Category: Sunday magazine

ORANGE-fleshed sweet potatoes may be one of nature’s unsurpassed sources of beta-carotene. Several recent studies have shown the superior ability of sweet potatoes to raise our blood levels of vitamin A. This benefit may be particularly true for children. In several studies from Africa, sweet potatoes were found to contain between 100-1,600 micrograms (RAE) of vitamin A in every 3.5 ouncesenough, on average, to meet 35% of all vitamin A needs, and in many cases enough to meet over 90% of vitamin A needs (from this single food alone)

.•Sweet potatoes are not always orange-fleshed on the inside but can also be a spectacular purple color. Sometimes it’s impossible to tell from the skin of sweet potato just how rich in purple tones its inside will be. That’s because scientists have now identified the exact genes in sweet potatoes (IbMYB1 and IbMYB2) that get activated to produce the purple anthocyanin pigments responsible for the rich purple tones of the flesh. The purple-fleshed sweet potato anthocyaninsprimarily peonidins and cyanidinshave important antioxidant properties and anti-inflammatory properties. Particularly when passing through our digestive tract, they may be able to lower the potential health risk posed by heavy metals and oxygen radicals. For more details on purple-fleshed and orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, please see our Description section below

.•It can be helpful to include some fat in your sweet potato-containing meals if you want to enjoy the full beta-carotene benefits of this root vegetable. Recent research has shown that a minimum of 3-5 grams of fat per meal significantly increases our uptake of beta-carotene from sweet potatoes. Of course, this minimal amount of fat can be very easy to include. In our Healthy Mashed Sweet Potatoes recipe, for example, we include 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and with just this one tablespoon, each of our 4 servings for this delicious recipe provides 3.5 grams of fat.

•Some nutritional benefits from sweet potatoes simply may be easier to achieve if you use steaming or boiling as your cooking method. Recent studies show excellent preservation of sweet potato anthocyanins with steaming, and several studies comparing boiling to roasting have shown better blood sugar effects (including the achievement of a lower glycemic index, or GI value) with boiling. The impact of steaming is particularly interesting, since only two minutes of steaming have been show to deactivate peroxidase enzymes that might otherwise be able to break down anthocyanins found in the sweet potato. In fact, with these peroxidase enzymes deactivated, natural anthocyanin extracts from sweet potato used for food coloring may be even more stable than synthetic food colorings. This benefit isn’t limited to the food’s appearance since the anthocyanins have great health benefits as antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients

•Most dry beans and tubers have their own unique storage proteins. Soybeans have glycinins, potatoes have patatins, yams have dioscorins, and corn has zeins. While researchers have long been aware of sporaminsstorage proteins in sweet potatoonly recently has research shown some of their unique antioxidant properties. The potential health benefits of the sweet potato sporamins in helping prevent oxidative damage to our cells should not be surprising since sweet potatoes produce sporamins whenever subjected to physical damage to help promote healing.

They are three biological brothers; but they became blind on different occasions and in mysterious circumstances. Taiwo Abiodun caught up with  them in Ago Are, near Shaki, Oyo State where they currently live and work together.

THEIR plight halted the hurrying reporter. It is a sad story of the trio of Adeteju, Sulaiman and Nasiru Isiaka, three biological brothers who are blind. Although they have their eyes wide open, they cannot see. While one blinked intermittently, the other looked straight on and the eldest simply opened his eyes and shut them quickly. Alas, only the white patch of his eyes could be seen.

A first-time meeting is likely to provoke you to tears, but as the conversation with them progressed, their sense of humour comes visibly into play. They also exhibited strong faith as they claimed God knows best. They outrightly refused to be pitied and said they have vowed never to beg for alms but work hard for their livelihood.

First of the brothers is a radio repairer, the second, an ex-mechanic, while the third was a former trailer driver. But their situation has made them jettison their occupations and turn to mills business, grinding grains, cereals, Yam and cassava Flour (elubo/lafun) and other agricultural products.

Observing the trio for a brief moment, one couldn’t but notice the way they chatted, smiled and brainstormed together. They also generate and execute fruitful ideas, amid bouts of arguments. They told this reporter that it is the creativity of their ideas that now put food on their table. In addition to sharing thoughts and ideas, they are also bonded by their blindness.

This is the story of three blind biological brothers of Ago-Are, near Shaki in Oyo State, whose story is literally pulling their locale out of obscurity.

Courageous in difficulty

At the frontage of their bungalow residence is a big shop where a big grinding machine, jointly owned by the three brothers, is installed. To them, it is their only source of income, as it is what their entire family, including their aged father, relies on to feed. To make the job a bit easier, they have employed a woman who assists in emptying the grains into the grinder. So while one of them is operates the machine, you find another fixing the belt or vice versa; and before you say ‘Jack Robinson,’ the engine is on and running.

