Goodlady:

Ashewo is a other cancer that's being combated. Soon, Nigeria ll be free of child marriage, reduced shewo biz, free from religious extremism (you know the region), di population control and not hide under any religious book to start over breeding etc.
So just grow sense & see that the minister of women affairs has done well. If dem like make dem remove her, she has done her part for women development.
Lastly, women in that region ll soon start demanding for their rights. You sef ya wife ll soon hold ya blokkos if you fûck up!

Eiyah.. So you dey hold your husband blockos as him dey beat shege for your body abi

Wetin concern Saudi Arabia, Dubai with una ASHAWO work for Onisha, Aba, Enugu etc


Go to Kano, Bauchi, Abuja etc and see how una people hold ground for ASHAWO work

Smh, what is the government's business with people's marital choice. They left their core duties to chase shadows. People on the other side should do better please, this is 2024, marriage is a personal decision between two individuals not a government decision.

Nahunger:
Him and Niger state imams for try am make hand touch all of them.

Bunch of evil, old, senile cretins.

Will a south easterner die if he reads a story before commenting on it?

No be MUMU Uju the disgraceful minister run go withdraw her lawsuit?

yarimo:
Try and update yourself before creating thread. The minister has withdraw the case in court and the wedding will proceed as planned. The minister also promise to sponsor any of the bride that is willing to go to school after the wedding, the speaker meet with her after the emir of kontagora Emirates meet and resolve all issues at once with the minister.

Mr Islamic champion are you interested in one of the orphan girls? Hide your rod in between your legs and wait for the 73 goat virgins in your heaven

numericalguy:


Will a south easterner die if he reads a story before commenting on it?

No be MUMU Uju the disgraceful minister run go withdraw her lawsuit?

Sense is far from you and your generations, you are a very stupi.d fool for not have comprehension ability, dumb clown..

faithfull18:
Smh, what is the government's business about people's marital choice. They left their core duties to chase shadows. People on the other side should do better please, this is 2024, marriage is a personal decision between two individuals not a government decision.

Will a south easterner die if he reads a story before commenting on it?


The girls found love and want to get married but lacking financial capabilities approached their imams for help. the Imams in return reach out to the legislator. Why is this so hard for you people.


Try to dey listen to other stations apart from radio biafla

MY FIRST CONCERN IS : WHAT IS THE STATE GOVERNOR DOING ABOUT THIS?
WHAT ARE OUR GOVERNORS DOING AT ALL? OR THIS ONE NA JUST NIGERIA AT LARGE?

Akwamkpuruamu:


Why are you in support of this wedding? Is it a priority above empowering these women to a better life? Is life all about wedding?

That's a demon you are quoting.Hes only championing wrong policies.

numericalguy:




Will a south easterner die if he reads a story before commenting on it?


The girls found love and want to get married but lacking financial capabilities approached their imams for help. the Imams in return reach out to the legislator. Why is this so hard for you people.


Try to dey listen to other stations apart from radio biafla [/b]

If they lack financial capabilities to we'd,how they gonna feed and nurture the products of the union?

Goodlady:

Ashewo is a other cancer that's being combated. Soon, Nigeria ll be free of child marriage, reduced shewo biz, free from religious extremism (you know the region), di population control and not hide under any religious book to start over breeding etc.
So just grow sense & see that the minister of women affairs has done well. If dem like make dem remove her, she has done her part for women development.
Lastly, women in that region ll soon start demanding for their rights. You sef ya wife ll soon hold ya blokkos if you fûck up!

Fóolish rodent. Aren't there sharia laws there? Who dey patronize dem? Are they not you and ya people?
Is the law not for catching only poor people?
Single shame no dey ya body. Those almajiri breeded along with you ll do shege to ya life & region!
Go n learn how to do sensible clap back & stop quoting me like a retærd

Na their fellow IP0B brothers be their customers

See as ASHAWO pikin dey voilently defend her profession.
I know ASHAWO is an ancestral professions handed down from generation to generation to you. So I don't blame you for trying to defend what you value most in your life.

