… As empowerment leader says widows are suffering most
An association of bishops and ministers in the Niger Delta has cried out on behalf of hungry people in the oil region, urging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to end hunger now.
The President of the association, Julius Ediwe, an archbishop, said the association was acutely aware of the deteriorating situation. “Actually, there is suffering and hunger in the land. We cannot deny that.”
He thus lamented: “President Tinubu, please, hear the cry of the people. People are dying, people are suffering. I do not know how else to put it. Whatever you need to do, if it’s to bring down the cost of fuel or dollar, do it now.”
He said he was speaking on behalf of all the council of bishops and ministers in the Niger Delta. “Please Mr. President, hear the cry of the people.”
Ediwe spoke in Port Harcourt at ‘The Messiah Church’ on Jenny & Jessy Street, opposite Everyday Supermarket, Odili Road in Trans-Amadi, where the Pastor, Ralph Bartholomew, played host to Joy Martins, a woman of God, who came for thanksgiving.
The bishop said he was there to celebrate with Martins, the woman he said God has used to bless many underprivileged persons and widows. “She lost her mother and buried her in February 2024 and came back to say God thank You.
“We are here on behalf of all the bishops and ministers in the Niger Delta to console her and ask God to heal her heart.
“The more you do to the downtrodden, the more God will give you. So, I want to thank as many as gathered here today for the thanksgiving, I say may God bless you all.”
In his exhortation, the bishop anchored it on the hope that widows have a right to expect.
He used what happened in Numbers (27:1) to give hope to the widows. He reminded them about the story of a rich man that died without a son. “The kinsmen according to tradition decided to share out the man’s assets without anything to the children because they were females.
“The young daughter took an appeal to Moses, who consulted God and ruled that they must be given their father’s inheritance. ‘Their portion shall be given to them,’ said Moses.”
So, he stated, widows should rely on that judgment to know that God is restoring their heritage to them and their children.
“This is restoration time. In any way your heritage has been taken away from you, it shall be given to you. A lot of people are blocked from their inheritance. Some are blocked from their destinies. These shall be returned.”
In her tearful message, the woman of God said most Nigerians are in tears, but encouraged the widows not to bow to evil. “Consider eternity, and where you would be.”
She said she was prepared to cry for widows so they won’t have to cry anymore. “My joy is in stopping others from crying.”
Turning to the women, she said these widows need help, they need food more than clothes.
She warned of what she called the cycle of suffering: “Widows producing children who produce helpless children. Prayers of widows are much. They pray for others with their own pains.”
One of the widows, Victoria Asian, poured huge encomiums ‘Mummy Joy’, saying she is a servant of God who sees the need to help the widows and provide for them in any little way she can assist.
She appealed to governments to create skill acquisition scheme for widows saying it would help them to fight back in times of need.
Asian also requested for medical outreach for widows and their children. On loans, she said: “Most widows who want to start a small business do not have the funds. We therefore appeal for a grant or a loan for the widows so they can also be financially independent to help themselves and their children.”
She said there is no fund dedicated to widows at the moment.
