*Pays hospital bills, rents, provides houses

BY VINCENT UJUMADU

AWKA- THE Caring and Helpline Foundation (CHLF), also known as Careless Whispers, which is an initiative of Prince Emeka Kalu, a broadcaster and labour leader, has been rescuing many less privileged people in Anambra State by settling their hospital bills, payment of house rents with donations from the well to do in the society.

Since its formation, the Foundation has become very popular, particularly with its radio programme during which people in need were given opportunity to speak on their predicarment, thereby attracting the attention of donors.

Promoter of the Foundation, Kalu said the outfit provides a credible platform for synergizing the efforts and resources of well meaning members of the society towards improving the lot of individuals and groups in the society who can no longer help themselves.

He explained that its mission also includes reuniting estranged couples, healing broken homes and soured relationships, to matching and inventing cross pollination of relationships, adding that through the intervention of affluent citizens and public spirited individuals across the globe, CHLF strives to promote the economic empowerment of the less privileged by providing social welfare packages for the downtrodden and    protection of the vulnerable and oppressed in the society.

In addition, Kalu said, the Foudation provides quality free or subsidized healthcare facilities, life essentials and basic social amenities to remote dwellers, and the impoverished and identifies and assists gifted but indigent pupils and students in their academic pursuits. It also encourages and promotes creativity, innovativeness, hardwork and entrepreneurship among young people and women through skill acquisition programmes, he further said.

Its philosophy, he said, is based on the premise that nothing is greater than human service which, if properly applied, promotes peaceful and harmonious human coexistence, through amicable resolution of disputes and differences between people. To date, no fewer than 100 persons had benefitted from the activities of the Foundation.

Kalu said: “The Foundation is therefore my own way of expressing gratitude to God through devoted service to humanity; turning tears of sorrow to those of joy, intervening in cases of oppression, victimization of any sort.

“The Careless Whispers, as the Foundation is popularly called, uses different arms of the mass media to sensitize the affluent people in the society on the need to help the less privileged and the  needy generally.

“It mobilizes and accesses varied support from the public to the needy, thereby bridging the gap between the rich prospective benefactors and the needy who are the beneficiaries. In other words, Careless Whispers Radio/TV live phone in helpline programmes are broadcast and streamed live on many electroninc media organizations, thereby providing a platform whereby the needy share their problems and get on-the-spot links to voluntary benefactors.

“With the media, the needy are able to express themselves and get in touch with those who can render assistance. With the media also, CHLF solicits help from donor agencies, finance partners, philanthropists, humanitarian organizations, affluent and public spirited people, to bring succour to the traumatized, the hopeless, the voiceless, the impoverished and downtrodden in the society.

According to him, clamours for help and interventions by callers, are usually verified by volunteers who are called CHLF Careless Whispers Ambassadors and who, through unscheduled and surprised visitations to those soliciting for help at their homes, hospitals, offices and varied scenes, bring feedback and first hand information based on practical eye witness accounts.

He said that through the intervention of the Foundation, partnerships and synergy had been established with the management of some government and private hospitals, including Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH), Nnewi, Iyienu Hospital, Ogidi, Classic Specialist Surgical Clinic, Onitsha, Ndeli Hospital, Awkuzu among others.

These health institutions, he explained, sometimes grant waivers to bills being settled by the Foundation for patients held hostage at the hospitals as a result of inability to offset such bills.

Notable achievements

He listed some of those who had benefitted from such arrangements to include Christian Onyekaba from Owerezukala in Orumba South local government area of Anambra State who, following a ghastly accident, was operated on both sides of the chest at the Classic Specialist Surgical Clinic, which he survived and was unable to settle some of his remaining bills running in millions. When he heard about the CHLF interventions, he phoned into the live radio program and pleaded for help and and this made a listener, Dr Chika Anueyiagu from Connecticut, USA, to offset the bill, Kalu said.