ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA AT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE 2018 NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION ANNUAL GENERAL CONFERENCE,
ABUJA, 26TH AUGUST, 2018.
Protocols
I am delighted to address this distinguished gathering on the occasion of the 2018 Annual Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association. Let me thank your Association for the invitation to declare this Conference open and to express my hope that the Conference will consolidate the position of the NBA as a prime stakeholder in our national affairs.
2. I am informed that with an average attendance of over 10,000 participants, this Conference represents one of the largest single gathering of lawyers anywhere in the world. I congratulate you all for this achievement which is a plus for our nation.
3. The theme of this 2018 NBA Conference — “Transition, Transformation and Sustainable Institutions” — is one which is apt in the light of our contemporary domestic and global challenges. I also consider it significant in view of the fact that it demonstrates the willingness of the NBA to address issues, not only related to the immediate practice of law but more importantly, to solutions of wider society’s problems.
4. Since the inauguration of this administration, I have had the privilege of observing at first hand how societies experience transition, attempt transformation and build or strengthen institutions to manage these processes.
5. As you will recall, this administration’s emergence marked the first successful civilian transition in Nigeria’s democratic history, following the outcome of the 2015 General Elections.
6. Given the enormity of the challenges we inherited and the yearnings of a citizenry earnestly desirous of a new way of running national affairs, our first challenge was to transform our country speedily into a society where impunity in the management of national resources would be replaced with a culture of accountability and transparency. We needed to deploy our resources to address our common needs rather than the greed of a callous few.
7. In order to achieve this, we have had to disrupt age-old assumptions and unsettle ancient norms in the management of our national patrimony, as you have all witnessed in the last three years.
8. While we have made appreciable progress in several sectors, including public awareness of the need to challenge the corrupt and the brazen in our midst, we have also learnt useful lessons on the dynamism of our society. However, elements within every society, including some lawyers, can equally become unduly resistant to change, even where it is proven that such change is to serve the interest of the larger society. At worst, corruption fights back.
9. As we gradually move into another season of intense political activities preparatory to the 2019 General Elections, I enjoin you to remember that by reason of your profession, you all have a responsibility to work for national cohesion and unity through your speeches and public positions and most importantly in your advocacy in court.
10. In the context of opinions and narratives about our past and present political and socio-economic experience, you cannot afford to jettison rational and proper analysis of issues in a manner which builds, rather than destroys the nation. I also urge you to work to uphold and improve the sanctity and integrity of our judicial and electoral institutions which play a fundamental role in the sustenance and growth of our democracy.
11. However, let me remind you all, my dear compatriots, that the law can only be optimally practiced in a Nigeria that is safe, secure and prosperous.
12. As you go into this Annual Conference, let me assure you of the resolve of this administration to promote measures that will achieve a vibrant economy under which the practice of law will thrive.
13. Through fiscal discipline, good housekeeping, we navigated the difficult days of economic transformation at the beginning of this Government in 2015 and have now come to improving economic indices, including the consistent increase in our foreign reserves; thirteen straight months of decreasing inflation; the expansion of social safety nets programmes as well as the blockages of historical drain pipes in our national treasury, all within the context of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.
14. It is equally significant to emphasize that our willingness to hold persons accountable for offences against society, through the judicial process, will equally transform the future of public service in Nigeria in a positive manner.
15. I believe that lawyers can contribute to another core objective of enhancing our business environment and promoting social justice by promoting respect for the Rule of Law; contributing to the law reform process and putting national interest and professional ethics above self in the conduct of their business.
16. Rule of Law must be subject to the supremacy of the nation’s security and national interest. Our apex court has had cause to adopt a position on this issue in this regard and it is now a matter of judicial recognition that; where national security and public interest are threatened or there is a likelihood of their being threatened, the individual rights of those allegedly responsible must take second place, in favour of the greater good of society.
17. I trust that this Conference will achieve tremendous success and I urge you all to participate actively in its various intellectual and social activities in order to build new bonds and strengthen old relationships. I congratulate the incoming National Executive of the NBA led by Mr. Paul Usoro, SAN, and wish them a successful tenure in the task of advancing legal practice in Nigeria.
18. In conclusion, may I wish you all, once more, a very fruitful Conference. It is my hope that the outcome of your deliberations will impact positively on the socio-economic fortunes of our country and Africa in the years ahead and improve access of the poor and under-privileged in our society to justice. I look forward to reading the conclusions of your conference.
19. Your Excellencies, My Lords, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen of the Bar, it is now my pleasure to declare the 2018 Annual Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association open.
Thank you and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
•Concerns over rising population of children orphaned by herdsmen attacks
Joshua was only two and very engrossed in stamping his feet on the low lying undulating field of his hometown in Agatu, a region in Benue State renowned for its fertile soil and large water bodies.
In 2014, a bunch of armed herdsmen with lean bodies invaded his hometown. While other people fled into safety to escape the unexpected attacks, Joshua stood by the side of his bedridden father, a farmer who struck by illness.
“As death got closer, the hapless little boy could not fathom an escape route, so he ran under the bed at the sight of armed men who pulled down the door to the house with little effort.
Joshua’s father was slaughtered in his presence. The herdsmen made a video, handing him the phone to say something as they recorded the gory scene.
For two days, Joshua was left in seclusion. The villagers only took note of him when they returned to count the dead and prepare their bodies for burial.
“The villagers felt terrorised by Joshua’s experience because he had seen things that a child should not see. They quickly released him to me,” Favour Enewa Adah Paul, the 35-year-old lady raising children displaced by farmers/herdsmen conflicts in Makurdi recalls.
She added that when Joshua came into the house, he constantly had nightmares and was hostile to other children.
A Home of refuge and succor
Favour Enewa Aaah-Paul
Since 2014, Favour has busied herself with giving children like Joshua (who has now grown into a six-year-old with a bubbly smile) a good chance at life.
The Tivid Orphange Home, located in the North Bank area of Makurdi, Benue State capital, could be accessed from a tiny untarred path. Tall maize ridges adorn the dual colored painted wall of the large compound which houses an apartment, a playground and a makeshift building serving as classrooms.
The home caters for orphans from areas invaded by herdsmen, such as Agatu, Guma, Logo and some parts of Nasarawa and Taraba states. It was officially opened in 2014 with nine children orphaned by herdsmen attacks in Agatu and now houses 55 children. Favour intends to bring in 20 more children orphaned by the January 2 herdsmen attacks in Guma Local Government Area as the new school term begins in September.
The signboard of the Tivid Orphanage Home
A single mother, Favour draws strength from her own ordeal. Ten years ago, she was drugged and then raped and gave birth to twins. One of them died, leaving her helpless with the burden of raising her son alone.
When the Agatu crisis started in 2012 and many people were displaced, she emptied her savings to buy food items which were served to some of the displaced persons for breakfast.
During the distribution of the food, she noticed that while some mothers were pushing to collect huge portions for their children, other children stood far away, helpless as they had no one to fight for them.
She said: “I remember asking myself why these children were on their own. My mind didn’t take me to the fact that some children were orphaned from the crisis. From that sight, I developed a passion for them,” she said, placing her hands on the large table in a corner which has been turned into an office space in the home.
When she ran out of her savings and the feeding programme at the displaced persons camp ended, Favour had resigned to moving on when a dream changed the course of her action.
According to her, it was during the cold harmattan season in November. She had covered her child in a duvet and was making to close the windows to keep the room warm when her mind travelled to the scene of naked children sleeping in uncompleted buildings.
“God took me to an IDP camp and I saw children that were naked. God told me to go and take care of these children,” she said.
The next day, she spent the whole day visiting an orphanage at Gboko, after which she started bringing some of the orphaned children into her family house in Agatu. She travelled back to Makurdi to house them in a rented space which now houses a teeming number of children.
Although the home was originally founded to provide succour for displaced children, she has also welcomed abandoned babies since she understands their needs, having been abandoned at the point when she was pregnant with her child.
During the process of selecting the children into the home, Favour was flustered by the fact that the displaced persons preferred the male children to be sheltered than the female.
“They believe education will favour the boys more. I am from Agatu and the people will tell you openly that education is not for girls. Most times, they wanted me to take the older boys, but I declined since I don’t have the strength. I wanted young children who would be amenable to the training I give them,” she said.
Teaching them forgiveness
Children at the Tivid Home singing to welcome visitors to the home
With the home now bustling with children, few of them few months old and to age 12 or thereabout, there are usually frictions arising from their co-existence. Benue State, a largely rural area with scattered settlements, is inhabited predominantly by the TIV, Idoma and Igede people. Since some of the children were not exposed to speaking English from home, friction would often arise from the admixture of diverse languages in the house.
Also, since the children are exposed to toxic stress and many of them suffer post-traumatic stress disorders, they often come into the home hostile.
“We had to become judges settling cases every now and then,” Favour said of the disposition she and her staff have adopted in resolving conflicts in the home.
She offered that the home has succeeded in curbing aggressive behaviour through the introduction of education to the children and also exposing them to places of interest such as the zoo, parks and children parties.
Since nothing should be left to chance, the children brought into the home also have to undergo health screening and medical tests.
Hope of shelter hangs in the balance
Abandoned toddlers taking a nap in the bed placed in the sitting room of the orphanage
For children like Joshua and the 54 other children in Tivid orphanage, their hope of continued stay in the orphanage hangs in the balance. The compound housing the Tivid Orphanage Home has been put up for sale. The classrooms where the children study are in a shambles. There are not enough textbooks to go round and there is no furniture in the living room. The kitchen is out of shape and the doors to the wash rooms have broken down. To accommodate more children, the home needs more beds and furniture. The home also needs to pay staff salaries as volunteers only come once in a week.
Implication for Early Childhood Development
With the violent clashes between herders and farmers stemming from an intense struggle for economic survival, the mental wellbeing of many of the displaced children is under threat.
Children in displaced settings also stand the risk of being exposed to toxic stress. A growing number of research has shown that the stress of growing in poverty can have long-term effects on children’s brain and cognitive development. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is also an issue for displaced children as the trauma of war and conflict could result into difficulty in learning, cause depression and dependency on drug use.
A child’s right activist, Betty Abah, founder of Centre for Children’s Health Education, Orientation and Protection (CEE-HOPE), said the humanitarian crisis in Benue has implications for illnesses and long-term growth deficiencies for the affected children.
Emphasising that continuity of children’s education should be a priority even in displacement, she bemoaned the fact that the education of thousands of children in Benue’s IDP camps have been disrupted.
“This is not a good development with Nigeria still toping the chart for having the highest number of out-of-school children in the world. Neither the state nor the Federal Government has shown any determination. They are so fixated on the next election and our children in and out of IDP camps are the ones paying the price of their insensitivity,” Abbah said.
She added that with the recent development, fundamentalism and all sorts of socially deviant behaviors can creep in by the time the children grow into their youthful years.
Describing the current state of the children in the camp as disheartening, Abah, a Benue State indigene, blamed both the federal and state governments for failing the children.
She also points at members of the society who have taken fleeting interest on the suffering of the children, saying they are children born to the giant of Africa whose welfare the giant cannot guarantee.
“It’s simply sad that after escaping brute murder in the hands of herdsmen militia, these poor kids still die of malnutrition in the camps. The Benue State Government claims to have spent billions of naira on security and welfare of the IDPs, I am compelled to ask him if he used it for noodles or kulikuli for the children, because most of the children in most of the camps are malnourished,” Abah lamented.
Continuing she said: “This is a state that owes workers’ salaries for several months, yet you can’t feed your own displaced people. What do you do with the federal allocations, supposing the state does not generate any internal revenue? If there is anything to be done, is it not to feed the displaced people out of which the governor has made so much political capital?
She pleaded with the Federal Government to take more than a cursory look at the plight of the IDPs in Benue since over 100,000 people are displaced and most of them are children.
“There is a huge humanitarian crisis in the North East but Benue is not any better. Benue needs attention. We can’t afford to fail the children. The suffering is too enormous for these innocent children. And it is completely preventable and manageable. With reports of killings still ongoing, most of the displaced persons in Benue, Pleateau and beyond are not prepared to go home. They deserve protection and welfare, particularly the vulnerable children,” she stated.
In a report about the displaced children published last week, the DG of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Emmanuel Shior, accused the federal government and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) of neglecting the displaced persons in Benue. In response, a regional director with SEMA, Mr Luggard Ishaku, described the claims as untrue.
“We sent some items to Benue and I wonder why they said NEMA is neglecting them. We are presently working on sending another set of relief materials to them. The process is only being delayed by procurement process,” he stated, adding that he would be able to give more information on the development when he returns to the office.
Benue, Nigeria’s acclaimed food basket accounts for 70 per cent of Nigeria’s soybean production. Its rich agricultural products include yam, rice, beans, cassava, sweet potato, sorghum, millet, sesame and other nutritious products. It’s a dark irony that children who grew up in an environment where these food items are in surplus are now faced with an acute shortage with no hope in sight.
Nigeria’s HIV epidemic affects all population groups and geographic areas of the country. Consequently, February 2015, the Federal Government signed into law the HIV/AIDS anti-discrimination bill to protect the rights and dignity of people living with HIV. Thus, making it illegal to discriminate against people based on their HIV status.
In this third edition of the five-part investigative series on HIV across seven states in Nigeria- Ogun, Lagos, Edo, Delta, Imo, Benue and the Federal Capital Territory Abuja, TOBORE OVUORIE, reveals children of school age living with the virus are overlooked when populations disproportionately impacted by the epidemic are assessed. These kids, the investigation discloses, are not only stigmatised and discriminated against by the society but are denied their human rights to educational opportunities.
“If my child is having HIV, there is no need of attending school. I will have to withdraw the child from the school….”
