FCT: Christ Embassy Abuja Zone 1 offers Free Eye Treatments to 1817 Indigent Residents, Adopts Primary Health Centre

It was another kind of evangelism and soul wining as over 1,800 indigent residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) received several degrees of ophthalmic therapeutic treatments at the Christ Embassy, Abuja Zone 1, free medical outreach tagged “Vision 1000,” as part of the LoveWorld MedicAid Vision 10,000.”

Not only that the 5-day (September 29- 31st) free eye treatment programme was unprecedented in scale in the entire FCT, the choice of the venue, Waru Primary Health Centre in Apo District, has a history that is also tied to outreaching and evangelism in a peculiar way by Christ Embassy Abuja Zone 1.

Speaking at the venue of the programme, the Zonal Pastor of Christ Embassy Abuja Zone 1, Dipo Fisho, said the initiative was borne out of Reverend Chris Oyakhilome’s passion for indigent people and to protect and give them hope.

As he said, “The initiative was conceived to improve eyesight and address ophthalmic needs of beneficiaries.

“The programme is to make tangible impact on people’s lives beyond spiritual support. We have also put in place a follow up programme that would ensure their livelihood is sustained after their treatment/medication.

“It is Pastor Chris’ passion to reach people. This medical outreach for the vision impaired is beyond preaching, it is beyond praying. Praying is very good but what would reach people, touch people, be able to affect their lives and livelihood is our passion, that is what Christ taught.

“So, we said out of the 10,000 free eye treatment slots across the country by the Church, we can take a chunk of 1000 for indigent residents of our various catchment areas within the FCT and Nasarawa state.

“At the end of the day, we actually ended up treating over 1800 patients that registered for various forms of eye problems. We did not send anyone away as some of them came from as far as Suleja, Madala, Kubwa, Gwagwalada, Abaji, Bwari, Mararaba, Ado, Keffi, etc.

“We ensured that the surgery was performed and they are able to see. And we are going to ensure the ones that need glasses/lenses are given and we are going to ensure that there is a follow up after the medication so their livelihood is sustained.”

He disclosed that both the free eye care treatments programme and the adoption of the Primary Health Centre was endorsed by the Patron and President of LoveWorld, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome.

“While he was praying, while he was meditating, he gave the direction that we should come to Waru and the quest is very important. We are in many communities; we are doing so much in many communities but since the man of God said that we should come to Waru. God is right because we’ve had it so smooth,” Dipo said.

The eye treatment procedures carried out at the programme include pterigium, micro incision cataract surgeries, and ocular therapeutics for numerous ocular diseases.

Beneficiaries of the free eye treatment were overwhelmed with joy, thanking Pastor Chris Oyakhilome for extending uncommon love to them.

Sabina Agidee, a resident of Waru Community in the Apo District, Hon Emmanuel Madukairo from Kubwa District, who had a pterigium surgery as a result of growth in his eyes, Edwin Akwogi from Gwagwalada who had cataract surgery, and Rose Avornor from Masaka, Nasarawa state who was treated for glaucoma and cataract, were among the several beneficiaries that spoke on camera and were full of praises and appreciation for the “practical demonstration of God’s kind of love by the Christ Embassy Abuja Zone 1 and the President of the church, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome.

As remarkably said by Sabina Agidee and Rose Avornor, “before we were blind but now we can see. And we give glory to God and cannot thank Pastor Chris and Pastor Dipo enough”!

On the history of the Waru Primary Health Centre, Pastor Dipo said the church was deeply moved by the absence of critical infrastructure and basic amenities in Waru, particularly the absence of an adequate and functional primary healthcare centre. So we decided to step in to provide one “and that is where we are holding this medical outreach today.”

His words: “We believe in long-term solutions that transform lives and communities, and it is our strong desire to strengthen our global health care systems and preserve lives through the Loveworld Medic-Aid. This was what informed our decision to adopt to manage this health centre that we originally handed over to the community to manage by themselves after we did some gap analysis on the utilisation of the facility,” he said

As Fisho explained, the Primary Health Centre in Waru community was chosen as the venue for the medical outreach was because it is not a hit and run initiative. “We want a situation where we have a presence here and that’s why we have adopted the facility as ours and we will run it with the highest standard of practice,” he said.

“We have medical personnel, we have medications here so that consistently the community can benefit and know that there is a God in heaven that sees and reaches out to them through men, those are our motivation.”

As explained by Fisho, the adoption of the Waru Primary Health Centre is strategic as it set out to provide free, high- quality and affordable healthcare services for the indigent residents of the community and its environs.

Also speaking, the Senior Medical Officer of the LoveWorld MedicAid, Dr. Olajumoke Ola-Akinsonya, said the goal of the initiative was to make a tangible impact on people’s lives beyond spiritual support.

“We looked at equipment needed at the Primary Health Care Center and likewise their medical consumable and we uploaded everything. That’s why we are excited to open the adopted health center using our medical outreach as a launch pad.

“Going forward we are going to be having the training of the personnel. We are going to also make sure that they follow due process to provide excellent medical services to the indigenes and also basic essential health care services that everyone has the right to. So the Health Care Center is going to make sure that medical services are readily available to anyone irrespective of religion, class or status.”

The event culminated in the presentation of a certificate of adoption for the medical facility to the District Head of Waru community, Chief Ibrahim Sarki, marking a significant milestone in the partnership between Christ Embassy Worldwide and the Waru community in Apo District of the FCT.

Chief Sarki, expressed gratitude and pledged to donate land for the construction of a Christ Embassy church and school in the community.