Life is full of contradictions. While some people find it rosy, others suffer misery at every turn. In all, as mortals, who are we to raise questions? It is indeed every man to his or her fate. For 35- year-old Mrs. Grace Anigor, a widow from Obegu Izzicha in Enyida Development Centre, Abakaliki Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, life may mean so many things but rosy.
She was born the only child, and worse still, she lost both parents at a tender age. She grew up and got married to Anigor who died when she was pregnant with their seventh child. She later had another child bringing? the total number of children to eight.
Saddled with the task of raising eight children, with three of them blind, coupled with the death of her husband, fate can only be said to have dealt a cruel blow on her.
Luckily, Mrs. Anigor’s first two children, Kenneth and Blessing, were born without any impairments. But Christian and Charity, who came after,? were born blind. Oluchi the 5th child was, however, lucky but followed by another blind sibling Chibuodinaka, the sixth child. The other two children: Chimaobi and Chukwubuike also escaped the infirmity.
Unable to cope with the burden of catering for the children, particularly the three blind ones, Mrs. Anigor sought help from the coordinator of Enyida Development Centre, Mr. Michael Udenwe. That was the beginning of some relief for her. She was pregnant for the seventh child and was equally afraid that it could be born blind.
After narrating her ordeal to the coordinator, she was directed to Eketube Health Centre for medical attention. At the health centre, Mrs. Anigor was treated, after which she gave birth to a normal child. The health centre further directed her to take the three blind children to another hospital for special attention to possibly see if their sight could be restored. Enyida Development Centre sponsored the treatment at the hospital, but unfortunately, every effort to restore the sight of the three blind children proved abortive. The impairment was irreversible medically, they were told.
The development centre then opted to sponsor the training of one of the blind children, Christian, who is the brightest and oldest of the three. He was sent to Ebonyi State Special School for the Blind at Opefia, Izzi Local Government Area.
When LEADERSHIP WEEKEND contacted the coordinator of Enyida Development Centre, Michael Udenwe, he confirmed that a woman came to his office with three children, all of them blind, saying he was touched by the plight of the woman and the children. He expressed shock that a woman would give birth to three blind children.
“We suggested taking them to the hospital for treatment. We took them to the hospital, including their mother who was also pregnant. After a medical examination, the doctor at Epffetta said the cause of the blindness was from the mother. She was thereafter treated to stop further infection.
“Unfortunately, it was discovered that they had lost their sight hence it was suggested that they be taken to the special school at Opefia. But the development centre could not carry that financial burden, so we took the brightest one to the school of the blind and registered him. And he is now in elementary four.
“In a class of about 20 he normally comes first. He requested for a typewriter, which we have bought for him. To my greatest surprise, the way he operates the typewriter doesn’t show that he is blind person,” Udenwe stated.
When LEADERSHIP WEEKEND visited Mrs. Anigor in her village, she narrated her ordeal and solicited for assistance from government, public-spirited organisations and individuals. Her greatest problem is how to send the two remaining blind children to school.
Mrs. Anigor said that before Udenwe directed her to visit the health centre for medical examination, she had attributed her ordeal to witchcraft, adding that she was not used to attending ante-natal clinic.
“I lost my husband and parents. I was the only child of my mother before she died. I’m suffering, especially because of the condition of the remaining blind children. I need assistance,” she said.
At Eketube Health Centre, where the woman was initially treated, Dr. Isaiah Oriji said that a number of things could have caused the blindness.
“One of the causes of blindness in infants is what we call gonorrhea, which everybody knows. We call it neo-natal gonorrhea, that is gonorrhea of the newborn. The baby can acquire it during the process of birth if the mother was infected during pregnancy and was not treated. Infection always attacks the birth canal, the reproductive system, so when the baby is coming out, he will pass through that and acquire the bacteria that causes the disease.
“If the baby is delivered through cesarean section, the chance may reduce. And if the baby acquires it and is not properly treated at birth, it can destroy the eye structures and the baby becomes blind.
“We have other conditions. If the baby didn’t develop well, maybe due to drugs (transgenic effect), the anatomy of the eye may not properly develop and the baby may be born blind.
“There are other infections like toxoplasmosis, which affects the mother. If the brain is affected and the baby inherits it in the womb and germ happens to find itself in the visual pathway, the child will be born blind. There may also be some genetic defect, either from the mother or father that does not allow the eye structures to develop very well. But such a condition can be rare.
“Generally, when a baby is born, especially in the health centre or in hospitals, there are certain solutions they drop in the eyes to prevent neo-natal gonorrhea. Those solutions clear all the bacteria and the eyes. It goes a long way to solving the issue of neo-natal blindness,” he said.
He added that unlike what obtained in the past, a large number of pregnant women now turn up for ante-natal care because of the vigorous campaign embarked upon by the Mother and Child Care Initiative (MCCI), a pet project of the Ebonyi State governor’s wife, Mrs. Josephine Elechi. He, however, regretted that after registering for ante-natal care, most of the expectant mothers still deliver at home when they are due.
“The governor’s wife is working in conjunction with the MCCI, and people are trying to abide by what she is advocating. They normally attend our health centre and we take care of them until labour period. We discourage them from going to deliver at home,” he said.
Speaking with our correspondent at Government Special School for the Blind, Opeffia, in Izzi Local Government Area of the state, Christian Anigor, the beneficiary of government gesture said he would like to be a journalist.
“I want government or public-spirited individuals to assist two of my siblings who are equally blind to go to school. I thank the coordinator because without him I wouldn’t be here. We are lacking brail paper and even typing sheets,” he added.
Also speaking, one of the teachers in the school, Mr. Udengba Chukwuemeka, also a blind man, stated that the children were exceptionally intelligent.? He, however, said the school was facing a lot of challenges, and called on the state government to increase their funding and subsidise their food. He regretted that since the Catholic Church was brought in to assist in the administration and management of the school, government is gradually shying away from its responsibilities and shifting the burden to the church.
Chukwuemeka, who was educated at the School for the Blind, Oji River in Enugu State, stated that it would be unfortunate to allow the children go hungry, noting that food was always in short supply. He stressed that since government has 27 pilot boarding secondary schools, the school for the blind should also be designated a pilot school so that they will also enjoy special benefits, including food subsidy. This gesture, he added, would stop the danger of exposing the students to street begging.
“In Oji River my alma mater for example, the children go to Awka, Enugu, Onitsha and even Lagos to beg. Here, we have not given them such opportunity, but if the system is stretched beyond the limit, the children may be exposed to such a negative opportunity. You cannot tell a hungry child to sit down to read, it is difficult.
“So let the government at least do for the visually impaired what they are doing for the sighted. If there is any other alternative for us they should let us know. Government can decide to develop a special policy for the visually impaired,” Chukwuemeka said.
He revealed that even though the students do not pay school fees, in line with the free education policy of the Ebonyi State government, they are expected to spend an average of N50, 000 per session, which is broken down to N10, 000 per term for three terms making it N30, 000 and N20, 000 for other charges and study materials.
On the possibility of nurturing the students to become useful members of the society, Chukwuemeka said, “Disability is not really a barrier; what matters is the person’s ability in disability. So we will not restrict anybody’s ambition; our role is to guide and expose them to different opportunities and responsibilities.”