By Adebowale Adebukola
It was a colourful event at the Osogbo City Stadium today 27th of May, 2019 at the annual Children’s Day Celebration of 2019 organised by Osun State Government with the theme ” Drug Abuse Among Children Addressing the Challenges ”
The Children’s Day celebration 2019 which took place at the Osogbo City Stadium had in attendance different political figures across the state as well as children from different schools.
Among the political figures present were representative of the Governor, the Secretary to the State Government, Prince Oluwole Oyebamiji, the Head of Service, Dr. Oyebade Olowogboyega, the Supervisor for Information and Strategy, Hon. Adelani Baderinwa, the Permanent Sec. Ministry of Education, Mr Festus Olajide, Association of NGOs in the state among others.
The representative of the wife of the governor, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women , Children and Social Affairs, Pharm(Mrs.) Omolara who spoke on the evils of drug abuse said that it has become a serious issue among the youths and it should be of a great concern to everyone.
She said: ” It is a time for all stakeholders, parents, guardians, teachers government and non governmental organisations, religious fathers, amongst others to discuss and ruminate on topical issues that affect the welfare of children with view to proffering solutions to the challenges.
“The increasing trend of the hydra headed and canker worm challenges of drug abuse is too alarming and this is directly linked to other social vices such as cultism, thuggery, armed robbery, etc.”
“In this regard, all stakeholders; Parents, Guardians, Teachers, Law enforcement agents, Religious organizations must make concerted effort to wage war against the abuse of drugs. There is also a need for an aggressive and continuous sensitization programme against the abuse of drugs.”
“She added that: “I pray that God will take care of these children and grant our desire for their holistic development to become heroic future leaders in Osun .”
In his own speech, the representative of the governor, Prince Oluwole Oyebamiji, he said that children are a special gift from God, therefore, parents should endeavor to take the best of care and ensure they are well trained so as to prevent them from being victims of vices rampant in the society.
He further said that, children exposed to drug abuse would grow to become victims of spiritual, psychological, physical problems and as a result be the perpetrators of different levels of evil in the society.
He therefore called on the concerned people in the society to rise up to the challenges of drug abuse in the society and collectively fight against it’s growth to the barest minimum level.
The event was also graced with different cultural display in songs, dance and march pasts by schools present .
At the Elementary level, Police Basic School, Anthony Udofia Elementary School and AUD Elementary School, Erin Osun took the 1st, 2nd and 3rd position respectively.
At the Middle School level, Gbodofon Group of Schools, Osogbo, Anglican Middle School, Edunabon and AC Middle school, Iree were awarded the 1st, 2nd and 3rd positions.
The Adventist High School, Ede came first at the High school category with Ilesa Government High School while Fakunle Unity Government High School came second and third respectively.
Finally, Schools for Persons with Special Needs, Osogbo primary and secondary categories came first and second in their category.