BY VICTORIA ODIA

Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has admonished parents to ensure the good moral and spiritual upbringing of their wards so that they would become useful citizens.
The governor who stated this yesterday in Asaba during the funeral service of Mama Angelina Onyebuchi Azinge, mother of Professor Epiphany Azinge, Director-General, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, said that parents should create enough time for their children’s welfare, morals and spiritual training.
Dr. Uduaghan called on parents to take care of the children’s physical and moral upbringing and mould them into nation builders stating that lack of care and discipline has led to a lot of security and criminal challenges among youths.
His words “It is your responsibility as parentsto ensure that your children are brought up physically and morally because lack of care and character has led to a lot of the security challenges we face in our society. Take out time to mould your children because if they are not well cared for and brought up, they will grow up to become security problems for the nation rather than nation builders”.
While commending the Late Mama Angelina Azinge for her tireless efforts in raising and caring for her children who are now contributing to the development of the nation, the Governor urged parents to emulate her and raise their children in the way of the Lord.
Governor Uduaghan also informed the gathering that the state government has concluded plans to stop underaged children from hawking in the streets and ensure that all children of school age compulsorily attended school as part of the free education policy of the state government. Dr. Uduaghan described the life of Mama Angelina Onyebuchi Azinge as a study in Human Capital Development explaining that through the trials and challenges she faced, she turned out to be an industrious and virtuous woman.
Describing his administration’s three Point Agenda as not misplaced and important to the development of the state, Governor Uduaghan called on Political leaders to play key roles in providing free health care, free education and security to the people explaining that it was their responsibility to meet the needs of the people.
The Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria Anglican Church, The Most Reverend Nicholas Okoh led senior clergy of the church to celebrate the well-attended mass and to pray for the repose of the soul of the departed octogenarian.
In his sermon, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Asaba, Bishop Justus Mogekwu, in a homily, praised the virtues of Mama Azinge and her firm belief and commitment to the betterment of society calling on President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately sign into law the bill prohibiting same-sex marriage which he described as “an evil curse from the pit of hell, that is against the moral values, norms and traditions of the African society,” stating that same sex marriage has nothing to do with human rights or freedom of association.
Rt Rev. Mogekwu who commended the National Assembly for taking the initiative in passing the bill against same sex marriage and recognising its evil, enjoined the political class and indeed Nigerians to appeal to the president to immediately assent to the bill and not bow to the pressure and blackmail of the Western countries.
The Bishop commended the life of Late Mama Angelina Onyebuchi Azinge who he described as a virtuous and industrious woman who catered for her children and imbibed in them the Christian values which they exhibited today.
He called on the children to maintain the legacies of their mother and continue to serve humanity in all they do and advised them to put their trust in Christ as their mother did, and seek His face always.
Other dignitaries at the funeral service included members of the Delta State Executive Council, National and State Houses of Assembly, Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo, the Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Rt. Reverend Emmanuel Chukwumah and an array of other bishops from all over Nigeria

The lack of morals is traceable to the societal decadence in our milieu. Parents must do their best in bringing up their children to become useful to themselves and the society.