Disabled girl needs help

PIENAAR – Looking at their disabled daughter climbing out of her wheelchair and

crawling to join her friends, brings mixed feelings to the parents of

eight-year-old Nonhlanhla Tsela.

“Will she spend the rest of her life like this? Maybe she can find something to help her walk and be an independent person in future,” said her father, Mr Nhlanhla Tsela.

In most African cultures there is a lot of meaning behind one’s name; parents often name their children after certain situations which they come across, either during birth or pregnancy. They even express future wishes. Likewise the Tselas named their daughter to honour her father’s name, or maybe it was because she was born in a unique way.

“Her feet came first, the whole body followed and the head was

last, which is uncommon with most babies who are normally head first,” said her

father.

“She was born with disfigured legs and feet. Doctors explained that she was seated in a compromising position as an embryo in her mother’s womb,” explained Tsela.

According to the parents, they tried to obtain help from doctors while Nonhlanhla was still young.

They were told that the only way forward was for her legs to be amputated above her knees.

“Doctors told me that this was incredibly risky and if I agreed to the procedure, I should sign papers not to blame anyone if anything happened to her. I was so afraid and couldn’t just let anything happen to my daughter as she is very close to my heart,” explained Tsela.

However, with years passing by and seeing the difficulty which

their daughter faces, the parents are now eagerly looking for any help.

A concerned community member who spotted the girl crawling with her bare hands at her home, called Mpumalanga News and pleaded for funds to help Nonhlanhla.

“Let’s think of her future. What will happen when her parents cannot assist her

any longer?” he said.

Besides being disabled, she is an energetic and charming child. She knows how to write her name and her parents said she loves doing things by herself. She baths and wears her clothes, and she has no problem going to the toilet.

“She is okay, the trouble is only with her legs and feet.”

She urgently needs knee caps and strong but comfortable gloves which

she can use in the meantime for her crawling around home, as she is hardly confined to her wheelchair.

She told this newspaper that she wants to become a nurse in future to help treat the sick. For assistance, this publication can be contacted for the Tselas’ details.