A Nigerian Catholic priest, Fr. Evaristus Bassey, has shared a story on X about a grandfather who confessed to his daughter that he raped her two daughters. The priest recounted the incident in a post that has drawn widespread attention to the trauma and betrayal within a family.
Grandfather's deathbed confession shocks daughter
According to Fr. Bassey's account, an only daughter abandoned her job to take care of her father for more than a year. The infirm elderly man, believing he was nearing death, called her to ask for forgiveness. He revealed that more than ten years earlier, he had raped her two girls when they were barely 10 and 8 years old.
The mother was so shocked, disappointed, and distressed that she thought up all kinds of revenge. She wished he was even strong enough to be handed over to the police. Only the fear of God stopped her from taking action, the priest wrote. “How can a granddad do that to his grandkids!” she kept lamenting, according to the post.
Mother's guilt over missed warning signs
Fr. Bassey further narrated that the mother then remembered that the elder daughter had tried to say something years ago, but she hadn't brought herself to think that such an abomination was possible and so didn't pay attention. Now she couldn't forgive herself, the priest said. She was inconsolable, grappling with the realization that she had missed the warning signs.
The priest concluded his post with a reflection: “Physical pain might be bound to a period but the pain of the mind and heart is timeless.” The story, shared by Linda Ikeji, highlights the deep emotional and psychological impact of sexual abuse within families, as well as the guilt and regret that can haunt those who fail to recognize the signs.
