Precious Daniel and her visually impaired papa tok how dia life 'change for good’ for dem afta BBC Pidgin interview

"Dis time last year, life bin dey tough and too strong for me to handle."

Na how 20-year-old Precious Daniel take describe her and her papa life before before.

E never too tay she and her papa, 46 year old Isaac Daniel move into dia bungalow and for dem, di quite neighbourhood dem move into na big change wey dem really appreciate.

As dem sidon for di parlour of di new house dem just move into, Isaac and Precious Daniel say na God na im don change dia lives for good.

"Na batcher we dey live dey manage oursef dat time. Wen rain fall e dey beat us inside. Even to eat hard us, we dey go out go beg before we go get N50 or N100 to buy garri wey we go drink." Na so Precious tok.

Following di BBC Pidgin interview with Precious and her father last year March 2021, many pipo respond to dia situation and assist dem.

From cash donations to material donations in form of clothes and oda tins, a big difference dey between dia lives now and dia life before.

How life bin dey before?

Na for 2016 Isaac Daniel go blind.

Wetin start as scratching for eye turn out to be glaucoma wey come make 46 year old Daniel Isaac lose im eyesight for im two eyes.

Isaac Daniel from Mkpat Enin local goment area of Akwa Ibom State but e bin dey do grinder work for Mile Three Market for Port Harcourt, di Rivers State capital.

Na dis grinding work im dey take care for im family as im no let im blindness to stop am from continuing wit di work, but business no dey flow as e bin dey before.

"Sometimes, market no dey so na only N50 I fit make for di whole day. But I thank God for my customers wey still dey come around." E bin tok.

Di loss of im sight cost am many tins including im wife according to am and na im daughter, Precious bin dey try take care of am.

For Precious, dia situation change her life as she gats sacrifice a lot to care for her father but she happy say im still dey determined to continue to work for two of dem.

Afta Precious finish secondary school and write WAEC for di senior secondary certificate examination SSCE for 2018, because money no dey she no fit go check di results.

With di grinder work wey her papa dey do for Mile Three Market, di father and daughter struggle to make a living but e no easy for dem.

Isaac say, "I learn di grinder work wen I still dey see so e easy for me because I don dey used to am. I no wia evritin dey and which machine I go use grind pepper, which machine I go use grind egusi. I know dem, but as I no come dey see again, many customers no dey gree give me dia tins to grind for dem again.

So sometimes from morning till night, na only N50 I go work, some days nothing. Me and my daughter go go beg pipo wey dey sell food to give us small thing to chop and sometimes, dem go drive us away. Dat one dey make my pikin cry." Im tok.

Afta her secondary school, Precious Daniel also try to find work as sales girl and work as apprentice for one hair dressing salon but e no work out well because of dia situation.

"Evri morning, I go first go drop my father for Mile Three market, help am set up im grinding machines before I go go di boutique I bin dey work as sales girl. But e no tay, my madam begin complain, come say weda na only me get father wey dey blind? Dat one pain me well-well.

'I thank di pipo God use to bless me'

Many pipo respond positively after di BBC Pidgin interview with Precious and her papa for March 2021.

With di help from different quarters, dem open bank account and some pipo even start a Gofundme account for dem.

Now dem don pack comot from di zinc-upon-zinc batcher house dem bin dey live before for Mile Three Diobu Port Harcourt and now dem dey live for dia own property.

Precious also don go collect her SSCE results and she make good results and so she plan to write JAMB dis year to continue her university education.

"I thank evribodi wey God pass through to help us. I pray make God raise dem up and bless dem." Isaac Daniel tok.

Dis change also come with some challenges as some pipo bin wan take advantage of dem, as di papa dey blind and di daughter dey very young.

"Some pipo steal some of di tins pipo come give us, some go put dia account number for pipo to give dem money say dem go give us but dem no give us. Some come dey harass us, and dis make us comot from wia we bin dey before go hide small. But I thank God for those wey also help us especially for di tins wey we no know. I say make God bless dem." Isaac tok.

Isaac say im dey willing to take im wife back if she return to am, as now im need pesin wey go dey understanding and help am to raise im daughter to become woman, so im no go dey depend on im daughter because na only she dey help am now.

‘My father na my mentor'

For Precious Daniel, she appreciate evritin her father don do for her because despite im blindness, im still dey work to take care of her. She say evri time, im dey tink of her, how her future go be and how she go continue her education.

"I no fit leave my father. My relationship with am still strong. Na im dey advise me, na im dey direct me, wia I go go, so na im steps me too go follow. I no go ever forget am. My papa na my mentor. Na im I dey look up to."

She say she want make her papa dey proud of her and also get a life of im own with a woman wey go understand am and stay with am, so if her father get a trustworthy pesin wey go dey with am, she say she go happy well well because her father need a woman wey go love and stay wit am.