Ensa777:


If they lack financial capabilities to we'd,how they gonna feed and nurture the products of the union?

Why are you south east so difficult like this?

Will you die if you read a story before commenting on it?

The original post has it that the girls will be empowered so that they can be productive in life with one philanthropist giving each of the girls N100K each to start up businesses. Even Uju the disgraceful minister only read the headline before before running to media houses.

Conducting wedding ceremonies is this one's achievement. Countries with low birth rate sef are not conducting mass weddings talk more overpopulated one. Tackle poverty and people will afford to wed when they want.

yarimo:
Try and update yourself before creating thread. The minister has withdraw the case in court and the wedding will proceed as planned. The minister also promise to sponsor any of the bride that is willing to go to school after the wedding, the speaker meet with her after the emir of kontagora Emirates meet and resolve all issues at once with the minister.

The minister should have left them alone before they turn the whole thing to tribal and religious crises in nigeria.

Did the minister misunderstand the speaker?

By Ibraheem Dooba

(My column of today in the DailyTrust)

A man was kidnapped in Niger State by bandits who demanded a ransom of one million naira. The family scraped and struggled to pay the ransom. When the bandits got the ransom, they increased it to N2 million. Now the family couldn’t pay. What to do?

The man had two daughters with suitors. So they asked the fiancés to bring money to pay the ransom so that the marriage could be done upon the release of the father. The two suitors managed to raise the money and the family paid the bandits. Upon receiving the money, they still killed the father.

Now the suitors wanted marriage without delay or their money back. However, the family needed money to do so. So the widow reached out to the speaker of Niger State Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, for help. He did help them with the marriage and set them up for success.

Then he reasoned that other orphans may need similar assistance. So he set up a committee to investigate identical cases. The committee reported over 270 people who needed the same support. So he mandated the committee to screen the list to only orphans and need basis. The list was reduced to 100 orphans who voluntarily submitted themselves that they wanted marriage.

So the speaker agreed to give each lady N500,000 and the men N50,000 for their dowry. When the Governor of Niger State, Farmer Governor Bago heard about this, he said was going to give the ladies an additional N100,000 for business.

That’s the background. At least that’s how Dr Ibrahim Daurawa told the story as related to him by the speaker himself.

Here’s a summary: The Speaker of Niger State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, with the support of the Governor, the traditional institution and Muslim scholars, is sponsoring the wedding and businesses of 100 orphans.

But out of nowhere, we read, “Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, minister of women affairs, has petitioned the inspector-general of police (IGP) and sought a court injunction to halt the marriage of 100 girls in Niger state.” TheCable reported.

“I want to let the honourable speaker of the house in Niger state know that this is totally unacceptable by Federal Minister Of Women Affairs and by the government,” Kennedy-Ohanenye said.

The Muslim scholars in the North and Niger State in particular see the minister as an interloper and deem her comments as insults to both the northern tradition and the religion of Islam.

The Council of Imams in Niger State issued a one-week ultimatum to retract her comments. Dr Umar Farouk, the secretary of the Niger State Imam Forum, delivered the warning during a press briefing in Minna, the state capital. He stated that the Minister had overstepped her authority and that the Forum would not tolerate her remarks, which they believed could incite a crisis both in the state and nationwide.

The Speaker, himself a barrister, said: “I am highly disappointed in the minister for women's affairs and it is unfortunate that she allowed herself and her office to be misled by social media reports without finding out from me the true situation on the ground concerning this marriage.

"This is politics taken too far by the minister. She should be properly educated on the culture and tradition of the north that girls of marriageable age are not allowed to roam the streets.”

Now Barrister Abdulmalik is refusing to participate in the wedding without withdrawing the financial support.
“If the parents wish to go ahead with the marriage of their daughters, so be it but I have removed my hands,” he said.

As for me, I think the minister made some dangerous assumptions in a bid to earn a name for herself.

First of all, she referenced the Child Rights Act and said that every child is a ward of the state.

