"My aunt is a very Godly lady," says Auntie Em's nephew. The 56-year-old father-of-three is deeply religious himself.

The first thing he does when asked about the alleged abuse and neglect of his aged relative by her adopted daughter is to quote the Bible. "Honour thy mother and father," he recites to The Royal Gazette. "Honour widows who are truly widows."

The nephew does not feel his 95-year-old aunt has been honoured. The son of her late husband's niece, he was brought up by and lived in the same house as Auntie Em from the age of five to 22 and remembers her kindness and proud housekeeping. "My aunt kept her house immaculate," he says. "You could eat off the floor."

The appalling state of that house meant environmental health officers considered it unfit for human habitation earlier this year, unless substantial improvements were made. Auntie Em is now in hospital but wants to return home.

Her nephew is determined to help her do that. He is going through legal channels to try to get her adopted daughter out of the property which has been allowed to fall into disrepair. He is also seeking to have a restraining order placed on her in relation to Auntie Em.

"My goal is to get the adopted daughter's family out and get my aunt in with 24-hour nursing care so that she can enjoy her home and so she can live out her life in dignity and comfort," he explains. "I will fix the home up."

The self-employed electrician said he typically visited his aunt a couple of times a month prior to last autumn and constantly crossed swords with her daughter about the state of the home.

Last October, Auntie Em went into hospital due to uncontrollable shaking. "It was thought that a spider may have bitten her because her left hand and the left side of her face were swollen very much," says her nephew.

The nonagenarian was discharged from hospital and, while her daughter and family were away on vacation, the nephew's mother stayed with her. "It was during this period while they were away that the true nature, the appalling conditions of the house, was revealed to myself," he says. "I had seen the house before but only from the kitchen to the dining room."

The filth wasn't the only hazard. Auntie Em, who has cataracts causing partial blindness, was barely able to move about because of the clutter and dangerous wires on the floor.

The nephew asked Auntie Em to give him power-of-attorney over her affairs and employed a nurse, Yvonne Dawson, to provide care.

Ms Dawson's recruitment was the catalyst which saw the National Office for Seniors and other agencies become involved. Ms Dawson eventually took Auntie Em into her home and she later stayed with a family from her church before going back into hospital.

Once safely out of the home, the nephew says his aunt confided in him about the abuse she had suffered. He won't go into details but alleges: "It was mental abuse. It had been going on for years."

The cost of nursing care for his aunt is financially crippling him. Before she went into hospital he was paying for it with his own money plus her state pension. "I am fighting with the family trying to get reimbursed for the money I have spent," he says. "What I'm trying to do is honour my late uncle's will in which he said he wanted her to finish out the rest of her days in her own home. It makes me feel very sad that she is moved from pillar to post."

He hopes that by revealing his aunt's story to the public he can prevent other seniors suffering as she has. "We need to look after our seniors who have built up this country," says the nephew. "Let's give them the honour that they so deserve. Let's respect them as mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers."

He has a final message for his aunt: "I love you Auntie Em, I have your back and I will continue to fight for your welfare."