The former super eagles legend and founder of the Kanu Heart Foundation, Kanu Nwankwo, has once again call on well meaning individuals to partner with his foundation in saving lives.
He said its partnership with leading brand cooking oil, Power Oil, would help save more lives through its open heart surgery.
Speaking during the Memorandum of Understanding in Lagos, Nwankwo, while commending Power Oil for what he described as laudable ‘initiative’, urged other spirited Nigerians to follow suit.
Nwankwo, while reflecting on the ordeal he suffered during his journey to stardom, disclosed that his aim is to build an international-standard hospital in Nigeria capable of performing open heart surgery.
He said, ” So far, we have done almost 667 heart open operations, and partnering with Power Oil will help us save more lives.
“But our goal is to build hospitals in Nigeria capable of performing open heart surgery because most of the patients are leaving the country, and with the exchange rate, you and I know what it costs. But if we can have more hospitals that can do it in Nigeria, it would help us a lot, as we still have over 200 on the waiting list.
“The heart is the most important part of the body, and when it stops, you are gone. So our partnership is a win-win situation, as every bottle of power oil purchased would contribute to a life-saving treatment for our foundation.”
Responding on behalf of Tolaram Group, makers of Power Oil, the Group Corporate Communications and Event Manager, Mr. Ashiwaju Temitope, said,
“We believe in promoting healthy living through our products and campaigns. The Kanu Heart Foundation is a foundation we have followed in the past. Their integrity and what they have done have been followed over the years, and it’s what compelled us to initiate the MoU.
“With their antecedents, we agreed that a token of the amount from every power oil bottle sold would be used to support the Kanu Heart Foundation in ensuring that people with heart conditions would be well taken care of, and we will be with them for a long time. I congratulate Kanu for still supporting children and adults with heart disease.”
On his part, the communication adviser, Non-Communicable Disease Alliance Nigeria, NCD, Mr. Abiola Awe, while commending Power Oil for their initiative, insisted that heart diseases can be prevented through a basic lifestyle diet.