Audu Bakaniki and his family were among the locals displaced by a terror attack in 2020 when bandits invaded their village, Ibrako in Kalla, Kaduna State.
The breadwinner for a family of six is not only battling for their upkeep but also striving to treat his 15-year-old ailing daughter, Grace.
Grace, according to his father fell sick when she was three. Neither Bakaniki nor his wife, Sarah could imagine that their daughter’s sudden fever could be this worse.
The 15-year-old Grace, according to HumAngle is suffering from recurrent boils covering the length and breadth of her body.
When taken to a hospital in Kalla, Kaduna State, medics could not figure out the nature of her sickness and her family could not afford to take her to a better hospital.
“At this point, we have tried everything we can, but nothing seems to be working. We are leaving everything to God. There are many days that Grace cannot even step outside the room and, because of that, she had to stop attending school like other children of her age. What is worse, sometimes she experiences severe seizures. When that happens, she usually loses control of her limbs and has intense muscle spasms,” her father said.
READ: Chronicles of the Displaced — ‘We Fled and Left Everything Behind’
“When her illness is triggered, we don’t even get to sleep because of how she writhes in pain,” he added. “Like yesterday, we spent most of the night awake because of her situation. We really need help. There isn’t much that the hospital can do for her. They give her a few drugs to help her cope with the pain, but it always comes back.”
Before they were displaced, Bakaniki had lived a simple life in Ibrako with his family. He worked as a peasant farmer to meet other ends.
Bakaniki now lives with his family including Grace at an informal IDPs camp in Rimau, Kalla, Kaduna State.
