The Executive Secretary of National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma has described Mr. Law Ikey Ezeh, a lecturer in NICO Training School, as a great and jolly fellow, a quality he inherited from his late mother, Mrs. Catherine Oliefi Ezeh, and that the passing on of such a great and virtuous woman was lamentable.
Ayakoroma, who made this known at the burial and funeral ceremony of late Mrs. Catherine Oliefi Ezeh at Affa in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, had led NICO Staffers to the ceremony, and described the deceased as a mother to all who came across her way while on earth.
He disclosed that late Mrs. Catherine Ezeh was a good mother that he had always loved to be with, especially during his National Youth Service days in 1983/84, adding that he learnt a lot from her, praying her soul to rest in peace in the bosom of the Lord.
On other hand, the State Coordinator of NICO Enugu State Office, Mr. Nnaemeka Nwajagu, who accompanied the ES to the ceremony with some members of staff of Enugu State NICO Office, condoled Mr. Law Ezeh and told him that death was inevitable and that that of his mother followed a natural course, where children should bury their parents, and prayed God to receive her mother’s soul in peace.
In his sermon, titled, “The Last Day, The Last Hour,” Rev. Fr. Charles Obed described life as an introduction to the real life, while death is its channel; and that every passing day gets people closer to their grave.
Fr. Charles said that between the life and death of every individual lies a period of work when God expects everyone to work out his or her salvation, which will help in forming one’s state before God during his or her last days; hence, it was the most important thing that determines where a person would be after death.
The priest, who also described the late octogenarian as a woman, who zealously served God in spirit and truth, urged the congregation to emulate her, and enjoined all to take the sacrament of reconciliation (confession) very seriously, just as he asked the bereaved to take heart as death was always painful, no matter the age of the departed.
Before the Benediction, Nwaogaranya, as Fr. Charles is fondly called, expressed his joy for being alive to fulfil Mama’s last will, recalling that she had called him a few days before her death, upon hearing of his ill health and asked him to hold on and bury her first.
Michael Ogbuu Ibe
Corporate Affairs Unit
NICO Enugu State Office