One of them, Sulaiman said: “We have been operating this business for the past eight years”.

Speaking on how the business evolved, the youngest, Nasiru said: “It was one of my friends who taught us how to operate it. I am the one fixing and rolling the belt. And I have never been wounded, nor had any industrial accident while operating it.”

The brothers, who live in the bungalow with their wives and aged father, said they live peacefully. They also said there is no quarrel among them, “as each one of them has his own room with his wife and children”.

And though their condition remains pathetic, they obviously have become used to their environment, as they’re quite able to find their way to the shop and back to their rooms, usually by trailing the walls. “At other times,” one of their wives revealed “they ask any of their children or wives available to guide them to wherever they wish to go.”

Most importantly, they have not allowed their situation to weigh them down. Whilst they chatted with this reporter, they exhibited great wit; laughed, cracked jokes and exchanged banters. Their wives also flowed along. But their aged father, with his head drooped, appeared weighed down with sadness, as he sporadically shook his head and mutter the Muslim expression of faith, ‘Alihamdullai’. He would then rub his hands and retreat into silence, while looking into space.

How they became blind

There were more questions than answers. But the story goes that they were born blind from the start. Truth however is that they were all born normal, like every other human, and were into their respective profession without problems. According to the eldest, Adeteju Isiaka, who is in his early 50s, “I was once a radio repairer. But on January 28, 1988, I just woke up to discover that I could not see again. I started running helter-for remedy. First, I was taken to an eye specialist hospital in Kano; later, I went to France; and then Sudan, to see eye specialists. But in the end, I was told the eyes were completely gone. That is my story,” he trailed off, shaking his head and mumbling

Asked to comment on his marriage, Adeteju simply shook his head, laughed and confidently declared “My wife of three years of marital bliss is here. We have two children and I thank God for sparing my life”.

Isiaka Sulaiman, the former trailer driver said he had been driving since 1979 before he became blind in 1995. According to him, he met his doom while at work. He was about to unscrew a bolt from the trailer tyre and asked his motor-boy to give him a spanner. Instead, the boy threw the spanner at him and the tool eventually hit him in the eye. He lamented, “That is how I saw it o. It was the spanner that my motor assistance threw at me that missed its way and accidentally hit me in one of the eyes. Clearly, it was not intentional, and I still drove home with one eye from Ibadan to Lagos on that day. But on the second day, my second eye somehow became affected. We struggled and visited eye specialist hospitals in Kano, Sudan and France to no avail”.

On his marital life, Sulaiman said he got married in 1982, but the woman later deserted him. He then remarried in 2007 and that union has produced two children, the first, a two year-old and the second, a six-month old baby. I thank God that I have a family”.

The third, Nasiru Isiaka, said he was a mechanic. But in 2008, he woke up one morning to see that his two eyes gone. He said: “I just woke up to see that I could not see again. It was painful because I was the one catering for my two brothers. It is sad and pathetic, as we still have our aged father. Our mother died three years ago. It is also painful that my first wife abandoned me when she saw my predicament.

Adeteju also exclaimed, “Each time I remember my condition, I feel very sad. I know if we were to be in a foreign country, the government would be taking care of us all. But here, we live each day struggling with no assistance.

Their father, Pa Ayoade Isiaka, 85, was sleeping when this reporter got to him. He was woken up and told that he had a visitor from Lagos. The first thing he asked as he got up was: “I hope you have come to assist me? Things are bad. You can see my children who should be taking care of me; now the reverse is the case. I am pained”, the old man lamented.

The Octogenarian, who is still visibly strong, said he didn’t know what could be responsible for his sons’ ill fate. He said: “I am a native of Oyo town. I have been in Ago-Are since 1952 doing my business as a butcher. I have never seen such a thing in my life. How can my three male children be blind in three different circumstances? It is very sad”.

Asked the state of his eyes, he said: “At 85, my eyes are not dim. I can see very well. Their mother of blessed memory had her eyes intact before she died about three years ago. She never complained of eye problems. So, I don’t know what is happening to me at my old age to be experiencing such calamity on my children.”

On whether it could be spiritual, the old man shook his head and said: “Well, I don’t know. We were told it is not glaucoma or any other mouth-twisting disease. What I know is that this thing happened to only my male children. All my daughters are not affected. They still have sisters who live in Lagos.”

The elderly man then looked sideways, shook his head in self-pity as his eyes became bloodshot and said: “I believe that is how God wants it. What will I do?” He sighed, as he dropped his head again.

Asked whether he ever fought over property with anyone who could be on a revenge-mission, he shook his head vigorously and said: “No, nothing of such ever happened and neither to my descendants before. It is this sad news and problem that killed my wife three years ago.

