An emotional reunion unfolded on Obra Show on Nhyira FM after a 17-year-old boy who had been missing for more than six months was finally reunited with his family.
The teenager, who is reported to have mental health challenges, was found wandering alone and unable to properly identify where he came from.
Officials from the Old Tafo Municipal Social Welfare and Community Development Department said the boy could only mention his name when questioned by people who tried to assist him.
Mavis Appiakubi of the department explained that a man identified as Adusi Poku, together with a Good Samaritan, Joyce Daazi, brought the boy to their office after he was found early in the morning picking scraps in front of a house.
She said Mr. Poku realized the boy was mentally challenged after interacting with him. He first took him to the police station, after which the case was referred to Social Welfare.
According to her, the boy was later sent to the hospital, where doctors confirmed his mental health condition. Despite efforts to trace his family within the community, no one recognized him.
With no immediate family identified, the boy was temporarily placed in a children’s home while authorities continued efforts to locate his relatives.
Hope, however, came during a live broadcast of the case on Obra Show when a relative who heard the story rushed to the station after recognizing details about the missing boy.
Fighting back tears, the relative recounted how the boy disappeared months earlier.
He explained that the boy’s mother had travelled from Takoradi to assist his wife after childbirth. Shortly after her arrival, the boy left home and never returned.
“We searched everywhere for him,” he said emotionally. “We reported the case to the police and used extracts to search, but we couldn’t find him. His mother has been crying ever since she returned to Takoradi.”
He added that despite the pain, the family never gave up hope that the boy would be found alive.
“I always believed he would be found one day,” he said. “The moment I heard on Obra Show that they had found a boy with that name, I rushed here. When I saw him, I immediately called the family.”
The emotional reunion moved many in the studio, with listeners praising the efforts of the Good Samaritans, Social Welfare officers and the Obra Show team for helping reconnect the boy with his family.
The case has also drawn attention to the challenges faced by families caring for persons with mental health conditions and the importance of community support in reuniting missing persons with their loved ones.
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