To achieve this, she said, “the continuous effort of professional counsellors is highly needed because marriage and family are crucial to society’s stability and its future.”
Professor Omoteso made the remarks Tuesday last week while delivering the lead paper at the annual conference and award ceremony organised by the Counselling Association of Nigeria (CASSON), Oyo State chapter, with the theme ‘Contemporary Issues in Couples, Marriage and Family Counselling’.
According to her, couples, marriages and families all over the world are facing an array of novel changes owing to the fact that the nature of marriage has transformed due to changes in couple’s patterns of relationship, which is, in turn, changing families and communities at large.
She identified the causes of problems to include lack of communication, lack of intimacy, emotional and marital infidelity, individual differences, lack of sex, addictive behaviours, deep unresolved issues, fear of commitment, lack of appreciation, children issues and emotional isolation.
Professor Omoteso challenged counsellors to make it a point of duty to organise seminars, training and workshops for both unmarried and married couples with topics of discussion revolving around communication, negotiation skills, interpersonal relationship skills, choice of marriage partners, sex issues, among others.
In her goodwill message, the National President, CASSON, Professor Elizabeth Omotunde Egbochukwu, said the second reading of the association’s bill to become a professional body was before the National Assembly as of the first day of the conference.
“The first reading was done on Thursday, 1 March 2018, while the second reading is currently going on as I speak (Tuesday, 13 March 2018). Also, efforts are in top gear over the completion of our permanent national secretariat,” she hinted.
Oyo State chairman, CASSON, Professor Ayo Hammed, noted in his address that the dream of Oyo State CASSON was towards the development, growth and promotion of counselling services, to solve contemporary educational, social, political and economic problems of the nation and Oyo State in particular.
He said the conference was, therefore, necessary to get members refreshed and informed on how to face challenges they experience in the profession and their personal lives.
“All hands must be on the deck to build a healthy nation in all ramifications. We must strive to move beyond a failed nation to a healthy nation. We must not allow the new lexicon such as deviant marital behaviour rear its ugly head in our society,” he said.
He appreciated executive council and members of Oyo State CASSON for their unalloyed loyalty and support in moving the association forward, as he congratulated all the awardees for been counted worthy.
Head, Department of Guidance and Counselling, University of Ibadan, Dr Chioma Asuzu, congratulated the chairman, Oyo CASSON and members on the success of the conference and for choosing such a timely and important topic as a theme.
Dr Monilola Oyetade, Chairman, Local Organising Committee, said the association’s intention at the end of the three-day conference was to come up with a communiqué which would be made available to all stakeholders, government and policymakers in the country so as to jointly tackle the contemporary issues in marriage and family.
and then