“Because there is something called the Child Rights Act and I said it from the onset, that it is no more business as usual. These children must be considered, their future must be considered, the future of the children to come out of their marriage must be considered,” she said.

Here, she assumed that the 100 orphans to be married were children. The more dangerous assumption is that any marriage in the North is done between men and girls. Because logically, if she jumps to the conclusion that these are girls, you must also admit the conclusion that she thinks only girls are married off in the north. She would be surprised that these are women in their late teens or early 20s.

The second assumption is that these “girls” have no education and have no skills.

The Minister said: “As the speaker did not think about empowering these women or sending them to school or giving them some kind of training support financially. The women's affairs have decided to take it up and we are going to educate the children.”

We don’t know the level of their skill set, but the fact that northerners don’t want to send their children to school is stretched by some people to fit their theories. You would be surprised that these orphans have at least graduated from secondary school and have started a trade in which they only need money to scale.

I’ve sponsored some orphaned girls to school because they want to go to school. If the minister really wants to help, we have many girls who want to go to school but can’t afford it. I’ll personally help with the list. They’re in thousands.

So we’re lucky that the Minister is offering to sponsor our children.

The third assumption is that these orphans are being forced into marriage. It’s also the most irrational assumption.

The Speaker said: “She never bothered to get across to me to even find out the motive behind this Humanitarian gesture because I didn't force any girl into marriage, it was the parents of the girls that approached me and solicited for my support and I gladly accepted to assist them.”

A committee screened those who applied for help and the list was reduced from 270 to 100 based on need. They applied! They sought help. And the help was specific: help us get married. What will the Speaker gain by forcing girls to marry other men?

If the minister did intend good, she could have cleared these assumptions by a simple request to the Speaker asking for the profiles of the ladies. The profiles don’t need to be detailed. Indeed, only three questions are enough: age or date of birth, level of education and employment status. Parental approval can also be added.

I’m sure the screening committee already has this information and could’ve emailed it to the Minister within minutes. Indeed, none of the “girls” is younger than 18, according to Dr Umar who has the list of all the ladies.

But in a bid to earn a name, she chose to pick a fight, a fight that she can’t win. More importantly, she’s causing needless problems for her principal among the people who still have doubts about the intentions of the presidency.

This woman has become the reactive minister. The first time I saw her was during the Lead British School bullying episode. Now, this. What’s she done that’s proactive? The Speaker said that she hasn't visited even one IDP camp in Niger State where these vulnerable women live.

In sum, the speaker is a good guy who wants to help his people. I know because we’re neighbours. We just finished planting trees together. He sponsored the tree planting. That’s the kind of guy he is.

numericalguy:


Na their fellow IP0B brothers be their customers

See as ASHAWO pikin dey voilently defend her profession.
I know ASHAWO is an ancestral professions handed down from generation to generation to you. So I don't blame you for trying to defend what you value most in your life.

There's Ashewo everywhere. So relax, it's not a regional anomaly but a worldwide plague. Work on yaselfs especially if you're a bingo from a region that pretend but practice full call adultery, drug abuse and fornication under hijab. The joke's on you, janjaweêd!

FiftyFifty:
Did the minister misunderstand the speaker?

By Ibraheem Dooba

(My column of today in the DailyTrust)

A man was kidnapped in Niger State by bandits who demanded a ransom of one million naira. The family scraped and struggled to pay the ransom. When the bandits got the ransom, they increased it to N2 million. Now the family couldn’t pay. What to do?

The man had two daughters with suitors. So they asked the fiancés to bring money to pay the ransom so that the marriage could be done upon the release of the father. The two suitors managed to raise the money and the family paid the bandits. Upon receiving the money, they still killed the father.

Now the suitors wanted marriage without delay or their money back. However, the family needed money to do so. So the widow reached out to the speaker of Niger State Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, for help. He did help them with the marriage and set them up for success.

Then he reasoned that other orphans may need similar assistance. So he set up a committee to investigate identical cases. The committee reported over 270 people who needed the same support. So he mandated the committee to screen the list to only orphans and need basis. The list was reduced to 100 orphans who voluntarily submitted themselves that they wanted marriage.

