Embattled former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, has been diagnosed with acute kidney damage even as he languishes in police custody in London, United Kingdom.
This was disclosed on Monday by his daughter, Sonia, who is also battling a debilitating kidney disease in a London hospital.
Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice, are currently facing charges of organ harvesting in the United Kingdom. The couple had brought a young man to London to donate his organ to Sonia but the man reported them to the police, alleging he was forced.
Ekweremadu and his wife were arrested in London by the Metropolitan Police on June 23 and charged with trying to bring a child to the UK to allegedly harvest organs.
Ekweremadu has remained in detention ever since as the court has refused to grant him bail.
However, his wife, Beatrice, was granted bail on stringent conditions by the Uxbridge Magistrate Court in the United Kingdom on July 26.
Beatrice was charged with arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation, between August 1, 2021 and May 5, 2022 under the Modern Slavery Act 2015, while the husband, Ike, was charged with conspiracy to arrange or facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting.
But in a passionate plea on Monday in a post on Instagram, Sonia, who called on members of the public to donate a kidney to her to save her life explained that her family members are unable to come to her aid because her kidney disease, FSGS Nephrotic Syndrome, is not only rare but also genetic.
Because of that Sonia said “the doctors advised against donation from any of my family members, as it would likely reoccur.”
Not only that, the young lady said her father, Senator Ekweremadu, has been struck by the same illness.
“In the time that my father has been incarcerated, he has been diagnosed with acute kidney damage,” he mourned.
In her statement, Ekweremadu’s daughter noted that she had to drop out of the university after being diagnosed with the rare kidney disease.
The statement read, “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.”
Ekweremadu’s daughter noted that the public appeal would have been totally unnecessary were it possible for her family members to donate a kidney for her.
“Regrettably, 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,” she added.
