By Samuel Itsede
Fear and shock have continued to grip residents of Ukpong Edet Street within the Effiat Ikot Edo Offot community in Uyo LGA and its environs following the sudden death of one Nsisong Okon Etim, a 27-years-old graduate through suicide.
According to family sources, the deceased, said to have completed his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) last year, had taken into a private business of retailing of cooking gas along the Old Ring Road, Uyo, “because of inability to find an immediate job”.
The deceased Nsisong, one of the sons of the late Village Head of the community, Chief Etim Eton, according to her sister, Miss Edidiong Okon Etim, “was very discreet and was keeping always to himself”.
“He rarely eats from our mother’s kitchen; he normally cooked for himself until he returned on Tuesday, July 23, 2019, from his shop in the evening and ended his life that night.” She explained amid tears.
It was gathered that “the deceased had opened the door to his house, locked himself in and later undressed and clad with only boxer shorts. He broke the PVC ceiling, hung the suicide rope on the rafters and strangled himself in the noose”.
In the suicide note that he left, the late Nsisong states that he had to take the hard decision to escape from constant worries and disturbances from his mother, step-brother and the landlord whose shop he rented to sell cooking gas.
His heavily shocked mother, identified as Mrs Patience Eton, who was still in tears on Wednesday morning when his remains were lowered from the rafters for ritual and burial, was too shock to speak.
The Youths Leader of Umoebet\Esuene streets, Comrade Godwin Okon Sunday, expressed sadness over what he described as “unfortunate incident”.
“I have seen him recently; he is a very reserved introvert who was not given to a socialist kind of life. In fact, if you come face to face with him on the road, he would hide his face and would not greet or talk to you.
“I think based on the content of his suicide note, it is the prevailing hardship that has brought frustration that led to his emotions running high to the point of taking such a hard decision to terminate his life.” The youth leader added.
He, therefore, charged governments at all levels to create what he called “economic windows and social security palliatives in order to cushion the prevailing harsh economic realities borne out of high unemployment level in the land”.