So the speaker agreed to give each lady N500,000 and the men N50,000 for their dowry. When the Governor of Niger State, Farmer Governor Bago heard about this, he said was going to give the ladies an additional N100,000 for business.

That’s the background. At least that’s how Dr Ibrahim Daurawa told the story as related to him by the speaker himself.

Here’s a summary: The Speaker of Niger State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, with the support of the Governor, the traditional institution and Muslim scholars, is sponsoring the wedding and businesses of 100 orphans.

But out of nowhere, we read, “Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, minister of women affairs, has petitioned the inspector-general of police (IGP) and sought a court injunction to halt the marriage of 100 girls in Niger state.” TheCable reported.

“I want to let the honourable speaker of the house in Niger state know that this is totally unacceptable by Federal Minister Of Women Affairs and by the government,” Kennedy-Ohanenye said.

The Muslim scholars in the North and Niger State in particular see the minister as an interloper and deem her comments as insults to both the northern tradition and the religion of Islam.

The Council of Imams in Niger State issued a one-week ultimatum to retract her comments. Dr Umar Farouk, the secretary of the Niger State Imam Forum, delivered the warning during a press briefing in Minna, the state capital. He stated that the Minister had overstepped her authority and that the Forum would not tolerate her remarks, which they believed could incite a crisis both in the state and nationwide.

The Speaker, himself a barrister, said: “I am highly disappointed in the minister for women's affairs and it is unfortunate that she allowed herself and her office to be misled by social media reports without finding out from me the true situation on the ground concerning this marriage.

"This is politics taken too far by the minister. She should be properly educated on the culture and tradition of the north that girls of marriageable age are not allowed to roam the streets.”

Now Barrister Abdulmalik is refusing to participate in the wedding without withdrawing the financial support.
“If the parents wish to go ahead with the marriage of their daughters, so be it but I have removed my hands,” he said.

As for me, I think the minister made some dangerous assumptions in a bid to earn a name for herself.

First of all, she referenced the Child Rights Act and said that every child is a ward of the state.

“Because there is something called the Child Rights Act and I said it from the onset, that it is no more business as usual. These children must be considered, their future must be considered, the future of the children to come out of their marriage must be considered,” she said.

Here, she assumed that the 100 orphans to be married were children. The more dangerous assumption is that any marriage in the North is done between men and girls. Because logically, if she jumps to the conclusion that these are girls, you must also admit the conclusion that she thinks only girls are married off in the north. She would be surprised that these are women in their late teens or early 20s.

The second assumption is that these “girls” have no education and have no skills.

The Minister said: “As the speaker did not think about empowering these women or sending them to school or giving them some kind of training support financially. The women's affairs have decided to take it up and we are going to educate the children.”

We don’t know the level of their skill set, but the fact that northerners don’t want to send their children to school is stretched by some people to fit their theories. You would be surprised that these orphans have at least graduated from secondary school and have started a trade in which they only need money to scale.

I’ve sponsored some orphaned girls to school because they want to go to school. If the minister really wants to help, we have many girls who want to go to school but can’t afford it. I’ll personally help with the list. They’re in thousands.

So we’re lucky that the Minister is offering to sponsor our children.

The third assumption is that these orphans are being forced into marriage. It’s also the most irrational assumption.

The Speaker said: “She never bothered to get across to me to even find out the motive behind this Humanitarian gesture because I didn't force any girl into marriage, it was the parents of the girls that approached me and solicited for my support and I gladly accepted to assist them.”

A committee screened those who applied for help and the list was reduced from 270 to 100 based on need. They applied! They sought help. And the help was specific: help us get married. What will the Speaker gain by forcing girls to marry other men?

If the minister did intend good, she could have cleared these assumptions by a simple request to the Speaker asking for the profiles of the ladies. The profiles don’t need to be detailed. Indeed, only three questions are enough: age or date of birth, level of education and employment status. Parental approval can also be added.

