Ghanaian World War 2 veteran sets out on Covid-19 fundraiser

A 95-year-old Second World War veteran from Ghana has set himself the challenge of walking two miles a day for a week to raise money for coronavirus charities, reports the BBC.

Private Joseph Hammond hopes to raise US$600,000 for frontline workers and vulnerable veterans across Africa.

Private Hammond fought with the British army in Burma, in the Gold Coast Regiment of the Royal West African Frontier Force.

In the BBC's report filed by Thomas Naadi in Accra, the veteran said he has joined the fight in a different type of war to help health workers defeat Covid-19 on the continent.

The money he raises will be used to purchase PPE for covid-19 frontline workers and vulnerable veterans in Commonwealth countries.

There have been complaints that veterans have not been supported.

Earleir this month, the Guardian newspaper reported that a veteran in Zambia, Jaston Khosa, died in poverty. He was one of the 600,000 Africans who fought for the British in the war, the Guardian said.

Private Hammond says he draws his inspiration from British Second World War veteran Captain Tom Moore, who embarked on a similar initiative.

The walk is being organised by a charity called the Guba Foundation.

source: BBC