Friday June 13, 2025|
Malinda Okereke, fondly known as Mama Nsu Bekee and believed to be the last surviving twin saved by Scottish missionary Mary Slessor over a century ago, has died at the age of 115.
Her passing was announced in a statement issued by her only surviving son, Bishop Okechukwu Okereke, and made available to journalists in Umuahia on Thursday, June 12.
According to the statement, Madam Okereke and her twin sister, Mgbokwo, were born during a period when local customs in the Arochukwu area of present-day Abia State deemed twin births a curse — a practice that often led to the infants being abandoned or killed in the forest.
This cultural belief prevailed in the early 1800s in Arochukwu and surrounding communities of the Lower Cross River region, before Mary Slessor arrived in the area and began challenging the harmful tradition.
Slessor, who began her missionary work in the region in 1876, was credited with putting an end to the practice of twin killings.
“The birth of Mgbafor and her twin sister, Mgbokwo, who passed on almost two decades ago, was not only attended to by Slessor and her team at their maternity at Obinagu, Amasu Village, Arochukwu, but the twins were subsequently adopted and fostered by Slessor herself,” the statement added.
The statement noted that the sisters received early education at Mary Slessor Primary School in Arochukwu — now known as Mary Slessor Secondary Technical School — under the guidance of their missionary foster mother.
“This resulted in the twins’ sound command of the English Language, hence the nickname of Madam Mgbafor, ‘Mama Nsu Bekee’ (Mama that speaks English).”
“She was strong, always neatly dressed, and full of joy until her last moments before her demise on March 5, following a brief illness,” Bishop Okereke stated.
“She was strong, always neatly dressed, and full of joy until her last moments before her demise on March 5, following a brief illness,” Bishop Okereke stated.
She is scheduled to be buried on Saturday, August 30, in her family’s compound at Amasu, Arochukwu, following a funeral service at the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria.
Madam Okereke had three children — a daughter and two sons — but is survived by one son, along with grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and other relatives.