I’m sure the screening committee already has this information and could’ve emailed it to the Minister within minutes. Indeed, none of the “girls” is younger than 18, according to Dr Umar who has the list of all the ladies.

But in a bid to earn a name, she chose to pick a fight, a fight that she can’t win. More importantly, she’s causing needless problems for her principal among the people who still have doubts about the intentions of the presidency.

This woman has become the reactive minister. The first time I saw her was during the Lead British School bullying episode. Now, this. What’s she done that’s proactive? The Speaker said that she hasn't visited even one IDP camp in Niger State where these vulnerable women live.

In sum, the speaker is a good guy who wants to help his people. I know because we’re neighbours. We just finished planting trees together. He sponsored the tree planting. That’s the kind of guy he is.

Your write up was read and properly digested. However no matter how hasty the woman is, we can't trust the north with issues like this without having doubts cos there are thousands of child marriages yearly. If you say girls of marriageable age shouldn't roam the street, the remedy isn't just an arranged marriage for them. A girl that has good job ll not down the street to fornicate or do any ills. She's also an asset to whoever ends up marrying her. So it's the misdeeds of the past of that region that's making everyone to doubt them.
Secondly, all these developing stories looked like a cover up. But since they v decided to narrate their story and it's the only source to believe, let what's good be done. Afterall the minister has also ventured to support. So the girls can now marry in peace.

About the region having doubts in support for the president, they are just having a born to rule mentality that's wrong. Buhari did 8 straight years, we nor enjoy am and he's from their region so what's their fuss? If they are voting, they should vote without sentiments. Enough of political treats.
Their region is the most underdeveloped and they ruled the most if we add military era to it. What's the achievement? Poverty and terrorism. When terrorism started, around 10-12 years ago, they were covering them up. Now it's a cancer eating them up. If they were proactive from start, some of those girls won't be orphans to terrorists that killed their parents. Same way this marriage thing was quickly vetted so that it won't be an almajiri breeding venture. These words may hurt you or any archaic thinking northerner but that region needs to step up. They can see the type of Islam being practiced in Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Qatar, etc. it's same north that's screaming sharia to only chastise the poor. Their rich are above the law. Practice religion with sense of humanity and not hypocrisy!
Without much ado, we hope the marriage of those orphans ll yield good results. God bless Nigeria, God heal the north and whole of Nigeria at large.

Goodlady:

Most of the mass weddings are recipe for breeding poverty. They v never considered population explosion in that region and it's affecting them economically and the whole country security wise to breeds janjaweêds and terror tools.


You are wrong o.
Should we search beam light on coded prostitution, fornication and adultery being done under hijab? Mumu people banning alcohol but collecting their taxes. No sane economic development or plan for future or their population explosion except to sponsor religious trips. Anything religion their blood ll boil but they don't consider development. Always backward in all things like this idiót called numericalguy.
People from the Arab family sef don see say dem no fit hide am again, Arabia and their princes are now breeders of sex orgies.
If you v shame, you ll respond with fact if not, you are a mucous dripping, born troway, born to suffer, gworo chewing alfa, burukutu sipping, latrine sniffing janjaweêd that won't get his 72 virgins in Aljanah Firdaus! Receive healings!

I guess u drive some sort of pleasure insulting people's belief right, here is what u don't knw, ur words/ statements are direct reflection of how u were raised as well as wt u be believed in... So continue telling d world how big a failure ur up bringing was...

That is very nice. .. human development is very important before marriage

Can the Niger state speaker marry off her daughter at as underage...her daughter is schooling in abroad and giving her quality education but the poor children daughter should be married off...that speaker should be arrested

Carlylepneuma:
I guess u drive some sort of pleasure insulting people's belief right, here is what u don't knw, ur words/ statements are direct reflection of how u were raised as well as wt u be believed in... So continue telling d world how big a failure ur up bringing was...

No pleasure is derived cos it's not an abuse.
The words are a reflection of how reasonable and responsible the author is. It's a pity truth's hurting your aorta.
No disrespect to beliefs worldwide. But since we are in Nigeria, you can't practice over breeding to stuff the neck of the budget of the nation hiding under beliefs, culture & religion. If you think that's how to do that for probably electoral gains of win by number then you are digging conflicts of interest. Adopt modernization of your fellow arab as an Arab wannabe. See Qatar, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Morocco etc and praise Allah.