The above was said by Mr. Ehigiator Nosakhare, a taxi driver in Benin city, Edo state. He wasn’t talking about his son. He was only asked if his child were living with HIV, would he disclose the status to the school authority? He thinks letting her go to school with the virus residing in her is risky. He would protect others- the school community, by keeping her at home. Questioned about her right to education, he said she will school at home. He would get her a home teacher.
Mr. Nosakhare is not the only father with this mindset. Some parents out of the numerous I have interviewed across several states for this series on HIV, share same sentiment.
“I won’t allow her go to school if she tests positive to HIV. She will be at home. If contracting it was not of her making (through sex), I will look for solution for her. I am sure there are herbs that will help her. It would be combined with whatever we are given at the hospital.” This is a plumber popularly known as Baba Tosin. He lives in Ekpoma, the part of Edo state which hosts the Ambrose Alli University.
Baba Tosin says if the daughter contracts it through sex, he will abandon her for sometime after being withdrawn from school. This is to teach her a lesson. Then, “will look for solution for her.” His belief? A combination of herbs and visits to the hospital, he thinks, is the surest way to keep the daughter alive.
“When she is alright, I will enroll her as an apprentice to a tailor. That is the price to be paid for being wayward and contracting HIV in the process. At least, there’s good money in sewing business,” he says in a combination of stammering English, fluent Yoruba and pidgin.
Asked if it were his son who tests positive, what will he do? “It is mostly females who contract it,” he retorts. “Boys don’t prostitute themselves like girls do.”
FATHERS WHO WANT TO WITHDRAW HIV POSITIVE DAUGHTERS FROM SCHOOL HAVE WRONG MENTALITY!
But the Executive Director of the Edo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (Edo SACA), Mrs. Florence Oyakhilome-Edemode, Saturday August 18th, 2018 told me parents like Mr. Nosakhare, Baba Tosin and Mr. Osayimwense have “wrong mentality”.
Mr. Osayimwense, a business man, whom I would later talk and write about in this story, said HIV will not spread in schools if girls living with the virus don’t prostitute themselves. “When she knows fully well that she is such a person, if she can keep herself, she cannot spread it,” were a part of his words.
Appalled by the thoughts of withdrawing from school, kids who test positive to the virus, Mrs. Oyakhilome-Edemode retorted “What will he do if the child tests positive to HIV? He will kill the child?…Wrong mentality! To me, that is a wrong mentality. The child he is saying should study at home, living together, studying together cannot resort to other persons contracting HIV.
“There are ways by which HIV can be contracted. And no study have revealed that staying together in a classroom, eating together or playing together as children will spread HIV. If what I have told you now cannot spread HIV, why on earth will I withdraw my child (from school) because my child has tested positive to the virus?”
The Edo SACA helms-woman said such kids are to be watched and educated. If still an underage, it may require disclosure but this will depend on how knowledgeable the school authority is on HIV. She stressed the need for certainty that those who manage the schools are sound; they are of sound mind and know what HIV is really about. “But if they are not, because awareness is still not that much, there is still a lot of stigmatization and discrimination against persons living with the virus, that I know. In view of that, I may not disclose to the authority,” she added.
She decried the HIV awareness level of educational institutions in the country saying “not many schools believe that it is a problem. So many people still say God forbid! The denial syndrome is still in so many people. Even with their level of education.”
HIGH PREVALENCE RATE: EDO STATE BEATS NIGERIA!
Nigeria’s Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, August 2017, said of the over 173,660 persons living with HIV/AIDS in Edo state, only 25,730 have access to antiretroviral treatment.
HON MINISTER OF HEALTH, PROF. ISAAC ADEWOLE
He decried the high rate of people living with the virus in the state and the low rate of people that have access to care and treatment. According to him, the figure shows that there is still a wide gap between those who require care and treatment and those who can access it in the state.
Presently Edo state has a high prevalence rate of 4.1 percent of her population living with the virus. This is higher than the national prevalence rate of 3.4 percent. The state government, June 25th 2018, expressed concern over this.
JANE NWAGBUO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, JANE EDWIN FOUNDATION, BENIN CITY EDO STATE, TEACHING SEC SCH GIRLS ABOUT HIV IN THE STATE
The Edo state governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, had expressed the state government’s commitment at curbing the HIV menace. He said that his administration was committed to strengthening health systems to allow for effective management of diseases which include HIV/AIDs.
“It is important that we contain HIV, but there are some key things we need to do. We need laboratories and the right management models to make it work,” he had said.
The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) in a joint spectrum estimates which commenced in 2017 say 14,770 children between the ages of zero to 14 are living with the virus, while 41.28 percent of them are covered in the ART scheme in Edo state. The survey indicates the state as having 11,024 new HIV infections.
Unfortunately, children of school age are a part of the state’s high prevalence rate.
***
OUR KIDS CAN’T BE IN SAME SPACE WITH HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN!
Just like Lagos and Ogun states, parents in Edo state are against their children remaining friends, classmates or sharing space with any child who tests positive to the virus. Ironically, majority of them interviewed in the state said they wouldn’t disclose their kids’ status to school authorities if they were living with HIV.
For instance, Mr. Nosakhare said he will withdraw his child from the school because he fears spread of the disease since kids are very innocent and ignorant. When told HIV cannot be contracted through body contact, he answered “I understand. But it’s because of the sharp objects. If assuming they are a little bit matured, it is a different case. Children, they can play with anything they want. They don’t know what is a sharp object or not. They can play with anything razor, nail. It’s very risky.”
Asked if that isn’t stigmatization and a reason people who are HIV positive feel ashamed to disclose their status, he replied “hmmmn, I don’t think so.”
Mrs. Omolara Oladipupo, a hairstylist, says she will ban her child from having anything to do with a friend living with HIV. “If I hear that my child’s friend has HIV, I can tell my child that don’t play with that girl because HIV is not good for the body.”
She wouldn’t allow her child remain in the school if the classmate tests positive to the virus. This, she believes is the surest way to stop her daughter from remaining friends with the infected child.
But when I asked should the table turn around, would she inform the school authorities about her child’s HIV status while scouting for admission, she was emphatic with her “No! No.” I asked why. She said “I will keep that secret in my mind. Because if I tell the headmaster or headmistress, they will not allow my child to enter that school.”
Mr. Osayimwense thinks no parent will openly admit to his or her child having a medical condition such as HIV and epilepsy. He wouldn’t as well.
Asked if he doesn’t think keeping the child’s status a secret from the school could endanger other kids, he answered “… if that child is a female child, if she continues prostituting, she can spread it. When she knows fully well that she is such a person, if she can keep herself, she cannot spread it.”
Asked if the child is diagnosed with the virus when already in the school, will he still tell the school? He was categorical “the school authority, because we are Nigerians, instead of them to go for solution, they can ask the child to leave the school; which is not good. It’s not proper.
“Instead of them (school authority) looking for solution for that child, they will find ways for that child to leave the school. So, with that, the parents will not disclose the health status of their children because we are Nigerians.”
Eunice Umogbai, a trader at Uselu market, Benin city will advise her son not to go anywhere close to the girl. Like other parents interviewed, she already took the stand that a classmate who tests positive to HIV must be a female.
However, asked if she would disclose it to the school if it were her son who is with the virus, she replied “I no go tell school…..I no go tell school. How I go tell school my problem?”
For the young lady who wants to be known only by her first name; Mercy, she said “No, I will not tell the school because she is in the school already and I don’t know if she has done something that made another person to contract it.
“So, telling the school is like you are implicating yourself. You are bringing yourself out. So that people that were moving with her before, all of them will now be running to laboratory to go and test themselves.”
Darlington Agama, a political scientist and administrator, first expressed shock when asked what he will do if he discovers his child’s classmate is living with HIV. Then gained his voice and said “I will go to their school to find out the safety precautionary measures the school has in place to protect other children, since the school is aware that one of the children there is HIV positive. Then if I am satisfied, I can leave my child there. If I am not, I will withdraw my child.”
DARLINGTON AGAMA
He however shares a different view from other parents who wouldn’t disclose their kids’ HIV status to school authorities. Mr. Aghama said doing otherwise will endanger other children in the school.
“HIV can be managed. So, by not disclosing it, I am going to put several other children in danger which is not good at all,” he stated.
PARENTS DISCRIMINATING AGAINST CHILDREN WITH HIV ARE IGNORANT!
Mrs. Oyakhilome-Edemode said parents who don’t want their children around kids living with HIV are ignorant. Then, she queried “how are they sure that the schools their children are now; the classes, are all the children HIV free? Do they know that?
“The teachers teaching them, do they know their status? Myself talking to you, do you know my status? Do I know your status? They are just trying to bring sentiment into it. The children’s schools, have they tested all the children in their child’s class and know that they are HIV free?”
She unplugged many parents’ fears that their children may contract the virus should the infected child get injured while they are playing. She said except there is direct contact and exchange of fluid, such as blood, HIV cannot be spread.
Giving an example of a child sustaining an injury while playing with a razor blade, she queried “You mean the other child immediately too will sustain injury with a razor blade?”
She called on parents to analyze situations holistically and reasonably to avoid discriminatory actions.
SCHOOL AUTHORITIES: WE ACCEPT AND ADMIT KIDS WITH DISCLOSED HIV STATUS
Proprietors, proprietresses, principals, headmasters and headmistresses of all eight schools where admission inquiries were made while undercover in Edo state agreed to admit my daughter supposedly living with HIV. The schools were randomly chosen.
The proprietress of Banmec Academy was glad about the disclosure. She said parents don’t do that. Her secretary who was the first point of contact even promised that teachers will not be told about the child’s status.
BANMEC ACADEMY
“Let me just be truthful with you because my secretary told me about the girl. The truth is this, it is probably because you are enlightened that’s why you can share. Normally, people don’t even share,” the proprietress started the discussion.
She continued “And we don’t even do blood work here to know a particular child’s status or anything. But it’s a good thing you told us…the child is not rough right?
“No.”
“It’s a good thing you shared. The person who sits down next to you in the bus, in the taxi, in the church, wherever you go, you don’t even know their health status.”
“You are right ma.”
“It is good we know as school authorities but it’s not something we would divulge and start making a case out of…it’s because you are enlightened, there are people that don’t share. They won’t share it…we are all living by the mercy of God. The market where we buy stuffs, we don’t know their health status…” she reeled on.
Head teachers, headmistresses, headmasters and principals of the other seven schools are also waiting to welcome my supposed daughter living with HIV by September 10th when most of them would resume the new academic session. They were full of praises over the disclosure saying parents don’t reveal their children’s HIV status. The schools respectively promised to keep her status a secret.
For instance, at High Tower School, only the class teacher would be informed so she can ensure the child doesn’t play with sharp objects.
HIGH TOWER SCHOOL
“…I suggest the child start with us during this holiday lesson so that we can get used to each other. Then, what I will do is when she starts, let me know her particularly,
“That is why we are telling the school.”
“I will only discuss it with the class aunty. Only the class aunty. So that she will put her eyes on the kids just to prevent it (from spreading),” she continued calmly.
“And this time, I will not allow whether parents or any other person to know; it’s only the school authority or the class aunty that will be aware of it in order to prevent use of sharp objects…”
The other six schools, a combination of primary and secondary schools include: Direct modern academy; Heaven bound christian school; Passover group of school; Continental school; Digital excellent academy and King of kings preparatory school.
“SCHOOL AUTHORITIES NOT TELLING THE TRUTH, WILL STIGMATIZE HIV POSITIVE KIDS!”
In a survey carried out among primary and secondary school teachers in Edo state between April and August 2018, over half of the respondents who filled my questionnaires noted that parents should never inform school authorities about their children’s HIV status. Respondents were 56 males and 34 females. They are resident and randomly sampled in Benin city, Ekpoma and Auchi.
Majority of the reasons given is that it is the same school authorities that will divulge the information, while the kids will end up being stigmatized within and outside the school. Many of the teachers filled that their bosses claiming parents can disclose their children’s status to them and the information will be safe, are just being politically correct.
“It is all Nigerian stories!” Mrs. Olufunke Omorodion (not real name), a teacher with Idia College Benin city, gave as part of her reasons in the survey.
Other teachers said Nigeria is not yet matured for such “free and easy talks about one’s HIV status, how much more that of children within school communities.”
All teachers surveyed said schools in Edo state are not HIV-aware. In the distributed paper questionnaires, all 80 respondents ticked ‘We do not have HIV education in the school where I teach.’
Also, they all ticked ‘HIV is not taught as a subject in the school where I teach.’
Again, 100 percent of the respondents to my questionnaire ticked ‘We do not have HIV extracurricular activities in the school where I teach.’
None of the surveyed teachers agreed that the schools where they teach have HIV education clubs.
YES! SCHOOL AUTHORITIES NOT HONEST WITH THEIR HIV ACCEPTANCE
When I contacted the Edo SACA helms-woman over the teachers’ claims, she said “Of course! Yes, I believe that. I believe that too. That was why I told you depending on the school, what I see in them. If I know that the level of awareness is high, I can think of doing such (disclosing her child’s HIV status).”
But if the opposite were the case, she wouldn’t dare disclose because “The stigmatization and discrimination will begin from them (the school authorities).”
Mrs. Jane Nwagbuo, is the Executive Director of Jane Edwin Foundation Edo state, which caters to the literacy and developmental well-being of girls in rural and urban parts of the state. Mrs. Nwagbuo is sad about the whole development.
“It is stigma. I don’t really like this stigma thing because in Nigeria, when you tell them you are HIV positive, the next thing you know is that everybody will start looking at you with one kind eye.
“Even people will not try to come in close contact with you. So, I think the school authorities should not do so to the children. Even if the school is well sensitized, there is no how somebody from their class wouldn’t know.”
She recommended a non-disclosure-to-a-third-party agreement between parents and school authorities. She said rather than stigmatize kids living with the virus, they should be assisted in regularly taking their antiretroviral medications. “I don’t think it is worth stigmatizing. The stigma is just too much,” she lamented.
