Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege has condoled with the Country Chairman, Daewoo E & C Nigeria, Chief Joseph Penawou, over the death of his mother, Mama Yeiebimo-Ere Kasua Penawou (née Corsin).
In a condolence message to Chief Penawou who is also the Chairman/CEO of First Marine and Engineering Services Limited, Omo-Agege described her as a resilient and self-effacing contributor to grassroots development and urged all who knew the matriarch to feel further inspired to contribute towards societal uplifting the way the late she did, even in the face of daunting odds.
The statement by Omo-Agege’s Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Yomi Odunuga, read in part:
“Born in Northern Nigeria some 73years ago, she lost her mum at the age of four, married early at 17, struggled to become a well-known teacher and later a trader of note.
“Yet through it all, she never sought succor or success for her nine children alone but showed much love and gave much help for countless other children who today, proudly share cherished memories of her role in their lives.
“Decades before words like ‘development activist’ became known in grassroots communities that she positively impacted, Mama Penawou who passed out from secondary school as Head Girl in 1964 also served as a grassroots teacher across Delta state communities in Gbekebo, Ofonibengha, Ogbeinama and Akugbene before returning in 1986,” Omo-Agege noted.
Chief Penawou and his siblings, he said, should feel comforted by their late mother’s life of service to the people.
“True, for Mama Penawou, religion was about the reality of service for touching others’ lives; her life’s practical interpretation of the virtues of a Proverbs 31 woman included diligent and exemplary voluntary service as leader of several women’s social organisations and church societies, her home was always a congregation ground for hospitable warmth and offerings of native delicacies,” the statement added