Hamzat backs church’s N2bn endowment fund

File: Lagos State Deputy Governor Kadri Obafemi Hamzat.

Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, has backed the N2bn endowment fund and charity initiative of the Order of the Knights of St. Mulumba Nigeria, Lagos Metro Council, describing it as a sustainable model for supporting vulnerable Nigerians and empowering future generations.

He stated this recently at the unveiling ceremony of the N2bn endowment fund & charity initiative at St. Leo Catholic Church, Ikeja, Lagos.

Themed “Investing Today, Sustaining the Mission, Empowering Generations,” the Lagos APC governorship candidate called for stronger partnerships between government and religious institutions to address social challenges and build lasting institutions.

He said, “What we are doing shows that we must have a partnership between religious institutions and government. As long as that doesn’t exist, this country won’t make it.”

According to the deputy governor, the endowment fund would enable the Knights to generate income to sustain its charitable activities instead of repeatedly asking members to contribute.

He said, “What the Knights of St Mulumba is doing is to say, how do we sustain helping other people without levying each other every time? So putting money into a system that generates income and therefore you can help people that you want to help: the vulnerable, to do boreholes, and to send people to school.”

Hamzat, who came in the company of his deputy candidate, Hon. Damilola James, also disclosed that the Lagos State Government was pursuing a similar initiative, adding that a bill had been sent to the state House of Assembly to establish a structure for preserving part of government resources for long-term investment.

He said, “We cannot just be spending our money anyhow, without keeping anything. And therefore, we’ve sent a bill to the House to say a certain percentage we should put it.

“And we should encourage it to be replicated across the country. All state governments, maybe even local governments. And then, of course, the federal government.”

He called for a return to the communal values of caring for vulnerable members of society, warning against the erosion of traditional support systems.

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“We are Africans. And we help ourselves to come together to build our communities. And suddenly, for some reason, this thing starts going down. So we must bring it back,” he stressed.

He further urged young Nigerians to participate actively in nation-building, saying the Lagos State Government would engage with the Knights on the initiative and support programmes aimed at improving the welfare and prospects of residents.

The Archbishop of the Metropolitan See of Lagos, Most Rev. Adewale Martins, described the N2bn endowment fund initiative as a timely step that would strengthen the organization’s humanitarian work.

Represented by the Very Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Ayeni at the unveiling of the fund, the cleric acknowledged the difficulty of raising such a huge amount but urged members of the organisation to trust God and remain committed to the project.

He said, “It’s not going to be easy to raise N2 billion. But you know, the most important part of every journey is for you to begin. Once you begin, and you have the trust of God that he’s able to do it, and he’s going to do it, the same will definitely help us be able to achieve it.”

The archbishop urged members to remain committed to humanitarian service, assuring them that their efforts would yield rewards.

The Worthy Supreme Knight, Sir Steve Adehi, SAN, described the endowment fund as a legacy project designed to support the Church, members of the Order and vulnerable Nigerians.

He said the endowment fund was not established merely to preserve wealth, but to create sustainable resources that would benefit present and future generations.

He commended the Lagos Metro Grand Knight and his team for acting decisively on the initiative despite its challenges, urging members who had committed to the project to remain dedicated.