USE CONDOMS AND PRAY ALWAYS
Prophet Sunday Omoduyilemi, Founder of the Holy Revelation Church of Zion Worldwide, warns everyone must be careful with their deeds as HIV is not contracted through sex alone.
He called on all Nigerians to be prayerful because no one can protect himself except God. Also known as Baba Ifihan (the father who sees visions), Prophet Omoduyilemi advised the use of condoms.
“There is condom. If you want to have anything (intercourse) with anybody, use your condom. And before having intimacy with anyone, tell the person to get tested so that you can be free to do whatever you want to do,” he said.
He admitted there is financial difficulty in the country, thus, many persons cannot buy clippers of there own, thereby using public clippers at the barbing saloon. To prevent contracting the virus at the saloon, he recommended a more prayerful lifestyle.
To persons already living with HIV, Prophet Omoduyilemi has this message:
“Anybody that has it already, my own is that don’t think too much. It is a sickness’ It can go. Don’t keep quiet. Tell people about your problems (HIV status). From there, you can see someone God can use to save you.
“I know someone that has HIV, and now they are telling me God is in control. There is solution for HIV.”
What happens, according to Baba Ifihan, is that persons living with the virus think too much and panic over it. This, he said, often leads to their untimely deaths. He enjoined people who test positive to the virus to be happy at all times. He believes by being happy always, the virus will leave such persons’ bodies.
“Anybody that has it, don’t over think. Don’t look that this is the end of life. No. it is not the end. You can still be saved. Be happy. Be prayerful. Be taking your medication,” he added.
HIV CANNOT BE CURED THROUGH BEING HAPPY
Mr. Omilaju Ipoade, Programmes Manager, humanitarian and resilience, Actionaids, Nigeria, said Prophet Omoduyilemi’s claim of HIV healing through being happy often, is a function of his belief and faith. Mr. Ipoade likened faith and reality to two parallel lines which never meet.
He said Prophet Omoduyilemi is living in denial and far from reality. Nigerians, he said, are very religious people, reason such assertions thrive. However, he stressed that HIV at the moment has no cure but can be properly managed.
MORE ENLIGHTENMENT NEEDED ON HIV
Mrs. Jane Nwagbuo called for more HIV awareness creation in the country.
“I think people generally need to be enlightened. I think most of the problem is that they just see it as a death sentence.
“If they are well enlightened, I think they will see it as no big deal and will encourage and be supportive to their children. But I think those in the rural communities need to be reached concerning enlightenment and awareness.”
JANE NWAGBUO
She opined parents should disclose their children’s HIV status but the school authorities must be HIV-aware for such talks to be safe and successful.
“I still feel the schools need to be reached as well. They need to be sensitized because most of them, they could be educated but in that area (HIV education) they could still be novice. I believe when the schools and the parents are reached, as well as the society, it would go a long way,” she said.
EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW THEIR HIV STATUS
“Problem identified is half solved. Knowing that there is a child that is infected, what we do is not to show the child sympathy, rather, we empathize with this child.
“In empathizing with the child, help the child to live a meaningful life. Help the child to access his or her antiretroviral to increase adherence. Because if the child continues taking his or her medications, there will be no immune drop; the immunity will be steady,” are part of the Edo SACA helms-woman’s message to Nigerians.
She emphasized children who test positive to the virus need encouragement, not sympathy as the latter could unknowingly lead to stigmatization.
She stressed the need for everyone to know their HIV status and called on all students, teachers and school authorities to get tested for the virus.
“We all should know our status. We should encourage our wards, our church members, our club members, our family members, to know their status,” she concluded.
This story was produced with support from Code For Africa and her Naija Data Ladies Fellowship Programme.
STIGMATIZATION: That is terrible! I am shocked and really amazed- NACA DG
“…Schools discriminating against children will be sued!”
Nigeria’s HIV epidemic affects all population groups and geographic areas of the country. Consequently, February 2015, the Federal Government signed into law the HIV/AIDS anti-discrimination bill to protect the rights and dignity of people living with the virus. Thus, making it illegal to discriminate against people based on their HIV status.
In this second part of her diary-like five-part investigative report across seven states in Nigeria- Ogun, Lagos, Edo, Delta, Imo, Benue and the FCT Abuja, TOBORE OVUORIE reveals children of school age living with HIV are overlooked when populations disproportionately impacted by the epidemic are assessed. These kids, the investigation discloses, are not only stigmatised and discriminated against by the society but are denied their human rights to educational opportunities.
ISOLOG JUNIOR SCHOOL
It’s been five months since Mrs. Oduntan told me a double NO! The first no was for my daughter. The second, for my son. My supposed daughter and son, actually. All the same, over 16 weeks later, I still remember line-by-line every words that left our mouths in that spacious office, particularly her telling me she is certain my daughter will affect the nation; is for signs and wonders; the lord will perfect her healing; among other blessed ironies.
The sound of her “we love her,” I will never forget.
Can you really love someone- a little child, yet reject her because of her health status? I still do ask myself.
I yet remember clearly the smile on her face when escorting me off the school building and promising to keep in touch in order to check on my daughter’s health. Was the smile and her words real? I now ask myself. If so, why hasn’t her 08033476444 ever beeped my phone?
BIRTHING MY HIV POSITIVE KIDS
It all began sometime in February 2018 when I pitched a story; this story actually, to the Code For Africa team. “What about making it a series rather than a long narrative,” the Nigeria office of the team had suggested amidst the numerous back and forth via emails and slack- our official communication channel. Then, my colleague and friend, Vanessa Offiong of Daily Trust Newspaper, chipped in what I would later discover to be a life saver: “don’t go to any school close to where you live.”
The story?
I was to move around as many schools as possible, across seven states, on a simple mission: to find out if the school authorities will grant my kids admission without any form of biases because of their health status.
What about their health status?
They are living with HIV.
Yes! The Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
HIV POSITIVE KIDS ARE CREATED FOR GREATNESS BUT WE CAN’T GRANT THEM ADMISSION INTO THIS SCHOOL!
March 28th, 2018
10:28AM
ISOLOG PRIMARY SCHOOL, OGUN STATE
“Your baby, what class is he?” the elderly man in a t-shirt had asked me.
“There are two of them. One is in primary one and the other is in primary two,” I had answered sitting right in front of him with a table between us. I had always driven past the school but never knew it was this gigantic within.
“The Primary one, what is his or her age?”
“She is five years old, while the one who is in primary two is seven years old,” I answered again. Then the floodgates of money-list was unleashed. Registration form at N2,000. N63,000 tuition and N1,000 PTA fees. Then an additional N18,000 for new pupils and another N10,000 for graduating students. All these aren’t a part of the N25,000 transportation fare (to and from home), N15,000 lunch, N6,000 after school lessons, N5,000 swimming classes. All per term, but the N10,000 graduation fee is not.
I almost yelled, all these for a child in primary one? I sat still, listening to him. And he reeled on. This time, about the boy.
“We would give them tests before being admitted. If we have been the one teaching the child from the beginning, by six years he should get to year two. If I put him in year three, can he move easily to the next class?”
Anything was acceptable, provided we arrived at the crux of my visit.
ISOLOG JUNIOR SCHOOL
He continued. N2,000 for registration. N65,000 for tuition and N1,000 for PTA. An additional fee of N20,000 and N5,000 for him as a non-graduating student. N25,000 transportation fare (to and from home), N15,000 lunch, N6,000 after lessons and N5,000 swimming. All per term.
I almost burst into laughter. All these money for primary one and two? What are they learning in school? I was asking myself again.
AND THE STORY CHANGED
“The major reason we are actually changing the children’s school is because the girl is HIV positive. Hope it won’t be an issue,” I hit the nail.
The elderly man whose name I never got the opportunity to know sat back, placed the pen he was holding on the sheets of paper in which he had calculated all the children’s educational cost. Then, he told me he will send for the section’s head.
The section’s head would later tell me she is Mrs. Oduntan, a guidance counsellor by profession. After exchanges of pleasantries, I repeated the same question. “The major reason we are actually changing the children’s school is because the girl is HIV positive. Hope it won’t be an issue.”
And Mrs. Oduntan couldn’t hide the shock. Like other schools I have been to, their first reactions were “Aaaah!” She did the same thing.
“It is risky. It is risky,” she answered as if her voice was moulded into a whisper.
I don’t know why I felt so much weakness in my knees. Isolog primary school wasn’t actually the first school I had visited. Neither was it the first where I was told no. Then, maybe, because it is a school with so much religiosity and is owned by a major church which preaches holiness and love. The school on her website promises ‘brotherly love and affection among staff and students’. Even new pupils are ‘ushered into the presence of the Almighty God.’
“Why do you think so?” I asked, my eyes fixed on her.
“The child is HIV positive. The children, they play and while they play, there may be cuts and do you know what that means? Contamination. That means they would be easily infected.”
It was supposed to be a story. But I was heartbroken.
“Does that mean it’s only the boy that can be taken? He is not HIV positive,” I tried to make a case further. At least, there could be some light at the end of the tunnel.
“Why not put them in the same school?”
I missed a breath. Even him too? I asked myself.
“What I am saying is that I don’t want to be selfish. I am a guidance counsellor,” she continued. “When you have siblings, it is better they are together….siblings should be together.”
I don’t understand why, but I became numb. How many parents could have been told this? And, how many more would be in my position? I kept asking myself.
The shock-series was not over.
Mrs. Oduntan collected the sheets of paper which the elderly man had written the breakdown of the school fees for the two kids, from me. She smiled while at it and prayed that she is certain my daughter will affect the nation positively; she has been created for greatness; is for signs and wonders; the lord will perfect her healing…and promised phoning me to check on her health.
“We love her,” she said at the exit after we had exchanged phone numbers.
Over 16 weeks later, not even a beep from her.
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) pandemic is by far the most persistent medical challenge of man and science at the turn of the century. Since its discovery in America, the virus which is responsible for the development of AIDS has eluded medical solution. The HIV, reports indicate, is most severe in the developing world, with Sub Saharan Africa being the most affected.
Unfortunately, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) says Nigeria has the second largest HIV epidemic in the world with 3.2 million people living with the virus in 2016, among whom only 30 percent were accessing antiretroviral therapy. She also has one of the highest rates of new infection in sub-Saharan Africa with 220,000 persons freshly infected in 2016, and 160,000 AIDS-related deaths. It is estimated that almost two thirds of HIV infections in West and Central Africa in 2016 occurred in Nigeria. Together with South Africa and Uganda, the country accounts for almost half of all new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa every year. This is despite achieving a 15 percent reduction in new infections between 2005 and 2016.
Many people living with HIV in Nigeria are unaware of their status, while the country continually falls short of providing the recommended number of HIV testing and counseling sites. Studies so far in Nigeria, reveals low levels of access to antiretroviral treatment remains an issue for people living with HIV, meaning that there are still many AIDS-related deaths in Nigeria.
Among pregnant women living with HIV, according to the National Agency for the Control of Aids (NACA), 32 percent were accessing treatment or prophylaxis to prevent transmission of HIV to their children. An estimated 37,000 children were newly infected with HIV due to mother-to-child transmission. Among people living with HIV, approximately 24 percent had suppressed viral loads.
The NACA says Nigeria is guided by the National Strategic Framework 2017–2021. The devised strategy aims at ending AIDS by achieving zero new infections, zero AIDS related deaths and zero discrimination, with elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV being a top priority.
Global discusses indicate zero discrimination is the only environment conducive to ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030. Unfortunately, stigma and discrimination has been a major challenge towards reducing the tide of HIV in the country. And some Nigerian government parastatals such as the Ogun State Education Ministry, allegedly, legalizes the discrimination against children of school ages.
“WE ARE DIRECTED BY THE GOVERNMENT NOT TO ADMIT HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN INTO STATE OWNED SCHOOLS…”
Zumuratul Islamiyyat Primary School II Ogun State
March 29th, 2018
8:00AM
“Next term is third term. The problem now on ground is that we have specific numbers that government gave us. And, in as much as the number has reached the number given us, any child we want to admit will need to go and purchase a form from them at Pakoto, at N5,000 and after that N5,000, you will pay PTA levy here,” the headmistress of Zumuratul Islamiyyat primary school II in Ogun state explained in details.
She later told me to call her Mrs. Oyegbami, after giving the monetary implication of bringing my daughter to the school. After the journey to Pakoto which is along Ifo road, Sango, in Ogun state, I was expected to return to the school to pay N4,550 from which my child will be given uniform, while the rest would go for policy and insurance respectively.
ZUMURATUL ISLAMIYYAT PRIMARY SCHOOL
“The total amount will be N9,550. But if there is space for the pupil, if he can get a space, I don’t think there is space in primary two anymore, is it a boy or a girl?” she continued.
“It is a girl.”
“I don’t think there is space.”
I was willing to pay anything to get the story. “Don’t worry, I will pay,” I quickly added hoping the bargaining will stop.
“If you cannot go, there are some money we have already collected, if you bring the money, we can go together, and I will help you to get it. After that one, you will now be paying N1,000 every term,” she continued.
That, I agreed to as well. Then, went straight to the point. “The reason why we want to change the child’s school is that the child has HIV. Hope it doesn’t count?
“HIV?” she asked as if trying to remember what it meant. Then, there was something like confusion written all over her face.
“Yes, HIV. The child is HIV positive.”
And a reality I can’t really explain flashed from nowhere and hit her. “Ahhh! We can’t admit her o,” she answered shaking her head vigorously to both sides.
ZUMURATUL ISLAMIYYAT PRIMARY SCHOOL
“Why?” My eyes were still on her.
“Haaa. We can’t admit her o. Thank God that you opened up. We can’t admit her. In fact, there are some policies whereby they (the government) asked us if we have anything like that we should indicate and send it down. There are some people that indicated and they sent it back and said they should not allow them (not grant such kids admission).”
