Six years after the ill-fated Dana plane crashed in Iju-Ishaga, Lagos State, widows, widowers, children, relatives and friends have vowed to sustain the legacies of the deceased even as they established N5 million employment fund, to assist youths in the country.
It would be recalled that the ill-fated Flight 992 left the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja for Lagos with 157 passengers and crew members, but crash-landed, killing everyone on board and 10 residents, increasing the causalities to 167.
The fund was launched at a remembrance organised for one of the victims, Mrs. Tosin Anibaba, in Lagos, which was also attended by Secretary to the Government, SG of Ogun, Mr. Taiwo Adeoluwa; a university don, Professor Oladipo Akinkugbe, and others.
At the gathering, relatives and friends demanded that the victims of the ill-fated flight must not be allowed to die in vain considering the circumstances surrounding their death.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Senator Dipo Odujirin, stressed that to ensure the victims didn't die in vain, the family established the Tosin Anibaba Memorial Fund, TAMFund, depositing N5 million in it.
Odujirin said: "We need to keep Tosin's dream alive and in order to ensure such, we have decided to change the sad narrative to achieve a positive goal; thus, ensure her legacy lives on."
The father of the deceased hinted that no fewer than 65 young entrepreneurs have been empowered to keep them off the streets and make them contribute their quota to the development of the country.
According to him, the fund is meant to ensure youth empowerment, the growth of small and medium businesses through the provision of financial aid and nurture youth entrepreneurs in the country.
"We all should stop mourning and use a sad event to create opportunities for the youths in Nigeria and make life better for them. If we fail to do that, we are sitting on a time bomb.
"It is difficult to legislate for the economy because it requires money. It is a collective effort that must be won if we want this country to grow.
"The government is to provide an enabling environment for the youths to engage in their chosen fields. And some of the things it must create is power, loans that could assist them because they need this money to nurture their ideas to fruition.
"The idea is that immediately we get more money, we embark on another. I am happy that my daughter didn't die in vain. We are happy that we are sowing seed into the lives of the youths," he added.
