International Widows Day: Akwa Ibom First Lady, Patience Eno Empowers 250 Widows
CHIGOZIE AMADI
Wife of Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Patience Umo Eno, has empowered not less than 250 widows across the 31 Local Government Areas and members of eleven Non-Governmental Organizations in the state.
The empowerment by the first lady came on the heels of the commemoration of the 2024 International Widow’s Day, observed globally on June 23.
The maiden Widows Enhancement Programme, organised through the pet project of the Governor’s Wife, the Golden Initiative for All, GIFA, held at the Banquet Hall, Government House Uyo, saw the beneficiaries smile home with cash and gift items.
Speaking at the event, Pastor Patience Eno expressed gratitude to her husband, the governor for making it possible for every woman to have a sense of belonging in Akwa Ibom State, saying that the event became expedient to “raise awareness over the violation of human rights that widows suffer following the death of their spouses.”
The First Lady who is the Chairperson of the Akwa Ibom State Gender – Based Violence Management Committee, frowned at the existence of various harmful widowhood practices and noted that with the domestication of the Widowhood Law of 2013 and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition)VAPP Law of 2020 in Akwa Ibom, the full weight of the law would apply to anyone troubling widows in the state with outdated traditional practices.
Pastor Patience Eno reaffirmed that any case of injustice against widows brought to her attention would be handled promptly, while directing the different NGOs for widows in the state who attended the event to create clusters for the training of their members on entrepreneurial skills to ensure their economic growth and development.
Welcoming the women, one of the coordinators of GIFA, Mrs. Anne Abraham, who lauded them for remaining strong and resilient despite the significant loss suffered, noted that the programme which falls under the women empowerment thematic area of GIFA, was to harness a support environment where widows are recognised by the state government.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Dr. Ini Adiakpan, applauded the governor, Pastor Umo Eno and his wife, Pastor Patience Eno, for giving succour, comfort and a sense of belonging to the widows as well as their humaneness in taking on programmes that touches all strata of people in the state.
The Director of the Akwa Ibom State Multi – Door Courthouse, Magistrate Helen Umana and the FIDA Chairperson, Barrister Iquo Abia, took turns to enlighten the widows on the laws which protect them against harmful widowhood practices in the state while encouraging them to speak up and report to appropriate authorities whenever such negative cultural issues arise in their communities.
They commended the governor’s wife for the motherly show of love and pledged their continuous support in the fight against harmful widow’s practices in the state.
In a brief exhortation on the theme, “A Wise Widow”, Bishop Enobong Essien, encouraged widows not to be overwhelmed by their present circumstances, but to brace up and forge ahead, assuring them of the ever-abiding presence and help of God.
Responding on behalf of beneficiaries, Madam Alice Uwah, thanked the governor’s wife for selecting her and others for participation in the Widows Enhancement Programme, a development that has given them a sense of belonging as beneficiaries of government’s benevolence.