Asked to comment on his children’s wives, he said, “Hmm, women? One of my children’s wives ran away when she saw her husband’s condition. But I still thank the women that came to marry them .They are nice, loving and hardworking. What I know is that nobody is above temptation in life; and where there is life, there is hope. It is still a misery and burden to me. This grinding machine is the only source of their income .I was once a butcher, and they assisted me in hawking and doing the business; but when they grew up, they found their levels in their chosen professions. Now see what we are witnessing?”

Their wives

Who says women don’t fall in love anymore? Notwithstanding, it will shock any visitor to know that despite their condition, their wives are beautiful, hardworking and understanding. They are very helpful and ever ready to assist their husbands in their daily activities. They also assist in the grinding machine business and the proceeds are used for their feeding and children’s upkeep.

Adeteju’s wife, Fatimo said “My name is Fatimo. I knew him (Adeteju) before he went blind. I had a baby from my previous marriage before marrying him. I know his parents; they are from good family background.” Asked whether she was discouraged from marrying Adeteju, Fatimo said “Oh yes, it was a tug of war. My friends and my family members objected to it .They sneered at me but I told them he was never like that when I knew him. It can happen to anybody. I am comfortable with him. I have two children for him: one is 6 months and the other, four years old. I used to argue that if I were their mother, I will not desert them. Besides, their case is not hereditary. They have sisters in Lagos and in France who are not blind.”

Feeding

The family survives on the proceeds from the grinding machine. According to Nasiru, “We make about 2,000 naira daily, but if there is no market we make 1.000 naira and we share it amongst ourselves.”

Regrets

The most painful regret the brothers have is the fact that they have been deserted by their friends .Nasiru and Sulaiman chorused “You are talking about friends? Where are they (they all burst into laughter)? Ha! They have neglected and abandoned us for long .The ones we knew from primary and secondary schools have gone. No friends anywhere.”

Adeteju on his part asked jocularly “Who will want to associate with us again? Even if we come across them, how do we recognize them? We have accepted our fate and that is our destiny.”

Asked their biggest wish, they all chorused that they want the Osun State government to come to their aid and assist them. They complained bitterly that despite promises by the state government few years ago, the local council and the government are yet to fulfill their promises. “A few years ago, the government promised to assist us, but nothing is forthcoming .We are appealing to good-spirited Nigerians to come and assist us. We don’t want to go to the streets begging for alms; we want Nigerians to please come to our aid” they chorused.

Yetunde Oladeinde, assistant editor, goes behind the curtain to look at the cases of  husbands in the labour ward with their wives. 

When Folashade was pregnant for the first time, she researched and read every book to get prepared. Anxiously she spoke to friends who had been through it. As she went through the different stages of the pregnancy she wrote down a number of questions for her obstetrician so she would not forget them. Then one morning her water broke, and she was hit with one surprise after another. Not for one minute did labor and delivery go as she expected. She felt totally unprepared but the only saving grace was her husband who was with her in the delivery room. For her it really made a difference.On his part, Kelvin Okeke, father of four makes it a duty to be by his wife side each time she goes through labour in the delivery room. “Initially, I joked about everything and tried to be tough. She was in labour for about three hours and when it became so difficult they had to induce her. It was at that point that the reality of the labour room dawned on me. The first experience was very tough because we were both not really prepared for it.”

Okeke adds: “Even though we had read about it in books and online, it was a different experience entirely and I was not prepared for it at all. It was as if we were going through the pains together and I prayed till the baby was delivered. For me, I realised that every woman stakes her life for the unborn child and her husband each time she goes through labour. That was why I made up my mind to be there for her each time she goes through labour.

“Just before this, I remember a friend whose wife was going to have a baby and he was asked to donate blood. When he got to the place, he quickly changed his mind and told them that he would pay money for the blood instead.”

Okeke continues: “The day my second son was born, I walked the hospital corridors for three hours with my wife, Ada. I kept her company, held her hand, and made remarks like ‘Fetus, don’t fail us now!’ ‘Miracle baby we are waiting for you to add value to our home.’ I did all this to make her take her mind off the contractions. Then I wondered: Could she have made it through childbirth without me? Probably. But I was happy that I played my role and was there to soothe her pains.”

In the delivery room, it is generally known it’s up to the woman to do all the pushing but the crux of the matter is that a man plays a big role in the birthing process too. Labor can be an overwhelming and scary experience for first-time mothers. Just by being there, you’re providing your partner with much-needed comfort and encouragement.

Like Kelvin, Taiwo Kuye, an engineer, has also been in the labour ward with his wife. He says: “We have three children and I had witnessed the delivery of our second and third.” Asked how the first experience was like and he replies with, “Oh my God”. Kuye adds: “The experience actually made me love my wife more. It was an experience that made me sober as well as appreciate what women go through at childbirth. On that fateful day, she came to my office around 5pm with fish and other foodstuff she was going to prepare that evening. Suddenly, she became very uncomfortable and it was obvious that her delivery period was near.”

