News
FAMILY Speaks On Mgbafu Mkpe Rite On Betty Akeredolu After Demise Of Husband
The family of former First Lady of Ondo State, Mrs. Betty Akeredolu in Emeabiam Community, Imo State has reacted to news going viral that their daughter has remarried to the younger brother ex-Governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu.
In a Press Release signed by the Publisher/Editor-in-chief, National Newsbreak Newspaper, Gele Agbabi, he said it was the custom of Emeabiam to conduct rite for every widow whose husband died.
“Our attention has been drawn to the twist being given to our story entitled; Aketi Eternal: Emeabiam Community Performs Mgbafu Mgbe Rite For Widow”.
For the benefit of those who are not familiar with the story, Aketi is the nickname of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, CON, the former Governor of Ondo State who passed away in December 2023.
He was married to the former First Lady of Ondo State, Chief Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu, Ada Owere 1.
According to the tradition of the Igbo especially the people of Imo State, Mgbafu Mkpe ceremony must be held after the death and burial of the husband of their daughter.
The Mgbafu Mkpe ceremony of Chief Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu was held on Sunday, March 31, 2024 at the serene Emeabiam Community in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State.
The ceremony held at her ancestral compound in Umuikea Emeabiam Community. During the ceremony, Mr. Herbert Igbo representing the Umuegeolu Kindred handed over the former first lady to the immediate younger brother to her late husband, Prof Wole Akeredolu as tradition stipulates.
This was after the Akeredolus had indicated interest to have Chief Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu still live with them. Some rituals were carried out to seal the handover.
It is therefore to our utter surprise to read posts made by bloggers, many of whom depended on our story, claiming that Chief Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu is now married to Prof Akeredolu as his wife.
This is totally false and a clear misrepresentation of what actually transpired during the ceremony. We don’t want to believe this sensational plank given to the story is deliberate.
It stems solely from ignorance of the full import of the tradition of the people since most of the bloggers do not hail from the area. However, it is usually good to seek clarification whenever one is in doubt.
Note that our story did not suggest or assert that Prof Wole Akeredolu is the husband of Chief Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu. He did not remarry her either at the ceremony or afterwards.”
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
US President-elect, Donald Trump’s incoming administration plans to immediately order a series of deportation raids targeting illegal immigrants after his inauguration.
Chicago is expected to be the first major city targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents as part of Operation Safeguard, the New York Times reported, citing two people familiar with planning the undertaking.
The massive deportation operation is expected to target criminals and gang members in the United States illegally and run for one week.
Trump has promised to conduct the largest deportation program in U.S. history.
Up to 200 ICE agents are being sent to Chicago to help kick off the operation on Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. The agency has already asked agents to volunteer for the post-inauguration raids.
“There’s gonna be a big raid across the country,” Tom Homan, who will be in charge of U.S. borders once Trump takes office, told Fox News in an interview.
Homan has previously said he will instruct ICE agents to carry out raids on illegal immigrants at their workplaces.
In addition to Chicago, the sweeping crackdown will also target other major U.S. cities with large immigrant populations.
Trump is set to take the oath of office on Monday, January 20, in an inauguration that will take place indoors.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
A faith-based civil society organization, CSO that monitors and reports on Hajj and Umrah activities, the Independent Hajj Reporters, IHR, has commended the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, for selecting a different Saudi-based Hajj service provider for the 2025 Hajj season.
It said the decision would create healthy competition among service providers interested in efficiently, qualitatively, and satisfactorily serving Nigerian pilgrims.
The CSO, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Malam Ibrahim Muhammed, in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, and made available to our correspondent on Sunday in Abuja, said the quest for improved Hajj services has been a major challenge for Nigerian pilgrims owing to the repeated failure of providing satisfactory services.
”We applauded the decision to pick another service provider that will cater for the needs of pilgrims within the Masha’ir areas during the five days of Hajj,” he said
The national coordinator, who is currently in Saudi Arabia to monitor the pre-Hajj arrangements, said available information shows that the new company, Mashariq Al Dhahabia, is an experienced provider that has served top-rated Hajj countries, like Indonesia and Malaysia, and ranked among the top five Hajj service providers by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.
“The company served 249 706 which is the largest number of Hajj pilgrims during the 2023 hajj. They were awarded as the Best Hajj Service Providers during the 2022 Hajj by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah,” he stated.
IHR said it further understood that NAHCON is planning to recruit another service provider to provide services for very important personalities, VIP pilgrims so as not to repeat the experience of previous years, which is also a desired step forward.
It, however, urged NAHCON to set a parameter of performance for the newly selected service providers to serve as a baseline for determining continuous patronage, advising that such criteria should be based on pilgrims’ satisfaction and adherence to contractual terms.
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