Carlylepneuma:
Bunch of joker's y'all don't respect ur religion tht is why nobody does....

Seems you ll enjoy adding fuel to fire. Rihanna has erred but you chose to diss her religion. If they start grabbing you for blasphemy, can you and ya minions contain it? You get the liver?

Carlylepneuma:
Will u shatap complex or not u never believe in Nigeria u just became a democratic elected president just to satisfy ur ego and pockets old hag

No respect for a fmr president that ruled 3 times, someone old enough to be ya father or grandpa. DSS see this meat!
Now you are yabbing people that are correcting you and whatever you practice that you can't be holier than thou! Are you perfect? See ya flaws as they stare in ya face. You're the one that's a reflection of ya upbringing. See as urine dey smell for ya post & life! A mockery of ya belief!

numericalguy:




Will a south easterner die if he reads a story before commenting on it?


The girls found love and want to get married but lacking financial capabilities approached their imams for help. the Imams in return reach out to the legislator. Why is this so hard for you people.


Try to dey listen to other stations apart from radio biafla

Government's job is to empower them with relevant skills and funding for viable businesses and not to be sponsoring weddings. After the wedding, will government continue to be responsible for their families.

This conversation shouldn't even come up in the first place if government did their job. So, everyone who isn't in support is from the SE, smh.

faithfull18:

Government's job is to empower them with relevant skills and funding for viable businesses and not to be sponsoring weddings. After the wedding, will government continue to be responsible for their families.

This conversation shouldn't even come up in the first place if government did their job. So, everyone who isn't in support is from the SE, smh.

That small prîck boy called numericalguy is a fanatic! He's blind to the truth.

Cool

yarimo:
Try and update yourself before creating thread. The minister has withdraw the case in court and the wedding will proceed as planned. The minister also promise to sponsor any of the bride that is willing to go to school after the wedding, the speaker meet with her after the emir of kontagora Emirates meet and resolve all issues at once with the minister.

Are you eyeing one of the orphan girls? You seem very angry. Show us the link that shows that the wedding is going ahead as planned.

They always turn everything to religious issue. The minister only said do the right thing and all the Imams ganged up against her shouting Religion. Isn't the North Cursed like this?

No one is changing the girls' religion, we are only seeking to better their lives. Does Islam in Nigeria hate empowerment? if not that the Saudis and the Qataris are rich and doing well, one would have thought that Islam is synonymous with poverty and illiteracy.

Empower the girls first, they can marry whoever they wish in the future. That a girl is 18 does not mean she should rush to marry.

The most painful thing is that you won't see Muslim women rise up to defend their own, Islam hates women and the women that practices it are without rights and privileges.

btw, when will the Niger State Imams and the emir of kotangora issue a fatwa against bandits and kidnappers? are they in love with terrorists and bandits and evil?

And you think I have time to read your long trash

Goodlady:

What should v been done first?
Empowering & educating the girls before giving them to marriage?
Concerned people worldwide from Medina to the Nigeria feel some of the husbands may be broke ass husbands that will breed almajiris?
The process is flawed and no one needs to bully the minister. She called worldwide attention to something fishy.
Tomorrow, people shouldn't cry that if those girls are in poverty! To sane people, most organized marriages in that side are recipe for breeding almajiris. The statistics are there. The items giving for them to survive for the marriages are there, and some don't v good source of livelihood. They are potential tools for terror & poverty. They ll say they are taking marriageable girls off the street to marry but to marry who? Another broke aboki husband?
Do population control measures, empower & do massive education for the youths and see the region growing to envy of others. Not all these food sharing empowerment during sallahs or sending people to pilgrimage. Recently them do am. See her: https://www.google.com/amp/s/punchng.com/hajj-five-states-with-n383bn-debt-budget-n9bn-for-pilgrims/%3famp
Money wey dem for use set up biz for people.
https://www.nairaland.com/8049694/2024-hajj-subsidy-statisense
Religion must be separated from governance if rapid growth is needed in a developing country like Nigeria. They should see examples from Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Qatar that has embraced modern reality. Food (source of income) must be available before marriage.
Nuff said!

