BY OUR CORRESPODENT
Way back in 2009, working as a reporter, I came across a certain woman, who hailed from Nsukwa in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State in a popular private hospital along Nnebisi Road, Asaba, the Delta State capital. She had just put to birth, a bouncing baby boy but was unable to clear the hospital bills.
From our interactions, she informed me that the man who impregnated her rejected the pregnancy under the excuse that she is a local village girl with no class and again, he was not even ready for fatherhood responsibilities.
The woman’s level of education was so low that she found it difficult to give details of her bill. She, however, told me that her bill was in the neighborhood of sixteen thousand naira (N16,000). Yours truly, a young journalist could have loved to help her settle the bill but unfortunately, I was skint. The much I could do was to assist her through this medium by making a ‘Save a Soul’ publication on behalf of the stranded new mum.
The next morning, I received a call from someone, who introduced herself as the member representing Aniocha South Local Government Area in Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Onyemaechi Joan. She acknowledged the report and invited me over to her office. I went to meet her at her office in company with a Reporter from NTA, Asaba. From there, we all proceeded to the hospital where we met the young mother at the maternity ward.
The joy of seeing mother and child hale and hearty overwhelmed Hon. Onyemaechi. After congratulating and exchanging pleasantries with the woman, she gifted her twenty thousand naira (N20,000) to buy baby clothes and also gave her additional twenty thousand naira (N20,000) for their upkeep. Thereafter, we proceeded to the administrative section of the hospital where she settled bills.
It was at the point of payment, we discovered that the woman was delivered through caesarean section and had incurred a bill of over one hundred and sixty thousand naira (N160,000) due to complications. I felt completely nonplussed at that point. It was as if I had deceived the public in my publication on the woman’s bill. But this young beautiful lawmaker, Onyemaechi, told me not to worry. She quickly dashed into her car and brought two hundred thousand naira. She cleared the bills and took the balance forty thousand naira (N40,000) to the lady to resuscitate her hair dressing business in order to take adequate care of her baby. In total, she parted with two hundred and forty thousand naira (N240,000). That was a huge amount as at that time.
Another incident where Joan Onyemaechi displayed uncommon empathy was her response to an SOS call concerning a young boy of about four years old plagued with cancer of the eye. His parents hailed from one of the Eastern States but resided in Asaba. Hon. Onyemaechi personally undertook the responsibility for the medical care of that little boy, who she ferried out of the country where he underwent several surgeries. She spent quite a lot of money in trying to save the child but unfortunately, the toddler could not make it.
Exactly four years ago, a young man named Chijioke Kurue called me and narrated the ordeal he was facing. He and his wife were both OND holders in Business Administration from Federal Polytechnic, Oko in Anambra State. While his wife engaged in petty trading, the young man was into Okada (motorcycle) riding to cater for the family.
In a bid to have their third child, his wife delivered a set of triplets. Their bill was over eight hundred thousand naira (N800,000). He pleaded with the hospital to discharge his wife while he hustled to clear the bill as further detaining of his wife and children will continue to increase the bill.
In the process, he had a near fatal accident with his motorcycle. He managed to survive but the motorcycle was beyond repairs. He later got another rickety motorcycle based on an agreement to be making daily returns of three thousand naira (3,000) to the owner. Things became more frustrating as he would use the motorcycle to generate about three thousand naira (N3,000) only for him to spend over N9,000 on repairs. Moved by his pathetic story and my fact finding which revealed that they were actually living in squalor, I once again, took it upon myself to make a publication on his ordeal in The Pointer newspaper and syndicated same in several other media outfits for wider reach.
Of all persons in the State and country Nigeria, it was only Rt. Hon, Joan Onyemaechi that responded by coming to the rescue of this young man. She bought baby food, wears, sanitary items, bags of rice, cartons of noodles, toiletries among others and stormed this young man’s place, where she presented the items and as well as cash to clear the hospital bills. She also offered the young man a job with Asaba Capital Territory Development Agency and pleaded with the public to further support the young couple and their innocent triplets, as whatever she had presented could only take them a few months due to the huge financial burden of caring for multiple babies.
A few weeks later, Onyemaechi called the young man and introduced him to some visitors who came to her office. One young man among the visitors took his account details and the next he got from the visitor was an alert of half a million naira (N500,000). This space will not be enough to reel out her numerous charitable deeds that are known to me.
Precisely on Tuesday, July 30, 2024 the news of her adoption by dare-devil kidnappers who stormed her Church and whisked her away through the River Niger, unsettled the State. It was so painful to hear some persons speak or write about her in an abusively disparaging manner. Remember, there is no perfect human on planet earth. Everyone has two sides, the good and the bad; including you and me, just like Rt. Hon. Joan Onyemaechi. We offend God every second but He still looks at us with compassion and forgives us.
With this, I humbly make a passionate appeal to Hon, Joan Onyemaechi’s abductors to please have a change of heart and release her, so she can be reunited with her family. There are many less privileged people who depend on her; orphans, widows, the voiceless, downtrodden among others.
The spirit of many have been dampened and hearts broken to bits with the news of her kidnap. It is one kidnap that is currently having negative impacts on many right now and capable of sending many of her dependants to the streets as miscreants. If for nothing else, but for God, kindly set her free! Loosen her strings and let her go!