“At Pakoto?” I was rather amused the government would have such policy.
“No, at Abeokuta.”
“The ministry of education?” I prodded further knowing fully well that is the agency she meant but there’s no harm in confirming in definite terms.
“Yes,” Mrs. Oyegbami answered concretely.
“Why?” I wouldn’t let it go just like that. I was still amused.
“We don’t know. It’s like you, you are a well educated person. Some people may be illiterate, they won’t take proper treatment. That is just the issue. Some won’t take proper treatment, while some will be hiding it, by so doing, it will affect others. And here, they do injure themselves all the time. In fact, while they were playing last week Thursday, another person just pushed a boy. And, the teeth of that boy just entered the head of the other boy. And even the teeth cut. Can you imagine that? If you see how blood was coming out, coming out; so they always injure themselves.”
I cringed. I am certain she saw the goose pimples all over me.
“So, may be that is the reason why they (the ministry of education) did not allow it. They (the kids) injure themselves, at times, they stab themselves with biro. This primary school level, in short, one has to be very careful. Secondary school, they may still play maturity at times, but these junior ones, they can eat together, they can do things together. Like the one that happened last week, in fact, if that boy is having something like that, when the teeth entered his (the other boy’s) head, the blood stained him. These are the things.”
Grief and concern were written all over her face. The students’ injuries is obviously something she witnesses often but doesn’t talk about. Well, I pushed my luck a little further but in a different direction. “But my aunt’s son we are looking at bringing from the village doesn’t have anything of sort. Do I buy the form for the boy?”
“Yes, you can buy the form. When you are ready, bring the money. During the holiday, we can go and buy the form before resumption,” she answered with this motherly air all over her.
At least, the boy didn’t get thrown out with the ‘dirty bathwater’ unlike the experience at Isolog primary school, I told myself while leaving the school for my next location in the state.
WE CAN’T ADMIT YOUR HIV POSITIVE KIDS. THEY MAY INFECT OTHER CHILDREN IN OUR SCHOOL…!
Peaklane Primary School, Ogun State
March 2018
9:45AM
The interior of the school is awesome. ‘This one is by far finer than Isolog primary school. I am sure their fees will send me running and screaming,” I said to no one in particular while sashaying into Peaklane primary school’s premises.
At the reception, I could barely hear her well. The school was obviously having a party or about to. I had to raise my voice. “I am here to make inquiries about bringing kids to the school next term.”
“How old?” Mrs. Kadiri the front office manager asked. “One is five years old and the other is seven,” I answered.
“First, you will obtain a form for N3,000 each. Then, they need to write a test. And it is that test we would use in placing them in a class.”
Test ke? For ordinary primary one? I almost replied. “The one who is five is presently in primary one,” I tried pushing.
“It is the test that determines the class they will be placed,” she replied quietly. “Then, what is the school fees like?” again, I tried for some more talks.
“Between N90,000 to N100,000 without meal and transportation. Meal is N13,000 and transportation is N16,000” she reeled on like she does this round the clock daily.
PEAKLANE PRIMARY SCHOOL
Hmmm. These figures are more than the monthly income of many journalists in Nigeria. Can reporters who live on just their salaries which often don’t come as and when due, afford all these? I was already imagining. I don’t know why, but for every school I visited, something in me died. Possibly, it’s the big money these schools charge for just a five year old in primary one. The fees for primary five will then be how much not to talk of secondary school!? What are they teaching sef? I imagined and consoled myself.
The school’s fees were beginning to give me a headache. I simply went straight to the point. “The one who is five years old is HIV positive. Hope accepting her won’t be a challenge?”
“I will need to ask the director. Come tomorrow for feedback.”
“What time tomorrow do I come?”
“This time, tomorrow.”
“It is 9.52am. So, I will be here tomorrow 10am.”
“Okay”.
10.00AM NEXT DAY
The whole school was agog with music. They must be very merry folks. The few teachers I saw dressed better than many bankers and the students looked very happy and well fed. I am certain the teachers own those flashy cars at the school’s car park. If I weren’t a choleric, and restless soul, possibly, this would have been a great place to work, I told myself quietly. And Mrs. Kadiri turned up from wherever she had been.
“I told her (the director) about it and she said no.” Her voice was softer. And her eyes full of pity.
“What reason did she give?”
“That,” she kept quiet suddenly.
“Please, feel free to speak,” I had gotten used not only to the no! but the hows and whys that accompany them.
“That those children, if we are not being careful enough, it might somehow be transferred carelessly. That is why before they come in, we ask them for medical reports to give us details.”
“Before they come in, you take their medical reports?”
“Yes”
“They are to go to their own hospitals?”
“No, we have ours…”
As I journeyed through Ogun state, I got used to school authorities telling me: No! Almost everyone I told the child for admission is living with HIV openly exclaimed: “Aaaah!” Then, some tossed me back and forth. And stopped taking my phone calls.
For several months, all efforts to get the Ogun state ministry of education to confirm if the state has such anti-HIV policy as claimed by Mrs. Oyegbami the headmistress of Zumuratul Islamiyyat Primary School II, and other head of schools, have been futile. The education ministry and state government never responded to even emails and letters sent to them.
***
Ogun State Government, January 18th 2016 said 100,000 residents of the state were living with HIV. In NACA’s most recent score card: ‘Nigeria Prevalence Rate’, Ogun state is indicated as the third state with the lowest HIV incidences, after Zamfara and Ekiti states respectively.
The State’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, had said the government would not renege on its responsibility of providing adequate treatment to the patients. He also called on the public to stop stigmatising persons living with the virus.
“The number of people living with HIV in Ogun is about 100,000, but its has drastically reduced and HIV has declined from 3.5 per cent to 0.6 per cent as contained in the current statistics by the Federal Ministry of Health,” he had said.
According to him, the virus was prevalent in sexually-active people who are older than 15. He asked young people to avoid multiple sexual partners or use protection during sex.
But in a medical research: ‘Prevalence and Seasonal Variations of HIV 1 and 2 Infection among Children in Abeokuta’, Dr. Babatunde Olanrewaju Motayo of the University of Ibadan; Iheanyi Omezuruike Okonko, University of Port Harcourt and Phillip Okerentugba of the latter’s institution, say in Nigeria, there is lack of sufficient data to demonstrate the actual burden of paediatric HIV in Nigeria, although there are several reports of institution based studies showing various prevalence rates across the country.
The three researchers say studies done retrospectively have however indicated that likely seroprevalence rate may range from 5.7 to 20 percent. In developing countries such as Nigeria, new infections of paediatric HIV are mostly acquired through mother to child transmission. Symptoms of paediatric HIV infections include respiratory tract infections, otitis media, diarrhoea disease, malnutrition and septicaemia. This puts infected children at great risk of mortality as severe immunosuppression commences early in children.
The three researchers indicate children as the most severely affected sub-population groups with various medical and social implications. In 2008 alone, about 2.1 million children were reported to be living with HIV. This figure has brought to bear the extent of burden exerted by paediatric HIV infection globally.
Recent studies have also shown a high prevalence of HIV infection among children in Nigeria. Ogun state still remains un-investigated for the exact prevalence of paediatric HIV infection. Researchers so far have only tried to bridge this gap in knowledge by determining the prevalence of paediatric HIV infection in Abeokuta.
For instance, a six month retrospective HIV 1 and 2, Paediatric infection study was carried out by the group between January and June 2010 to determine HIV sero-prevalence and seasonal incidence of HIV. About 269 children ages 18 months to 15 years, median age five years comprising 164 male and 105 female children, were screened.
Age range six to 15 recorded a higher prevalence with 7.9 percent (10/131) while age one to five recorded 5.8 percent (8/138). The highest incidence of infection was seen in the month of May with 154/1000 children tested and the lowest incidence was recorded in the month of January with 18/1000 children tested. The study showed a relatively high prevalence rate of HIV infection among children in Abeokuta.
OUR KIDS CAN’T BE CLASSMATES WITH HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN!
In interviews conducted in different parts of the state, parents kicked against schools admitting kids living with HIV. Even children, teenagers and young adults did not welcome the idea of sharing personal spaces with anyone living with the virus.
Mrs. Temitope Igbodipe a seamstress and mother of two said she will immediately withdraw her daughter from the school notwithstanding her being in primary or secondary school. She said children in primary school are carefree, while those in secondary school, typical of teenagers, will do the exact opposite of whatever instruction they are given.
Nofisat Bolaji, an 11 year old in her first year as a junior secondary school student said she will remain in the school and be friends with the classmate living with the virus but the friendship will be well defined.
Miss. Bolaji said she wouldn’t share personal items like cutleries, books and clothes with such a person. She wouldn’t sleep in the same bed with a friend who is living with HIV.
“If she sleeps in the bed, I would stay on the floor…because I don’t want to get infected,” she said.
Mrs. Opaleye, a trader popularly known as Mummy Bukky in her neighborhood in Ogun State, admitted to have heard radio jingles that people shouldn’t discriminate against persons living with HIV as they can and do live normal lives.
“But as a human being, you know, once one is aware of something negative, you can take away your eyes, but can’t take your mind off it. So, I will withdraw my child from the school as my mind won’t be at peace.
“You know, little children can make the slightest of mistakes. They can play with razor blades in class and what if it is the child with HIV that last used the razor blades and the rest are now playing with it? Kids in primary schools, they can make any mistake and the ones without the virus will now use the razor blades on themselves, they could get infected through such. It is not only through sexual intercourse that people contract the virus. So, it is better I take my child away from there”.
She would do same were the child in secondary school. “To just take him away is better because you may think it’s just one person that has it, meanwhile he has infected so many people. Even children in secondary school do pack friends and move around.
“Their wisdom may not have gotten so matured. They may do stuffs together (with the infected person) and make a mistake at anytime. They may cut their nails, shave their bears or armpits in class; there is no play kids don’t play …my mind can’t be at peace to leave my child in such a place at all,” she stated.
Mr. Olusegun Bamgbose, a student, first said he will warn his child not to share razorblades and sharp objects with the classmate living with the virus.
OLUSEGUN BAMGBOSE
He however emphasized he will tell his child not to run away from such a person as people living with the virus can still be our friends. But if the child is in primary school, he said “I will change the school. I will just change the school because anything can happen.”
CREATE SPECIAL CLASSES OR SCHOOLS FOR HIV POSITIVE KIDS
Renowned lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and human rights activist, Mr. Festus Keyamo in an exclusive interview said the law frowns at every form of discrimination against people living with HIV. While condemning schools for refusing to admit kids living with HIV, he noted they are afraid of the social stigma because parents will withdraw their children from such schools immediately they hear someone with HIV is in the class.
He however said the federal government must do something about this, while suggesting creation of special schools or classrooms for children living with HIV.
“Like I said, it is against the law to discriminate against them, but even if the schools are willing, I am talking about practical reality, if the schools are willing to follow the laws by admitting children who are HIV positive, we the parents will not help the situation. We will go and withdraw our children from the school, and at the end of the day, they will end up being in that school alone.
“You know, children play with themselves a lot, they scratch themselves with items and may exchange their blood while playing together, parents may not consider it safe. But the government must do something about it if there is a widespread practice like that, either in a particular school, they create a special class or create a special school for them. But it is important that they are not kept at home. Government has to do something to accommodate them,” he said.
IT IS A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, NOT ONLY KIDS LIVING WITH HIV
Prof. Bem Angwe, a professor of law and former executive secretary/Chief Executive Officer of National Human Rights Commission said creating special schools and classes for children living with HIV must not feature in the list of solutions. “It is not appropriate. It is discriminatory. It is against the provision of the constitution which prohibits any form of discrimination,” he stated.
PROF. BEM ANGWE
Rather, he recommended massive enlightenment campaigns and which must be taken to school authorities. “On a broader level, there is the need to enlighten even the school authorities on some of the provisions of the constitution that prohibits acts of discrimination in respect to grounds of health, status, sex, race, tribe of origin and so on and so forth.
“It is better to give a general reorientation and to launch a campaign in that respect. If you have a particular child who is refused admission on such discriminatory circumstances, then the child’s right can be enforced,” he said.
Mr. Obatunde Oladapo, the Executive Director of the Oyo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (Oyo SACA), declared the riot-act when contacted by this reporter.
“There is a law against the stigmatization of persons with HIV. If you know those schools where such has happened, I will give you the number of a colleague and you just tell him I asked he should followup on that.
“In Oyo state, there have been cases of stigmatization and discriminatory practices against people living with HIV and when I came on board about one year ago, one of the things we are putting in place is to ensure we have a robust response to that. There is also an anti-stigma law in Oyo state. Therefore, there are sanctions against discrimination against people living with HIV. And people that are found wanting or have contravened the law will be prosecuted,” he stated.
Obatunde Oladapo
Mr. Oladapo cited the case of a teacher who was sacked by his employer- a school owned by a church in Oyo state, for being HIV positive. The teacher had disclosed his HIV status to the school authorities who then got him tested. The result confirmed he was honest about it. Then, he got sacked after being told “we would be praying for your healing but need to protect the school community.”
“We have referred the case of that school and the laboratory involved to the ministry of justice. And we want the school and the hospital that carried out the test to be prosecuted,” he said.
He however warned that when people claim they are acting based on directives, most of the time, it is their personal biases at work. “That is very, very wicked, and that is something we should take very seriously….If these things are happening across seven states you have sampled in the country, that is a bigger problem.
“Interestingly, I raised the issue of all these testing at private facilities but I didn’t expect it to be as bad as you have just depicted….Let me tell you, it is a crime, not just against those persons but against humanity, for you to deprive any child access to education on account of that person’s HIV or any other form of health status. It is criminal.
“There are laws in Nigeria that are against it. There is the national anti-stigma law that makes it a crime anywhere in this country. And the law has been domesticated in many states in Nigeria. I know of Lagos, Oyo, Ekiti, among other states. I am not sure of that of Ogun state,” he emphasized.
