Not all people believe in angels. But as for the patients in a hospital in Nigeria, the generosity and kindness of Zeal Akaraiwai is proof that “angels” do exist.
Zeal Akaraiwai does not have halo nor an angel’s wings. What he has is a golden heart kind enough to make a difference in the lives of the poor and uninsured patients of a government hospital in Nigeria. Akaraiwai is a financial consultant who goes out of his way to help people in need by paying their hospital bills.
Nigeria is a country where only 5 percent of the population has health insurance. This means that those who can’t afford to pay their bills, even if they are well enough, aren’t allowed to go home. While some hospitals offer installment plans to make payments more affordable for patients, there are still some who find it too burdensome. Thanks to Akaraiwai, these patients can finally go home without having to worry about the hospital bills they’ll be leaving behind.
Whenever Akaraiwai arrives at the hospital, a group of social workers greet him and hand him the list of patients who are ready to be discharged but could not go home because of the bills. Here he would get detailed information of patients who are in great need. While he would generally choose to cover the bills of the patients who are already well enough, he admits that there would be times when he also helps out certain patients with severe health conditions.
Despite his compassionate and kind gestures, Akaraiwai never expected anything in return. He didn’t even want to be thanked. The only thing he desires is for people to tell his story simply because he wants to raise awareness about the injustice of the system and the failure of their government when it comes to providing people with proper health insurance. Nevertheless, he strongly believes that this project, which he called the “Angel Project,” would help inspire people that anyone can be an angel to any person they meet.
Akaraiwai has just shown us the perfect example of how we should treat others, regardless of whether we are related to them or not. He has just taught us that we can do good to others and make a difference in their lives if we want to. And it’s not just all about having the financial ability to help. We can definitely help others in any possible way we can. The most important thing is we have the desire to do good and show kindness when it is needed the most.
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