A Nigerian reality star and model opened up about her mother’s multiple failed attempts to abort her. Today, she said her mother is happy and thankful none of those attempts were successful.
Mercy Eke is a 32-year-old model, actress, and media personality from Imo State in Nigeria. In 2019, she competed in Big Brother Naija, and became the first woman to win the show; she is currently competing in the All-Stars season. In recent interview with Nigerian media personality Chude Jideonwo, she revealed that her mother was pressured to have an abortion when she became pregnant.
“When she my mother was pregnant, there is this aunty of mine… my mother has already had five children, then this last one, which is me,” Eke recalled. “She has four girls and one boy. So, when that my aunty came, she was like, ‘Ah! Emilia, is this another pregnancy? With all these children you’ve dumped here.”
Studies have found that the majority of women undergoing abortions felt pressured to do so.
Her mother reportedly attempted several “local methods” to undergo an abortion, but all of them failed, leading her mother to become more desperate. “So, that thing messed with [my mother’s] mental health,” she said. “It really messed with her that she wanted to, like, get me out then. She was going to the farm, she would climb something, you would fall so that I will go – but me, I stubborn na [sic]. I no go anywhere.”
Today, her mother is incredibly thankful that her abortion attempts all failed, and Eke said she wishes her aunt was able to see what became of the girl she tried to get rid of.
“One day, my mother was like, she wish that person was alive to see what that girl that she wanted to abort that time has grown to become. Yeah, that was how she told me the story,” she said. “She is happy with me. She is happy that she didn’t remove me or abort me. She is happy that I didn’t die. And she is happy she gave birth to me, like she took that risk even without anything. Because now, my mother is one of the happiest people. My mother is just sleeping. She is enjoying life. She wake up, eats what she wants to eat. So, now she is happy.”
