New Year's Day across many homes is a time for celebration and exchanging gifts for many people across the globe. It is the day when families, relatives, and friends come together to dine and wine out of sheer excitement for being alive to witness the dawn of another year.
On this important day, the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Iyiola Omisore, always ensures that those who would ordinarily not be chanced to celebrate because of ill health do so in style.
In a demonstration of love beyond his immediate and extended families, symptomatic of a compassionate heart that cares greatly for the downtrodden in society, Senator Omisore often visits significant hospitals and health centers within and outside Osun State to celebrate the day with patients on admission. Usually, on such occasions, he would donate items and settle the bills of those who could not afford to pay. He has been doing this for the past 19 years, and the reason for this philanthropy, according to him, is not just to give back; it is a necessary value he was taught by his parents and which he has imbibed right from his childhood days.
“Charitable giving drives everything I do,” he explained. “It defines my values and guides my humanity.”
For the 19th edition held on January 1, 2023, one of the hospitals the former Osun State deputy governor visited was the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital (OAUTH), Ile-Ife, where, as usual, he brought good tidings to the patients on admission. He smiled as he shared gifts and other essential items with the medical staff and patients.
The Acting Chief Medical Director of OAUTH, Dr. Muyiwa Owojuyigbe, who received him and his entourage, gave glowing testimonies on how the annual philanthropic outreach has dramatically assisted many patients in the hospital.
He said: “You are here today because of your vision. And because you decided to extend your gesture to the underprivileged in society. Doing a particular thing for 19 years is not a joke, as a child born 19 years ago would have left the university by now. But you have not limited your kind gesture to only Ile-Ife, but you have extended it to the entire South-West. In short, almost all the federal institutions in the entire South-West have benefited massively from this annual giving outreach.”
Owojuyigbe acknowledged other contributions of Omisore to the teaching hospital and what he described as his exceptional commitment to the health institution.
“You have been so committed to this hospital, and it shows you have so much passion for the hospital. Anytime you visit, you will ask: ‘Acting CMD, what can I do to bring further development to this hospital? And I can list so many examples. What about the consistent phone calls, most of which would ask me to send a list of our urgent needs. And likewise, on all the major roads in Ile-Ife, your influence has been glaring. We are indeed very grateful for all you are doing,” the Acting CMD added.
While expressing his appreciation to the senator, one of the patients, Olu George, said he had been on admission to the hospital since October., adding that Omisore had given him hope by footing his substantial medical bills. “I came from Efon-Alaye, and have been here since October last year. Though there are hospitals in Efon-Alaye, I was told this place is the best. And I appreciate you for the gifts and donations and for clearing my medical bills. May the Lord bless you,” George prayed.
It was not only the invalid that benefited from Omisore's grand gesture. Market men and women also benefited greatly as he donated the reconstructed Oja Tuntun Market to them.