Adopted Ekiti Children Reunite with Family after 12 Years in Netherlands

 

Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti

Two Ekiti State indigenes who were adopted by a Dutch couple 12 years ago  have pleaded with the state government to place a high premium on the upkeep of the children in orphanages.

The duo said this thursday when  their foster parents,  Donald and Gertruda Boots, brought them home to familiarise them with their immediate relatives.

The two brothers, aged 17 and 14, were a product of a poverty-stricken polygamous family, but were adopted by the couple in 2005 during  the first tenure of the state Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose.

The eldest son, Joshua, who expressed his joy to be at home, thanked the state government and every other person that took part in  the adoption process, saying their fortunes have improved tremendously.

Receiving the couple and the children at her office in Ado Ekiti, the wife of the governor, Mrs.  Feyisetan Fayose, expressed  joy over the radical turnaround of their  lives, saying seeing them in good health and high spirits was pleasing and fulfilling to her as a mother.

She noted that her interest in the welfare of the two children informed her decision to personally visit them in Amsterdam in 2006 during her first time in office, saying, “Honestly, l am happy to see them back  home in good health and high spirit.”

Mrs. Fayose however, regretted the inability of her husband to  personally receive the couple and the two boys due to the fact that the governor was on an official engagement outside the state.

She  thanked the couple for taking care of the two children as if they were their biological children, and prayed for the long life and  prosperity of the Boots family.

Speaking earlier, Donald said they decided  to bring them back home, so as to familiarise themselves with members of their immediate family.

He said their education would not be completed if the two boys were unable to trace their roots.