For veteran Nollywood actor Taiwo Hassan, known to generations of Yoruba cinema audiences as Ogogo, the obstacle standing between him and continued cancer treatment isn’t cost. It’s that, according to his daughters, hospitals have stopped offering it at all. That distinction is what Lima and Kira Taiwo tried to make clear in separate, emotional Instagram videos posted Monday, as they appealed publicly for any medical professional or facility willing to take on their father’s case.
The 66-year-old actor’s cancer has reached stage four, and doctors have told the family that chemotherapy is no longer being administered to him. Kira, in her video, said the message from hospitals had been direct: they could not treat him further. “The hospital is saying that they cannot treat him again, like they can’t give him chemo again,” she said.
What makes the appeal especially urgent, according to Lima, is how recently the severity of her father’s condition became visible. The family says they only learned how serious things were roughly three weeks ago, in part because Ogogo’s physical appearance hadn’t reflected the extent of his illness until recently. “You see him, you can’t even know that something is wrong that bad. It’s just starting to show,” she said.
Both daughters were careful to specify what kind of help they were seeking. Lima said repeatedly that the family wasn’t soliciting donations, but rather trying to connect with a hospital or specialist willing to continue her father’s care. “We’re willing to try anything. We’re not here to ask for money,” she said, breaking down as she described the difficulty of watching her father’s condition worsen. “Please, I can’t watch my daddy die. I can’t. I can’t. Please, I’m begging you.”
Kira’s appeal carried a similar urgency, extending beyond conventional treatment. “If you can treat my daddy, if you can start chemo for him, whether it’s medical or herbs, please, I’m begging you,” she said, describing a level of suffering in her father she said she’d never witnessed before, along with his own fear about dying.
The family has received some support already. Both daughters credited Senator Solomon Adeola, known as Yayi, with covering medical bills throughout the ordeal, and Lima separately acknowledged an uncle who had stepped in to help. But covering costs, the family says, hasn’t solved the more immediate problem of finding a facility still willing to treat him.
Ogogo’s career spans more than four decades and over 300 films, making him one of the most recognizable figures in Yoruba cinema and one of the industry’s most respected veterans. As of this report, the family has not disclosed the specific type of cancer he is battling or named the hospital where he was previously receiving care. Their appeal for medical intervention continues.
