Sampson Sekidika, father of Rebekah Sekidika, 24, a first-class graduate of Edo State’s Benson Idahosa University, spoke candidly about the tragic events leading up to his daughter’s death in an interview with Punch. He revealed how his wife had come to him in tears, telling him that she had heard the doctors calling out their daughter’s name, “Rebekah, wake up,” from the operating room.
Sampson Sekidika said, “By 4.30pm, my daughter walked into the theater; she was not sick; she was hale and hearty. She had no issues at all; she was very strong. By 5 p.m., it was expected that my daughter would have been out of the theater, but she was not.
Around 5.10 p.m., I had already arrived at the clinic. So I went upstairs to stay with my wife. I asked her what was going on. She said they were still in the theater. I now went to the reception area to sit. Around 5.30pm, my wife came rushing to me, saying that something was not right; she heard them in the theater shouting, ‘Rebekah, wake up, wake up, wake up’. Then we saw nurses running up and down.”
He continued, “Then it was nearly 6.20 p.m., and we saw them rolling up oxygen bottles from downstairs through the elevator. I was wondering what was going on, and each time we saw the matron, we asked what was going on with our daughter, and she would say our daughter would be fine. That was what she said until around 7 p.m., when two doctors came to the reception area where I was seated. They said they did everything they could but lost our daughter.”
Upon entering the room, we found the doctor and the anesthesia specialist seated. Isaac Chu then requested the doctor to recount the events. The doctor began by explaining that they had prepared the patient for the procedure, indicating the specialist who administered the spinal anesthesia. Upon questioning why such a potent spinal anesthesia was used, the doctor revealed that the patient went into distress around 30 minutes into the procedure, initially complaining of difficulty breathing, followed by a desire to vomit, leading to the discovery of blood in the vomit. By this point, her lungs were already filled with blood.
