Abuja – More than 25 Nigerians have benefited from the Cornea transplant initiative of the Nigeria Lions Club International, Mrs Lami Ahmed, a top official of the organisation, said.
Ahmed, who is the Pioneer District Governor of District 404 A2 of the club, made this known when members of the organisation visited Mr Jones Afolabi, the acting Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.
She said: “We are loving individuals offering needed services in our communities; wherever there is a need, there is a Lion, but particularly our focus have been on eradication of preventable
blindness.
“We now have people abroad who donate their Cornea or who will their Cornea and at the point of death these Corneas are harvested for use and as we speak more than 25 Nigerians have benefited.
“And the only Nigerian today who donated his Cornea at the point of death was a lion who will his Cornea and it was harvested when he died.
“We can all agree to the fact that sight is very important, if we close our eyes for one minute and just imagine there are people even children who will forever be in that state till the lord calls them back.
“And it is on record that 80 per cent of this course of blindness can be prevented if only they receive intervention in good time.’’
Ahmed said that the club was now in 208 countries with membership of 1.4 million people, adding that Nigeria accounted for 6,500 of the number.
She said that the club had also assisted Nigeria in the prevention of liver blindness, cataract surgery, eye screening as well as distribution of eye glasses.
According to her, Nigeria does not have facilities to carry out cornea transplant as patients are transported to Kenya where the club has an eye hospital.
She, however, said members of the club in Nigeria would collaborate to build a similar eye hospital in the country.
“We want to construct an eye hospital where we can have eye bank because right now if anybody wants to donate cornea we don’t have the capacity to receive it.
“But when we have such a hospital with an eye bank where people can donate, we will be able to receive and preserve eyes donated from abroad,’’ she said.
In his response, Afolabi pledged NAN’s support for all the activities of the club.
He said the agency would partner with the Lions to enlighten the public on the club’s activities.
“NAN is ready to partner with you so that people will know what you do and support you,’’ he said.
NAN reports that the club is a charity organisation established in 1917 in Chicago by Mr Melvin Joan and founded in Nigeria by Mr Akintola Williams in 1964 0n his return to the country.
The acronym LIONS was drawn front the last stanza of the club’s prayer which means Liberty Intelligent our Nations Safety. (NAN)