In Zanlerigu, a small hilly community in the Nabdam District, a frail old widow sits on a low wooden stool outside a crumbling mud house. Her eyes carry the weight of exhaustion, but her arms cradle a fragile new life. She is Bugre Tii, a grandmother now forced into motherhood again, this time not by choice, but by circumstance.
Her granddaughter, Mercy Saah, a 21-year-old orphan born with mental illness, recently gave birth to a baby girl after an encounter with a mentally ill man in the same community. What might have been a story of new beginnings has instead become a tale of poverty, pain, and desperate pleas for help.
Life in Darkness and Hunger
Bugre and Mercy share a single-room mud house that leans dangerously, threatening collapse with the next rains. Though Zanlerigu is connected to electricity, their home sits in complete darkness, never wired to the grid. They survive on what little food Bugre can cultivate in a small backyard garden.
Mercy’s days are spent wandering the village aimlessly, her bushy hair unkempt, her clothing often torn or soiled. Her only “companion” has been a mentally ill man in his late twenties, with whom she was often seen loitering.
Health workers at the Zanlerigu Health Centre once caught them in an unfinished maternity block, engaging in sexual activity. When chased away, they regrouped in another abandoned structure. Weeks later, Mercy was pregnant.
Pregnancy, Pain, and Delivery
Her pregnancy drew the attention of health staff and neighbours alike. She was placed on antenatal care but often struggled to understand her condition. On August 18, 2025, labour pains began, but her erratic behaviour and high blood pressure made delivery complicated.
She was rushed from the Zanlerigu Health Centre to the Upper East Regional Hospital in Bolgatanga, where doctors attempted induction to quicken labour. It failed. Three days later, on August 21, Mercy was wheeled into surgery.
A Caesarean section delivered her baby girl. Mercy survived. The baby survived. But life back in Zanlerigu has since been anything but survival made easy.
A Widow’s Burden: Three Mouths to Feed
At first, Bugre wept tears of joy, her granddaughter and the newborn had made it. But quickly, reality set in: three mouths to feed, one frail pair of shoulders to bear it all.
The baby hardly breastfeeds. Mercy, having been unconscious during delivery, shows little maternal instinct. Frequent epileptic seizures have worsened the situation, leaving Bugre scrambling for baby formula she cannot afford.
A kind porridge seller once volunteered to bathe the baby and support the family but quietly withdrew after weeks, unable to sustain her own little sacrifices.
A Midwife’s Silent Sacrifice
Hope, however, has come in the form of one woman — Lydia Ayine, a midwife at the Zanlerigu Health Centre.
Haunted by the sight of the helpless baby, Lydia began visiting Bugre’s home regularly. She brought food, clothes, and baby essentials from her own purse. She patiently taught Mercy breastfeeding techniques, often coaxing her to hold her child.
Each visit was not just medical care but emotional labour, an attempt to fill the gap left by a broken support system.
Help Trickles In — But Not Enough
The family’s story reached the Member of Parliament for Nabdam, Dr. Mark Kurt Nawaane. He sent diapers, soap, detergent, and GH¢500 to ease their plight. A few individuals have also chipped in with food or baby items.
But the support is irregular, and the need is overwhelming. Government agencies like the District Assembly and the Department of Social Welfare have yet to step forward in any meaningful way.
Unanswered Questions and an Uncertain Future
The man responsible for the pregnancy, also mentally ill, continues to roam the community freely. Known for his quiet nature, he has not faced any inquiry. To prevent a repeat of the ordeal, health workers have placed Mercy on contraception.
But for Bugre, contraception solves only tomorrow’s problems. Today, she must still find food. Today, she must still carry the baby when Mercy is too weak from seizures. Today, she must still battle sleepless nights, her heart pounding with anxiety over what will happen if she, too, collapses.
A Cry for Help
“I don’t know if help is coming,” the widow whispered recently, her frail arms trembling as she held her great-grandchild.
Her voice is tired but firm. What she wants is simple: food, health care, and perhaps the chance for the baby to find safety in foster care if she can no longer cope.
For now, though, the family sits in their dark, collapsing hut, their survival tied to the kindness of strangers and the compassion of one dedicated midwife.
And as the little baby cries into the night, the question lingers: how long can one poor widow carry this unbearable weight alone?
