Well, you only need the light when it’s burning
low. Only miss the sun when it starts to snow
(lyrics from Passenger…Let her go)
One day, a florist went to a barber for a haircut.
After the cut, he asked about his bill, and the
barber replied, ‘I cannot accept money from you.
I’m doing community service this week.’ The
florist was pleased and left the shop. When the
barber went to open his shop the next morning,
there was a ‘thank you’ card and a dozen roses
waiting for him at his door.
Later, a cop came in for a haircut, and when he
tried to pay his bill, the barber again replied, ‘I
cannot accept money from you. I’m doing
community service this week.’ The cop was
happy and left the shop. The next morning when
the barber went to open up, there were a ‘thank
you’ card and a dozen doughnuts waiting for him
at his door.
Then, a politician came in for a haircut, and
when he went to pay his bill, the barber again
replied, ‘I cannot accept money from you. I’m
doing community service this week.’ The
politician was very happy and left the shop. The
next morning, when the barber went to open up,
there were a dozen politicians lined up waiting
for a free haircut.
Defining stupid
The meaning of stupidity is, knowing the truth,
seeing the truth and still believing the lies. Only
politicians will blatantly ignore the truth staring
them in the face and proceed regardless down a
path of sure destruction. Simply because it
benefits them personally and certainly not the
people who chose them to serve.
Okay, where am I going with this?
On healthcare
Many years ago, doctors in the United Kingdom
came to Nigeria and specifically the University
College Hospital in Ibadan for their clinical
training. They came here for short periods to be
skilled in clinical examination and tropical
medicine. The UCH was affiliated with many
universities in the UK and produced fantastic
doctors.
Many of the English doctors were extremely
proud of the association with Ibadan and wore
the connection as a badge of honour. Recently, a
man in his 70s reminisced thus (he did his pre-
clinical in UCH London). ‘Back then in UCH
London, they gave you the choice of doing your
clinical either in UCH London or UCH Ibadan.
Most of us preferred Ibadan because it was a
much better place for clinical. You were better
trained.’
Over the years, we have destroyed deliberately
and methodically our educational and health care
systems due to corruption and opaque thinking.
The stupidity is actually galling, especially when
one realises that many of our leaders have been
in an aeroplane before. They have travelled times
too numerous to mention, to hospitals abroad
without any iota of shame. Compare with what
happened to a former South African leader,
Nelson Mandela.
It also brings to mind the recent brouhaha
following the comments of the United States
Presidential aspirant, Mr. Donald Trump. He was
reported to have said, ‘Look at African countries
like Kenya (and Nigeria too for that matter!),
those people are stealing from their own
government and go to invest the money in
foreign countries. From the government to
opposition, they only qualify to be used as a
case study whenever bad examples are required.
In my opinion, most of these African countries
ought to be recolonised for another 100 years
because they know nothing about leadership and
governance.’
Dreams
We do not have the health care system of our
dreams because we still have clueless people in
charge. People that kowtow to the status quo!
They continue window dressing crap instead of
making real changes. Seriously, some of our
people in positions of power fit into Trump’s
description. It is said that ‘it is better to keep
quiet and let people think you are stupid, than to
open your mouth and confirm it’. Erasing all
doubt! Now, where is that pencil?
Why would a commissioner of health, a governor
or whoever, think it sensible to hoodwink the
Nigerian populace by bringing poorly trained and
incompetent foreign doctors to work in our
hospitals? The truth is that no foreign doctor
worth his salt will leave a lucrative job in another
country to come here and work for peanuts!
Therefore, the doctors from Bangladesh, Egypt
and wherever are likely not the best at their
chosen fields. The best are already gainfully
employed. They may not even be what they
claim to be. We saw examples of that in the
Indian hospitals currently operating in the
country.
The truth is that there are highly educated and
well-trained Nigerian healthcare practitioners
both within and especially outside of Nigeria.
There are thousands of doctors, nurses,
physiotherapists and researchers, who are more
than capable of resuscitating and nurturing our
near comatose health care industry back to
health.
Wake up, please
In conclusion, we need to develop our own
system of safe health care delivery using
indigent practitioners and our mass of personnel
in the Diaspora. Also, it is up to us to train and
retrain the current generation, educate the future
generation properly, if we are to achieve the
glorious heights of the past.
I am off to sleep but, please, wake me up when
you are ready!
By
Dr Biodun Ogunbo
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