Kuye continues: “I quickly got a friend’s car and drove her to the hospital somewhere in Ikorodu. Here she was prepared for delivery but somehow the labor period went on and on. At a point, we began to think she was going to deliver the baby through operation but I tried to encourage her and somehow she got more strength to push the baby out. That was how she gave birth to our girl and it was a very memorable experience.”

Kuye happily goes down memory lane to recall his experience once more in the labour ward during the delivery of the third baby. “Interestingly, the story of the delivery of our son, Oluwatosin, was quite different. That day I was actually at home and she called me on phone, saying she was heading to the hospital because she was pressed for labour. She also informed me that she had dropped the baby things the last time she went for ante-natal and felt she had to go and see the doctor. “

At that point, Kuye thought it was one of those feelings she had been having in the past and so he decided to relax. He narrates further: “About three hours later, I got a call from the hospital and the matron told me that the baby’s head was on my wife laps but there were some complications and they were waiting for the doctor. I rushed out of the house to meet her and I was rattled when I saw her. At a point, I wondered if it would be better to take her to the general hospital each time I looked at her helpless state. They checked and checked until the doctor advised she goes for a caesarian operation. It was successful and we had my son and even after the operation, she couldn’t stand or bend well.”

For Abel Owolabi Efunsanya, a father of one this is an experience that he is looking forward to someday. He states: “I have a child and my wife is expecting our second baby soon. I was not allowed to come in when my wife was having our first baby because it was an emergency. My wife had gone through prolonged labour and we were faced with the option of having a caesarian operation. “

They decided to look for help in a private hospital but it was still not possible. “We had to go back to the general hospital when I saw the trauma she was passing through at the private hospital. The problem was that the baby was bigger than the pelvic according to the scan. So we made up our mind to do the operation but surprisingly the baby came on its own when we got back to the general hospital.

All over the world, men are getting as concerned as the women when it comes to the delivery process. The birth of Prince George to Kate Middleton made history in Britain. William was reportedly the first royal father to be at his wife’s side during labor. This makes the royals about 40 years behind the rest of the developing world, says Professor Hannah Dahlen, the national spokeswoman for the Australian College of Midwives. She says further: “Since the 1970s when women started inviting men in, men from all walks of life have opened the door to the delivery room, and seem unlikely to leave any time soon. Now it’s expected that dad will be there, too – If she’s going through all of that, the least you can do is be there.”

Most fathers want to be at their child’s birth and most mothers want them there, too, but interestingly not everyone is in favour.

Michel Odent, a French obstetrician known for advocating water births, claims men “disturb” the birthing process. Odent, who has 50 years of birthing experience, justifies his position with physiology. A labouring woman, he says, needs to be protected against any stimulation of the thinking part of her brain – the neocortex – for labour to proceed with ease. But the man’s questions, reassurance, advice and anxiety denies her the quiet mind that she needs. Odent has also observed that at the time of birth, men cannot help but say something or try to touch the baby. But this is when the mother needs a few moments alone with her infant so that her oxytocin levels can peak to assist delivery of the placenta.

The problem isn’t men themselves, argue several birth educators, it’s the fact that men aren’t properly engaged, educated and supported.

Wife of the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN), Pastor Helen Oritsejafor, has finally opened up on the $9.3m cash-for-arm wide deal involving her husband’s private jet, among some other raging issues. She spoke with select journalists last week. Sunday Oguntola was there.   

OUR husband has received a lot of bashing lately. How do you react?

For us southerners, we might not really appreciate what Papa Ayo Oritsejafor is doing and the role he is playing in Christianity in Nigeria because we are not directly affected by the activities of the terrorist group, Boko Haram.

Christians in the North are the ones experiencing it, they are the ones losing fathers and mothers, children; being dislocated. They are the ones who see people’s throats being cut off as chickens; their houses being burnt by petrol bombs and their young ones abducted on a daily basis. They value him so very much.

They know that whatever he is going through today is because of them. It was actually them who came to persuade him to run for CAN presidency. The first time they came, he used wisdom for them and said he would think about it. They came back again and kept coming because they know who he is. He is a good man. If there is anything I know my husband to be is that he is a good man to a fault and sometimes I really feel for him.

Unfortunately, the society of nowadays does not value a man like this especially those of us in the South. He is much respected in the North.

How did the news of his jet’s involvement in the $9.3m cash- for- arms saga hit you?

I was really surprised. I didn’t even know anything about it. I didn’t even know our plane was out of the country because we leased it out to a company in Abuja so that we will be able to utilise whatever comes out of the deal for the maintenance of the plane because it is quite expensive. So we didn’t know. Even though we read and heard some comments some people made concerning it, unknown to us that our plane was actually involved.

