By Ogenyi Ogenyi,Uyo
Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom has said that the state government would assist the Salvation Army Church and families of members who met their tragic end in an auto crash while returning from a church programme held at Lagos state.
This is even as five of those dead were said to be from the same family in Akwa Ibom.
The Governor made this known while fielding questions from newsmen in Uyo yesterday on return from an official trip outside the state described the deaths as devastating and painful, emphasizing that that the calamity has befallen not just the Salvation Army Church but the entire people of the state.
He however acknowledged that the deceased met their tragic end while returning from a church programme, a sacrifice he said they rendered to God and prayed for the repose of their souls.
“This is one of the things I have prayed not to do; to become a Consoler-In-Chief. It is devastating and painful. The tragic loss is not just to the Salvation Army but to Akwa Ibom people.
“But again, God knows when we will all leave and how we will leave. It is particularly sad when considering that they were returning from a Church programme
“We can only pray for the repose of their souls. The State Government will do everything to support the Church at this time and of course the families that have lost their loved ones.”
The accident is said to have occurred along Ovie River road in Edo State along the Benin-Asaba Expressway claiming five lives from the same family who were returning from a conference organised by the Salvation Army Church in Lagos.
Those who lost their lives included two brothers, a wife of one of them, a little girl who travelled with them and an unborn child as the deceased lady was pregnant as at the time of her death.
Samingo Etukakpan, head of the bereaved family who lost all the five family members, lamented the tragedy the family has been thrown into describing it as a “great moment of grief.”
“It is a moment of grief for me and my family. This is indeed a bitter pill to swallow, losing five members of my family and my daughter in-law who was equally pregnant but I pray God to console me and members of my family as it is too hard for us.”