AFFECTED PARENTS MUST SEEK JUSTICE
Mr. Oladapo, who for over a decade has been standing up for people living with HIV, said anyone living with the virus who has been discriminated against should seek redress. And this includes children.
On how to seek redress, he cited an example with his jurisdiction “you report to the Oyo State Agency for the Control of Aids, or the ministry of justice through the office of the attorney general and minister of justice in the state.
“But beyond those official reporting route, there is the network of persons with HIV in the state that can also take up peoples’ issues, and I want to tell you even in our office at SACA, people can report such cases and we have actually resolved many cases….we have not, sincerely, had one reported case of a child being deprived of access to education on account of his or her health status, but a school that can send a teacher out of the school saying we are praying for you and want to protect the school community, but will be praying for your healing and it is even a christian school for that matter, will definitely reject an HIV positive child. Sincerely, if we have a case like that, we would not take it lightly, “ he added.
HIV/HEALTH STATUS NOT DETERMINANT FOR ACADEMIC PROWESS
Medical documentations so far reveal treatment as prevention is now the accepted global standard in curbing HIV/AIDS. A cross sampling of medical experts’ opinions indicated once anybody tests positive, placing the person on treatment immediately is the safest way of ensuring other persons don’t get infected. Treatment, the medical experts disclosed, is a veritable major prevention strategy which the whole world has now acknowledged.
“Therefore, everybody should test, know their HIV status, and anybody that tests positive should be placed on treatment. And what that means is that assuming I am a parent with an HIV positive child and I want to enroll him in a primary or secondary school, I don’t have to tell the school, but if for any reason I just want to tell because sometimes we might want to disclose for one reason or the other, the school does not have a right to deny that child admission. The HIV status, or health status of a child is not a basis for determining whether a child is fit for admission in a school for studies or not,” Mr. Oladapo said.
SCHOOLS DISCRIMINATING AGAINST HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN WILL BE SUED!
Dr. Sani Aliyu, Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) in an exclusive interview expressed shock on hearing findings of this story.
“That is terrible! …I am shocked and really amazed that in this time and age, people out there are still considering HIV as a topic to run away from. Within the populace, there is a lot of hypocrisy,” he said.
He disclosed that the anti-discrimination bill passed in 2015 is being updated by the national assembly to accommodate children in particular, emphasizing that people living with HIV have a right to normal life, grow a family and the kids do have rights to education and other privileges a child without HIV accesses.
“I am not aware of anybody (people living with HIV) who went out to deliberately get infected. So, why on earth would you discriminate against such a person? Even the lady at the school you spoke about, if she tests for HIV, does she know if she might be HIV positive or not?” he queried.
He stressed that discrimination lingers because no one has been used as a scapegoat, especially schools which are legal entities. “They can be sued and they need to be sued if that is what they are doing. They need to be taken to court and an example made of one or two schools,” he added.
DR SANI ALIYU
Dr. Aliyu said HIV is not that infectious and is contracted only through intimate contact. He also stated that when on treatment, people can’t be infected, even through sex. “So, why on earth will you discriminate against a child? It is unacceptable. At NACA, we would support any child discriminated against. It’s not what society wants.
“We shouldn’t be discriminating against people living with HIV. How do they know who has it? They live healthy normal lives. HIV is like any other viral infection. Do they do the same thing to people with other viruses? So, what is so special about HIV that people get treated in a different way? I am very disappointed that the schools are behaving in such a way,” he further expressed dismay.
The NACA DG urged Nigerians to be bold enough to declare their HIV status. He stressed that one of the reasons stigmatization lingers is because public figures still keep their status secret.
“If people know there are members of parliament, people in the executive and governors who have HIV and they openly come out and declare it, maybe the perception of society will change. What is wrong is wrong. It is wrong the way schools are treating the children and we will definitely not allow that,” he said.
SCHOOLS TESTING STUDENTS FOR HIV AS ADMISSION PREREQUISITE IS ILLEGAL
Dr. Aliyu warned schools testing kids for HIV as part of admission prerequisite to desist from the act for it is illegal. He said schools can test for tuberculosis, chest x-ray, and check if a child has had the routine immunization because certain infections like TB and chickenpox are much more common and infectious.
“I am yet to hear of any school child who has transferred HIV to another child in the whole world. So, it is of no benefit doing a HIV test if it is for the purpose of the school,” he added.
He however stated that if such test is for the purpose of the child, it will help initiate treatment for him/her but must be done with permission of the parents, lest it is illegal. “And doing tests to determine if to admit (a child into school) or not, is illegal,” he emphasized.
Editor’s Note: The interview, photograph, audio-visual of the child- Miss. Nofisat Bolaji, in the story, are used with parental consent.
This story was produced with support from Code For Africa and her Naija Data Ladies Fellowship Programme.
The two finalists of the 9th edition of the U20 World Women football final in France on Friday at 1830 hours have never appeared in the final of that category before.
Japan appearing in the championship for the 6th time has her best performance as bronze in both 2012 and 2016 while Spain in their 3rd appearance had a quarter final of 2016 as best performance.
When the two teams met at the 2nd round of Group C of this very competition on Thursday, 9th August at 1530hrs, Spain ran away with a lone goal victory scored by Menayo in the 16’. But the story of the final will be completely different to the group match encounter.
The records show that Japan has played 5 matches so far, defeating USA by a lone goal in their opening match before losing to Spain in the second match 0-1. Japan thrashed Paraguay 6-0 the highest any team won though England beat Mexico 6-1; here Takarada and Ueki got hat trick each. Japan dismissed Germany 3-1 in the quarters and England bowed 0-2 in the semis.
Japan has 4 wins no draw but a loss to Spain, 12 goals for, 2 against and 10 goals difference. Japan has lethal scorers in Ueki with 5 goals, Takarada 4 goals and Endo with 2 goals. Hayashi scored the lone goal that saw USA out. Japan and France are the two teams that conceded the lowest goals – 2 each meaning they have an almost impenetrable defense. The attack shares goals at will.
Spain also played five games defeating Paraguay 4-1; winning Japan 1-0; played their only draw 2-2 with USA. They beat the Falconets of Nigeria 2-1 in the quarters before the narrow one nil victory over hosts France scored 51’ by Pat Guijarro. That is 4 wins and a draw. Spain is the only team that is yet to lose any match. The team is also currently the highest goal scoring team with 13 goals against the 12 goals by Japan and England.
Guijarro is the prominent scorer of Spain and the highest scorer of the tournament with six goals. Nobody else has scored two goals in the Spanish team meaning that if Japan can mark Guijarro out, the cup will fly to Tokyo for the first time.
Playing pattern shows that the Japanese girls are strong, resilient, have football sense and love to score at will. They come to play their game but may make somebody weep. Right from their 3rd match, it could be seen that Japan likes to ‘Kill’ a game by ending it in the first half and come to frustrate their opponents in the second half or even score if they are careless. They take advantage of ‘counter attacks’.
Spain waits for the shooting ability and skills of Patricia Guijarro who is an uncommon predator. She has a smell and eye for goal. She is not easy to be brought down in an attack. She is a Stallion ready to go the mile and scoring late goals when players are relaxing waiting for the whistle either to close the first half or the match.
This final will not be a tea party. Physical football is expected. Cards may fly. The trick adopted by Japan was glaring. They brought a Sergio Ramos kind of a girl who did the dirty works for Japan in Aitana Bonati against England. She did well frustrating Stanway and Russo and after England were more desperate with two goals down, Bonati after two yellows was shown the red. The only ‘bad girl’ of the championship so far. Japan looks good to pick the trophy.
Except something spiritual happens, English girls may go home without a medal like the senior men did at the Russia 2018 world cup. Logistically, the 5 goal chap, Georgia Stanway who scored in every match except against Japan; Hat trick girl, Hemp (scored against Mexico); and Russo who has 3 goals to her name could all give England the cup within 15 minutes of play but not against France. England started with a 3-1 win over Korea; played 1-1 with Brazil; thrashed Mexico 6-1; beat Netherlands 2-1 in the quarters before falling to Japan 0-2 in the semis.
England won three matches, drew 1, lost 1, scored 12 goals and conceded 6. That means any team could score against England. In fact, they conceded a goal in each of their first 4 matches until Japan dazed England 2-0 in the semi. That is where France may nick it.
France defense is tight. They have only conceded two goals the one Ansah of Ghana scored in the 32’ minute against them in their first match and the lone Goal Guijarro scored that ousted them in the semi. France won 3 matches; drew one and lost one scored 9 goals and conceded 2 like Japan. They even have a better defense than Japan.
France came banging African Champions, Ghana 4-1; played goalless with New Zealand; walloped Netherlands 4-0 and narrowly beat Korea Republic 1-0 in the quarters before painfully losing concentration in the 51’ that Guijarro scored the lone goal victory of Spain in the semi.
France has Amalie Delabre who scored 4 goals – a hat trick against Netherlands and the penalty that saw Korea out of the competition in the quarters; there is also beautiful and hardworking Laurent who has 3 goals to her name scoring two against Ghana and one against Netherlands.
Their losers match will come up before the final at 1500 hours. France is waiting for a consolation medal.
So far in the 32 matches played 92 goals have been scored, 66 yellow cards issued and only one red card.
…We still have a lot of work to de-stigmatize HIV- Health Minister
Nigeria’s HIV epidemic affects all population groups and geographic areas of the country. Consequently, February 2015, the Federal Government signed into law the HIV/AIDS anti-discrimination bill to protect the rights and dignity of people living with HIV. Thus, making it illegal to discriminate against people based on their HIV status.
TOBORE OVUORIE, in her diary-like five-part investigative report across seven states in Nigeria- Ogun, Lagos, Edo, Delta, Imo, Benue and the Federal Capital Territory Abuja, reveals children of school age living with HIV are overlooked when populations disproportionately impacted by the epidemic are assessed. These kids, the investigation discloses, are not only stigmatised and discriminated against by the society but are denied their human rights to educational opportunities.
BIRTHING THE STORY
It all began sometime in February 2018 when I pitched a story; this story actually, to the Code For Africa team. I was to decide the editorial. The states I want combined and those to go independent. Code For Africa has no control over editorials.
My-colleague-turned-to-friend-and-sister, Vanessa Offiong of Daily Trust Newspaper, whom I had confided in, warned me not to go to any school close to where I live.
“Don’t even go to a school within the jurisdiction where you live. Tobore, we are Nigerians. The news will spread fast that your kids have HIV. You don’t want to start hunting for a new apartment because your landlord won’t understand.”
The story?
I was to move around as many schools as possible, across seven states, on a simple mission: to find out if the school authorities will grant my kids admission without any form of biases because of their health status.
What about their health status?
They are supposedly living with HIV.
Yes! The Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
GOD WILL HEAL THEM BUT WE CAN’T ADMIT HIV POSITIVE KIDS INTO THE SCHOOL…!
March 28th, 2018
It’s like she was on red alert before my arrival. “We don’t accept students during third term. It is until the new session in September.” The head teacher of Ojodu primary school three at Grammar school bus-stop, a suburb in Lagos state.
Maybe there was something about me which oozed of admission inquiry.
“What class are they now?” She sort of changed her mind.
“They are presently in primary one.”
“If they are presently in primary one, maybe I can help you.” My lucky hunch!
“Thank you very much.”
“But you will need to bring them let me see them first. Are they your children?”
I nodded in the affirmative, silently praying she wouldn’t change her mind. She seemed impulsive.
“What of the school they are going to?”
“They are in Delta state. The issue is that along the line, they tested positive to HIV and the school then advised after the exams that we can’t keep them in the school anymore.”
“And how are you sure that we would put them in our own school?…We have nurses that used to come and attend to these children…How are you coping? The HIV positive patients, they use drugs?”
“Yes.”
“And you are using it for them?”
“Yes.”
“We also have nurses that attend to our children. Maybe when we resume, you come and see me let me make inquiries maybe there is a way we can help them.”
And then she answered a personal phone call. I was there and heard everything she said over the phone. There was nothing related to the kids and I. How come immediately she got off the phone, she sang another song, I still can’t comprehend over 16 weeks later.
Ojodu Primary Schools
“You know these public school children, they play a lot. And it is not something you can start telling teachers that this child is having this thing o. They will just start treating the child somehow…”
She went on to tell me about how the students at schools one, two and three play rough, then how they injure themselves and the gushing blood. “It’s only God who really protects these children. Now, you can imagine what would have happened if any of them had that thing?”
I couldn’t believe she was referring to HIV as ‘that thing’. Besides, the school doesn’t test the students for HIV before they are admitted, so how could she make such sweeping statement about what would happen if any of the students were living with the virus?
I tried to persuade her that my kids are on antiretroviral (ART) so pose no threat. She didn’t understand. And didn’t want to know.
“It is dangerous. It would be risky admitting them.”
“They are on medications and very healthy.”
“Before we know it, other children will have it too because children will be children. They are innocent.”
“My kids are on very great health regime. Their viral load is undetectable so their classmates will be safe with them.”
There was a brief silence. Seemed like she was having a rethink on hearing about their undetectable viral load.
Ojodu Primary Schools
“How did they get it?”
I wondered if there was any correlation between how they got it and their right to educational opportunities. Or, was she trying to assess me too? If they contracted it from me? Well, she sort of had the knife and the yam.
“Through blood transfusion.”
“Madam, don’t worry, God will heal them. You believe God still performs miracles? But the kids here are so many. They are over 3,000 of them in the three schools occupying this compound, so the teachers can’t really monitor them.”
I was shocked. And speechless. So why those questions? I wondered.
“There is this other public school at Saabo. Just tell an okada rider to take you to the government school at Saabo. They will take you there. It’s the only one there and is owned by the Lagos state government. They are fewer in population.”