We were really surprised just like most people. In all honesty, by the time we got to know that it was Papa’s plane, we knew that the enemies were trying to play some pranks. It is natural because he is a symbol of Christianity in Nigeria. If anyone wants to move against Christianity in Nigeria, it would be easier for the one to go after the symbol. The only thing is I wasn’t expecting people to get really dirty as they did.

The whole episode appeared as if somebody was out for some sinister jokes…

It’s quite obvious. Take for instance, why was it that it was Papa’s plane that would be hired? How would it be that it would be his plane of all planes in Nigeria that they needed for that mission? It’s still very baffling. Number two, it became obvious that it was orchestrated and the whole essence of it is to see how they can give him a name God has not given to him and all because he has been a very outspoken man.

I know him too well, he is a very down- to- earth person and he doesn’t know how to hide his feelings. He is a very quiet and reserved person. But then when there is a need for him to speak about anything, he would rather confront things the way they are rather than to hide behind his fingers. That is not him. I know quite a number of people have been very uncomfortable with that especially with the Boko Haram situation.

Let’s be frank, who would not be affected? You are leading a body and gradually, there seems to be an elimination of this same group of people. You would be a wicked leader not to react. I wouldn’t even call you one not to have reacted towards what was really going on in Nigeria and is still going on by the way. So he made every efforts. He noticed that our government wasn’t really upcoming with a lot of things; we seem to try to politicise a lot of things in Nigeria which is quite troubling. He went out of his way to go address the US Congress.

So he is now paying the price for being an outspoken man, defending his people, defending Christianity in Nigeria, and do not want Nigerians having to hide their heads later on in life because whichever way we look at it, history will tell.

Do you think some people are trying to politicise a purely security issue?

A personality like Papa Ayo Oritsejafor is a threat to anyone who sees him as one because they believe he has a voice; he has a clout, coupled with the fact that the present President happens to be a Christian, who is also from the South-South. So they believe that this man is definitely going to support his brother. He would want him to come back being a Christian as well.

Without having to say too much, if I could say this, it is quite shameful. At a point, I was going to actually call some of the wives of these so-called people who were going outside saying a lot of things about my husband, having to engage them as well and see how it looks like, telling them to come out and look at the issue. How would they feel? How would people condescend so low? A lot of things I read in the newspapers, sometimes they amuse me.

At least we all know that it is the National Security Adviser who hired that plane out, who happens to be a relation of the Defence minister and who happens to be an in-law to the Sultan of Sokoto. I had a lot of respect for the Sultan of Sokoto. Before this issue of Boko Haram and so on, himself and my husband used to be very close.

I could remember every now and then when he wanted to talk to my husband, he would often ask how is mama? If there were issues in the newspapers and all that, he would call in to find out things and so on and so forth. I so much cherished his relationship with my husband. But I’m a little bit surprised because no matter how it is, you know your friend. We must not allow bigotry to take away our innocence, our integrity, our conscience in the name of what we are trying to get.

We must not allow that to happen. We must always remember posterity because one way or the other, posterity will always judge. And we must not throw caution to the wind because of whatever we are trying to achieve. We must also remember that Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor is a husband of a woman who has children as well; regardless of whatever we are trying to do. This is a man that I know and some Nigerians also know that this is a man who is so loving and caring.

If there’s anything this man can do to alleviate the downtrodden ones in the society, he would do. He’s done many. Many times over and over again, he goes out of his way to buy brand new cars, tricycles, grinding machines and so on to alleviate poverty in this country. He is a person who decided to start a micro finance bank, not necessarily to make money but to see how he can help lift someone’s head up; in bridging gap between the poor and the rich.

What some people don’t know is that we love the Muslims. We do not have anything against Muslims. A lot of people are sending wrong signals to a lot of people, particularly Muslims, thinking that Pastor Ayo is an enemy of Muslims. It is totally untrue. There is no iota of truth in it. He has a lot of them as friends.

Papa Ayo’s relationship with Sultan of Sokoto is still strong as ever. When Islamic fundamentalists were killing his Christian brothers and sisters in the North, he was forced to urge their leaders to speak against the killings. Let us find solution to this, you have a right to practice your religion, I have equal right as well to do same and we must not be at each other’s throats and somebody being at the receiving end and having to keep quiet. I must speak out because I am the leader. That’s who we are talking about here.

I’m proud of my husband. They have looked for every avenue. We have heard of one or two people caught in some unholy alliance and so on, thank God my husband was not involved. They have done everything they could do to try and pull him down. What they finally did was to use a gift that was given to him; he didn’t use his money to buy it.

You mean the jet…?

Yes. Some people said President Jonathan bought it for him. I wish he did. I have the list of the names of people who masterminded this thing on our record. Hundreds and thousands of people, church folks who said this man served us with every vigor in him, we could see in him a great man and he’s not getting younger anymore. He is ever on the road constantly doing everything he can for the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ; let us try as much as possible in elongating his life by blessing him with this gift.

