”he said.
The zonal director called on other lawmakers to emulate Akande-Sadipe.
Also speaking, a former caretaker chairman, Oluyole Local Government, Hon. James Adeleke, said Akande-Sadipe has touched every community in Oluyole Federal Constituency with her good representation.
He applauded her for practicing politics of development with her numerous empowerment and infrastructure contributions.
A community leader, Mr. Dauda Adebisi, who enumerated the lawmaker’s achievements, said that he knows at least 6,150 people who have benefitted from her empowerment programmes.
He added that the lawmaker has built 13 schools, including an ongoing construction of a primary school in Ajogbelede.
While appreciating Akande-Sadipe, Adebisi noted that within 30 months, the lawmaker has also facilitated installation of 23 transformers.
He appealed to residents of Oluyole Federal Constituency to vote for the lawmaker in 2023, adding that she has also provided over 21 boreholes in the constituency.
One of the beneficiaries, Mercy Uzor, a non-indigene, who resides in Oluyole, commended Akande-Sadipe for her magnanimity in affecting the lives of all residents of the constituency.
“I did not expect that I would benefit from this empowerment programme, considering that I am from South East. But today, this woman has breathed a new life in me. Thank you, Tolulope Akande-Sadipe for remembering me,” she said.
Other beneficiaries appreciated Akande-Sadipe, admitting her impactful representation in Oluyole Federal Constituency.