Guyanese mother returns to Trinidad with ailing Trini son

Last Updated on Saturday, 26 December 2015, 21:00 by GxMedia

by Carolyn Kissoon

(TRINIDAD EXPRESS).-GUYANESE national Rosinda Nicholson, who was deported along with her ailing two-year-old son two months ago, has returned to Trinidad and is being allowed to seek medical treatment for her child.

Her son, Elijah Harris, who was born in Trinidad, has been diagnosed with autism.

Nicholson, 22, said Elijah was unable to receive medical treatment in Guyana as he had no referrals from his doctors in Trinidad. “I was becoming frustrated. I wasn’t hearing anything from the Minister of National Security or the Office of the Prime Minister, so I bought two tickets and came back to Trinidad,” she said.

The single mother said she landed in Trinidad on Tuesday at 6.45 a.m. and was interrogated by immigration officers for four hours.“They told me that I will have to go back to Guyana. I just showed them the brace on my son’s leg and explained how he needed treatment. My son had no medical care since we left Trinidad in October. I bought medicine for him and he was allergic. The immigration officer told me I needed to come back to the airport to meet the chief immigration officer on December 18. I don’t know what will happen then,” she said.

Nicholson said her son will begin treatment at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex this morning.
“I will take him back so the doctors can examine him and determine what needs to be done. He is not feeling well these days,” she said.

Nicholson has made another appeal to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to intervene and allow her to remain in the country.“All I want is for my son to get treatment. In Guyana we don’t have the facilities to deal with his condition. I am begging the Prime Minister to help me. I will go back to Guyana, that is my home. But I want treatment for my son, he is a Trinidadian,” she said.

Nicholson travelled to Trinidad five years ago to visit a relative. She was involved in a relationship with a Trinidadian national and gave birth to Elijah. The child’s father left after he was born.

Nicholson was offered voluntary departure by the Immigration department to return to Guyana in October to have her passport and other documents renewed. The mother and son returned to Trinidad on October 10 but they were detained at Piarco International Airport and then deported to Guyana.