Mrs Soludo Receives Award, Enjoins Youths To Embrace Godly Ventures, Shun Drug Abuse, Cultism, Others

By Julie Sylvia, Onitsha

The wife of the Anambra State Governor, Dr Mrs Nonye Soludo has enjoined the youths to embrace Gods ventures, shun drug abuse, robbery idolatry, cultism etc

Mrs Soludo who was ably represented by the wife of the Deputy Governor, Dr Oluchi Ibezim said this in a keynote address during the 2023 convention of the Women Wing of the Christian Council of Nigeria,( WOWICCN) Anambra State chapter at Basilica of St Andrews Odakpu Onitsha.

The keynote address which was on “Godly, not Druggy Youths :An Imperative for New Anambra State, condemned a situation where some of the youths had now taken to cultism, drug abuse, idol worship, armed robbery, laziness and the knack for get-rich quick through money rituals, saying that it is not a good commentary for a state like Anambra.

The First Lady explained that it was for the purpose of containing such antisocial phenomena that informed the state government to initiate various entrepreneurial empowerment for the youth.

She therefore enjoined the youth to have a change of heart and elect to submit to behaving well and engaging in whortwhile godly and socially acceptable ventures.

Mrs Ibezim who was overwhelmed by the honour, award of Excellent Woman of the Year being bestowed to Mrs Soludo, expressed profound appreciation for the award, thanked God for granting her the enablement

She said that by the grace of God her ministry would continue to cater for the indigent and vulnerable people in the state, recounting how recently the state government gave over ₦2billion as a start off grant to youth in the state towards the realisation of the state’s One Youth, Two Skills entrepreneurial scheme.

The bishop on the Niger, the Rt, Rev, Dr Owen Nwokolo had while performing the rite with the symbolic presentation of the award in the form of a plaque, remarked that the award was in recognition of the recipient’s various strides she had made towards impacting lives in Anambra within a short period of her First-ladyship in the state.

He prayed and encouraged her not to relent, assuring her that God is not oblivious of the excellent work she was rendering to Him and humanity and that in due course she would reap her good works

Earlier in her Presidential Address, the host and Chairperson of the WOWICCN, Anambra State Chapter, Dr Mrs Elsie Nonyelum Nwokolo, had in her exposition of the theme of the convention, “Watching unto prayer” (Col. 4:2), prompted the governor’s wife’s concerns.

Among other misconducts of some youth, Dr Mrs Nwokolo was particularly worried about the issues of the youth abandoning the church for cultism, their going back to idol worship, the crave among them to make money fast even if, according to her, it means using their parents to make money.

Calling on christian mothers to cue into serious prayer tasks to stem the trends, she said, “As our convention theme has considered all these and called us to “Watching unto prayer”, can we therefore devotedly condemn our knees for the sake of winning our homes back to God thereby saving His Church from ridicules and heresies?”

The women later embarked on an hour-long advocacy street-walk flaunting placards displaying different inscriptions as, “Say no to rape”, “Say no to cultism”, “Drug abuse is dangerous”, “Come back from idol worship”, among similar catchwords.