CHAIRMAN AGORO PALLIES HEAVEN'S FORECOURT, OPENS PRIVATE CEMETERY IN IMOTA, URGES PEOPLE OF LAGOS EAST SENATORIAL TO BURY THEIR LOVE ONES AT HFC. It's solemn, neat and very affordable, HFC Management reveals.

All roads were led to Imota on Wednesday, August 28, 2019, when Heaven's Forecourt, HFC, a beautiful, solemn and neat place with lot of spaces and no congestion had its grand opening. It was jointly established by the government of Imota LCDA and the owners of HFC, to solve the inadequacies of cemeteries in the Lagos East Senatorial. Heaven's Forecourt, situated at Ori-Okuta road, Imota, is said to be unique with blessed, serene, secured, alluring, and very affordable final resting place for the remains of departed loved ones.

Prince Wasiu Agoro, Executive Chairman of Imota LCDA, in his eloquent address, expressed gratitude and speaks on the reasons why the cemetery was brought into existence. He said the present government was not in power when the project started in 2015, but came on board in 2017 and choose to make it a reality.

"Why would death take our loved one away so soon? At these periods, it’s easy to fall into the enervating and destructive arms of depression. But, if we ever truly loved them, we must try and be strong. We ought to shift our attention to ensuring they are buried with dignity," Agoro said.

He applauded the initiative of the former E.S., Imota LCDA, Hon. Otunba Muyiwa Adesanya, and also stated that Imota is a more faster LCDA in growth and development than that of Ikorodu because there is more space in Imota for infrastructure. He added that since he discovered that people wanted to bury their dead in a special way, he then decided to collaborate with private investor to create cemetery.

Agoro further stated to MegaXpression Community Magazine that “though we have similar project like this at lekki and most people are yearning for a good place where they can bury their loved ones and the remains can be well protected and accessible. It was on this basis that the Council aurthority found it worthy to give an approval to a befitting private Cemetery of this type. "This is an international version of a cemetery and we'll give it all the necessary support to make it effective functioning.

"Burying a loved one in a private cemetery doesn’t come cheap and the council should be able to make a profit out of it because they own the cemetery and those who can afford this burial ground for their loved ones should do so because it will be very much affordable for them and it is not just for Imota community alone but also for other communities," Prince Agoro added.
       
Speaking earlier at the formal opening, Alhaji Imam Musbaudeen Olawale Muali, the zonal missionary, Nasfat Lagos Zone 1 and also the branch missionary Ikorodu branch gave a little appreciation speech and also rendered prayers for the formal opening of Heavens Forecast.

He also made mention of how Muslims deceased are expected to be buried.

While giving his speech, Patriarch Bolaji from a memorial Church at Itaelewa said “the proper way to bury the dead is classified into culture, tradition and religious setting. In my own religion, it is wrong to cremate the dead because what was recognized in the bible was to bury the dead”.  He made reference to the advent of Christianity in 1976, which Europeans said it is not a good to bury Christians at home but cemetery.
     
“Burial on the internet is a method of final dispensation where a dead person or animal is placed into the ground and sometimes with an object that might be a coffin, casket or cloths. In this kingdom, it is a shameful thing for an animal to feast on a dead body or to allow the dead be consumed by an animal, the bible forbids this which means after death a burial rite or funeral should be prepared to bury the dead.

“Yoruba belief that the best way to cover the secret of the dead is to bury it. What Ecclesiastes 6:3 states in this context is that no matter how old a person might be on earth if that person doesn’t find goodness and the person doesn’t get buried then  a  stillborn is therefore better than the person.

“One question I want us to ask ourselves is how should we bury the dead? Should we bury them immediately or wait for a while? In Christianity, the dead can be buried immediately and can also be preserved for a while. Even Jacob and Joseph were not buried early," Patriarch Bolaji said.

He also added that though there have been questions arising about where the dead should be buried and he said the dead should be buried in the cemetery because it is not proper to bury the dead in a house.

“The dead should be taking care of, so it won’t smell and to prevent shame from coming into the family and home because of their careless way of taking care of the dead, a  burial ground should be a place where we can visit to see our loved ones in their resting place again and again”.

A tour round HFC was observed for all dignitaries and everyone that were present at the event. It was discovered that there were different segments in the cemetery for the royal family, the Muslims and also Christians.

Shortly after this, the Chairman,  Ikorodu North LCDA, Hon Banjo Adeola Adebisi, also said to MegaXpression that he's highly impressed with the project and very optimistic that people will have a rethink and come to the patronage.

"The available facilities is awesome with adequate security and CCTV cameras. Above all, it's very affordable," Banjo added.

Notable among dignitaries present at the event are Asiwaju Olorunfunmi Basorun J.LIP (First Secretary to Lagos State Govt), Mr. Adeola Adebisi Banjo, Executive Chairman, Ikorodu North LCDA, Prince Wasiu Agoro, Executive Chairman, Imota LCDA, Prince Olasunkanmi Tijani, former Chairman, Ikorodu North LCDA, Hon. Adeola Jokomba, former Chairman, Ikorodu North LCDA, Prince Tajudeen Adekoya, Chairman, Admos Hotel, Imota, Elder Omolara Shobajo, Proprietor, Lara Narroway, Very Rev. Sunday Oluwole Adegbola, Presbyter at Methodist Church of Nigeria, Ita Elewa Ikorodu, Alhaji Oloworibi, Chief Imam of Ikorodu, Superior Evangelist Sunday Elebiyo CCC Opopo Ona Iwa Mimo Parish, Igbo olomu Ikorodu, Mrs Toyin Salau JP, amongst others.

ADEWALE OYINLOLA PELUMI
Reporting for MegaXpression Community Magazine.
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