Widows have been charged not to use their circumstances as an excuse to become beggars or a burden to their families in particular and society in general.
Mrs. Victoria Olowosoyo, Head of Department, Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Yaba Local Government Development Area, gave the charge recently at the graduation ceremony for widows trained in vocational skills by TESCAM Women Support Initiative.
According to her, ” gone are the days when the less privileged especially widows sit at home and cry. This is the era of self empowerment. Don’t let your situation weigh you down. Don’t let anyone tell you that you have to beg before you can eat. Don’t let anyone tell you they are better than you.”
Mrs. Olowosoyo came in the company of Mr. Duro Akinola, Head of Department, Education, Yaba LCDA, to represent the Chairman of the LCDA.
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While congratulating the widows, Mrs. Olowosoyo advised them to put to use the knowledge they have acquired during the training. “Be serious with what you have learnt. Go home and put it to use. Don’t go crying to relatives always for help. Even if you need to ask for help, let the relatives see you are doing something. Be frugal in spending, don’t squander. In your little corner, you are contributing to the economy of the local government, the local government contributes to the state and the state to the federation,” she said.
She assured them that she would relay their challenges to the Local Government Chairman even as she promised to include TESCAM in her department’s poverty alleviation programmes.
In his own comments, Mr. Akinola promised that the local government will fix five orphans being cared for by the NGO into schools near them.
He also promised that the children will be provided with books and school uniforms by the local government free of charge.
Giving a talk on ‘Health as a means of Success’, Professor Jayne Ajuluchukwu of the Department of Cardiology, University of Lagos Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi – Araba, Lagos, encouraged the women to pay attention to safety at home and to their health. “Your health is more important now that you are alone so you have to be careful to do the right things. Prevention is cheaper than treatment. Also, since you are now playing the role of mother and father, you have to know your children, engage them, know their friends and what they do.”
The representative of the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Lagos State, Mrs. Adeola Aina, also charged the women to put to good use the knowledge they have acquired. Her words, “you have been empowered, given the power to make wealth. Put it to use.”
She commended the founder of the NGO, Mrs. Theresa Ohumaegbulem for her efforts saying she was helping to reduce poverty in the state.
She also promised to bring to the attention of the Commissioner the challenges of the NGO so as to see how they could help.
Founder of the NGO, Mrs. Ohumaegbulem while congratulating the women encouraged them never to give up on themselves.
She also thanked the representatives of the Commissioner and the Yaba LCDA for their encouragement and support.
About 50 widows graduated from the training, which covered, liquid soap making, pastries, insecticides making and bleach making.