She already stood up while speaking. I got the message. I left the brief comfort provided by the chair in her office. When she was done talking, I put in a simple “thanks a lot ma, I greatly appreciate your efforts.”
“Don’t worry, God will heal them.”
KIDS ON HIV TREATMENT HEALTHIER THAN HIV-NEGATIVE CHILDREN
Mr. Obatunde Oladapo, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Oyo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (OyoSACA) when contacted over this, said “A child that is HIV positive and is on treatment is not a sickly child, is not less active, is not less intelligent, and the child who is on HIV treatment is most likely going to be healthier than other children because the child is being put through a better health seeking practice.”
Obatunde Oladapo
He continued that “Once anybody’s HIV viral load is undetectable, that person is not infectious anymore. Therefore, the fear that if the child cuts him or herself with razor or whatever or the other, and it cuts another child and all these balderdash we have been hearing, is not there anymore”.
WE DON’T ADMIT ANY CHILD WITH HEALTH ISSUES, HIV, INTO THIS SCHOOL!
All schools I visited shared something in common. The headmasters, headmistresses, principals or whoever represented the school either exclaimed “Aaaaah!”, or moved their heads backwards or had their eyes wide open or their lips parted with nothing coming out, immediately I told them my kid for whom I sought admission into their schools is living with HIV.
I decided to head for the school owned by the church I attend. Maryland Comprehensive High School is not located within the compound of St. Agnes Catholic Church by mistake. It is owned by the Catholic church and a Reverend Sister is in charge of its administration.
I remember vividly it was the second day of August this year. I walked into the premises with so much confidence after morning Mass that breezy Thursday morning.
“I am here to make inquiries about bringing two kids to the school,” I began at the secretary to the principal’s office.
Unlike every other schools I had been to where I was told all financial implications, it was quite different here. The secretary told me “what is obtainable here is you will purchase a form first, after the form, every other information will be given to you.”
“How much is the form?”
“The form is N10,000. Let the child pass the exam first, and we will give you every other information you need.”
“N10,000 per form?” I was kind of shocked. Too expensive for just a form with no certainty a child will be granted admission, I thought.
“Yes, per form. Our school is doing summer coaching, if you’ll want to put them too, you can, it is open to everybody.” She went on to tell me that the summer coaching had started, while the entry examination into the school will hold on the 25th of August. She wouldn’t tell me the cost for school fees until after the kids have written and passed the exams.
MARYLAND COMPREHENSIVE HIGH SCHOOL
While speaking, some women filed in like soldier ants and sat down. “Please, could I see you about something, I can’t really say it out here? It’s as regards the kids,” I asked the young lady remembering Vanessa’s advice. Though I don’t live around, but I worship here. These women must not hear I have anything to do with HIV. She agrees to join me outside her office.
“I am wondering if this will be an issue after the children must have written the exams and passed it. They are HIV positive. Will they be accepted” She interjected “the both of them?” And I answered in the affirmative.
“Because we too, we do our medical tests, when we do our medical tests, I don’t know o. I don’t know.” She sounded worried and confused.
“You have the school hospital and all that?”
“Yes.”
“They are actually confirmed and they are on antiretroviral.”
“That is what I don’t know. Even some that are, when it comes to health issues in some children, they will tell them if it is what the children can easily get from each other, they will tell them that they should… it depends on the health issue sha. It depends on the health issue. I can’t really tell.”
She went on to tell me they have never had an issue like mine, so couldn’t tell me a yes or no. I suggested if she would like to confirm from the school authorities first. Then, she offered me a seat on the corridor just opposite her office’s door.
Vanessa was right. Few minutes after the secretary went back into her office, one of the women who came in to sit while I was there, opened the door and peeped, no, stared at me, for it was not for a few seconds. I was sitting alone at the time and she looked directly at me with our eyes locked. When I removed my glasses to match her with a do-I-look-like-your-missing-child stare, she backed off, and shut the door.
I waited for very well over an hour watching parents, teachers and other persons go in and out of the principal’s office. There are many trees lined in front of the school building. In short, the mission compound is full of trees. And with this comes breeze and cold. I shivered during my long wait for a response. The jacket I wore was just a figurehead.
I least expected the secretary when she walked up to me. I had gotten used to her opening her office door, walking down the corridor and back without saying a word to me. In all the while, several persons had come sit by my side, gone in to see the principal and left. A woman few minutes before the secretary surfaced, had sat on the same bench with me by my left. Then, the secretary turned up and bent over me to my right speaking in almost a whisper.
“I have been able to see her (the principal) regarding that thing. She said no. There is no how they can do that admission.
“Why?”
“Hmmmmmm…”
“You said?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know. But that is how they operate here. It has been like that. Before they (the students) come, they have to do X-ray and everything, and everything, and anyone with health issue is not taken.”
“Ok. Anyone with health issue is not admitted?”
“Yes. Yes. That they will just be carrying the health issue up and down.”
“Ok.” I became numb. And don’t know why.
“It is well. God bless you.” She straightened up immediately, turned back and walked into her office as if well rehearsed.
The HIV pandemic has ravaged mankind for over three decades with Nigeria having her first case in 1985 in a sexually active 13 year-old girl. Reports however indicate the incidence of new infections to have declined globally and this may not be unconnected with increased prevention and control measures.
The Lagos State Agency for the Control of AIDS (LSACA) says there have been increased surveillance activities to complement control measures in recent years.
But in a 2017 spectrum estimates by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) and National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), there are 196,534 persons age 15 years and above, living with HIV in Lagos state, whilst only 38.84 percent of them are on antiretroviral (ART) coverage. Unfortunately, 21,520 children between the ages zero to 14 years have the virus, with 50.39 percent of these kids on ART coverage.
Recent statistics courtesy the Lagos state governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode revealed 9,579 fresh HIV cases were recorded in the state between January and June 2016. But NACA/UNAIDS in their joint survey say 17,667 mothers are currently in need of PMTCT (prevention of mother to child transmission) care. The duo health bodies indicate 17,801 persons are newly infected in the state.
Unfortunately, children in all categories described so far, are presently in primary and secondary schools respectively all over Lagos state.
WE WILL ADMIT THE HIV POSITIVE KIDS IF HEALTH STATUS IS KEPT A SECRET
2nd August 2018
Mrs. Olaleye, a staff at the school told me for the kids to be students at St. Gloria’s College, Ikeja, Lagos, I am to first buy the school’s admission form at N8,000 each. Then, they will write a test. The date will be fixed after purchasing the form to note their placements into the junior and senior secondary schools respectively. If they perform well, they will be offered admission, if the other way round, she said “We always have a way around it with the parents, if we can work on them from home, probably get them a lesson teacher to brush them up to meet up to the standard.”
She said the fee for the first term is N215, 000. The fees for all the classes are the same. “N215,000 for first term, N215,000 for second term and N215,000 for third term,” she emphasized.
The N215,000 is for tuition, stationery, lunch and ICT, while for uniforms, textbooks and PTA, another N90,000 would be needed for the first term. Subsequent terms, I would pay only N215,000.
St Gloria’s College
Then, I went straight to why I was there. “I wouldn’t know if this would pose as a challenge. The child that is going to JSS two, she is HIV positive. I wouldn’t know if it would be a challenge accepting her?”
Mrs. Olaleye told me she couldn’t answer that. She suggested I dropped my phone number with her and she will revert to me after discussing with the principal because it is not a decision she could make. “I may look at it as there’s nothing wrong, while she may look at it as there’s something wrong. I don’t know. So, it has to be a decision that will be taken by the principal.”
I collected her phone number too. Since my moving around schools, no one who collected my phone number ever called as promised. On my way out of the school, Mrs. Olaleye stopped me and asked “I hope it isn’t something that is showing on her physically?”
She advised I stopped disclosing her status even to proposed schools for admission. “Even the way you have also said it, I don’t know, I don’t think it is something that you should be saying to people, personally, I don’t know. Personal opinion.”
She advised I counsel my daughter that her living with HIV is something she must not tell any other person in order to avert being stigmatised.
“I will ask her (the principal) since you have mentioned it. Assuming you didn’t mention it, it would have just remained like that. But since you have mentioned it, I will mention it to her, if probably she would also want to see the mother, aunt or whoever, to have a one-on-one discussion, it’s left for her to decide,” were her parting words to me.
9TH AUGUST 2018
Exactly a week later, I phoned Mrs. Olaleye for the principal’s verdict.
“You are the one that said she would call me that I will give you a feedback?” she tried confirming my identity.
“Yes, ma.”
“Can I know your name? What is your name? You know, you told me your name that day, so I just want to confirm through that.”
“My full name is Efetobore Mit,” I remembered telling her exactly that.
“Okay. I discussed with her. She said there is nothing wrong in her being in the school and she would also want to have a word with the parents. I don’t know what with the discussion. You know I told you that day…that is the only thing she said.”
Oh. My lucky hunch. Not a bad outing after all, I told myself.
Mrs. Olaleye then dropped what I never expected nor imagined.
“She is going to have a word with the parents. The child can be admitted if it is not said everywhere. You know, like some people will go here and there and they will begin to say it. She doesn’t want that. That if it is exposed to the children (students in the school) and they (their parents) heard at home, it can become another issue. But to her, she does not discriminate.”
“Interesting!” I said aloud after ending the phone call. No life was in the room with me.
SCHOOLS AFRAID OF SOCIAL STIGMA
Renowned lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and human rights activist, Mr. Festus Keyamo exclusively told me the law frowns at every form of discrimination against people living with HIV. While condemning schools for refusing to admit kids living with HIV, he noted they are afraid of the social stigma because parents will withdraw their children from such schools immediately they hear someone with HIV is in the class.
“THEY (HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN) WILL GIVE US TROUBLE!”
OJODU JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
The security guard watching over the Ojodu Junior High School introduced me to Mr. Adeniji, who works with the school. I would later get to know he is a senior officer on level 15 due for retirement December this year. It was very sunny that 28th day of March while the OJHS students, as they are called, played around. Perhaps it was their lunch break. I then told Mr. Adeniji I had a set of twin for admission into JSS one the following term.
“It is a question of little money. Just N12,000. Just for their names to come out. No uniforms o. Nothing again o. Just to help you for their names to come out, that is all,” Mr. Adeniji stressed.
This is a government school so why the N12,000 just for their names to come out? I as usual imagined. Then he continued “When out, you pay N1,430 for registration which includes a tie and sportswear. You will buy them exercise books, you will buy them bata (shoes) black, socks black, belt black, and you will buy them uniforms.
Ojodu junior high school
As usual again, I agreed to everything he said. Then told him about the HIV status of the kids.
“That is a very tough one. How will they be taking their medication? … It is better you work on that one. … The scientists are working to find solutions to it. … I will find out about the government laws on this.”
Exactly five months later, I was back at the school and met with Mrs. Thanni- Olodo, Asisat Folabomi, secretary to the school principal. I told her I had a set of twin for admission into JSS two.
“Haaa. JSS two?” I responded in the affirmative. “If it is JSS two, by this time tomorrow, you won’t have the opportunity again o.”
“Why?”
“Because the form is closing tomorrow.”She told me each of the forms costs N25,000
N25,000 for one person” I asked to be certain I heard well. Ojodu Junior High School is government owned, how come the entry form costs a fair fortune? How many indigents will be able to afford this? I thought.
“Hmmn. Those people I am processing for, they asked me to send their dates of birth. Right now, I am just sending them. It is JSS two.”
When I asked what time was deadline for sales of forms the next day, she said “If possible you can send the money today, it’s better and I’ll send it to them.” Then, she told me the entrance examination is for 27th of August. I told her the money would be sent same day before nightfall. And she requested we head for her office so she could capture the details of the set of twin.
Ojodu Junior High School
At her office, she phoned her contact who works at the Lagos state ministry of education. The contact agreed I should send the money. “This JSS two’s trouble is becoming too much. Before I’ll know it, they will phone again that they need another thing,” she lamented to herself aloud. Then, gave me a sheet of paper to write the full names of the twin, their dates of birth, home address and my phone number.
She asked if I had LASRA. I didn’t know what that was. “Do you have tax clearance?” I immediately tell her yes, but it is for Delta. “Since you have that, you will do LASRA,” she continued. Wow! Does it take all these for a child to gain admission into Lagos government owned schools? I imagined.
She scribbled her bank details on a sheet of paper and handed it to me. That is where the money was to be lodged. It read:
“They are going to write exam o. Please, tell them to read their book.” It sounded like a tell-them-not-to-waste-your-money alert.
“Please o, the form is closing tomorrow, except you want them to be in JSS one. Assuming you came around that last week, it was N20,000. It’s because this is late. After tonight, I won’t collect any money from anybody because the form will be closing by 12 noon tomorrow,” she added while I was writing details of the children on the sheet of paper offered me.
“Lest I forget, hope this would not be any problem at all. As in, the health status of the children.”
“Are they SS (sickle-cell anaemia)?”
“No. They are HIV positive.”
She asked “HIV positive?” as if trying to make sense of it.
‘Yes, they have HIV.”
Silence. Then she continued, “that means you won’t disclose it to anybody.” She phoned her contact at the ministry of education again. “They are human beings, it is not their fault,” she said, as she dialed the phone number.
“Ma, the children who just want to come are HIV positive, what should we do?” From the position I was sitting, I could hear the woman at the other end though Mrs. Olodo’s phone number was not on speaker. The contact sounded surprised. “Iro o!”she said no, it can’t be true, in Yoruba language and Mrs. Olodo repeated the question.
OJODU JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
“No! No! No…! Don’t accept them,” the contact answered and burst into a witch-like uncontrolled laughter.
Mrs. Olodo sighed and ended the call. “She said no.”
“Is it against the school’s policy or what?”
“I don’t know, although she is not the principal of the school. But she is in charge of admission over there.”
“At the (Lagos state) ministry of education?”
