'Help save baby Asli'
Sharon Mathala | Wednesday March 4, 2026 06:00
Baby Asli turns one over the weekend, but there will be no grand celebration as her parents fight to save her life. The nightmare began shortly after what they describe as a normal birth. There were no complications during delivery. No alarming signs. It was only after they returned home that something seemed wrong.
“It was my mother who noticed her eyes were a bit yellowish. I didn’t know what was wrong with her,” Asli's mother recalls.
They rushed back to the hospital, but the doctors assured them there was nothing serious.
“They told us to let her bask in the sun, and it would go away. I felt something was off, but I did as they said, but the jaundice did not go away,” says the mother.
Two weeks later, they were back in the hospital. This time, their tiny infant, not even a month old, had to undergo surgery on her stomach.
“The operation was successful, but later she developed jaundice again. They said she had been bleeding out, but they managed to stop it.”
They were discharged and told once again to let her bask in the sun and continue with Vitamin D. Still, the jaundice persisted. With no improvement and growing concern, the young parents sought help from a private doctor. After multiple tests, they were told their baby urgently needed an MRI scan. But the costs were beyond what they could afford. They were referred to Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital.
At the hospital, they were given an appointment three months away.
“We tried to tell them it was an emergency. She needed an emergency MRI. We got no help, so we went back home to wait.”
When the long-awaited date arrived, doctors discovered a cyst in the abdominal area. Once again, they were sent home with instructions to continue Vitamin D. Then one day, everything changed.
“She started bleeding profusely. We rushed her to the hospital again,' she shares.
Another MRI was performed. By then, hospital visits had become routine.
“We have been in and out of the hospital since last June, when she was just three months old. Sometimes we would spend three weeks straight in the hospital,” the mother narrates.
It was only in October that they were told, almost casually, that their daughter had liver failure.
“It was just said in passing. I was shocked,” Asli's mother says.
They were referred again to Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital to see a specialist, the only one in Botswana at the time. But the specialist was on leave. By then, Asli had started losing weight. Her once tiny but healthy frame had changed dramatically. Her stomach was swollen.
“When she finally came back, that’s when it was confirmed. My baby had liver failure. My baby had changed. I couldn’t even recognise her anymore. They told us she had acute liver failure and that she needed a new liver. They said there was nothing they could do,' she recalls. The family was discharged.
Now, Asli’s parents believe that had urgent action been taken earlier, her condition may not have deteriorated to this point. But instead of dwelling in anger, they are clinging to hope. In their desperate search for answers, another doctor gave them something they had almost lost: a possibility and hope.
A liver transplant was an option. Tests revealed that her father is a match, but hope comes at a price.
“The operation is very expensive. We need about P800,000 for the transplant in India.”
The young family has since opened a GoFundMe account, appealing to the public for assistance. They say every pula counts toward giving their daughter a second chance at life. As baby Asli approaches her first birthday, her parents are not asking for gifts or celebrations; they are asking for a miracle and for the compassion of a nation.
A fundraising concert is also in the works on March 26 at the Maitisong Theatre.
To donate:
1. Bank: ABSA Branch code: 001 Branch: Mall Account holder: Elizabeth B Mokgosi Account number: 8788748
2. Bank: ABSA Branch code: 001 Branch: Mall Account holder: Letso Mikhail Ntshole Account number: 1005780
3. Orange Money account: +267 77491535 Name: Angelinah Mokgosi