By Sylvia Akpan
Activities in the Calabar South Local Government Council ground to a halt last weekend after the chairperson, Mrs. Esther Edet Bassey led a candle procession in honor of her late aide, Mrs. Kate Okon Umoh.
The late Mrs. Umoh had served in various capacities in the council and was viewed as a force to reckon with in the council’s politicking. And, Mrs. Bassey said she was a real grassroot mobilizer.
“Anything I want about women mobilization, she was ever ready to do it. She will even do and put styles in it. If you want a hundred women, she can afford to bring even 200,” Mrs. Bassey said while eulogizing her late aide who passed away on February 14th, 2022 in Kwara State while undergoing treatment to manage a terminal illness.
Her political clout was brought to the fore when she was appointed as Supervisor for Health in the council in 2020. Following an uproar which should have led to her sack, she was later re-appointed as the Special Adviser, political affairs to the council chairman.
Married to Mr. Pataya Okon Umoh and survived by a male child, Mrs. Okon is said to have been an active member fo the Cross River Women Emancipation Initiative (CROWEI).
A true native, she was an Alumni of Duke Town Secondary School and the College of Health Technology, Calabar.
The procession which drew dignitaries in the council was held within the secretariat.
