Sonia Ekweremadu, daughter of Senator Ike Ekweremadu has appealed to the general public to come to her aid and save her life as she needs a kidney donor.
Sonia who is battling kidney failure made the appeal on Monday in an Instagram post. She noted that under the laws of England and Wales, whoever will be donating the organ must be purely driven by compassion as no reward is involved.
Recall her parents were arrested and charged to court for bringing a boy from Nigeria to the UK for alleged organ harvesting meant to be transplanted to Sonia who has been on dialysis for quite some time.
Sonia’s appeal
“I, Sonia Ekweremadu, hereby appeal to the general public to come to my aid and save my life.
“I am 25 years old and a graduate of Media and Communications, University of Coventry. I dropped out of my post-graduate studies at the University of Newcastle in 2019 when I was diagnosed with a rare kidney disease, FSGS Nephrotic Syndrome.
“My family has battled to save my life and has taken me to various hospitals, but the illness persisted and kept degenerating. I am alive today by the special grace of God.
“I am presently in London, UK, receiving five hours of dialysis three to four times a week. This is at the expense of my family as I am not qualified for NHS due to my immigration status.
“The last three years have been extremely challenging. The charges being faced by my parents in London presently, are directly connected to my illness and have complicated matter for me and my family. I do not intend to delve into details of this unfortunate development as the matter is still in Court. I am, however, optimistic that the truth will prevail and it will end in praise to God.
“In the circumstance above, I am appealing to anybody whom it may please to assist me willingly with a kidney donation in the name of God.
“This appeal would have been utterly unnecessary as every member of my family is eager to donate their kidney to me, knowing that I would do the same for any of them.
“Regrettably, a comprehensive medical examination showed that my case of nephrotic syndrome is a genetic illness and the doctors advised against donation from any of my family members, as it would likely reoccur. In the time that my father has been incarcerated, he has been diagnosed with acute kidney damage.
“Anybody that is moved by this appeal and wishes to donate his or her kidney to me may send an email to helpsonialive@gmail.com and include his or her name, phone number, email address and place of residence.
“Please, note that under the laws of England and Wales, organ donation must be purely driven by compassion and, therefore, no reward is involved.
“Finally, I have decided to commit and dedicate myself to helping people with the challenges of kidney disease, upon my full recovery. Thank you and God bless you.”
In case you missed it
- Ekweremadu and wife, Beatrice were arrested in June by the Metropolitan police on allegations of trafficking a 21-year-old for the purpose of organ harvesting.
- They were accused of plotting to traffic 21-year-old David Ukpo from Nigeria to the United Kingdom to transplant his organs to their daughter who is suffering from kidney failure.
- While Senator Ekweremadu was charged with conspiracy to arrange or facilitate the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting, Beatrice was charged with arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, between August 1 last year and May 5, under the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
- The alleged victim had claimed he was 15 and that he was brought to donate his kidney without his consent.
- However, records provided by the NIMC proved that the boy was 21 years old and not the 15 years he had claimed.
- The Westminster Magistrates’ Court in its ruling held the alleged victim is not a minor.
- Beatrice was later granted bail by a London court while the senator was denied bail and has remained in custody.