First Lady Of Ibesikpo Asutan Marks 2024 International Day Of Girl Child
The wife of the Executive Chairman of Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area, Mrs. Glory Edidiong Inyang, has pledged her commitment towards bettering the lot of the girls in the area.
Mrs. Inyang gave the assurance on the occasion of the celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child, 2024, with the theme “Vision for the Future” at the Council Hall Nung Udoe Ibesikpo on Friday, October 11, 2024.
In her address at the occasion, the First Lady quoted Gift Gugu Mona, who said, “We always celebrate a great woman. However, for a girl child to achieve greatness, they must receive encouragement to excel from a young age.
According to Mrs. Inyang, the main aim of the celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child annually on October 11th is to promote girls’ empowerment and fulfilment of their human rights while also highlighting the challenges that girls all over the world face.
She commended her husband, the chairman of the local government council, Hon. Edidiong Inyang, for his love and concern for the girl child by seeing the need to approve the hosting of the International Day of the Girl Child program, barely a few days after assuming leadership of the local government council.
The First Lady said that the challenges facing the girl-child are many and daunting, ranging from domestic abuse, discrimination, harassment, and many more, highlighting that the summit aims to instill confidence in the minds of the girls from the early stage.
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“I decided to take time to celebrate with the young female future leaders of Ibesikpo Asutan, even though it’s been barely days since my dearest and most supportive husband, Hon. (Evang.) Edidiong Inyang, resumed work as Executive Chairman of Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Council, yet still seeing the passion I have for the young girls, he decided to approve the organisation of this event,” she said.
She charged the girls to remain focused, diligent, committed, resilient, and hard-working and to ensure they don’t give up on their dreams just because of an ugly past or something negative said about them but to rather use any negative word said as a motivation to push harder.
She assured them that as the council’s First Lady, she will continue to collaborate with her husband and other stakeholders to ensure that all children can keep learning, stressing that education remains the single most important way to bring hope, peace, and prosperity not only for this generation but also future generations.
Mrs. Inyang further stated that her office is open to attending to reports on issues, especially of child molestation of any form, and urged parents to be vigilant and monitor the activities of their children to prevent abuses by those entrusted in their care.
She commended the late Pastor Patience Umo Eno for her pet project, Golden Initiative For All (GIFA), which is now coordinated by her daughter, Mrs. Helen Eno Obareki, for continually being at the forefront of the campaign against rape, sexual abuse, parents’s defilement of their children, maltreatment of children, etc., adding that the Child’s Right Law prohibits all forms of abuse.
The keynote speaker in her address at the occasion, Mrs. Gloria Udana, an educator and management consultant, stressed the need for proper attention to be given to the girl child in society to help shape their future.
Mrs. Udana said when a girl child is encouraged, they grow to become useful and shapers of society, and she commended the wife of the council chairman for marking the day to promote the cause of the girl child.
The colourful event was graced by eminent female students from schools in Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area in support of the First Lady of the Council and the program.
