BABY DETAINED IN RIVERS HOSPITAL WITH HIS GRANDMA OVER 4.6MIL BILL, ONE YEAR AFTER HE LOST HIS MOTHER AT CHILDBIRTH

In the bustling heart of Port Harcourt, amid the hum of traffic and the laughter of daily life, an unspoken tragedy lies hidden within the quiet walls of Meridian Hospital, D-Line. It is a story that pierces the conscience — a tale of love, loss, and a desperate plea for compassion that has lingered for more than a year.

It all began with a young woman’s hope for motherhood. Thirty-six-year-old Mrs. Chiamaka, heavily pregnant but only seven months gone, was full of expectation when fate struck cruelly. She went into premature labour and was rushed from the Meridian Hospital branch on Ikwerre Road to the hospital’s main facility at D-Line, Port Harcourt. In that frantic race to save two lives, doctors fought valiantly to deliver her preterm baby.

The infant survived, but tragedy followed swiftly — Mrs. Chiamaka, the young mother, bled profusely and could not be saved. Her dreams of motherhood ended in silence.

In the sterile glow of the hospital’s neonatal ward, her fragile baby was placed in an incubator. For four agonising months, the infant struggled between life and death, while his grandmother — weary, grieving, but steadfast — remained at his side. She became both nurse and guardian, whispering prayers into the sterile air, hoping her love would be enough to keep him alive.

By divine mercy, the baby survived. But when the time came to go home, a new kind of pain began — one that had nothing to do with medicine. The hospital presented the bereaved family with a bill totaling ₦6,000,000 for the treatment that kept the infant alive. Through the kindness of relatives and friends, they scraped together ₦1,400,000, leaving a balance of ₦4,600,000.

With no steady income and no one left to turn to, the family pleaded for mercy. They begged the hospital to allow them to pay in instalments. Their pleas, however, were met with friends and family members, who had already sacrificed so much to save the baby’s life, were left with no choice but to watch as the hospital took drastic measures.

For over a year and one month, the baby and grandmother have been held captive in the hospital, subjected to inhumane conditions that have taken a severe physical and emotional toll on both. The child, now over a year old, has never experienced life outside the hospital walls, while the grandmother has sacrificed her freedom to care for her grandchild.

This situation raises serious ethical and legal concerns, representing a gross violation of their human rights. The hospital’s actions have sparked outrage and concern, with many questioning the morality and humanity of such practices.

As the situation continues to unfold, we appeal to the public, media, and compassionate organisations to intervene and help secure the release of the baby and grandmother. We believe that media exposure will not only pressure the hospital into releasing this innocent child and his grandmother but also inspire Nigerians and organisations to offer assistance to the family.

This is not just a financial issue; it is a matter of human dignity, justice, and compassion. We urge everyone to join hands and help bring hope, justice, and freedom to this family that has already suffered so much.

A Plea for Help

Dr. (Mrs.) Tari Bozimo, the coordinator of the humanitarian intervention, has made an urgent call to all well-meaning Nigerians. “We urgently need to raise ₦4.6 million to secure their freedom,” she said with emotion. “Every contribution, no matter how small, brings us closer to restoring a family’s dignity and giving this child a chance to live beyond the walls that have confined him since birth. For now, media houses and humanitarian voices have been called upon to amplify this cry for mercy.”

Indeed, this is more than a financial crisis — it is a moral one. A grandmother should not be punished for her poverty. A baby should not grow up as a prisoner of circumstance. Together, we can right this wrong.

Let every kind heart, every faith community, every philanthropist and citizen with a conscience rise to support this family. Let us join hands to help the baby and grandmother regain their freedom and start a new chapter in their lives.

But reports from Meridian hospital indicate that the father of the baby is said to have absconded from coming forward to the hospital to interact with the management over the plight of the baby and his mother-in-law, who is currently being held. It’s said that this necessitated the hospital management to report the matter to the Nigerian Police and the Juvenile Court of Rivers State. The unpaid balance of N4.6m out of the N6M still remains a challenge to the runaway father of the baby, Miracle, probably for the fear of not knowing where else to go and obtain the sum of Four Million and six hundred thousand naira (N4.6m).