Mansata Jarju, a 7 year old girl from Alluhareh, URR, The Gambia suffers from retinoblastoma (an eye cancer), which is at an advance stage. She needs urgent life saving treatment which is not available in Gambia.
Gambians on social media today woke up to the news that Spain is willing to issue 7 year old Mansata Jarju with a visa to travel to Spain for treatment for free of charge by a Spanish Doctor, but she may be denied that opportunity due to her family insisting she must be accompanied to Spain by a relative.
Spanish authorities are only willing to issue visa to young Mansata alone and not issue a visa to an adult relative to accompany her to Spain for reason that adults accompanying sick relatives have abandoned them and absconded in the past.
Mansata Jarju’s mum who is said to be six months pregnant is insisting on accompanying her daughter or at least one of her adult relative or the family will choose to go to neighbouring Senegal for treatment and leave the rest in the hands of God.
Reacting to the situation, Scotland based Gambian, Yunus Hydera who masterminded and coordinated a social media fundraising drive for Mansata Jarju has this to say:
“Mansata has free treatment in Spain if she can go there.
The mum is over 6 months pregnant and will not be able to fly to acompany her. The Spanish embassy would issue Visa to only the child and no adult.
An NGO affiliated to the hospital in spain promised to come and pick Mansata, provide care and accommodation in Spain and bring her back when treated.
Mother insisting she ll have to go or a close relative, if not, they ll just take the money and go to Dakar for the treatment, if that didn't work "then that's what God decided". “ Yunus Hydera who’s efforts helped raised a staggering £10,000 for Mansata continued: “Meanwhile Mansata is in pain and cant sleep at night and her condition is heading towards one direction - death. She seem no longer the priority as it now become "who'd go to spain" Or the whole thing gets cancelled. “ Also reacting on the news of the situation with Mansata’s treatment in Spain and the fact that she may be denied the opportunity as a result of who gets to accompany her to Spain, one Lamin Drammeh had this to say:
”This is a devastating situation for the innocent child and the poor mom. If i were in her situation, I’d rather agree and allow the poor girl to go and seek treatment for such an urgent health condition. However, it is unnecessary and inexcusable for the embassy to deny granting a visa to the mother knowing how important her presence with her 2-year-old child could help in the treatment process.
May Allah grant her Shifa. So sad”
Banna Joof offered these: “ Yunus Hydara I can understand as a mom I wouldn’t be comfortable to send my daughter away but if the mom refuses to let her daughter go for treatment may be you should keep the funds until she agrees to let the kid go.“
Young and innocent Mansata is now at the mercy of her family seeing sense and putting his life before anything else.
We hope the family of Mansata will put her life and livelihood as the the utmost priority at this moment in time and allow her to travel to Spain through the NGO for the urgent treatment to have a chance at life.
留言