The founder, Adunni Adediran, said she
was convinced that the objective could be achieved, saying she sold her
house and empied the N5m in her bank account to help girls, who wanted
to stay as virgins before marriage.
Adediran told our correspondent on
Monday that she made the sacrifice because of some experiences she had
during her teenage years.
She said, “In 2007, when I wanted to
start this project to preserve virgins until they get married, I had to
sell my house and moved to a rented apartment. The N5m in my account
then also went for the same project.
“I am doing this because of the
experience I went through as a teenager. I did not regret spending so
much. I believe that every girl child deserve to preserve her virginity
until when she chooses to get married.
“The talk of girl-child marriage should
not be something we should be talking about in this country. The
government ought to enlighten the parents to care for their female
children and encourage them to be virgins before marriage. If the
parents are well enlightened, there is no way they can give their
daughter out when she is not mature.”
Adediran said the organisation was
struggling to survive because of lack of support, adding that more
efforts would still be made to make sure that government, corporate
bodies and other well-meaning individuals support the initiative.
The 68-year-old mother said, “It is
worrisome that a large number of people and organisations, including the
government, do not show clear support to the virgins. This idea can
eradicate many vices in the country.”
Chairman of the organisation, Dr.
Naheem-Deen Ekemode, advised girls not to open their laps for any man
until they get married. He added that some past members of the
organisation were celebrated by their spouses for keeping their
virginity.
Ekemode, who is a gynaecologist, said,
“We don’t just accept that a girl is a virgin until certain tests are
carried out on those that come to our NGO. The examination is a safe one
that does not affect them psychologically or physically. After that,
we enlighten and continue to nurture them.
“We also give certificate to them on their wedding days. We urge the government to help to encourage virginity.”
CULLED FROM: PUNCH NEWSPAPERS
August 6, 2013 by Sodiq Oyeleke
Written by NEWSTRAWL ONLINE UPDATE
Sodiq Oyeleke is a Media, Human Resources, Project Management and Public Relations Practitioner
0 comments:
Post a Comment