By Yusef Taylor, @FlexDan_YT
Isatou is a two-month-old baby from The Gambia, Sunchu with a severe medical condition needing urgent overseas treatment to survive. She was born premature weighing just 2.6kg with a rare defect which Medical Research Council (MRC) diagnosed as severe acute malnutrition with possible congenital oesophageal fistula or trachea-oesophageal fistula.
https://www.gofundme.com/gambias-future
In lay man’s terms, this is a rare birth defect condition which “causes air to pass from the windpipe to the esophagus (throat pipe) and stomach, and stomach acid to pass into the lungs. These defects mean the baby won’t be able to swallow safely, if at all.
They could also develop life-threatening problems such as choking and pneumonia if not treated quickly, so surgery will usually be carried out within a few days of birth.” NHS UK Website
The MRC recommended for Isatou’s referral for an assessment and surgical treatment of possible congenital oesophageal fistula or trachea-oesophageal fistula.
Her chances of surviving in The Gambia without overseas treatment are slim and she needs urgent overseas treatment to stand a chance to survive. Isatou currently feeds through a tube in her nose which she needs to be reinserted into her stomach daily. You can imagine the toll this takes on the body of a premature baby.
A Father’s Appeal
Isatou’s Dad, Sheickh Omar Jobe is a mechanic and her mother is unemployed. They are calling on any generous person, charitable organisations, philanthropist, medical institutions or government to help save her life before it’s too late. According to Sheickh, the tube in Isatou’s nose is to ingest milk which causes her to cough all night long and a great amount of discomfort. Every night is a blessing to see her alive and now they are counting on your urgent generosity to keep her light from flickering away. Help save a two month old baby.
‘’Everything I am looking for right now is the mercy of God who has the power and strength to heal my beloved child. I have nothing to say but only to be patient and continue praying for the survival of my child. You can see that my work is equally affected as I have to spend a lot of time taking care of my baby and her mother. This has put a serious financial burden on me.’’
https://www.gofundme.com/gambias-future
There is currently a drive to get Isatou the urgent medical treatment she requires but time is not on her side. Her fathers growing concern that she may be losing the battle for her life is worrying. To help we are urging all to please donate generously in Baby Isatou’s GoFundMe link. The money raised will not be enough to pay for her urgent medical treatment, however, it will contribute towards her urgent travel and immediate upkeep.
The aim is to avoid any delays for her urgent travel and treatment while her medical arrangements are being finalised. A concerted effort is being made to get Isatou the urgent medical treatment she requires and any well-meaning philanthropist, individual or organisation is desperately needed to come to Isatou’s aid.
Last year efforts to help a three-year-old girl, Oumie who had to pass food via a tube in her stomach was a huge success. This solidarity demonstrated for Oumie is desperately needed to keep Isatou’s young life from fading away. In the spirit of Ramadaan, we humbly request your urgent assistance to save baby Isatou.
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Sir Dawda’s Birthday Anniversary
Last week Wednesday, May 16th was Sir Dawda’s 94th Birthday celebration. I will be remiss if I don’t wish him many, many, more celebrations. Your honesty, humility, empathy, and respect for human dignity and rights should be emulated by our current and future leaders. I worked at Standard Bank for 12 years and never saw your account balance being more than D30, 000–at any given time. The only money that went into your account was your salary of D3, 400, and the proceeds from your garden in Banjulinding, mostly averaging around D700, seasonally. Your expenses were mostly your kids’ tuition and the maintenance of your mother’s household at Brikama. What a far cry from the behaviour of the Kaninlai Butcher/Dictator, who treated the Treasury as his piggybank!
To further underscore your high regard for human dignity and rights, you executed one person in 30 years. That was Mustapha Danso, who was involved in the 1981 coup attempt. About 8 months before the coup attempt, Mr Danso killed the then Army Commander, Eku Mahoney. Mr Danso was on death row for that incident, when the coup plotters released him from prison, and gave him a gun. He went on to terrorise civilians on Independence Drive, on the day of the coup attempt. Can someone tell me how many innocent Gambians the Kaninlai Butcher/Dictator killed in 22 years? What a difference a ruler makes!
You were accused of having houses in Spain, Israel by your detractors. They were proven wrong! You wanted Gambia to be like Singapore, Malta, or Denmark: small, resourceless, peaceful–but rich. You were on your way to achieving that goal–only to be interrupted by a tribalist, uneducated kleptocrat. Thank you very much, Sir Dawda, for a job well done! Every Gambian owes you an eternal debt of gratitude.