While Nwaohu would get a brand new car, Egbonbamwonyi is already assured of N500, 000 cash prize. Nollywood actress and Onga Seasoning ambassador, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, while announcing the winners, disclosed that the stories of the winning mothers are the stuffs best-selling movies are made of. “These are women who sacrificed their all just to ensure that their kids have a better life. They shelved their own comfort and career to give their kids the best. Today, they are being celebrated for their valour and sacrifices. It is my hope that other mothers across the country would emulate these women and continue to give their all to their kids,” Henshaw-Nuttal said.
For the past 13 weeks, viewers and lovers of the hugely popular show sponsored by Procter and Gamble, Promasidor and Dufil foods; makers of Ariel detergent, Onga seasoning and Indomie noodles, have followed the stories of 20 mothers drawn from across Nigeria on the African Independent Television (AIT) and Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) networks. Adesona’s story, which came in the 11th episode, caught the attention of viewers who poured in appreciable number of votes and subsequently placed her miles ahead of other contending mothers. Adesona narrated how upon the death of her husband, her in-laws suddenly became antagonistic and meted out lots of punishments to her. She was denied access to her husband’s company, forced to withdraw her children from good schools and then placed on a paltry sum of N300 for their upkeep. Survival was hinged on varying menial jobs ranging from timber selling, block molding to food hawking among others. Fate would deal her another blow when her brother-in-law and wife died a year apart, leaving four children for her to cater for. All the ten children are now doing well in their different endeavours. And now, her sheer acts of kindness and love have brought her the coveted Supermom prize, and a life-long celebration of enviable sense of motherhood.
According to Sola Fajobi, Executive Producer of the show, “It’s been a wonderful moment for me. This is an improvement on last year’s edition and I’m so elated with the outcome. All the stories were heart-rending considering the numerous sacrifices made by the contesting mothers; my unreserved appreciation however goes to the sponsors who have made the show equally remarkable and available to millions of viewers across the country. Without them, these stories would never have been told; these mothers would never have been celebrated. However, we should always imbibe the culture of celebrating our mothers in any little way we can while they are very much alive.” But these mothers are not the only winners this year. Viewers who participated in the Hug for Mama competition, which compels viewers to snap a picture of themselves and their mothers in an emotional hug to a designated email address, won N50, 000 each. On the Celebrity Supermom segment, stories of celebrities like P-Square, Wasiu Alabi, Clarence Peters and Taye Taiwo whose mothers have influenced their booming careers graced the screen. Fajobi assured that winners will be unveiled properly in a grand winners’ party slated for the first week in December.
