A 24-year-old woman, Abibat Kehinde, has been abandoned in a hospital in Lagos State, over N131,000 in unpaid bills, three months after she gave birth to twins.
Mr Kehinde told newsmen on Friday in Epe General Hospital, that her husband absconded after her delivery on March 21, without paying the bills to facilitate her discharge from the hospital
She said: “My husband is a commercial motorcycle rider.
“He absconded since I gave birth to the twins on March 21.
“I wasn’t ready for the second child before but God knows best,” she lamented.
The new mother complained that she lacked sufficient food to eat while the babies also lacked basic nutrients.
Mrs Kehinde said: “My husband said that he couldn’t afford to feed one child, not to talk of feeding two children with their mother; and he complained about the huge hospital bill before he left.
“Since he left the hospital, he has not returned to check on me and the children till date. He abadoned us in the hospital and absconded,” she added.
According to her, she managed to raise N30, 000 leaving a balance of N131, 000.
“I have been in the hospital since March without being discharged by the management of the hospital.
“The hospital bill keep increasing every day and I don’t have alternative means to offset the hospital bills,” she said.
Mrs Kehinde appealed to the hospital management to discharge her and the twins.
The hospitals Social Welfare Officer, Ayanbisi Rauf, confirmed that the woman had been abandoned by her husband.
“The husband abandoned the patient in the last three months and all efforts made by the hospital authorities to locate him proved abortive,” Mr Rauf said.
According to him, the patient would only be discharged if she paid 90per cent of her total bills.
He revealed that there are two other nursing mothers in a similar plight as Mrs Kehinde, and they would both remain in the hospital until their bills were settled.
He welfare officer appealed to individuals and organisations to assist the women in settling their bills so as to discharge them from the hospital.
NAN
