The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, has lost his mother, Mama Lydia Yilwatda.
She died on Sunday morning at Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) at the age of 83.
Shittu Bamaiyi, the party’s State Publicity Secretary, confirmed her departure in a statement released in Jos.
He praised the late Mama Lydia as a devout Christian, a noble female leader, and a pillar of the Church of Christ in Nations.
“The All Progressives in Plateau State received with shock the sad news of the death of the mother of its National Chairman, Mama Lydia Yilwatda.
“According to family sources, she passed on this morning at the Jos University Teaching Hospital at the age of 83 years.
“Her death is not only a personal loss to the National Chairman but also to the entire APC family in Plateau State and the country at large,” the statement read.
It added that Mama Lydia, alongside her late husband, Reverend Toma Goshewe Yilwatda, contributed immensely to the growth of the church in Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, and Plateau states.
The statement added, “There is no doubt that the late Mama’s death is painful and devastating to the Yilwatdas, because she died at the time her motherly advice and prayers were most needed, particularly by the National Chairman, Professor Yilwatda.
“The consoling record is that the deceased left behind an indelible and accomplished legacy, which is manifested in her children.
“Surely her demise is a great loss to the Church and the Women’s Fellowship as well as Plateau State.
While sharing with Yilwatda in his moment of grief, the APC prays God to grant the late Mama’s soul an eternal rest.”
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
