-They tell First Lady: they want renovation & permanent Support, not new building
By Alexander G. Piah in Buchanan, Liberia
Members of the Old Folks Home in Upper Buchanan in Liberia’s southern Grand Bassa County are calling on First Lady, Clar Weah to renovate their present living area instead of building a new home for them and the visually impaired in the county.
The Old Folks told the local Magic FM Community radio in the port city recentlt, that they appreciate the idea of the project to build a new home for their relocation but it is not what they really want for now First Lady Weah.
Mother Tetee Wleh, 70, said that they do not have food to eat, no good sleeping place and mattresses.
“The food is the most important thing we want because the people not able to work, but if they don’t go in the streets to beg, they don’t get food to eat,” Mother Tetee stated.
Mother Tetee mentioned that it is only one at a time, the Indian business people do gave to them one bag of 25 Kg rice which is nothing to feed them in one month.
Commenting on their health, she said that there is no means to get medicine whenever they get sick.
According to her, medical practitioners from the Government Hospital have only been there about three times to treat.
“When we go to the Liberian Government Hospital, we will sit whole day on the bench and they will tell you no medicine; then they will give your paper to go buy medicine at the drug store and we do not have money,” Mother Tetee told this Reporter.
“We are suffering, no food, no medicine and nobody supporting us,” she stressed.
“Let the woman help we the old people because we are suffering here in this community,” she maintained.
Another Elderly man, Mr. John Bannie, 60, thanked the First Lady for the proposed project but said that where they live, is alright for them so they don’t need another home to be relocated.
Mr. Bannie is appealing to the First Lady to renovate their present building and help them with food, medicine, beds, mattresses and clothes.
“We are appealing to the First Lady to help us with food because we dying slowly with hunger here,” the 60 year old elder stated.
Right now, “I who talking to you, I am sick,” as he appealed to Mrs. Clar Weah for medicine.
The Old Folks Home has a total of 36 persons of which 10 are male and 26 are female.
They live in a nine room house that contains four beds per room with four persons sleeping in each room but majority of them do not have mattresses to sleep on except on the floor as evident by this elderly man lying on the cold cement in the Old Folks Home in Upper Buchanan.
Thankfully, the First Lady provided them ten mattresses.
According to the Old Folks, the initiative of the First Lady to build a new home for them is fine. But they said the location will be far away from the city. Due to their condition, they said they will find it difficult to leave from there to come in the city to beg in the streets for their survival.
“We do not able to walk to Own Your Own Community because the place far, so if the woman wants to help us let her try to fix our home fine then God will bless her even in Heaven,” He added.
He further emphasized that the area they are living is alright for them but food and medicine are the mean things they want from the First Lady of Liberia.
It was Former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf who renovated their home before and now the building is under deplorable condition, according to Alex Gongar Coordinator of the Old Folks Home in the Upper Buchanan Community.
Mr. Gongar added his appeal to the First Lady to reconsider a permanent support for them at their present home, such as, regular feeding, provision of electricity, medication and increasing their beds and mattresses because many of them are sleeping on the cold floor which is making them to get sick.
He said that if the First Lady could redirect her construction project to renovating their present home and providing their basic needs, they will highly appreciate her humanitarian gesture rather than building a new home for them which is not their priority for now in the county.
The Coordinator also commended Arcelor Mittal for assisting them some support before in the county.