From John Adams, Minna
Money, they say cannot buy life, but Ekanem Ayi Okon, a staff of the National Examinations Council (NECO), Minna, Niger State, needs money to stay alive. The indigene of Cross River State is currently on admission at the Ibrahim Babangida Specialists Hospital, in Minna.
Ekanem, a Senior Examinations Officer, needs N15 million for kidney transplant. His wife, Christiana, appealed to kind-hearted Nigerians to assist her husband overcome the life-threatening illness.
He was diagnosed of kidney related illness since August 2023, and was admitted into the hospital in January 2024. She told Daily Sun: “He has been on dialysis since then, spending a minimum of N80,000 per week, pending when he will get the N15 million required for the kidney transplant.
“He is the bread winner of my family. Therefore, any form of financial support from the family is completely ruled out.”
Ekanem has continued to rely on contributions and gifts from family members, friends, church and co-staff to foot the N80,000 bill needed for the weekly dialysis. He is required to undergo dialysis three times a week, he could only afford money for one or two times a week depending on contributions from kind-hearted individuals and friends.
The wife said NECO management rendered some financial assistance: “We wrote a letter of assistance to his office to solicit for help. The office responded with some amount. But it is far less from what is needed for the kidney transplant.
“The organisation tried its best and we thank the management. But my husband needs more money to undergo the kidney transplant. The hospital said it can’t be done in Minna except in Abuja, Ibadan (Oyo State) or Osogbo (Osun State).
“We have exhausted everything we have on dialysis since January when he was admitted in the hospital. My husband is only living by the grace of God. The little contributions we get from his friends, our church, the House on the Rock Church in Minna here, and co-staff in his office.
“Unfortunately I am not working. I don’t have a job except the little business that I am doing in order not to remain idle at home. Since my husband took ill, I stopped the business because I am the one taking care of him in the hospital.
“We are appealing to Nigerians and non-governmental organisations to come to our aid and help my husband live again.
Practically, we cannot afford the N15 million for the kidney transplant and the doctors said that that is the only way out.
“We are just waiting for the worst to happen because we don’t have the money.”