The Anambra State government, through the Ministry of Women and Social Welfare, has intervened in a contentious case involving a widow, Amarachi Anakor, whose in-laws had allegedly planned to bury her late husband in a forest. The widow, hailing from Ifitedunu Local Government Area but married in Umunya, Oyi Local Government Area, lodged a complaint with the ministry against her father-in-law, Obi, and brother-in-law, Vincent, who opposed burying the deceased in the family compound.
According to a press statement by Chidinmma Ikeanyionwu, media aide to the Anambra State Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo, the Anakor family was given seven days to set a burial date for late Chike Anakor. The resolution emerged after a meeting involving both families and community representatives. However, during the proceedings, the widow revealed the added difficulty of having lost her daughter earlier that day.
Despite resistance from Vincent, a representative of the Anakor family, the ministry, supported by the Umuosegbu kindred in Ajakpani Umunya, fixed November 10, 2023, as the burial date for late Chike. The Commissioner, represented by her Special Assistant, Blessing Nweke, condemned the actions, emphasizing the administration’s commitment under Chukwuma Soludo to oppose any form of injustice against women. The statement warned against inhumane acts, asserting that the state will not tolerate such behaviors.
In response to the government’s intervention, the Commissioner urged parties involved to embrace peace and fulfill their responsibilities in laying the deceased to rest, cautioning that those violating the rights of women and children would face legal consequences.