He didn’t buy it or put down money to say this is what he wants. He didn’t even know anything about it. I was aware of it. What I would have loved for them to tell me is to show me the receipt of the plane that was bought by President Jonathan and the person who said he bought the plane. I have heard all sorts of lies that maybe somebody did it on behalf of somebody. There’s no human being that can stand up to say I bought this plane. It’s a complete lie from the pit of hell.

Realising the fact that what should he do with this plane knowing the amount of money that it’s going to cost to maintain it; if he was using church money to maintain it, they would have cried out to say he is using church money. You can see how foolish people can be. If President Jonathan bought him a plane, can’t the same President Jonathan maintain the plane? Why must it be hired out so as to sustain the maintenance of the same plane if indeed it was the President that bought this plane? They politicize a lot of things. It’s really annoying.

Is your husband really that close to President Jonathan as his accusers allege?

It is so amazing. I do not want to be rude or saucy so I’m trying as much as possible to hold my peace. Let me say this. I would love it if people can help me define that word ‘close’. Yes there’s a relationship that has to do with being in his position as the President of CAN and President Jonathan as the President of Nigeria. Automatically, whether he likes it or not, there will be some level of interaction and that is what Nigerians are calling closeness. Maybe they should tell us how President Jonathan gave him one naira to buy a plane.

I don’t really think that Pastor Ayo is closer to the President than the Sultan of Sokoto, the co-chair of NIREC. This is not to say that Papa hates Jonathan. No, he does not. He is a Christian and so as a Christian father to the nation, he tries his best to provide a guard. He speaks out whenever necessary. He goes in to offer his own advice or suggestion as the case maybe whenever he is asked to.

When he wants to see the President, he makes request just like everyone else. And mostly, it is to discuss the issue of the nation. Many times, he goes with his CAN executive council members to sit down with the President and confront him on certain issues all to see how the nation can be well piloted. What I have noticed is that whichever way you see it; if I say this man is not close to the President, they will say it’s because of what happened. If I say he’s close, they will say that is what we are talking about. I don’t even care what people might say concerning that because you can never please human beings.

What I am saying is that please before you start giving this man a bad name, find out the true position of things. Do not go out there forgetting that he is a husband to a woman and he is a father as well. Besides that, he is a man who has sacrificed himself. I think Nigerians even have him more than I do.

Many times, people see leadership just to bear a name and enjoy it. I think if this man had wanted to enjoy the leadership as it were, maybe by now his relationship with the Sultan of Sokoto would be waxing stronger. And maybe he would have been enjoying more from the government as well. But he has decided to sacrifice all that just like Moses. Moses sacrificed and said he was not going to allow the booting in Pharaoh’s house to override his judgment and so he shut himself out completely from the judgment at the palace and made himself a sacrifice for the liberty and freedom of the Israelites. That is what we are seeing now with our father as well. He has truly given himself out to the nation and then of course to the people who we call his constituents.

How did he receive the news of the jet saga?

He didn’t also know. When everything happened, according to what we heard, the plane was released immediately and it came back to Nigeria. They didn’t even bother to contact us to tell us what happened. No one said anything. It was when someone called him and asked ‘where is your plane.’ And he said he didn’t know but he would find out from his wife. I have been the one managing it. When everything happened, they put it on him but I have actually been the one running it. So he called me and asked where the plane was, I said I didn’t know promising to call him back.

The person who called him told him the plane was impounded in South Africa. So the gentleman said something happened. It was at that point he said one John came to hire the plane to South Africa. That was what happened. The next they heard was they discovered this and that. However, since they knew that the plane and the crew members had nothing to do with the transaction, they let the plane go which is the normal practice.

The only thing they do is that once that occurs, the next thing they do is to search whoever that is involved, pick the person and that’s it. No one is now going to start putting it on the plane or the owners or even the crew. The next thing he said was ‘Oh my God’. He said these people are after something. I actually thought it was a joke because I wasn’t expecting anyone to condescend. I expect someone to be able to see between the lines. Please let us not belittle our government. Are you telling me that a whole Federal Government of Nigeria would need a pastor to help him move money to a location to buy arms? That is an insult on this nation.

For anyone to even phantom it, it shows how small minded we are really and that we don’t look at things wholistically. It just does not make any sense at all other than the fact that certain people just said since it is his plane, let us just see how we can rope him with it so that we can malign him at the end of the day since we have been unable to hook him to anything.

Is it true the same people leaked the transaction to the media?

That’s the truth. They did. They leaked it. When we now did our own investigation, we discovered that by the time the plane touched ground in South Africa, the picture was already taken. And some people were already having a meeting in London and coming up with all sorts of stories and so on and so forth about him even before everything finally blew open.

