A trending story in our sister’s blog, Starrfm of a 24-year-old blind orphan who says her male friends demand sex before giving her food amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The twenty-four-year-old blind girl who lost her eyesight some four years ago and is one of the vulnerable in society who is finding difficulties surviving amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The blind girl is an orphan and lives with her 70-year-old grandmother who sells sachet water in Accra. She sees herself as a burden.
According to her, friends she assumed would help demand sex from her before rendering help. She also noted that she had at a point contemplated suicide.
She is currently a student at the Akropong School for the blind but is currently home because of the lockdown.
She said,
“because of social distancing and I cannot go with anybody since I can’t see properly, how can I go and do things for myself. I’m an orphan and its very hard for me, its not easy for me at all and I’m really suffering.”
Q: Because of this challenge have you had people who have offered to help you?
A: “no sir, as I said when you go to someone for the person to help you, that person wants to sleep with you before helping you.”
Q“ wait let me be sure I heard you right. You are saying that when you go to people to help you in giving you food, in giving you things to survive, they demand sex from you?”
A: ‘yes please.’
Q: As a pre-condition”,
A: “yes please.”
Q: Are these people who live in your neighbourhood?
A: “yes pls, some too are my friends when I was sighted.”
She was a beautician and became blind after graduating from the beauty school.
Q: I hope you are saying no to them?
A: “Yes I don’t. I always say I’ll not want my condition to be that people will help me because God has a purpose for everything. If God willing I’ll get it back, fine, so I don’t have to do anything like that.”
“When I think about it, I shed tears a lot”.
“It even came to a time I wanted to take my life. Because being in this situation and all these things are happening then it will be better for me to end my life. I know that will be okay for me. I will not be a burden to anybody, to my friends or granny.”
Q: What do you need in terms of supplies to survive:
A: “I had a surgery and sometimes I do feel pains in the eyes and I don’t have money to buy drugs, eye drops to put in the eye.”
“I’m a woman, I may have my menses and all that. ‘I’ll need soap to bath. And also the food I’ll eat and all that. And some little money that I think ill need to take care of myself as well.”
