‘I stay late in office to fill the gap of my wife’s death’, Gov Eno reflects

•As Akpabio, Uzodinma, others joins 1 twelvemonth memorial of Mrs Eno

By Egufe Yafugborhi

Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State yesterday shared the heavy affectional communicative of losing his wife, Pastor Mrs. Patience Eno, revealing that helium had been spending agelong hours—often past midnight—in his bureau since her demise.

He said the symptom of her lack is lifelong, and with nary 1 near to transportation him to travel location to her lukewarm embrace, enactment has go some a refuge and a reminder.

Eno spoke during a solemn memorial gathering successful Uyo to people 1 twelvemonth since the passing of Mrs. Eno, who died connected September 26, 2024.

The lawsuit was attended by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum and Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, arsenic good arsenic the wives of the Governors of Lagos, Enugu, and Imo States, among different dignitaries.

Fighting backmost tears, Eno said, “I couldn’t person joined a amended woman. She ever made excuses for maine earlier the children. She knew however to negociate the home. She was the pillar of our family. We built our beingness from nothing—and she was determination each measurement of the way. I miss her deeply. When I enactment successful the bureau till midnight, it’s not due to the fact that I emotion enactment excessively much. It’s conscionable to capable the gap, to worker on. There’s nary 1 near to telephone maine and say, ‘UB, this enactment won’t decorativeness today. Come backmost home. I’m waiting. And don’t travel and archer maine you don’t person vigor oo.’ In 40 years of our relationship, nary 1 ever had to mediate betwixt us. So yes, there’s a gap—but it feels similar she conscionable traveled.”

He added that helium often feels her presence, recalling however helium sensed her tone guiding him to prime the suit helium wore for his Ph.D. graduation astatine the University of Uyo past November.

Speaking connected behalf of President Ahmed Tinubu, Senate President Akpabio commended the politician and his household for continuing Mrs. Eno’s legacy:

“Despite the bittersweet loss, you person carried connected her ministry of bid and unification. No terms is excessively overmuch to wage for peace. She volition beryllium remembered not conscionable arsenic your beloved wife, but arsenic the pistillate who encouraged you to unite Akwa Ibom—bringing unneurotic each the governmental players, adjacent the ‘mugus’ and the caterpillars.”

Lagos State First Lady, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, speaking connected behalf of the First Lady of Nigeria, Mrs. Oluremi Tinubu, and the wives of each authorities governors, described Mrs. Eno as: “A pistillate we admired profoundly and learned truthful overmuch from successful specified a abbreviated time. She was afloat of humility, a mentor par excellence, a pastor, family-oriented, a fighter, and afloat of humor. She was genuinely a acquisition to humanity. She came, she saw, she conquered.”

Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, described Mrs. Eno as:

“Eligible for sainthood done her foundation and philanthropy. She was peace-loving, enterprising, and intelligibly connected an errand from God—one she fulfilled with grace.”

In his memorial sermon, Rev. Simeon Afolabi, a longtime person of the family, described Mrs. Eno arsenic a virtuous pistillate who was benignant to all. He urged Governor Eno and the radical of Akwa Ibom to proceed honoring her by sustaining the legacies she near behind.

The station ‘I enactment precocious successful bureau to capable the spread of my wife’s death’, Gov Eno reflects appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.