The brutal murder of thousands of Sons and daughters of
the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB) by the Nigerian Security Operatives has
left Mothers completely shattered. Relationships between Mothers and their
Children are better experienced than imagined, they are the strongest bonds in
human interrelationships; therefore, the death and loss of a child is
frequently called the ULTIMATE tragedy. Nothing can be more devastating! It is
the most tragic and traumatic loss Life could deal out to a woman. This death
means more than just the loss of a precious life. It represents the loss of
future Experiences and Hopes. As a matter of fact, no Mother is ever prepared
for this loss and when and if it happens, their lives are changed forever.
The grief over the loss of a child becomes even
exacerbated and more shattering in bizarre circumstances, as the case in point,
by a sense of Injustice, the feeling that 'THE LOSS SHOULD NEVER HAVE
HAPPENED'. This is basically true most of the time when you draw inferences
from the unwarranted, unprovoked, and unconstitutional manner that the Nigerian
military kill fellow citizens for excuses as little as wearing a particular
attire or Participating in peaceful self-determination Protests and Rallies.
Mothers of such victims live in grief, guilt, and anguish for the rest of their
lives.
IPOB's Welfare Unit has often visited Mothers who lost
their children to the brutality of Nigerian Security Operatives for the
singular reason that they were Biafrans. Such visits are usually heart rending
to the visitors as the mothers they visit seem inconsolable and totally
disillusioned with life. Mothers, generally feels it is just UNNATURAL to outlive
their children. All bereaved Mothers lose a part of themselves forever. Faith
in God should be a source of comfort for them but unfortunately those who lost
their kids feel betrayed by God. They question many things they have believed
to be true. They tell you that their faith has been shattered and looking into
their eyes you would see emptiness.
Mothers go through excruciating pain or even numbness and
experience that may persist for the rest of their lives. These Mothers confess
that they "barely Exist". So, you could see that coping with the
death and loss of a child is simply a tall order for a mother. The loss of
their kids robs them of the most treasured Parenting role no matter the age of
the child. There's this overwhelming sense of failure for no longer being able
to care for and protect their children, duties they would wish they could have
performed till they breathed their last.
From stories gathered from some of the Mothers visited by
IPOB, it was discovered that there are many issues that make a mother's
bereavement particularly difficult to manage. First, Shock. This is the first
thing that knocks a Mother out almost irrecoverably and bears down on her with
a sense of denial like "No, my Son can't be dead"! She expects her
son to walk through the door the next minute and say, Mum it's all a joke! A
particular mother was captured praying profusely to God to grant her only five
minutes with her Son so she could tell him how much she loved him. Second,
Guilt. This also appears to be one of the most common reactions that make it
difficult for Mothers to heal. They keep replaying in their minds their actions
and inactions prior to the death and wonder what they might have done
differently that could have saved their children from the bullets of
disgruntled NIGERIAN soldiers. And that leads to the third point Anger and
frustration as to their inability to have acted differently at the appropriate
time. The last stage is acceptance. This comes with a deep sense of loss for
all the hopes, dreams and expectations they had for their deceased children.
In conclusion, Time does not necessarily provide relief for
grieving bereaved mothers. They would often experience an upsurge of grief at
the time they would have expected their children to start school, graduate, get
married etc. So, everyday we remember the grieving Mothers of all Biafran Sons
and daughters murdered by the Nigerian Government, especially those Only-Childs
of their families whose deaths have torn their families in shreds. We remember,
Miracle Udofia (Aka Immortal) Chinedu Uwandu, Volunteers in IPOB, and Ogar
Ogoyi, only-sons, shot to death at Nnamdi Kanu's residence on 14th May, 2017. We
also remember Chidozie Okafor killed along St Michaels road Aba. There are so
many others that space would not allow me to mention here. They will always be
in our hearts.
May their Souls REST IN PEACE.
Long live Nnamdi Kanu
Long live IPOB
Long live BIAFRA
We must continue.
Written by:
Ngozichukwu Ada-Dav
Lagos State Media
Edited by:
Oby Mboma
For: Lagos State Media
Published by:
Chibuike John Nebeokike
For: Lagos State Media
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