On a trip to Mityana District ( about 50 Kilo meters from Kampala), my friends and i came across an abandoned child. This twelve year old girl, Nangoze Veneranda, had been locked in a small room by her grandmother in whose care she has been since her parents died. She had spent five days without a shower, glass of water or plate of food. her skin was beginning to rot and she could hardily lift her head because her body had weakened to the maximum. A neighbor who had always seen her, approached her grandmother inquiring about her where-about. The answers the grandmother gave were not so convincing. The doubting neighbor informed the rest and together they embarked on looking for the helpless orphan. Hours late, the opted to enter the house since they could not find her anywhere else among the neighbors. The house too was clear of her, except one room that had been locked. The suspicious neighbors demanded that this grandmother opens the room. To this demand she vehemently refused thereby confirming their suspicions. they opted to break the door to this room.
What we saw was to some of us a scene worse than that of a blood accident! The girl was rotting, the eyes were pink and her bones could be counted through her skin.
On inquiring why she had done this to the innocent child, this grandmother simply kept telling us she was tired of taking care of her grand daughter and whoever wanted to have her was free to have her to themselves. This she said in addition to confessing that she had locked her grand daughter in the room to starve her to death. This we found very astonishing!
My friends and i asked for direction to the village leader’s office, signed documents that allowed us to legally have Veneranda, had her cleaned, feed her and brought her with us to DAC children’s home in Kampala. Today (only a few days later), the difference in her life is very evident. She is a totally new person. INDEED, TOGETHER WE MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
