Wife of Enugu State governor, Mrs Nkechinyere Mbah, has offered scholarships to the three children of a mother who allegedly committed suicide after dropping them at the Ogui Police Station, Enugu.
Mrs Mbah said her recently launched non-governmental organisation, the Custos Care Foundation, would cater for their education from nursery through university.
She also arranged for the immediate relocation of the bereaved children from Ogui Divisional Police Station to a secure residential facility for their care.
An unidentified woman had reportedly committed suicide by stripping and throwing herself unto a moving vehicle after dropping her children in front of Ogui Road Enugu in an incident many have blamed on depression occasioned by hardship.
The eldest child, who is barely six, could not provide any meaningful information about their parents or community.
However, during a visit to the station where the children were quartered after the incident, Mrs. Mbah, who described the incident as heart-wrenching, said her foundation would not allow the children to suffer or their future hampered by the event.
“This is a very sad news and my heart goes out to these children. To be stripped of a mother’s love at the early stages of their lives is heartbreaking.
But it has happened. So, what we will do going forward is to ensure that they are not stranded in life; that they do not lack quality education, and that their future and destinies are not truncated.
“So, for now, we will move them into a secure residential facility where they will receive adequate care.
The Custos Foundation will also sponsor their education from primary to the university. We have to be there for one another,” Mrs Mbah stated.
The governor’s wife emphasised the import of mental health awareness and urged persons struggling with depression and related challenges to seek assistance and counseling, saying there was nothing to be ashamed about it.
She equally urged the Enugu State Ministry of Children, Gender, and Social Development and its counterparts at the federal and state levels across the country to step up their mental wellness advocacy, especially at a time like this.
