By Egufe Yafugborhi & Chioma Onuegbu
UYO – GOVERNOR Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom state, still grieving the passing of his wife, Pastor Patience Umo Eno, has said the pain of the experience is something he can’t easily come to terms with.
Eno was sharing the grief with colleagues of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) who visited him at the Government House, Uyo on Monday.
He told the fellow governors that the demised Akwa Ibom First Lady, his wife for 38 years lived a successful and fulfilled life and by all standards, was a great achiever.
“It is something that we cannot easily come to terms with. For me, when I talk to people, I tell them this is a lifetime of mourning, you mourn in stages.
“It is not something you just finish mourning and it is over because as long as you live, you will keep seeing that there is a vacuum.”
He acknowledged that the condolence visit by fellow governors to empathize with him just like other well meaning Nigerians have been doing have helped a great deal in comforting him and family.
“But the truth is, the encouragement, the comfort and the support we have received from very well meaning Nigerians gives us that hope, strength and the ability to continue to look forward.
“It is amazing how this has touched people across party lines. The other day, apart from the press release of His Excellency the President, he also made a personal call. He spent quite some time on phone with me. So the interest people are taking gives us that comfort and encouragement and it helps us manage the pain.
“So we thank you for coming all the way. To travel from one point to the other and to finally make it to Akwa Ibom is stressful. If people don’t love you, they won’t do all of that. So this is an indication of that love, and we do not take it for granted,” the Governor said.
Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq of Kwara State and Chairman of the NGF described the late Mrs Patience Eno as a household name in humanity, adding that losing her was devastating to both members of the Forum and its staff.
He prayed God to grant Governor Eno the fortitude to bear the loss and for his daughter, Mrs. Helen Obareki, the grace to pilot the pet project and other programmes of the Office of the First Lady.
Governor of Edo State and Chairman, South-South Governors’ Forum, Godwin Obaseki, said with the kind disposition and positive energy the deceased First Lady exhibited, it would be difficult to forget her.
He pleaded with the Governor to be consoled by the values she represented and what she stood for in her life time, while he conveyed the condolence of the governors of sister states in the South-South zone.
