Anambra State Sickle Cell Law VS Agents Of Darkness

It has become important to alert the authorities and well meaning individuals about an unholy alliance to stifle the implementation of the Anambra State Sickle Cell Disease ( Control and Eradication) Law, 2019. All manner of dirty politics are being employed to continue with the births of sickle cell children while suppressing every avenue for sickle cell sensitization because some office holders in high places are not comfortable with the management of Association of People Living with Sickle Cell Disorder, that has championed this cause creditably for long, due to their selfish reasons.

These alliance of doom are scattered in key government ministries that are saddled with the responsibility for the implementation of the law as duly provided. The association has worn humility and respectability as a toga in reaching out to these functionaries to amicably resolve every differences to no avail.

It is not the aim of this article to reel out the numerous instances of the suppression meted against us, as we would not like to embarrass the good working governor, but the last straw that broke the camel’s back was shunning the official opening of the first sickle cell home for orphaned and indigent SCD patients because they don’t like the face of a particular benefactor of the association who chaired the ceremony, even when Her Excellency, Chief Mrs Ebelelechukwu Obiano delegated the Commissioner for Women and Children Affairs to represent her at the occasion. The representative was conspicuously nowhere to be found. It was that bad!

Why mix politics with humanitarianism? Why allow unbridled eye and lip service to sabotage our efforts towards ensuring a free sickle cell society?

Sickle cell patients were worst hit by hunger and lack at the peak of the covid-19 pandemic, especially those who were detained in the hospital for not being able to pay their hospital bills as much as 1.7 million naira at the late Dr Udemezue hospital at Nnewi.

We cried day and night for medical and material attention due to our peculiar health challenges that needed care. Luckily enough, Osodieme Obiano, some charitable individuals and groups came to our aid. Why must we cry and kick before what is due to us is given or provided for us? This is a reasons why they continue to take undue advantage of the non implementation of the sickle cell law.

Still on the covid-19 crisis, the association was aware of the palliatives from the federal government to the state for people with vulnerabilities which is supposed to go round, but not a grain of rice blindly found it’s way into the association, yet we have hundreds of sickle cell persons needing such help and assistance. If this is allowed to go on, where the rich would continue eating up what belongs to the poor, how sensitive could our conscience be as a people?

The Association would passionately and ceaselessly appeal to the State Government and Wife of the Governor to intervene now that indigent sickle cell patients have a central home in Agulu Anaocha LGA Anambra State. We are aware of the silent maneuvers to prevent the association from having any form of interaction with Osodieme due to the fear of exposing a stinking can of worms in long existence that would reveal their wickedness to the downtrodden whom they pretend to protect.

Her Excellency should find a way to reach her suffering children directly because many ‘Goliaths’ are in high places working against the eradication of sickle cell disease in the interest of their pockets.

We would also appeal to eminent benefactors like Prince. Engr. Arthur Eze to come to our aid through our Sickle Cell Home.

We have proven our integrity beyond doubts when Ozoigbondu gave the association some money to build a project, of which we built a functional Sickle Cell Specialist Clinic at NAUTH Ukpo. Rather than Prince Engr. Arthur Eze giving financial grants to those who will pocket it and turn around to deny him, let him commit to a creditable organization like APLSCD with tested credibility and records of glorious achievements.

We are also commending Sen. Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah for his consistency in supporting us all through. We also wish to continue under his goodwill and magnanimity for the fruitfulness of our endeavours as relates to sickle cell sensitization, and welfare support for members.

“Aluta continua; a vitória é certa.” We shall continue to march on untill total liberation and freedom is achieved. Darkness can never and would not prevail against Light.

Aisha Edward Maduagwu
National Coordinator
APLCSD
07014152622.