Poor Oti Family Battles Fear and Hopelessness as Child Risks Permanent Blindness
By: Lawrence Appiani Yeboah
A heartbreaking cry for help is emerging from the remote community of Dodo-Dain in the Oti Region, where a poor family is desperately fighting to save the sight and future of their little daughter born with a rare and devastating eye condition.
The child, Ekugbakpe Richlove, is believed to be suffering from Cryptophthalmos, an extremely rare congenital disorder in which the skin covers the eyes, leaving the victim unable to see normally and vulnerable to lifelong disability if urgent medical intervention is not secured.
The emotional appeal is being championed by the Network of Journalists for the Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa, which says the child’s condition has become a race against time.
According to the President of PROMOAFRICA, Seth Addi, the young girl urgently requires specialist eye treatment and reconstructive surgery to give her any chance of living a normal life.
“This innocent child should not be condemned to a lifetime of darkness simply because her family is poor. With urgent support, her life can be changed forever,” he said emotionally.
The struggling family, living in difficult conditions in the rural Oti community, is reportedly unable to afford the enormous medical bills, transportation costs, accommodation, and post-surgery rehabilitation required for treatment.
PROMOAFRICA has therefore made a passionate appeal to the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, charitable organizations, corporate institutions, churches, philanthropists, and compassionate Ghanaians to come to the aid of the child before it becomes too late.
The organization says support is urgently needed for specialist medical evaluation, reconstructive eye surgery, transportation for the child and caregiver, and long-term post-operative care.
Mr. Addi stressed that the case goes beyond medicine and touches directly on the dignity, rights, and future of children born with disabilities in deprived communities.
“Every child deserves the opportunity to dream, to learn, and to see the beauty of life. Ghana cannot turn its back on this little girl,” he added.
The Executive Secretary of PROMOAFRICA, Mariam Nyarkoah Amponsah, also appealed for urgent intervention, warning that delays in treatment could lead to permanent blindness and irreversible complications.
As news of the child’s condition spreads, many residents in the area are hoping that government agencies, health institutions, and kind-hearted individuals will rise to the occasion and give young Richlove a chance to see the world for the very first time.