“Hmmmn.”
“So, even if the principal says yes, they over there are the ones to take the decision?”
“It is because I informed her. Is it glaring seeing them?”
“No o. They are on medication. They are taking the antiretroviral so it’s not glaring.
“I hope they don’t have dos and don’ts that will affect them?”
“They don’t have those.”
“Maybe they have the environment or the type of people they need to move with?”
“Haaa. No, no, no o, they don’t have dos and don’ts. Nothing of such.” Then she tried phoning someone else at the Lagos education ministry.
“Maybe I will not inform this person about their health status. I won’t inform her.”
“If they know, they will say no?”
“Yes. I won’t inform her. So, you people will pretend as if you just discovered. They (the kids) are human beings, they need to live normal lives now. Like my first son, I am AS and my husband is also AS. My first son is SS. They are human beings, since God gave him to me, I need to take care of him. But if you see him, it is showing because I did not discover on time.” The alternative she wanted to reach out to wasn’t answering her calls. Mrs. Olodo tried calling the initial contact. She answered.
“They said they (the twin) are on medication.” Then, she ran out of call-card and we had to continue the call with my own phone.
“What is the number Ma?”
“07088653088.” I repeated the numbers after her, then dialed.
“Ma, I am the one Thanni. They said they are on medication, what should I do?”
“Don’t accept them at all.”
“Okay, I have heard.”
“I said don’t accept them, the stress that would come with it will be too much.”
“In what way will it (the stress) be much, Ma?”
“They would be following me everywhere. It would have where they would follow me to. These children that are not well.
“Okay. I have heard Ma.” She ended the call and turned to me. “She insisted that no. Let me call another person.”
“Is it against their policy?”
“No, it is not against their policy. She is the one that sees it as something big. I made a mistake.”
The alternate person at the Lagos education ministry phoned and Mrs. Olodo answered immediately, saying “there are some persons who want to come into JSS two, but they said the children are HIV positive.” The alternative obviously didn’t allow her to finish the sentence. “You don’t want? Hmmmmnnn. Okay. I have heard. Okay.”
Mrs. Olodo turned to me with pity written all over her. “I will call you.”
“Oh. She too did not agree?”
“Hmmmnn. I will find someone else to call.”
While on my way out, she called me back. “Please, don’t tell people about their health status so that they will not see them as outcasts. You know Nigerian belief. Even my son that is SS, if you see the way they treat him, whenever they are doing something in the school, they do isolate him. Let’s say they want to do end of year party, you know all those activities like singing. I don’t understand Nigerian mentality. And the boy do feel bad. To be sincere to myself, last party they did, I didn’t pay. I have three kids there and I didn’t pay for party…”
“Because they will not allow him do anything?” I interjected.
“Of course, and the boy do feel bad,” her voice was full of emotion.
“Oh my God. How old is the boy if I may ask?” I couldn’t mask the pain too.
“Nine years old. Even when he was in Command (primary school), the same thing. When others are going for sport, they will keep him indoor, he will be the only one in the class.”
“Haa. Na wa o. But these two children, they don’t look it at all. They don’t look sickly at all.”
“I don’t know Nigerian mentality, they will see those kids as outcasts. I don’t know. Most of the time I do feel bad when my son is complaining. Honestly, I do feel bad.”
Pains took over her pretty dark face as she lamented the maltreatment of kids by adults over health conditions the children never chose. She was almost two decibels away from tears.
LAGOS STATE NOT AGAINST CHILDREN LIVING WITH HIV
Mr. Adesegun Ogundeji, Public Relations Officer to the Lagos state ministry of education, Saturday August 11th, distanced the ministry from all actions by Mrs. Folabomi, Mr. Adeniji and the education officers.
He said the Lagos state government does not discriminate against anyone for whatever reason, rather, assists such persons get medical attention. The PRO emphasized that medical reports are never requested to admit children into Lagos state owned schools and stressed that the change of transfer forms cost N5,000 not N25,000.
Shocked that N25,000 was already being collected by Mrs. Folabomi and others in the admission-ring, Mr. Ogundeji said “The ministry has no hand in that. It is criminal. N25,000 for what? We must get to the root of this matter. I want to know those education officers doing that kind of a thing.
“I want to know when they became medical officers that determine who gets what on medical grounds. And I want to know who sent them to sell forms for N25,000.”
Mr. Ogundeji called on everyone to help make Lagos a better state.
AUGUST 13TH, 2018
Exactly 10am, I was at the Lagos state ministry of education while Mr. Ogundeji; Mrs. Folashade Lediju, director administration and human resources of the ministry, as well as Mr. Biodun Oni, director of financial services, listened to recordings of all my transactions with Mrs. Folabomi, the education officer and Mr. Adeniji. The Lagos state ministry of education same day commenced on-the-field-pick-ups and investigations into the fraudulent activities and discriminatory acts. Mr. Ogundeji promised to disclose details of the outcome of the investigations to me.
SHOULD A CHILD’S HIV STATUS BE DISCLOSED?
Prof. Bem Angwe, a professor of law and former Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of Human Rights Commission, said it is necessary for parents to disclose the HIV status of children to school authorities.
“The important thing is to ensure that that act of discrimination be stopped. We must end all forms of discrimination on grounds of health or ill health. It is really not right for you to just conceal the status of the child because you want the child to gain admission or because the child may not be given admission if the status is disclosed.
PROF. BEM ANGWE
“I don’t think it is proper, because disclosing it will even help prevent that disease from spreading. I think it is a social issue where massive campaign needs to be launched and then, people need to be told there is no point discriminating, or isolating or stigmatizing people or children with HIV. I don’t think it is right to start concealing the status of one’s children,” he said.
Nigeria’s health minister, Prof. Isaac Adewole said it is not necessary for parents to disclose the HIV status of children to school authorities. He however emphasized “And if they disclose by any chance, it is expected confidentiality is observed.”
HON MINISTER OF HEALTH, PROF. ISAAC ADEWOLE
WE DON’T WANT HIV POSITIVE CHILDREN AROUND!
In interviews conducted in different parts of Lagos state, parents said they will withdraw their children from school should any of their classmates test positive to HIV. Even children, teenagers and young adults did not welcome the idea of sharing personal spaces with anyone living with the virus.
Miss Stella Ezike, a 13 year-old JSS two student said should any of her classmates or friends test positive to HIV, she wouldn’t share personal items like razor blades, sharpeners, hair combs and spoons with the infected person.
Though ready to be friends with the affected one, she said the friendship would however be well defined since she would be afraid and doesn’t want to contract the virus. She wouldn’t even share clothes with anyone living with the virus for fear of contracting the virus through the person’s sweat.
Mrs. Bukola Bolaji, a nurse, said should her child’s classmate test positive to HIV, she would withdraw her from the school to prevent chances of her own child “contracting disease.”
Even if her child were already in junior secondary school, she insisted she would still withdraw the child from the school because of the virus. Mrs. Bolaji fears her child may contract the virus from the classmate while they are playing.
Olayinka Sekoni, a fashion designer said she would first see the owner of the school to inquire if the affected child would be withdrawn from the school or not. If the child would remain, she wouldn’t allow her own child to “contract that deadly disease.”
She said if the child is not withdrawn from the school, she will take hers away in order to save her life. She fears kids could be very playful and in the process injure themselves and should her child touch the blood of the infected child, she will automatically contract it. “I don’t have any explanations for the father. When I am not infected, why should my child contract it?” she retorted.
Mrs. Ayo Lawal, a trader, said she wouldn’t withdraw her child from the school, neither will she tell her child to run away from such a person. But she emphasized that wisdom will be applied since “It is wisdom the elderly use in avoiding cows. So, we will be using idea.
“If before they used to eat together when the classmate’s status was unknown, now, we will be very careful by ensuring his/her personal items are not used, but we won’t run away from such one.”
Miss Olamide Timothy, an undergraduate admitted that though people living with HIV should not be avoided, she however can’t even sit with such persons for fear of contracting the virus through their sweat.
She is willing to eat with persons living with the virus but can’t share cutlerries with them. She wouldn’t share clothes with anyone who tests positive to HIV. She is afraid she could contract the virus through the person’s clothes.
WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DE-STIGMATIZE HIV!
Nigeria’s health minister, Prof. Isaac Adewole in an interview Saturday August 11th, expressed concern over the findings in this investigation. He said “What you just told me, if confirmed, shows we still have a lot of work to do in order to de-stigmatize HIV.
“My day will be a day when we will treat HIV just like how we treat hypertension and diabetes. With the treatment we currently have, HIV has become any of those chronic disease that cannot be cured but can be controlled.”
He said the parents and school authorities’ discriminatory acts is a reflection of the amount of work yet to be done by the country. He disclosed that the health ministry is decentralizing HIV management in Nigeria, thus, has granted Lagos her own treatment programme. He further disclosed that the ministry is moving next to Imo, Oyo and Kaduna states respectively.
“The ministry is currently conducting the largest HIV indicator survey (globally) to determine the exact prevalence of HIV in Nigeria in order to calibrate our work and determine what we are doing.”
The health minister called on all Nigerians to join the movement in eradicating HIV stigmatization in the country. He said people’s discriminatory actions (those in this story and others) is as a result of stark ignorance about how HIV is transmitted.
“It’s not just schools. It’s a situation in which all of us must be involved in education, improving awareness, eliminating ignorance and letting them know HIV is not even like TB where someone is coughing and you pick it. It’s not like pneumonia, it’s not like flu.
“This is good work (referring to this story). And I will pass this message to the team that we have serious work to do. And I will also work with my education colleague (minister of education).”
Editor’s Note: The interview, photograph, audio-visual of the child in the story, are used with parental consent.
This story was produced with support from Code For Africa through her Naija Data Ladies Fellowship Programme.
A Nigerian, Omei Bongos-Ikwue, shines in Accra, Ghana, as she rose above speech impairment to emerge victorious in a keenly contested international speech competition.
Bongos – Ikwue, member of the Abuja District of Toastmaster, an affiliate of the Toastmasters International, a worldwide nonprofit educational organization that empowers individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders, defied her congenital stuttering challenges to achieve this feat.
Her winning speech, entitled, “Release it”, focused on the themes of bravery, passion and generosity, which she used a moving story to illustrate that “we only receive extraordinary things when we let go of the average, or ordinary ones.” The speeches were judged on content, organization, gestures and style.
Speaking on what inspired her victory as a public speaker, in spite of her speech impairment challenge, she said that, “when it comes to connecting with an audience, Toastmasters, as an organization has taught me how to be confident and focused.
In fact since 1924, Toastmasters International has helped people from diverse backgrounds become more confident speakers/communicators.
It has shown me that every speaking opportunity is an opportunity to inspire people in an unforgettable way that a host of other Toastmasters have always inspired me”.
With this victory, Bongos-Ikwue is poised to secure a spot in the World Championship of Public Speaking scheduled to take place at the Toastmasters International Convention, to be held In August 25, in Chicago, Illinois, United States of America. She will compete with 105 other winners from districts around the world.
The very elated Nigerian girl, said that representing her District at the International Speech Contest “feels like the decisive stamp of victory over my speech mimpediment”, adding that she is “looking forward to competing on a much larger stage in Chicago.” Bongos-Ikwue is Public Health editor for E-Proofers, based in Abuja.
The Toastmasters International Speech Contest began in 1938 and is the world’s largest speech contest, involving 30,000 participants from 141 countries. It culminates with the popular World Championship of Public Speaking held annually at the organization’s International Convention.
Africans have been urged to live in peace and ensure a conflict free continent.
The call was made at the 2018 African Leaders of Peace Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa on August 10, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the births of former South African President Nelson Mandela and the human rights activist Albertina Sisulu.
The summit was co-hosted by the African Leaders of Peace Summit Organising Committee, Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), the International Women’s Peace Group (IWPG), and the International Peace Youth Group (IPYG).
It recalled the roles of the leaders for peace and security in Africa and suggested a plan for the implementation of the AU’s “Agenda 2063
The former president of Mozambique, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Madagascar, the Queen Mother of the Royal Bafokeng Nation, the royal prince of eSwatini, Deputy Speakers, Former Vice Presidents among others participated in the summit.
The organizers explained that the purpose of this Summit was to awaken the leaders to their roles and achieve a peaceful Africa, in the midst of the recent political strife in Zimbabwe and the employment discrimination based upon level of education or sex found in African society.
Former President of Mozambique, Joaquim Alberto said cessation of war is not possible without the cessation of individual and familial conflicts.
He said children need to receive peace education and learn the culture of peace.
In his contribution, Mozambique President of National Assembly, Veronica Nataniel Macamo said peace can be achieved through the Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War (DPCW) and hoped that all nations will be able to attain peace not only for our future generations but in our current generation as well.
Chairman Man Hee Lee of HWPL, the international NGO that co-hosted the summit, followed urged Africans to take action for peace.
He also spoke about how he had confirmed the universal desire for peace through the 29 trips around the world, saying, “There will be no greater thing we could leave as a legacy to our future generations than to end war on this planet and create peace.”
His Royal Highness Prince Hlangusempi & Minister of Economics and Planning participated in the event as a special emissary of the King of eSwatini. He signed a “National Solidarity Statement for the Promotion of the DPCW” as a national support for peace building at a global framework. Also signed by the President of Seychelles, the statement represents official support for the DPCW through the signature of the in-office head of state.
The DPCW is a legal document drafted by HWPL and proclaimed on 14 March 2016, purposing to create a legally binding instrument for cessation of war and peace. It is composed of 10 articles and 38 clauses, and offers such holistic principles as peaceful conflict resolution, promotion of friendly relations between states, freedom of religion, and the spreading of a culture of peace, for the advancement of peace in the nations and civil society.
