Umo Eno, governor of Akwa Ibom state, says he did not appoint Helen Eno-Obareki, his daughter, as first lady after the death of his wife, Patience Umo Eno.
On September 26, Patience died after an illness.
During a condolence visit by Oluremi Tinubu, Nigeria’s first
lady, the governor said his administration would sustain the office of the
deceased and that Helen would help coordinate its affairs.
However, the governor’s statement was misconstrued to mean
that his daughter had been assigned the responsibilities of the first lady.
But in a statement on Monday, Ekerete Udoh, chief press
secretary to the governor, said Helen was appointed as coordinator to ensure
continuity of his late first lady’s projects.
“Our attention has been drawn to a misreporting by a section
of the press on the appointment of Mrs Helen Eno Obareki as the coordinator of
the Office of the First Lady, as well as her substantive appointment as the
Senior Special Assistant to the Governor. We wish to set the record straight,”
the statement reads.
“It would be recalled that during the condolence visit by
our nation’s First Lady and Wife of the President, Distinguished Senator
Oluremi Tinubu, CON, to Governor Umo Eno last Friday, the Governor had
presented his daughter, Mrs. Helen Eno Obareki, as the “Coordinator of the
Office of the First Lady” to the Wife of the President.
“During the
presentation, the Governor was specific on the new title and role Mrs. Obareki
would be expected to perform. He stated that Helen, ‘having worked closely with
her mother in the Office of the First Lady, will now coordinate the activities
and functions of the Office of the First Lady to ensure that her pet project,
Golden Initiative for All (GIFA), and other initiatives the late First Lady was
working on will be continued and expanded. Her new title is the ‘Coordinator of
the Office of the First Lady’.
“We are, however, amused to see reports that stated the
Governor had “appointed his daughter as the ‘New First Lady.’ For the avoidance
of doubt, First Ladies are not appointed, and there has never been such a
precedent before.
“Mrs. Obareki, the newly appointed ‘Coordinator of the
Office of the First Lady,’ holds a Bachelor’s degree in Multidisciplinary
Studies from the University of Oklahoma (2011) and a Master’s degree in
Business Administration with special concentrations in Human Resources
Management from Oklahoma Christian University (2012), United States of
America.”
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