She grew progressively bigger, as her stomach bulged. To the discerning eye, she was carrying a child in her. Was she ready to be a mother? No. She had a life ahead of her – a degree to complete, and a family that looked up to her. You could argue that a lady of her intellect, a university student, would have been able to prevent herself from conceiving.
Everybody that knows, knows that children come from God.
One day she shows up at school with a stomach as flat as South C in the rains. Rumours begin swirling around that she had just procured an abortion. She becomes one of the first people you’d know as having terminated their pregnancies. A friend’s girlfriend, a high school classmate’s girlfriend, your girlfriend - the list grows day by day. As sure as sunrise, the lives of these ladies were not in any danger – the-would-be parents were not just ready for responsibilities.
You do not have to be a medical practitioner to know that everything could go wrong when procuring an abortion. When seeking to terminate a being growing inside, the parties involved embrace the possibility that it could be fatal. Statistics show that more than 2600 women die from abortion, representing 35% of all maternal deaths.
There are factors that contribute to people resorting to abortion. Chief among them is the ability to provide for the child once he or she is born, and to a large extent social pressure especially from parents. Another issue is the man bolting into thin air once the girl informs him that he is going to be a father. He has no qualms being a deadbeat.
The law stipulates the condition that abortion should only be conducted if a qualified medical practitioner determines that the life of the mother is in danger. Suffice to say, it is illegal if it does not meet the aforementioned threshold.
But does that deter ladies from abortion? Absolutely not. And thus puts their lives at great risk.
As such the act should be legalised in order to ensure that girls can avoid the risk that comes with it. It will be possible for them to get quality service. Of course the question of when life begins comes to question, but no one interrogates the question of who will take care of the baby when it is born. The law should not let you keep a baby that you may not be able to feed, provide shelter, clothe, and educate. The law does not guard you from harsh economic times.
Lastly, the initiative to avoid getting pregnant largely lies with the people engaging in the act. There are repercussions. They should observe due diligence.
Life should begin at birth, because that’s when someone’s age begins being counted.