Don’t expose obscene materials to your children – Archbishop’s wife

Mrs Martha Chioma Ibezim, wife of the Archbishop Ecclesiastical Province of the Niger, and Bishop of Awka Diocese, Anglican Communion, The Most Reverend Alexander Chibuzo Ibezim has appealed to mothers never to relinquish their roles in the family to anyone.

She also appealed to the mothers especially young mothers to ensure they don’t leave obscene materials in their phones to the exposure of their innocent children with impressionable minds, saying it was part of child abuse.

Mrs Ibezim, who is the President, Mothers’ Union, Women’s Guild and Girls’ Guild, Province of the Niger, Anambra state insisted that mothers must rededicate themselves to better upbringing of their children and wards, even as she encouraged parents to be responsible for their children’s progress both at home and in schools, in order to support the teachers’ efforts for better upbringing of the children.

She said, “Parents should always be there for their husbands and children and stop substituting their roles in the family because it gives room for unhealthy relationship in the home.

“Parents should always showcase patience and great discipline before their children and ensure that their pupils compete favourably with their contemporaries in reading and writing skills especially in this e-learning period. The same goes for teachers.”

She further urged children to be disciplined and obey all the COVID-19 protocols like keeping social distancing, regular handwashing, using hand sanitisers and wearing facemasks in public, enjoining them to have hope that life would continue beyond the pandemic.

Mrs Ibezim’s views were contained in a press statement signed by the Director, Media, Research, Communication and Public Relations, Province of the Niger and Diocese of Awka, Comrade Odogwu Emeka Odogwu to mark the 2020 Archdeaconry Women’s conference of the Anglican diocese of Awka with theme: ‘Be still and know that I am God’, Psalm 46:10.

The Archbishop’s wife also decried higher proportion of Nigerian children are bedevilled by malnutrition, social insecurity, early child marriage, and child labour.

She argued that malnutrition remained a great challenge and a setback as it exposes our children to be susceptible to deadly infections with slow recovery rate from illness which retards physical and cognitive development.

She appealed to mothers to do everything possible to ensure their children don’t suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) as it leads to early death of children from common childhood illnesses like diarrhoea, pneumonia, and malaria.

Mrs Ibezim as well appealed to government at all levels to be concerted in their efforts to reduce infant and child mortality rate by ensuring that health services are provided at reduced cost for all children as well as provision of adequate nutrition and safe drinking water within the framework of primary health care.

She decried the prevalence of child marriage in Nigeria with its resultant early childbirth and condemned the deliberate delay in adoption and passage into law of the Child Right Act in many states in Nigeria.

Mrs Ibezim raised alarm on the growing cases of obstetric fistula in Nigeria and the world at large with about 20,000 cases yearly, and decried the pains, agonies and suffering as well as stigmatisation women suffering from fistula go through in the society especially untreated cases.

She called for better access to sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning and maternal health services by child bride once any is identified to reduce the high rate of obstetric fistula.

She called for sensitization on the provisions of the Child Rights Act, even as she advocated for immediate measures aimed at strengthening of the criminal justice system to checkmate abuses and violation against child rights with strict implementation by all levels of government as well as improved access to education and eliminating gender gaps in education.

Mrs Ibezim advocated for mentoring for children as it provides them with good leadership examples in resilience, hard work and selflessness needed to stir the ship of the nation since they are hope for a better tomorrow.

She urged women to be prayerful and always be thankful to God always no matter the situation because many died due to Coronavirus but they still surviving the pandemic that had ravaged the world mercilessly.

She pointed out that it is needless worrying over anything as the best option is to lay it before God in prayers for He has solution to all our problems.