Agony of boy with a‘strange’ swollen jaw

FOR about three years, Wisdom Gbofoeyin, who is 12 years old, has been carrying a cross of pain, the pain of a swollen jaw which has caused him sleepless nights and somehow defied initial attempts at treatment. In fact, while some attribute his ailment to natural causes, many others, including his parents, are convinced his agony is a consequence of witchcraft attack and therefore requires spiritual intervention.                                                                                                                            




Reinforcing this belief was the claim that the problem was first noticed after Wisdom was beaten up by some of his school mates. According to his father, Wisdom’s jaw began to swell after he was severally slapped by different individuals. “Five boys who are his seniors had engaged him in a scuffle shortly after school hours and rained slaps on his face without any prior misunderstanding between them,” the elder Gbofoeyin informed. Curiously, two weeks later, a similar scuffle ensued again between Wisdom and two of his neighbours who slapped him on the same left jaw, and this time, leaving some marks and permanent scar on his face. Wisdom, a student of Day Secondary School, Minna, Niger State and a twin is said to be brilliant academically. But following the swollen jaw and the accompanying pain, he began to lose concentration in class. It was on account of this that the school authorities took the decision of inviting his parents. After heart to heart discussion, the parents were advised to take Wisdom home for immediate medical attention. Between medical and spiritual cure However, considering the peculiar nature of the ailment, the parents were advised to seek a spiritual solution to the problem rather than a medical one. The question of whether to go for medical or spiritual healing soon left them in a dilemma. They eventually opted for a spiritual cure. And it was on this basis that they embarked on “Spiritual Tourism” in search of healing for their son. The spiritual search was to take them from one church to the other within Niger State and beyond. “Because we believe in the efficacy of prayers, we decide to seek for spiritual solution within and outside Niger State. In most cases, we came back with the reassuring messages that a solution was in sight. “But in one of the popular Churches in Warri, Delta State where I come from, we had a most heartbreaking and bitter experience. After waiting endlessly for 17 days and spending so much for both accommodation and feeding, including paying for kegs of water, vest and other logistics, we ended up not seeing the Man of God. Eventually, we had to find our way back to Minna. Since then, we have been waiting for God’s intervention of God,” Wisdom’s father lamented. He added that the family had till date spent close to N500,000 in search of spiritual solution which is yet to come! Moment of decision: Incidentally, Wisdom had several months ago been referred to the Minna General Hospital where the boy was diagnosed of having a tumour which could be treated. But the father was not convinced and so failed to take his son back to the hospital for the treatment, resorting instead to self medication. The good news at the moment is that the elder Gbofoeyin has eventually decided to do what is considered the right thing by seeking medical aid for his long-suffering son. “We were directed to the University Teaching Hospital, Zaria where no fewer than 27 doctors interviewed and examined my son. He was diagnosed of a ‘left jaw swelling of three years duration which is firmly attached to underlying bone associated with intral oral mass’,” he informed. Cry for financial assistance: Wisdom is to undergo an operation next month in Zaria and the medical bill is put at N166,530,000. Unfortunately, this is a financial demand his parents cannot afford. Mr.Gbofoeyin, teacher but who lost his job some years back and is still jobless, said his family is presently struggling to survive, adding that proceeds from his wife’s petty trading business cannot sustain the family of four. But the family is determined that Wisdom has to survive. His twin sister, Faith, has been taking him around, soliciting for financial assistance. She is also pleading with Nigerians to come their aid so that Wisdom will live. “I beg Nigerians to come to our assistance by contributing towards the survival of our child,” Mr.Gbofoeyin pleaded. On his own part, Wisdom had in an interview with our correspondent managed to say: “I am not feeling fine because of pains and my prayer is for God to help me out of this problem. I want to live, so I beg Nigerians to help me out.”