The family of Enejoh Faith, an aviation student whose training was funded by former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, has expressed gratitude to him after she completed her programme.
Faith and her family visited Bello on Monday to appreciate the former governor for supporting her aviation education after she struggled to raise the funds required to continue her studies.
According to a statement by Onogwu Muhammed, Bello’s spokesperson, the former governor first met Faith and her father on July 17, 2025, when they visited his residence to seek financial assistance.
Faith, who was dressed in an aviation uniform, had secured admission for aviation training, but her family could not afford the cost of completing her registration.
Her father presented her admission letter and other relevant documents to Bello and explained the family’s financial difficulties.
Bello subsequently decided to take full responsibility for Faith’s aviation training.
The statement said the cost of the programme was in the region of N30m, adding that Bello provided more than the amount initially requested because he anticipated that Faith could face other financial challenges during her studies.
It said the intervention was not publicly announced at the time, with no press conference or media coverage organised around it.
During Monday’s visit, Faith and her family updated Bello on her progress and expressed appreciation for the support.
Her father said Faith scored 89 per cent in her public pilot licence examination and also performed excellently in her computer-based test.
He said she had completed her training and was preparing for the next stage of her aviation career.
According to him, his daughter had nurtured the ambition of becoming a pilot since her secondary school days.
He said Bello did not know either him or his daughter before their encounter.
“And Oga did not know me before. He didn’t know my daughter,” he said.
Expressing gratitude to Bello, Faith’s father said the former governor had become a highly valued member of their family.
He said, “God will bless you, sir. I have nothing to reciprocate. In this family, after God, you are the next person to us. Our family will continue to remember you. Even at death, our spirit will continue to appreciate you.”
He also recalled the anxiety he experienced before the family received Bello’s intervention.
“Before we came to your place, my BP rose to 180. When we left, and I checked the next day, it came back to 130. If I had died that very day, I would have still died a happy and fulfilled man on earth,” he said.
The father also prayed for Bello, asking God to support him in his personal and political battles.
“I pray from the depth of my heart, the heart of my children, my wife, everybody here, that God will fight your battle. Whatever battle that is ahead of you, God will fight for you. God Almighty will fight for you,” he said.
Muhammed said the intervention was part of the former governor’s private scholarship initiatives.
According to him, at least four people have been trained as pilots through Bello’s private scholarship scheme, while others have received assistance to study at universities in Nigeria and abroad.
He said Faith’s family requested that her story be made public to highlight the intervention that enabled her to pursue and complete her aviation training.
The family’s visit, he added, was not to request further assistance but to thank Bello and share the outcome of his intervention.