So it was all orchestrated right from Nigeria. Whoever such people are, they are not true Muslims or Christians. These are enemies of progress. These are people who are doing their very best in causing unnecessary discord between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria which is very sad. To use an innocent man to throw this sling is very sad.

Are you pleased by the reaction of some Church leaders to the saga?

I think the greatest challenge in Christianity is that unlike our other side; they have a leader and regardless of how they feel, when that leader speaks, it is final. But in Christianity, everyone is a leader. The unnecessary rancor that actually takes place in our fold is quite sad and shameful. So it’s always very easy for these people to pounce on them and manipulate them against themselves.

What they don’t even know is that they are the target. Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor is not the target; it’s every Christian in Nigeria. We are all the target. We are the ones they have targeted but of course they can’t get to everyone so they have to look for the person who represents Christianity in Nigeria and that is what we are experiencing.

It’s sad to see Christian leaders calling for the resignation of Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor and so on when some of them don’t even know the details of what happened.

It’s manipulation. And some of them too have betrayed themselves. We also know the lives they live. I don’t even see some of those people as Christian leaders. I want to use this opportunity to appreciate our brethren at Catholic, our brethren at Baptist and all of the five blocks of Christian Association of Nigeria who stood their grounds knowing who they have as their leader and of course standing to confront anything negative concerning him.

When I read the communiqué after a meeting they had in Abuja, they said this jet wasn’t bought by President Jonathan but if anyone has evidence to this effect that it was bought by President Jonathan, make it public. Number two, they also said that this particular plane was leased out before now. If anyone has an evidence to show that it was not, make it public. I’m still waiting. I haven’t seen anyone to do that. I think it is at that time they will know that my own is more than my husband. I have just been holding myself because of him.

Otherwise I would have loved to scream and shout and show up on television and call out to Nigerians to say that they should not kill my husband. The only thing this man has done is to sacrifice himself for you. So if you do not appreciate him, then what is the need for him making these sacrifices, putting his 42 years in ministry on the line just because of you and I?

A lot of people chicken out because they want to appear in the good books of everybody. No one really wants to come out. Everyone tries to shy away from anything that has to do with things like Boko Haram or anything. He is the only one by the special grace of God and no wonder God decided to put him in this position for such a time like this. If we had had a weakling there, I don’t know what would have happened to this country by now. It would have been a different ball game entirely.

Ebun Anozie is president, Care. Organisation. Public Enlightenment (C.O.PE), a non-profit  orgainsation founded in 1995 to help in reducing the mortality rate of breast cancer through advocacy, treatment, research and education. She spoke on the challenges facing organization involved in creating awareness in the scourge amongst others.

C.O.PE is in the forefront of breast cancer awareness and care for patients in Nigeria, tell us of your most recent activities.

We have executed series of activities this year, but as you are aware that October is National Breast cancer Awareness Month worldwide. In joining the rest of the world in commemorating this special month, we organized our support group for complementary therapy, which was sponsored by Deloitte. They had massage and steam bath. The massage is the oldest form of physical medicine recorded as far back as 4,000 years. It involves working on the body’s soft tissues, muscles, ligaments and also relaxes the nerves by using the hands to stretch and apply pressure. It relaxes one physically and emotionally.

We normally have monthly screening and create awareness.

What would be your most unforgettable experience with a patient?

My unforgettable experience was when I saw maggots coming out of a patient’s breast.

The awareness for cancer and especially breast cancer has been on the increase in the last decade, given the expansion of the media industry in Nigeria, yet it just seems like more people are getting caught up in the affliction, as the statistics continue to terrify. What do you think is responsible for this?

Yes, we thank the media for the good job they are doing. Unfortunately, a lot of women are still in denial, with the religious and traditional beliefs holding back our people. Also we have illiteracy, life style, poverty, environmental pollution and not going for annual medical screening. Breast cancer really is not an affliction but can happen to anybody. It is so sad that our government is yet to take adequate action in fighting cancer.

Do you think our meals are responsible? If so, why do you think we are just unable to adjust our diet?

I must confess to you that we have good food crops in Nigeria but our main problem is how we cook and preserve them. Life style generally has been a problem. We do not exercise and there are certain things we should try and reduce or abstain from, like meat, alcohol, smoking and most importantly STRESS.

What are the services C.O.PE offers?

We offer subsidized breast ultrasound scan, create awareness, free counseling, free referral, vibrant support group, functional library; we also train volunteers to assist with information dissemination on breast cancer. We involve professionals in support of C.O.P E and make available breast forms and customised bras. We believe in partnership and collaboration especially with corporate organizations.

What are the major issues hindering C.O.PE activities?

Finances of course, what every organisation is having issues with. Government should realise that NGO’s complement the services they offer. Patients should be advised on where to go for counseling and assistance.

Why do you think that corporate organisations are not forthcoming in the support of the battle against this disease that has defied sex, class and creed, and seems to have even decimated the elite class more than any other disease?

