Chinwe Bode-Akinwande Foundation (CBA Foundation) has called for an end to maltreatment of widows by in-laws.
Recounting the story of a certain widow, the foundation said, “Mrs Kumbaya (pseudonym) lost her husband at work in 2005, she was accused of killing him. The accusation did not come from her husband’s brothers but his sister, who had earlier lost her own husband. It took the combined hard work of the brothers to get their sister off the back of her fellow widow. They told their sister pointedly that she too could face the same accusation she was levelling against their sister-in-law, since her husband was deceased too.
“Kumbaya’s brothers-in-law never helped or asked after her and her children’s welfare after that. Not even when things became so difficult that she could no longer pay her house rent and ended up on the street.
“Maybe Mrs Kumbaya should even count herself lucky. Stories abound of widows who had been abused, molested, raped or “shared” by in-laws as part of the property left behind by their late brother. There are stories of widows, falsely accused of killing their husbands, being locked up by in-laws in police cells and the keys thrown into the sea, as it were. What about widows forced to drink the water used to wash the corpse of their husband as proof that they had no hand in their husband’s death. Or the ones forced to spend days and nights in the same room with the corpse of their husband.”
Mrs Kumbaya now lives in an apartment rented for her by the foundation, which also supplied her a mattress, other household items and food stuff.
The foundation reminded the public of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act (VAPP) passed in 2015 which seeks to stop dehumanishing treatments of people.
“In-laws should join public-spirited people across the country in supporting the CBA Foundation in its advocacy for enforcement of the VAPP law and in providing succour for underprivileged widows and their vulnerable children.
“There are many Mrs Kumbayas out there but the resources and reach of angels such as CBA Foundation are limited. Men and women of goodwill, including in-laws who have now seen the light, can extend the Foundation’s resources and reach by supporting it in its mission. Contact the Foundation today by sending an email to them at: cbafoundationng@gmail.com,” the foundation stated.
