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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Sonia Ekweremadu, the daughter of former deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, has said her parents sought a kidney donor for her from outside because of the family’s health history.
Sonia, who spoke in an interview with BBC following the sentencing of her parents by a UK court on Friday, said her father’s family has a history of kidney conditions.
Ekweremadu was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison, while his wife, Beatrice was was also sentenced to four years and six months in jail.
The couple got involved in the organ trafficking case while trying to find a donor for Sonia, who has been on dialysis.
The 25-year-old explained that she had a gene that necessitated her to find a donor outside the family.
Ekweremadu had told a UK court in March that he opted for a non-family kidney donor for Sonia following advice from Diwe, his brother, who is a medical doctor.
“It’s sad. It has been really hard to really wrap my head around it. I understand the conviction; personally, I disagree with it. However, that is from a very biased perspective. As their daughter, I would obviously always back my parents. However, the law has taken its course and we have to just move forward as a family.
“I had the APO1 gene. To us, that kind of excluded the family, especially on my dad’s side because they have quite a history of kidney conditions,” she said.
Asked if she was aware that the donor at the centre of the case was portrayed as her cousin, she replied: “Yea, I mean, I can’t answer that.”
Sonia added that she did not “feel anything towards him and that she wish him all the best.”
She said that she felt guilty for the plight that has befallen her family, adding that her lesson from the whole incident is that life is dynamic.
“Life is just so dynamic. One day you are in your house chilling, the next day, your whole life is turned upside down.
“I have the support of my siblings and parents, but I don’t think things would ever be the same. I feel guilty because I feel that all this has happened because of me.”
She added that though some persons came forward as donors after she went public with the case, she is still on dialysis but “hopefully, I would be able to get the transplant soon.”