A Port Harcourt, Rivers State-based businesswoman, Mrs Ugba Ifunanya Martha, has appealed for help from public-spirited individuals after suffering four life-changing tragedies within months.
In an exclusive chat with Niger Daily News, Mrs Ugba revealed how she was abducted by kidnappers during her visit to Eastern Nigeria in July 2023 and then lost her husband in a mysterious circumstance in February.
Her situation then got from bad to worse when shortly after her husband’s burial, three of her children were charred by a gas explosion that kept them in the hospital for several months.
She said, “Last year July, I was kidnapped, and I was released after meeting their demand. Things were good with my family until February 2024, when I lost my husband to the cold hand of death, it seems as if my life was over but you know I have to be strong for my kids.”
“The preparation for the burial was made and my kids travelled to the village for the burial. A few days after the burial gas exploded and seriously injured my three children. They were rushed to the hospital and treatment began.”
Faced with increasing medical bills and rising cost of living, Mrs Ugba decided to go back to her husband’s business as part of her effort to pick up the broken pieces of her life and get the family going.
But again, life had another surprise for her: “I opened my late husband’s shop at mile 1 Port Harcourt only to find out that the only source of income my husband left behind has expired and some will still expire next month (November 2024).
Beyond the prospect of going bankrupt, she revealed that her husband left a multimillion Naira debt behind that she had to repay.
Faced with the fate, she said she, “reached out to “Women-in-Portharcourt”, an Instagram page in the Garden City that helps to promote females’ businesses.”
She said, “I asked for help because that’s all I can do now, I need help to pay my children’s bill at the hospital and also pay off the outstanding debt my late husband borrowed from the bank.”
Generous Nigerians have started responding to her call for help at the time of this report, with purchases and donations pouring into the designated account number from generous Nigerians.
