By Aisha Audu,
It was an atmosphere of joy and gratitude in Lokoja on Thursday as widows of fallen heroes smiled home with food items and cash, as the Nigerian Legion, Kogi State Council, marked the 62nd anniversary of the Legion in Nigeria.
The Chairman, Nigerian Legion, Kogi State Council and Commandant, Kogi State Command of the Nigerian Legion Corps of Commissionaires, ACG Elijah Akinjide (rtd), who presided over the council meeting and palliative distribution, said the celebration was deliberately used to touch the lives of families left behind by gallant officers who paid the supreme price.
Akinjide disclosed that the Legion has over 3,000 members in Kogi comprising widows and ex-servicemen, but due to limited subvention from government, only 150 widows could be empowered in this phase.
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He said the beneficiaries were drawn from Adavi, Koton-Karfe, Ajaokuta and Lokoja Local Government Areas, with plans to extend to other LGAs as the nominal roll of widows and their late husbands’ service numbers are already documented for easy transfer when more funds are available.
The state chairman appealed to government, corporate bodies and relevant agencies to support the Legion, especially in renovating its secretariat to make it habitable for members coming from rural communities for medical care and other official engagements, to save them the cost of hotel accommodation.
He added that the Council is in talks with donor and non-governmental organisations to train children of fallen heroes in skill acquisition to make them self-reliant, noting that this year’s palliative distribution coincides with the 62nd anniversary celebration of the Legion under the National Chairman and Commandant General, Corps of Commissionaires, Mrs. Grace Morenike Henry.
In her remarks, the State Coordinator, Military Widows Association, Kogi State Chapter, Mrs. Suzan Ojonugwa Makolo, said the gathering was to celebrate God’s faithfulness to the Legion at 62 and to appreciate the leadership of the Legion for remembering the widows.
Mrs. Makolo, who is marking her first anniversary as Coordinator, thanked both the National Chairman and the State Chairman, ACG Akinjide, for the food and financial support, describing it as a great relief at a time of economic hardship.
She appealed to the Kogi State Government to assist the widows with scholarships for their children and start-up support for small-scale businesses, while urging the widows to engage in productive ventures, saying “we have lost our breadwinners but we are not expired.”
Two beneficiaries, Mrs. Jummai Linus and Mrs. Beatrice Uche Omoh, expressed appreciation to the leadership of the Legion for the gesture. The highlight of the event, which was captured in group photographs with the state chairman, was the distribution of cash and foodstuffs to the widows.
