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Nigeria: Women Will Help in Fight Against HIV/Aids -Hajiya Yar'Adua
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Daily Champion (Lagos)
24 July 2008
Posted to the web 24 July 2008
Emma Ogu
Owerri
First lady of Nigeria , Hajiya Turai Umaru Yar'Adua yesterday in Owerri, Imo State, assured that women in Nigeria will complement the efforts of the various tiers of government in the fight against HIV/AIDS scourge. Mrs. Yar'Adua who gave the assurance at the Dan Anyiam Stadium at the launch of South East chapter of the National Coalition of Women Against HIV/AIDS, lamented the devastating threat of the disease on our population and stated that the epidermic has continued to be a serious developmental challenge confronting humanity at this point in time. Nigeria , she said has gotten its own fair share of the millions of people that have been infected or have died as a result of the disease. She further pointed out that out of the millions of people estimated to be living with the virus, women and children remain the most vulnerable group that bear the brunt of the epidemic.
This, she noted, informed the establishment of NAWOCA as a formidable platform that will give a well coordinated response to the pandemic. While noting the tremendous achievements in advocacies, mobilisation, awareness campaign and education recorded by the association, the first lady explained that the establishment of state chapters of NAWOCA has further scaled up the campaign in different parts of the country stressing that more local government chapters of the body are coming on board to ensure the passage of the message to the grass root.
The wife of the president noted that the current administration has put in place numerous programmes to fight the scourge of HIV/AIDS on our land pointing out that women have a role to complement government efforts at all levels so as to save the lives of the people. "Our efforts as mothers therefore is to complement the efforts of governments at all levels and to play our strategic roles of saving the lives of our sisters and children," she stated.
According to her, women have the capacity and desire to contribute their quota to the attainment of every meaningful endeavour that impact positively on the people. She said that the idea behind the launch of the coalition at zonal levels is to speed up coverage of the remaining states of the country that are yet to launch their state chapters. Mrs. Yar'Adua who arrived at the Sam Mbakwe Airport around 11.30am via a presidential flight was accompanied by wife of the Senate President, Mrs. Helen Davis Mark. They were received on arrival by wives of the governors of the five states in the South East of Imo, Anambra, Ebonyi, Abia, Enugu states. Also at the ceremony were Governors Ikedi Ohakim and his Abia counterpart, Theodore Orji.
In his speech on the occasion, Governor Ohakim stated that the involvement of women in the fight against HIV/AIDS will evolve a more effective strategy for tackling the disease because women have greater influence on the society than any other group.
According to him, women are not only more healthy and hygiene conscious, they are in a better position to use both moral and social suasions to educate their husbands, children and peer groups on the scourge pointing out also that women are more vulnerable to the pandemic as HIV virus.
He called on the people of the state and entire south east to enlist into the crusade against HIV/AIDS especially through, the gospel of NAWOCA even as he urged the entire Nigerians to embrace NAWOCA.
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In her own address, wife of the state governor Mrs. Chioma Ohakim said the successful take off of NAWOCA has set the pace for the mobilisation of Nigerian women as committed partners in the fight against HIV/AIDS noting that it was the first time in our national history that the first lady has demonstrated exemplary leadership, vision, determination and courage to protect the welfare and wellbeing of Nigerian women against the dreaded epidemic. According to her, the inauguration of NAWOCA in the South East opens a new chapter in our fight against HIV/AIDS and offers a vista of opportunity for the mobilisation of the rural women in the fight against the epidemic. A total of 50 women victims of HIV/AIDS from the five states of the South East were on the occasion empowered by Mrs. Yar'Adua with the sum of N10,000 each.
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