•Ms. Johnson Photo: Sun News Publishing

Woman of the Sun Index

Ms Bimbola Johnson is not a name that rings a bell because she is not the type that graces pages of newspapers and magazines. But mention B-JAY’s hotel on the island, many will quickly nod their head in recognition.
You now wonder why she has broken the jinx, Yes, Johnson is part of a committee that says retirees and senior citizens should not spend their last days and years in misery, penury, agony and bitterness, rather it should be spent where worries of the home maintenance, security, safety and more importantly a caring healthcare known as ‘GLORYLAND Trust International’.

In an interview with her recently at her five-star hotel, Johnson who is a founding member tells you “Glory land is a great community for the senior citizens, a private age considerate community for our older citizens after retirement. It is also a community inspired by the need to alleviate the mundane problems and struggles of the day-to-day life for the aged. Gloryland fosters tranquil and pleasurable living ensuring that an aged life is lived with a purpose. It is a great community for the elderly, a neighborhood planned to house diverse-income earners and a solution to age care perennial challenges to the society”.

Ms. Johnson, a sister to former Governor of Lagos state, Sir Mobolaji Johnson revealed that Gloryland is fashioned after the type of homes she saw while living and touring in developed countries. The essense of establishing a home away from home is for the retirees and senior citizens to be together and have some fond memories before their final call. It is a community inspired by the need to alleviate the mundane problems and struggles of day-to-day life for the aged and it is a place to enrich the lives of the elderly in delightful and companionable subsistence.

Going round, you find out that some old people who have put in all their lives training children and acquiring properties are no longer happy the way they are going through old age. Some have derailed just because they have no companion of their ages.
She agrees that yes, the family is important but old school mates, old friends are equally important, aged people seems to come alive and respond better when they meet again years after loosing contact.
Still creating the awareness, she drew the message home when she added, “when an old person is seen outside walking under the rays of early morning vitamin ‘D’, it becomes strange and sacrilegious. Instead of admiring the old personality, what follows that sight are questions like: “What are you doing outside? Won’t you go and stay at home.”

When an aged person is no longer useful financially or cannot run around for household chores, his or her sight even among some of his or her relatives becomes irritating and embarrassing. In most cases they are restricted to a permanent room where no visitors sees them
To her, the treatment the society meets to its senior citizens can gradually send one to an early grave. In a fierce look she asked angrily “Imagine citizens who have put in their lives working for one organization or the other, the ones that did not die on the job manages to live without wages .

When you see them queuing up for their pension and gratuity, you are ashamed of a country like this” she did not stop at that.
The vision of Gloryland according to Johnson is to foster tranquil and pleasurable living, ensuring that an aged life is lived with a purpose. It is no longer news to say we have no security, there is no pipe-borne water, and there is no electricity. You can count how many great citizens of this country that lost their lives carelessly and no one has traced their killers till date.

These she considers as challenges facing the old people. Again the dynamics of modern life has affected the structure of the Nigerian family culture whereby children stay around to care for their aged parents. It is also an established fact that the loyalty and interdependence between the homeowner house help has now evaporated. The lack of, and irregularity of pension payments and income have relegated many retirees to penury. The feebleness of ageing affects their performing basic health maintenance tasked becomes a challenge due to the inevitable ageing process.

Ask her what informed their opinion to establish this type of project. Ms Johnson recalled a horrible experience as an 8year old girl that her mother sent to an errand two streets away from theirs.
“Whenever I am asked this question, an experience of many decades ago comes to my mind she says. “My late mother then sent me on errand, two streets away from ours then here in Lagos, I saw a little crowd that surrounded a middle aged haggard looking woman who had the olden days braid known as didi on her hair with grey eye-lead and wrapper tied across her chest. A few people had gathered around her and the number of people kept increasing. Questions were being thrown at her from all angles.

Who are you? Where are you coming from? Why can’t you get home?
Another voice came from the background, maybe she is a witch and have missed her way. The next thing I saw was stones started flying to her direction, one landed on her forehead and blood spread out with speed. I ran away”.
To her, that could have been an innocent citizen who is suffering from senile dementia. She was mistaken for witchcraft and she met her untimely death just like that.

She also remembered another incident of a known person that came visiting their late father then but could not find his way back home, he rigmarole the entire neighborhood until he was assisted home. These are all effects of lack of care. If these two individuals had caring and loving families, would they have become victims of negligence?

Even though she has tried her hands on one or two charitable organizations at the clubs where she belonged, Johnson strongly believes that she will not be fulfilled without putting heads together to raise a place like ‘Gloryland’, where people who are retired from active functions as teachers, doctors, public servants, business owners and farmers will be.

The proposed site rests on a 300 acre community in serene atmospheric Abeokuta which will have facilities like fitness centers, parks and gardens, farm plots and Hobby shop. Others include computer centre, Cinemas shows, library, flower gardens, restaurants, interfaith chapel and mosque. Its is open to all tribes and all religious. According to her, Gloryland will spread through all the state in the federation in due course.
For now that the financial supports comes from individuals while the government is expected to lend support, initial occupants will experience what the initial purchasers of mobile phone 090 experienced. But today mobile phones are within the reach of all.

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