Sonia Ekweremadu publicly appeals for kidney donation

In a social media post, Ms Ekweremadu admitted that her medical condition was responsible for her parents’ legal battles in the UK.

HILLARY ESSIEN • September 12, 2022

Sonia Ekweremadu

Sonia Ekweremadu, the daughter of embattled former Nigerian deputy senate president Ike Ekweremadu, has appealed to members of the public to donate a kidney to her.

On Monday, Ms Ekweremadu took to social media, admitting that her medical condition was responsible for her parents’ legal battles in the United Kingdom.

“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 5 hours of dialysis 3-4 times a week,” Ms Ekweremadu said.

“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,” she added.

In an Instagram post titled, ‘APPEAL FOR KIDNEY DONATION BY SONIA EKWEREMADU’, Ms Ekweremadu promised to dedicate her life to helping people with similar kidney challenges.

“Finally, I have decided to commit and dedicate myself to helping people with the challenges of kidney disease upon my full recovery,” the Instagram post said.

Mr Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice, are facing charges bordering on conspiracy to arrange/facilitate the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting.

The couple were arrested by London Metropolitan Police in June and appeared before a magistrate court in July.

The police had alleged that David Ukpo, the reported victim at the centre of the organ harvesting allegation, was a minor, but the court ruled that he is 21.

In early July, the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court ordered the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) and others to release the certified true copy (CTC) of David Ukpo’s biodata. This subsequently debunked the claims that Mr Ukpo was a minor after passports, national ID and other documents showed he was 21. Mrs Ekweremadu was granted bail on July 22.

The judge handling the case will hear pretrial applications on October 31, but the trial will commence fully on May 2, 2023.

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