GONZALES
As a lawyer, Emmanuel Fontanilla, also the spokesperson and legal counsel of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) based in General Santos City, has pleaded his clients’ case several times.
This time, however, he is making an appeal for a person close to his heart: His 2-year-old granddaughter Brielle Therese Fontanilla
Gonzales has Alagille Syndrome, a rare disease in which the liver does not function properly, causing debilitating effects.
According to Fontanilla, Brielle needs to undergo a liver transplant at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan, an operation which will cost P4 million.
“I am humbly begging for your help to please implore your kindhearted readers to help defray the expenditure for the operation of my granddaughter. Hopefully, she can be operated [on] six months from today to save her life,” he told the Inquirer.
Fontanilla describes Brielle as a “very wonderful child… intelligent and from an early age, she shows a promising future.”
He expressed regret that he would not be able to shoulder the huge amount needed for her operation, saying most of his clients were poor people.
Fontanilla is also a founding member of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers in Mindanao.
“May the good Lord bless your benevolent hearts. The family will be forever grateful for your help,” he said, adding that Brielle has been brought to St. Paul’s Hospital in Iloilo City by her parents Lissette Emmanuelle and Joseph Ryan Gonzales for further medical attention.
Those who may want to help Brielle may call Fontanilla at 0906-7888100. Donations can be deposited in his BDO account (#3290182163).