The management of the Offin Children’s Centre, an orphanage at Offinso, has appealed to the general public to help trace the parents of a four-year-old, Samuel.
Mr. Thomas Amponsah, a caretaker of the home, indicated that Samuel had been found and was now back in the custody of the home.
He indicated that the centre would be grateful if the public could give clues leading to the parents or relatives of Samuel, who has been in the care and protection of the Offin Children’s Centre since September 2013.
Little Samuel was abandoned by his lunatic mother two years ago, as a result of which he was brought to the orphanage for care and protection.
A special report by the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Offinso police indicated that on September 24, 2013, Philomena Appiah, a teacher of Awisem-Kayera near Offinso, brought then two-year-old Samuel that an alleged mad woman abandoned him and bolted, and that all efforts to trace her had proved futile.
As a result, the police in consultation with the Municipal Director of the Social Welfare Department, Mr. Philip Banasco Seni, handed over Samuel to Madam Mary Hilda Osei, Project Director of the Offin Children’s Centre, for care and protection, while police continued to search for the mother.
The police report further explained that on September 22, 2013, at about 4:30 p.m., a woman with Samuel was brought there, and that his mother was nowhere to be found.
As a result, the Assembly Member of Kayera, Abdulai Sumaila, and the Unit Committee Chairman, Abdulai Yussif, were informed about the strange occurrence, and who brought Samuel to the police station and lodged a complaint after the entire community had fruitlessly combed the whole village for traces of the woman.
Meanwhile, the Offinso police are making strenuous efforts to trace the alleged lunatic woman or relatives of Samuel to assist in investigations.