By Afeez Olawoyin
Entrepreneur and humanitarian, Abada William Iwuchukwu is the founder of the Abada Iwuchukwu Foundation, a non-governmental organization he established in 2008 to cater to the needs of widows, widowers, orphans, and the underprivileged in the villages of Onitsha, Anambra state and its neighboring states.
The Foundation which recently celebrated its 10th Year anniversary started functioning in Ogboli Olosi, a village in Onitsha, and has now expanded its operations across Enugu, Imo, Ebonyi, and Abia state in Nigeria with over a hundred widows and widowers under its care as well as several needy children and youths. Every December, it shares gifts and food items with underprivileged people and also assists in meeting their various needs.
Over 15 young boys and girls in Onitsha, Anambra, and beyond recently benefited from the foundation’s scholarship scheme. Topping the list of the individuals receiving financial assistance for their education is Akosa Okechukwu, a 100-level law student from the University Of Nsukka who hails from Enugu state.
Iwuchukwu is passionate about changing the lives of the masses and protecting their rights and interests. According to him
“I started with 12 Widows and 2 widowers back in 2008 and the intention was simply to make them happy with gifts during Xmas period which is the season of love, peace, hope as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
He stated
“Nevertheless the whole scenario changed to a bigger thing the following year 2009 when about 25 widows came to register with my Elder brother. One of the reasons that I started the foundation was to put a smile on the faces of the widows/widowers and the underprivileged who could not celebrate due to the death of their partner or their parents. The main challenge we have is the increase in numbers of people that needs our assistance, but God is our strength,” he added.
Iwuchukwu is also known for running a chain of successful businesses outside Nigeria and his coalition with other patriots in his constituency to create the Greater Onitsha Foundation(GOF), a Not-for-profit political advocacy group that serves as a watchdog on politicians during and after elections, holding them accountable for their actions thus improving governance in the region and beyond.
According to him “In my community Onitsha, we have creatively organized and registered a non-profitable organization called Greater Onitsha Foundation(GOF) to police our politicians during and after elections to assure that most of what they promise us during election campaigns are fulfilled”. He said
“We would organize the first ever political debate in our constituency in this 2019 general election which would involve all the candidates contesting for the Federal House of Representatives and State House of Assembly respectively,’’
he disclosed.
