By Maxwell Effiong
The Ima Nsa Adegoke foundation has begun advocacy visits to monarchs in Cross River to seek their support to end stigmatisation against widows in the State.
The Cordinating Trustee of the foundation, Barr. Ima Adegoke says the harmful practice still holds sway despite a law prohibiting it in the State with widows denied inheritance due to such.
Adegoke stated this on Tuesday when she visited the Obong of Calabar, Edidem Ekpo Okon-Abasi Otu V at his palace in Calabar South Local Government, where she lamented that many widows and women are being maltreated in the State hence the need for monarchs to step in halt the practice.
The Cross River State Law No. 10 of 2007 (Female Persons Inheritance of Property Law) assented to by Governor Donald Duke’s administration gives women the power to partake in the sharing of their late parent’s or husband’s inheritance.
“There is no awareness as to this law. The whole essence of this visit is to bring an awareness campaign starting with you my lords,” Adegoke said, asserting that; “in the south-south (region), what is prevalent is that the women do not have the right to inherit the property of their husbands, but this law has put an end to all of that.”
According to Adegoke, the campaign which will be taken to the 18 Local Government Areas of the State, seeks to ensure, “these women who are still your wives, their real husbands maybe dead, their children are still your children even though they may not have money or access to you directly,” will not suffer.
The monarch in his response agreed that most traditional values have laid claim to some of these things and allow them to continue unabated.
A treaty King, the monarch promised to match his words with action by sensitizing subjects and colleagues about the law and noted that despite the causative factor that will lead to the breakdown of marriage, men should not throw their wives away to the wind during separation.
“I am pleased that a law has been put in place for it, that now gives us the strength of talking to people and telling them if you do not listen to what we are telling you, not just listening but implementing what we have told you, then the law will have to take its course,” he said.
A copy of the law was presented to the monarch. And, the Chairman of the the Etuboms in council who serve as the Obong’s cabinet, HRH Etubom Bassey Okor Bassey Duke prayed that the foundation’s effort yield positive results.
Earlier, the President of Widows, Calabar South chapter, Mrs. Gloria Asuquo in her presentation, averred that; “if this law is implemented, it will help the widows a lot because government will take over. In the case of death of husbands, the Police will be there to back the women up because in my time I used God’s power to rescue those women.”
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