Elderly Blind Man Abandoned by Children Seeks Care, Good Samaritan Steps In

A visually impaired elderly man, identified as Mr Olaseni Arotiba, aged 75, has found himself in a dire situation, allegedly abandoned by his children who are focused on caring for their mother. His plight came to light when a Good Samaritan, Olapeju Agunbiade, shared his story on Facebook.

The motorcyclist who brought Mr Arotiba to Omotayo Maternity late at night left him there. He was provided with shelter for the night and food by the maternity staff.

When questioned about his living situation, Mr Arotiba explained that he had been residing in a hotel, but was asked to leave due to renovations. He had spent the preceding night with a caregiver but had to depart.

He further disclosed that his son, Mayorkun Arotiba, had previously funded his hotel stay for an extended period but had since become unreachable. According to Mr Arotiba, the hotel management contacted his son to pick him up, but he failed to appear.

Staff at the maternity home contacted his children using his phone, but none expressed willingness to take him in.

His daughter, when contacted, stated, "I do not have a father. I ceased to have a father when I was a child." Meanwhile, his son claimed to be at the hospital attending to their mother, indicating that both he and his sister were occupied with their mother's care.

"The long and short of it is that none of his contacts is ready to care for him or take responsibility," the Good Samaritan lamented.

Mr Arotiba's available funds amount to N10,000. Attempts to find a nursing home willing to accept him have thus far been unsuccessful.

In a subsequent update, Olapeju reported that Mr Arotiba had been transferred to the Accident and Emergency department at Ring Road State Hospital.

She implored parents to remain actively involved in their families' lives to prevent such unfortunate circumstances. Olapeju advised, "Let us do all it takes to take care of what we call ‘home’. This includes our wives/husbands, sisters, brothers, cousins, friends, and our neighbours. Omo niyi, omo ni de. Omo lasheinde to ba dale. E se re ko dara o. That future is closer than we assume."