The first phase of a housing facility for rejected children, who are often labelled as “spirit children” due to certain birth defects have been completed.
The facility named “Nazareth Home of God’s Children,” comprised dormitories, washrooms, library, chapel, dining hall, kitchen and shops, while the second phase would include a basic and vocational schools and workshop.
The Most Reverend Vincent Sowah Boi-Nai, Catholic Bishop of the Yendi Diocese, who commissioned the project at Sang in the Mion District at the weekend, said before the establishment of the home, most of the alleged ‘spirit children’ were sent to Kumasi.
He disclaimed the notion by some people that, children with birth defects such as protruding eyes, abnormally large head, and those who are unable to walk at a certain period, were spirit children and called on parents to accept such children and give them the needed attention.
The Most Rev. Boi-Nai said such children needed special care and underscored the importance of love and compassion towards the less privileged in society.
He commended the Chiefs and people of Sang for their support towards the construction of the home by providing land, and expressed the hope that many lives would be transformed in the area.
Reverend Sister Stan Terese Mary Munmuni, Founder of the Home, claimed that children with such defects had always been killed and buried secretly in the area, and expressed the hope that with the construction of the home, such children would be given the needed care and compassion.
She commended the various organisations, groups and individuals, who supported the construction of the home for their benevolence and appealed for more support to sustain it.
Mr Rene Dogbe, a past President of the Tamale Rotary Club who chaired the function, said all children, irrespective of their health status, needed physical, spiritual, psychological and emotional support to grow, and urged parents not to discriminate against children with certain conditions.
He commended the founder of the home for not diverting the funds donated for the project for personal use, and called on leaders to emulate the gesture to reduce corruption and promote development.
Various organisations and individuals, who graced the occasion, presented cash and kind donations while others presented cheques and pledges totalling about GH¢10,000 to support the upkeep of the inmates of the home.
