The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, has thrown her weight behind the mass wedding of 100 female orphans in Niger, showering gifts on the girls.

The minister’s donations were announced by her aide, Adaji Usman, while in Niger on Thursday.

The minister had previously opposed the decision of the speaker of the Niger House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkindaji, who agreed to sponsor the wedding on the grounds of violation of the Child Rights Act.

However, according to the minister, the media were to be blamed for escalating the initial controversy surrounding the marriage of the 100 orphans, saying, “I did not intend to stop the marriage but to be sure if the girls are of marriageable age and were not being forced into it.

“Every parent will want to marry out her wards if they attain the right age for marriage. The initial opposition to the planned marriage was misunderstood, hence the media war between my office and the speaker’s.”

Ms Kennedy-Ohanenye commended Mr Sarkindaji and promised that the girls would be closely monitored in their various husbands’ houses so that the empowerment scheme’s objectives would not be defeated.

The speaker said, “It was pure politics from my constituency. They misinformed the minister that I was playing politics with the lives of the children by forcing them into marriage, and the minister, because of her passion for women and the girl child, quickly waded into the matter even though she could not find out the true position of things and the media began to amplify the whole matter.

“I decided to support the marriage out of genuine concern for these girls, the majority of whom are orphans as a result of the insecurity in my constituency. It was with a pure heart.”

Meanwhile, Ms Kennedy-Ohanenye’s donations included scholarships and other items, such as wrappers and foodstuffs, which will be given to 100 brides at the palace of the Emir of Kontagora, Mohammed Muazu.

Ms Kennedy-Ohanenye further ordered the opening of bank accounts for each of the 100 prospective brides, into which they will deposit a stipend to be used over the next six months while they settle into their husbands’ homes.