Akwamkpuruamu:


Why are you in support of this wedding? Is it a priority above empowering these women to a better life? Is life all about wedding?

is it wrong to update people ? Or you think everyone is here to read fake news

FiftyFifty:
Did the minister misunderstand the speaker?

By Ibraheem Dooba

(My column of today in the DailyTrust)

A man was kidnapped in Niger State by bandits who demanded a ransom of one million naira. The family scraped and struggled to pay the ransom. When the bandits got the ransom, they increased it to N2 million. Now the family couldn’t pay. What to do?

The man had two daughters with suitors. So they asked the fiancés to bring money to pay the ransom so that the marriage could be done upon the release of the father. The two suitors managed to raise the money and the family paid the bandits. Upon receiving the money, they still killed the father.

Now the suitors wanted marriage without delay or their money back. However, the family needed money to do so. So the widow reached out to the speaker of Niger State Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, for help. He did help them with the marriage and set them up for success.

Then he reasoned that other orphans may need similar assistance. So he set up a committee to investigate identical cases. The committee reported over 270 people who needed the same support. So he mandated the committee to screen the list to only orphans and need basis. The list was reduced to 100 orphans who voluntarily submitted themselves that they wanted marriage.

So the speaker agreed to give each lady N500,000 and the men N50,000 for their dowry. When the Governor of Niger State, Farmer Governor Bago heard about this, he said was going to give the ladies an additional N100,000 for business.

That’s the background. At least that’s how Dr Ibrahim Daurawa told the story as related to him by the speaker himself.

Here’s a summary: The Speaker of Niger State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Abdulmalik Sarkin Daji, with the support of the Governor, the traditional institution and Muslim scholars, is sponsoring the wedding and businesses of 100 orphans.

But out of nowhere, we read, “Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, minister of women affairs, has petitioned the inspector-general of police (IGP) and sought a court injunction to halt the marriage of 100 girls in Niger state.” TheCable reported.

“I want to let the honourable speaker of the house in Niger state know that this is totally unacceptable by Federal Minister Of Women Affairs and by the government,” Kennedy-Ohanenye said.

The Muslim scholars in the North and Niger State in particular see the minister as an interloper and deem her comments as insults to both the northern tradition and the religion of Islam.

The Council of Imams in Niger State issued a one-week ultimatum to retract her comments. Dr Umar Farouk, the secretary of the Niger State Imam Forum, delivered the warning during a press briefing in Minna, the state capital. He stated that the Minister had overstepped her authority and that the Forum would not tolerate her remarks, which they believed could incite a crisis both in the state and nationwide.

The Speaker, himself a barrister, said: “I am highly disappointed in the minister for women's affairs and it is unfortunate that she allowed herself and her office to be misled by social media reports without finding out from me the true situation on the ground concerning this marriage.

"This is politics taken too far by the minister. She should be properly educated on the culture and tradition of the north that girls of marriageable age are not allowed to roam the streets.”

Now Barrister Abdulmalik is refusing to participate in the wedding without withdrawing the financial support.
“If the parents wish to go ahead with the marriage of their daughters, so be it but I have removed my hands,” he said.

As for me, I think the minister made some dangerous assumptions in a bid to earn a name for herself.

First of all, she referenced the Child Rights Act and said that every child is a ward of the state.

“Because there is something called the Child Rights Act and I said it from the onset, that it is no more business as usual. These children must be considered, their future must be considered, the future of the children to come out of their marriage must be considered,” she said.

Here, she assumed that the 100 orphans to be married were children. The more dangerous assumption is that any marriage in the North is done between men and girls. Because logically, if she jumps to the conclusion that these are girls, you must also admit the conclusion that she thinks only girls are married off in the north. She would be surprised that these are women in their late teens or early 20s.

