Renowned Nollywood actor Ibrahim Chatta has shared a deeply emotional story about losing his first child as a result of financial difficulties, revealing that he had to bury her in a wooden Coca-Cola crate because he couldn’t afford a proper coffin.
During a conversation with his team on a movie set, which was later shared on YouTube, Chatta spoke about the tragic incident. He explained that his daughter passed away in a hospital in the Iddo area of Lagos after he was unable to gather enough money for her medical care.
“Malik isn’t my first child. My first was a baby girl, but I lost her because I couldn’t pay the hospital bills,” he said.
The actor recalled walking long distances in a desperate search for help, saying, “She was admitted to a hospital in Iddo. I walked all the way from Ijora Badia to Makoko—areas where I once hawked puff-puff—hoping to raise money. But I couldn’t find help in time. She died, and I had no choice but to bury her in an old Coca-Cola crate.”
Chatta noted that he rarely speaks about the experience and had only recently shared it with his family following a trip to Dubai.
He said, “When I returned from Dubai, I bought a diamond anklet for my only daughter, Hawawu. Her mother was upset that I didn’t buy anything for her. That’s when I opened up and told them about my first daughter and how she died. They all broke down in tears—they had never heard the story before.”
