Frances Assiam, the 2012 New Patriotic Party parliamentary candidate for the Adentan Constituency, says President Mahama’s neglect of Maame Dansoa, the woman who nurtured him, shows that he is innately insensitive to the plight of people.

The former National Women's Organizer of the ruling National Democratic Congress spoke on Oman FM, an Accra based radio station, after the Daily Statesman had brought to light, Friday, the plight of Maame Dansoa, who has been abandoned and neglected by President Mahama.

According to Madam Assiam, she was not surprised with the attitude of President Mahama towards Maame Dansoa because under his (President Mahama’s) supervision, pro-poor interventions like the National Health Insurance Scheme, the Free Maternal Care and Capitation Grant are all on the knees, making life difficult for vulnerable Ghanaian.

“If President Mahama can be so insensitive to this woman who nurtured him, why should we be surprised at his absolute lack of concern for the suffering of Ghanaians,” he told Fiifi Boafo on Oman FM.

According to Maame Dansoa, she took care of President Mahama and the rest of his siblings during their childhood, bathing them, washing their clothes, cooking for them and sending them to school.

Her younger mother, Auntie Grace, who was married to President Mahama’s father, E.A. Mahama, a Northern Regional Commissioner in the government of Kwame Nkrumah, brought her into the late Mr Mahama’s household to take care of the domestic affairs. She served for 24 years, according to her.

Maame Dansoa now lives with her partially blind husband, Opanyin Akwasi Desi, at Premuase, near Kejeji in the Sene East district, where she virtually lives like a beggar with no proper place to even lay her head.

According to her, President Mahama is aware of her situation because he paid a visit to take pictures of her.

She disclosed that a visit to President Mahama in Accra during the 2012 Election Petition did not yield any results.

“He told me everything will be fine after the court case but up till now I have not seen anything. I don’t know whether it is somebody’s doing or his own decision,” Maame Dansoa said in Twi.

With dislocated waist, which makes it impossible to do any farming activity, Maame Dansoa and her partially blind husband now virtually live like beggars, surviving on the generosity of others who once a while offer them some tubers of yam, and also give them rubbers to serve as a roof for their hen coop-like house.

According to her husband, after people have been gracious to offer them some tubers of yam, money to buy some fish is even a problem.

She is, however, happy that she had been able to provide care for somebody who is now the president of the country. “I am happy I was able to raise Mahama. At least, I did not use my ‘witchcraft’ to destroy him and he is now the president,” she said.

The only prayer of Maame Dansoa is that President Mahama will remember her and come to her aid in this trying moment of her life. She, at least, wants to sleep in a bit of a decent house before she joins her Maker.

She says even though she is suffering, she can’t force the president to support her.

“If you want help from somebody and it’s not coming, you only have to wait and pray. But now things are hard for me; I’m suffering; I need help,” she begged.

 daily statesman