The second assumption is that these “girls” have no education and have no skills.

The Minister said: “As the speaker did not think about empowering these women or sending them to school or giving them some kind of training support financially. The women's affairs have decided to take it up and we are going to educate the children.”

We don’t know the level of their skill set, but the fact that northerners don’t want to send their children to school is stretched by some people to fit their theories. You would be surprised that these orphans have at least graduated from secondary school and have started a trade in which they only need money to scale.

I’ve sponsored some orphaned girls to school because they want to go to school. If the minister really wants to help, we have many girls who want to go to school but can’t afford it. I’ll personally help with the list. They’re in thousands.

So we’re lucky that the Minister is offering to sponsor our children.

The third assumption is that these orphans are being forced into marriage. It’s also the most irrational assumption.

The Speaker said: “She never bothered to get across to me to even find out the motive behind this Humanitarian gesture because I didn't force any girl into marriage, it was the parents of the girls that approached me and solicited for my support and I gladly accepted to assist them.”

A committee screened those who applied for help and the list was reduced from 270 to 100 based on need. They applied! They sought help. And the help was specific: help us get married. What will the Speaker gain by forcing girls to marry other men?

If the minister did intend good, she could have cleared these assumptions by a simple request to the Speaker asking for the profiles of the ladies. The profiles don’t need to be detailed. Indeed, only three questions are enough: age or date of birth, level of education and employment status. Parental approval can also be added.

I’m sure the screening committee already has this information and could’ve emailed it to the Minister within minutes. Indeed, none of the “girls” is younger than 18, according to Dr Umar who has the list of all the ladies.

But in a bid to earn a name, she chose to pick a fight, a fight that she can’t win. More importantly, she’s causing needless problems for her principal among the people who still have doubts about the intentions of the presidency.

This woman has become the reactive minister. The first time I saw her was during the Lead British School bullying episode. Now, this. What’s she done that’s proactive? The Speaker said that she hasn't visited even one IDP camp in Niger State where these vulnerable women live.

In sum, the speaker is a good guy who wants to help his people. I know because we’re neighbours. We just finished planting trees together. He sponsored the tree planting. That’s the kind of guy he is.

Your submission is taken, however we should understand that those families and women opted for marriage because that's what they have been condition to believe as a way out. The speaker should have advised the families better and offer them better alternatives

Education and skill acquisitions first, then marriage later. That's how it should be

by the way, what has the speaker and his team of assembly members done to see that banditry is halted in Niger State? Have they called on Tinubu to do his work by securing the state? Why are they silent on solving the security problem but focuses on managing the symptom?

How may marriages of orphans are they looking to organize in the next 5 years? Why not solve the problem of insecurity and let the people live to take care of their children?

Is Nigeria cursed? who are these bandits? why are they left to kill and kidnap at will without commensurate effort from the security agencies to stop them? who is financing banditry all over Nigeria? Isn't it same Imams and Fulanis in the corridor of power today?

I still wonder if MURIC Man went to school or Ile Kewu to become a Prof.
God bless you Minister

yarimo:
Try and update yourself before creating thread. The minister has withdraw the case in court and the wedding will proceed as planned. The minister also promise to sponsor any of the bride that is willing to go to school after the wedding, the speaker meet with her after the emir of kontagora Emirates meet and resolve all issues at once with the minister.

pork meat paste a link of your update so we can all read.. dont come here to spew rubbish for clout.. Rubbish.!!

WhereMyLoud:
pork meat paste a link of your update so we can all read.. dont come here to spew rubbish for clout.. Rubbish.!!

hahahaha you have being given free bonus data to read news today chai 🤣🤣🤣🤣

You are actually the one who needs updating. Or you have a family member amongst the brides?

yarimo:
Try and update yourself before creating thread. The minister has withdraw the case in court and the wedding will proceed as planned. The minister also promise to sponsor any of the bride that is willing to go to school after the wedding, the speaker meet with her after the emir of kontagora Emirates meet and resolve all issues at once with the minister.