WELCOME REMARKS BY THE CEO AT 12TH NATIONAL COLLOQUIUM ON MENTAL HEALTH

REMARKS BY THE FOUNDER/CEO OF MOBILE MANNA FOUNDATION, FR. DONATUS UKPONG  AT THE 12TH NATIONAL COLLOQUIUM ON MENTAL HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT TO MARK THE 2024 WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY CELEBRATION IN AKWA IBOM STATE

THEME: PRIORITIZING MENTAL HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE

PROTOCOL

It’s my pleasure to welcome you to this year’s celebration of International World Mental Health Day in Akwa Ibom State, and to our 12th National Colloquium on Mental Health and Development. I thank God for the grace and the privilege given to Mobile Manna Foundation to keep faith with this program since 2012. I really appreciate the members and staff of the Foundation who have been working hard to make this day a significant one in Akwa Ibom State every year.

We are here today to examine the question of mental health in the workplace, and the need to prioritize same for authentic freedom and development of persons and communities. Mental health involves the ability to cope with environmental stressors effectively, and the capacity to make significant contributions towards the improvement of personal and communal life, and the fostering of the civilization of love. Without mental health, no human being can be productive in a transforming manner, and be even religious in a liberating style. The workplace is where every human person is invited to use his or her talents/skills for the collective wellbeing of all and transformation of the environment.

Poverty and underdevelopment are products of unhealthy mental state of the workers across the society. Mentally unhealthy leaders are the disasters for states and nations, organizations or institutions. Since no one can give what he or she does not have, such leaders cannot give mental health to their workers or followers. Therefore, the mental health of workers is a window to the mental health of the leaders. The level of productivity in our society is determined by the mental health of the workforce. Unhealthy mind will turn factories into churches, laboratories into sanctuaries. Unhealthy mind will bring religion into politics, and politics into prayer, science into ritual, and ritual into experiment. What a disaster!

To God be the glory that a seasoned professional and catalyst of productivity in Akwa Ibom State, Mkpisong (Obong) Ide Owodiong-Idemeko is here to moderate this colloquium. I am glad that our guest speakers are familiar with the problem of mental health both theoretically and practically. Prof. Comfort Etok, a top scientist and an expert in health, safety, security and environment is in a position to speak on mental health in the workplace. Dr. Magnus Chukwuekezie is a worldclass and award-winning banker, a mesmerizing entrepreneur and a man of profound faith in God. He will speak on productivity and mental health of women in Nigeria. We are privileged to listen to and interact with them in today’s colloquium. Permit me to conclude this remark by inviting you to think of what will happen when an educated and professional driver is given a cranky car to drive, and what will happen when a person with limited mental capacity is given a brand-new Prado to drive. The workplace can bring down productivity of mentally healthy person, and mentally unhealthy person will ultimately ruin the workplace. Therefore, it is pertinent for us to prioritize mental health in the workplace, if we really desire and long for authentic development and freedom of our people.

We grateful to Bulletine Constrution Company for supporting this colloquium generously. Welcome and God bless you.

 

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