On the 15th, groups of youth and women will talk about the ethnic or regional conflicts that have been continuing until recently and discuss the legalization of peace necessary for harmony and reconciliation among nations. The host organization, HWPL, is proposing the Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War(DPCW) as a resolution for establishing a legally binding law for peace that can fundamentally prevent war and conflict.
On the 16th, there will be a forum for interfaith dialogue to promote a network among Christian denominations to be one under the meaning of the scripture and the 2018 Addis Ababa Summit to strengthen a cooperative partnership for regional stability and peace by reaffirming the importance of the implementation of an international/internal law for peace.
HWPL is a UN ECOSOC-affiliated NGO whose prime peace initiatives are to establish the international law for peace, interfaith harmony among religions and peace education. IPYG as a partner organization of HWPL endorses the Peace Letter Campaign to advocate youth participation in peacebuilding by collecting letters of support for peace to national leaders.
Young Africans spoke out in their thousands on International Youth Day on Sunday, pledging to share a global message that calls for an end to female genital mutilation (FGM).
Thousands of individuals, groups and organisations have shared pledges to end FGM on social media, in hopes of shattering the silence that
surrounds the practice. International Youth Day celebrates the role of young people as essential partners of change, and the young Africans
seized the opportunity to amplify their calls to their peers, parents and leaders to speak out on the issue.
The campaign has already reached more than 5.7 million on social media, with thousands of those engaging by posting videos and using the
#ihavespoken message, moving the campaign closer to its target of sparking one million conversations to break the silence surrounding this form of violence against women and girls.
One renowned ‘end FGM’ campaigner hoping to make a difference is Natalie Tingo, Founder of Msichana Empowerment Kuria. An ardent and fearless women’s rights activist, Tingo set up Msichana Empowerment Kuria to end violence towards women and girls.
Speaking about the campaign, 25-year-old Natalie Tingo, said: “I will create safe spaces and build the capacity of young girls and women to be change makers as well as engage young men to end FGM.”
Since the campaign launched on Monday 23rd July, the young Africans have received an overwhelming response. An estimated 120,000 people have read about the campaign on major news websites across Africa with a combined online readership of 18.2 million. Many more will have seen the campaign as it made headlines in print newspapers across countries such as Kenya, Nigeria, The Gambia and South Africa.
Heeding the young activists’ rallying cry, Kenyan media personality Sheila Mwanyigha and musician Suzanna Owiyo have both spoken out, passionately stating that they will raise their voices to end FGM, before closing out their videos by asking her hundreds of thousands of followers if they would too.
Making her pledge, Sheila Mwanyigha said: “Ending FGM starts with each of us committing ourselves to doing something. I choose to use my voice. The question is, will you?”
Aware that issues that aren’t spoken about prevail the longest, young activists have also used music and art to promote their message, with
the ambition that theirs is the generation that ends the harmful practice of FGM.
The campaign is backed by The Girl Generation, the world’s largest Africa-led global collective of partners brought together by a shared vision that FGM can – and must – end in this generation’s lifetime.
Dr Faith Mwangi-Powell, Global Director of The Girl Generation said: “It’s amazing to see how quickly this campaign has taken off and I am so proud to see so many young people leading the charge.
“There is real momentum behind this campaign and it shows absolutely no signs of slowing down.
“From the minds of young activists, the campaign is set to spark one million conversations that shatter the silence that surrounds FGM, ultimately making the world a safer place for our girls.”
Everyone gets forgetful once in a while, especially as we get older and with all of life’s stresses, tiredness, certain medication , distractions and illnesses.
Apart from being annoying, that is generally nothing concerning
If however it starts to impact on day-to-day living and then medical attention needs to be sought
So, WHAT IS DEMENTIA?
Dementia is a group of related symptoms associated with an ongoing decline of brain functioning resulting in memory loss, problems with thinking speed, mental sharpness, language & understanding
A person with dementia can become uninterested in their usual activities. They may have problems controlling their emotions, their personalities change and they often lose interest in socialising. They may see or hear things that other people do not (hallucinations). They lose the ability to remember events and fully understand environmental situations. They find it difficult to plan and organise and also to maintain their independence
It is a disabling disorder that affects the way a person behaves, thinks, speaks and can be a huge burden for the person and family members
Even though Dementia is a condition associated with the older age group, it is NOT a part of aging and should never be dismissed as such.
There are many people in their 90’s who do not have dementia because they did some things right in their earlier years
2
The 2 commonest types are Alzheimer’s and Vascular and these account for the vast majority of cases.
This three part article is aimed at everyone over 40 years old, pointing out what we should all be doing now and as we grow older, to reduce the risk of developing this devastating disease
WHAT ARE THE RISK FACTORS AND WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?
There are some risk factors for dementia that are impossible to change such as age & genes but there are other risk factors that have been clearly identified and can be addressed early on.
Landmark research carried out in Cambridge University in 2014, identfied seven lifestyle factors that increase the risk of developing dementia.
Each week, I will focus on one or two of them & this week, it is exercise and blood pressure control
Exercise and Dementia
For many people exercise is a heart sink topic!
Not many of us like to spend the early mornings or late evenings grinding it out in the gym amongst lots of superfit people who make us look like couch potatoes. In fact for many, the thought of having to drag themselves out for a run on a day to day basis is neither attractive nor do able
That said, the evidence is overwhelming from research done at Cambridge University in 2014 those who did not achieve 20 minutes three times a week of vigorous exercise such as jogging or football or five 30 minute sessions of Moderate activity such as walking were 82% more likely to go on to develop dementia.
The good news, however, is that just one hours exercise per week can reduce the chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease by almost 50%
So, what do you do with that information?
For me personally, I found it very reassuring. The answer really is to schedule an hours walk once a week, on a day that works well, say Saturday morning and do it religiously once a week. From age 40, it is good to get into this routine. The benefits are felt at age 50, 60 and beyond. The added benefits of this include weight loss, the general feeling of well-being and the reduced risk of diabetes and hypertension.
3
Studies have also shown that for people aged 60 and above, mental decline can be reversed by as little as 52 hours a year of exercise.
It does not appear to matter how many work outs someone does a week or how long each of the workouts last, as long as they eventually amount to 52 hours.
This can easily be achieved by scheduling a one hour walk every weekend.
The important thing is to do something and sustain it.
It has been very reassuring to see how many men have taken up cycling over the past couple of years. That is an excellent form of exercise.
Many of us have also taken up jogging and have hit the gym but the vast majority of people are still not doing anything at all.
Ladies, can you start a weekly walking club with a group of your friend? This could over some time morph into twice weekly or even three times work outs
So, to motivate you to get up a walk for one hour a week… THINK BRAIN!!
We all want to live long but like the late Martin Luther King Jnr said. “ it is not about how long you live but how well you do it”
Blood pressure and dementia
Research has shown that 50 year olds with slightly raised blood pressure are at an increased risk of getting dementia in later life.
This association was only seen at aged 50, but not 60 or 70
People aged 50 with a systolic BP consistently above 130mmHg had a 45 per cent greater risk of developing dementia
This is particularly concerning in our geographical location because black Africans have an increased incidence of high renin hypertension and as such will be at a high risk according to this study of developing dementia in later life
So, what do you do with that information? 4
– Get a health check at 50 – Monitor your BP regularly with a good electronic sphygmomanometer – If you have consistently high blood pressure readings, book a consultation with a reputable Consultant Physician – You might need to take medication to control your blood pressure – You will need to modify your diet to a low salt one – You will need to schedule in regular exercise
This is not by any means an exhaustive list, it is really just the minimum that should be done.
In conclusion, in order to minimize the risk of developing dementia in later life, there are some lifestyle changes that we need to make at age 40, 50 and beyond.
This 1st part of the series has touched on the role of exercise and blood pressure.
I will discuss the other key lifestyles changes in the 2nd part of the series.
Overall, THINK BRAIN!!
NB: Dr Toyin Ajala is a Consultant Geriatrician and Physician. She is CEO of JBS Medicare Services and contactable via email at toyin.ajala@jbsmedicare.com, for more info and tips on healthy aging
For any questions or help in managing someone with Dementia, contact: doctors@jbsmedicare.co
End.
PART 2
WHAT EVERYONE OVER 40 SHOULD KNOW
In the last part, I talked about what Dementia is, what it is not, the common types of Dementia, the risk factors that we cannot change like age, sex and to some degree by age 40, lower levels of education and two of the risk factors that we can do something about – Exercise and High blood pressure.
In Part 2, I am going to discuss two more risk factors that we can do something about from age 40 and upwards. These are
– Depression ( to include loneliness and social isolation) – Obesity in mid-life
These are all scientifically proven risk factors.
In the next part, I will discuss the risk factors that have been associated with dementia but which studies have thus far have been inconclusive in proving.
Reminder!! WHAT IS DEMENTIA?
Dementia is a condition associated with an progressive decline of brain functioning resulting in memory loss, problems with thinking speed, mental sharpness, language & understanding
It is a disabling disorder that affects the way a person behaves, thinks, speaks and can be a huge burden for the person and family members
As I pointed out in Part 1 of this series, even though Dementia is a condition associated with the older age group, it is NOT a part of aging and should never be dismissed as such.
There are many people in their 90’s who do not have dementia because they did some things right in their earlier years
2
The 2 commonest types are Alzheimer’s and Vascular and these account for the vast majority of cases.
This three part article is aimed at everyone over 40 years old, pointing out what we should all be doing now and as we grow older, to reduce the risk of developing this devastating disease
APART FROM EXERCISE AND HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE, WHAT ARE THE OTHER RISK FACTORS THAT WE NEED TO BE AWARE OF IN MID-LIFE AND WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT
Depression and Dementia
Research has shown convincingly that untreated depression in mid-life, i.e. after the age of 40, increases the risk of developing dementia in later life
Untreated depression and low mood can also affect a person’s ability to be socially active and lead to loneliness and social isolation.
Loneliness and social isolation are also believed to be linked with a higher risk of developing dementia but it is still unclear as to how this link is established
There is a 20% increased risk of developing dementia in later life in people aged between 40 & 55 who have untreated depression
Unfortunately, depression and other mental health illness is on the increase! So is loneliness and social isolation
The reasons for this are multifactorial and beyond the scope of this article
That said, how can depression at age 40 to 55, or even loneliness and social isolation increase the risk of developing dementia in later life?
What biological or physical mechanisms could account for this?
The answer lies in a hormone called cortisol. It is called the stress hormone because it is related to the stress response. It has been found that people who are depressed have high levels of cortisol which then has an adverse effect on a part of the brain called the hypocampus. This part of the brain (hypocampus), is critical for memory and is responsible not just for shirt term memory but also new learning.
The hypocampus has been found to be smaller in people who are depressed
3
Secondly, this stress response in depressed people can lead to chronic inflammation that damages blood vessels and reduces blood flow to the brain, predisposing to neurodegenerative changes in later life
So, what do you do with this information?
If you are feeling depressed, the first thing I want you to know is, you are not alone.
1 in 6 people in the UK have depression and anxiety. In Nigeria, the WHO in 2017, said 7,079,815 Nigerians suffer from depression. It is highly likely that with the taboo surrounding mental health illness in Africa, that figure is many times higher! It is the fear of being stigmatized that prevents the majority of people from seeking expert help
Fortunately, the tide is changing and with increasing enlightenment, depression is being seen for what it is, a manageable medical condition and not a physical or spiritual taboo.
These are several strategies for coping with depression. I will touch on a few but quite often, as I intend to ensure this is relevant and reproducible, my take home message is SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP!
It is untreated depression that increases the risk of developing dementia, so seek specialist treatment!
There is a significant amount of evidence which shows that as a society, mental health issues including depression and anxiety are stigmatised and as such people do not seek help or medication until it is too late.
– Stay in touch with people and try to get outdoors. Sometimes it is impossible for people with depression to motivate themselves into action but if you have others around you that you trust and can confide in, that can really help – If you are worried about confiding in family and friends, for whatever reason, turn to a health care professional, ideally a psychologist, who will be able to support through the difficult times, all in confidence. There are brilliant psychologists around in Lagos like RSG services, Info@rsgservicesltd.com – Consult a psychiatrist! Medication can help and there is nothing wrong in taking medication for a time limited period to enable you to get over the condition. Quite often, depression is due to a reduced level of the “happy” hormone Serotonin in the brain and taking anti depressant medication can address that imbalance. – Be more active: Take up some form of exercise. Start walking for at least 15 minutes every day. Exercise promotes the release the “happy” hormone Serotonin in the brain and also boosts the overall feeling of well being – Go to work, and continue with social and religious activities as much as possible.
4
This is not by any means an exhaustive list but just doing what is listed will go a long way in ensuring that your brain activity in later life is preserved
Obesity in midlife and dementia
Recent research shows that people who have a high body mass index (BMI) are more likely to develop dementia than those with a normal weight.The risk is actually almost double of developing dementia in later life with mid life obesity.
Being overweight can also increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, both if which also have been proven to increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia
So, what do you do with that information?
– Get a health check at 40 and check that your weight is within the healthy range – If it is not, and you have a high BMI, then take steps at once to reduce it – Dieting to lose weight, is not easy!! For most people, it is an uphill task that involves a huge amount of willpower, dedication and commitment. If this is an issue then speak consult a physician on the various medical and sometimes dental options available to control your food intake. Whatever route you take, commitment is required so surround yourself with people who will encourage you on the journey and make sure your family members are on board – No getting away from this one! You will need to schedule in regular exercise! This will increase your metabolism, enhance your sense of well-being and accelerate weight loss
I will discuss the other key lifestyles changes in the 3rd and final part of this series.
Overall, THINK BRAIN!!
Dr Toyin Ajala is a Consultant Geriatrician and Physician. She is CEO of JBS Medicare Services and is contactable via email at toyin.ajala@jbsmedicare.com , for more info and tips on healthy aging
For any questions or help in managing someone with Dementia, contact doctors@jbsmedicare.co
