President Goodluck Jonathan hinted yesterday, the ordeal his late
younger sister, Mrs Nancy Jonathan-Olei underwent as a result of a
heart-related disease before she died.
and is survived by her children, grand-children and siblings including
President Jonathan, Sir Ariolo Ebele Jonathan, Mr. Evans Jonathan, Madam
Obebhatein Jonathan, Mrs. Dorcas Awo, Mrs. Stella Donald, Mrs. Aziboni
Abuge and Miss Dagao-apu Jonathan.
Speaking at the funeral
service held at the St. Stephen’s Anglican Church in Otuoke, Bayelsa
State for his late sister, Jonathan said God was kind to his sister
during her regular medical sojourns to India from the time he was deputy
governor of Bayelsa State.
He said, “Nancy is my immediate
younger sister though not of the same mother. I was very sad when she
died because I knew she had been passing through pains for a very long
time. Sometimes, I felt God had been really kind to her.”
“She
started developing problems with her heart when I was deputy governor,
then I started asking questions. I asked my personal physician where we
could treat her, that she had problems with her aortic valve, the valves
circulating blood to the heart. My doctor told me the nearest place to
treat her was Ghana.
| The late sister |
“So I said we have so many teaching
hospitals in Nigeria and none can attempt to work on a human heart? I
was worried. But today, I am happy that University of Ibadan is handling
open heart surgery.
“We battled with her health and she
was taken to India on and on and for over three years, she has been
down. When the immediate younger brother died, she could not even attend
the burial.”
He added that it was worth celebrating if a Christian attains the age of 70 years before passing on.
The
body of the late Nancy was moved from the Otuoke Comprehensive Hospital
Mortuary to her residence in Otuoke and thereafter to the Dame Patience
Jonathan Square for service of songs before it was interred after the
church service.
