Guinas constituency councillor Elias Marthinu has pleaded with good Samaritans to come to the aid of Lucas Tsamseb, popularly known as Irivari, to help him recover from his illness.
Irivari, who rose to fame in 2020 when Namibians started sharing videos of him on social media, was apparently diagnosed with a liver condition, and was recently hospitalised.
According to Marthinu, he was hospitalised for three weeks and was discharged two days ago.
“This boy came to my office on Tuesday in need of help. He is starving and his health is deteriorating. I am pleading to the nation to help this young boy with the little they have so he can recover. Not only for him but for his family as well who are taking care of him,” he said.
“His guardians are unemployed and they do not have food. They only depend on government handouts, so they do not have the means to take care of him. I gave him a bag of maize meal and from the parcels we get from the government, we donated to him tins of fish and other items but it is not enough, hence I am pleading to the public for assistance.” In 2020, videos of Irivari abusing alcohol as well as smoking cigarettes went viral on social media, which sparked a huge public outrage.
“I want everyone who has been a fan of Irivari or knows him to help him in becoming a better young man,” Marthinu pleaded.
In addition, Marthinu told New Era that Irivari’s grandmother passed on recently and she is yet to be buried in the coming weeks.
“The family is currently going through a rough patch because they will also need assistance with the burial,” he added.
The young man who is in his early 20s is the third of four siblings and both his parents are unemployed. He currently lives with eight of his family members. His story is that of a broken family.
-ashikololo@nepc.com.na