By Kolapo Olapoju
Oba of Benin, His Royal Highness, Erediauwa I, is currently mourning the death of his first wife, Queen Esther, Eson N’erie of Benin Kingdom.
According to reports, Queen Esther died at around 8pm on Saturday, January 18, 2014, after a brief illness. She had been suffering from diabetes for some time, a condition which drastically deteriorated last December.
Senate President, David Mark, in a statement made by his Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh, in Abuja, described the Queen’s death as ‘shocking and painful’. He stated that the death of the wife of the Omo n’Oba came at a time her services were much needed by the people of the Bini Kingdom and Edo State in general.
‘The demise of Queen Esther is a painful exit. But I urge the Omo n’Oba, the people of Bini Kingdom and government of Edo State to continue to take solace in her lifestyle of kind heartedness, sincerity and service to mankind’, the statement read.
The 90-year-old monarch has three other wives who all live in the Erie part of the palace where there are about 10 quarters guarded day and night by Ogherie Noguan (eunuchs)