I beg to disagree that corporate organizations are not forthcoming, but I agree that funding is a big issue. We have a number of corporate organizations that support our cause. It is imperative to state that the economy is dwindling at the moment due to the numerous challenges the country is going through.

What is your advice to corporate organizations in this regard, given that cancer is one disease we cannot afford to keep quiet about?

My advice is that no organisation is in competition with the other regarding Corporate Social Responsibility. We are all here to do whatever we can to help the less privileged in our society. We should be our brother’s keeper.  My honest opinion is that women should avail themselves to screening, to avoid late diagnosis. We should learn to love ourselves. I thank all the organisations that have in one form or another contributed to making sure that we win this battle against cancer. It is not a death sentence, if detected and treated early.

Gboyega Alaka reviews the increasingly alarming threat of the ravaging cancer scourge on a seemingly oblivious population, revealing a scary statistics that experts say may be worse than all the major killer diseases put together.

VERY recently, it was Remi Oyo, a former Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and former Senior Special Assistant to the President (Obasanjo) on Media and Publicity, who in her career earned a space for herself at the very top of Nigeria’s male-dominated journalism profession. A couple of days before then, it had been Remi Olowude, the respected gentleman, who built a reputation as a frontline insurance personality, and until his death, Chairman, IGI insurance company. A little earlier, it had been the much-loved Dora Akunyili, who severally risked her life, so Nigerians could have access to safe medicinal drugs. And then of course, there had been the late President Umaru Yar’adua, erstwhile First Lady Maryam Babangida, the doyen of Kwara politics, Dr. Olusola Saraki, the ebullient Yinka Craig, who Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola described as one of the first eleven of his profession (broadcasting), music icon, Sonny Okosun, fashion designer, Remi Osholake, better known as Remi Lagos, ex Green Eagles Star Sam Ojebode, and of course that fearless defender of the Nigerian masses, Gani Fawehinmi. They all died of cancer of various form, and it’s beginning to look like the average Nigerian elite dies predominantly of nothing else but cancer. Curiously, these are only the few, whom the public eventually got to know the cause of their death, given the secretive nature of Nigerians when it comes to issues like that. As a matter of fact, for a good chunk of these people, it was only because their families made a poor show of keeping the cause of their deaths secret, that the public even ever got to know. This therefore means that the statistics in the country can never be definite.

Scary Statistics

According to the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, cancer is the number 1 killer of mankind. It kills more people than HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculousis put together. It also says cancer is being diagnosed in one in every three persons and that Nigeria has the 13th lowest life expectancy in the world, with cancer being a major contributor. (See Table for more.)

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) estimates that there will be 21 million new cases of cancer globally every year and approximately 13 million cancer deaths by the year 2030. This statistics thus endorses the claim of the CECP above that no ailment poses more danger to humanity than cancer in its various forms.  Probably the rampaging Ebola comes close at the moment, but the rate at which scientists and virologists are working towards cures and vaccines and the level of progress being daily recorded might just mean that Cancer may yet retain its dreaded title at the end of the tunnel.

In Nigeria, the IARC’s finding is even more terrifying, as a whopping 80,000 cancer deaths is said to occur every year. That fact in itself translates to 10 Nigerian deaths from cancer every hour. And yet, that figure might be a lot lower than what obtains in reality, since many of the commoners, who have little means for medical services hardly ever take their cases to the hospital. Even the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) said its estimates are based on the most recent data available to them and on information publicly available on the internet, and added that more recent figures may be available from local sources. It also suggested that data are continuously improving in quality and extent and that estimates may not be comparable overtime.

Of the numerous cancer types, the World Health Organisation declared that breast cancer is the number one cancer scourge all over the world. It revealed that one in eight women has a lifetime risk of the breast cancer affliction. The WHO’s declaration of course inevitably makes it the number one cancer in the world. In Nigeria, the horror is as strong. Dr. Femi Laleye, the Medical Director Optical Cancer Care Foundation revealed recently at a cancer a breast cancer awareness programme in Lagos that “one or two in every 25 Nigerian women are at risk of breast cancer, but higher risks exist for women who are older than 45, older than 30 at birth of first child, and women with family history.” He added that the fact that Nigerian women have yet to imbibe the culture of regular breast check most often than not, makes it a death sentence.”

Amongst the Nigerian men it is prostate cancer that leads the pack of killer cancers.  According to WebMD, an online medical journal, prostate cancer is diagnosed in an estimated 80% of men who reach age 80. Brought closer to home, prostate cancer is estimated to have over 80 percent mortality rate in Nigeria. A recent World Health Organisation (WHO) report shows that death resulting from prostate cancer in Nigeria, increased by all of 100% within a period of four years. It also showed that the cancer (prostate) kills 26 Nigerian men every day. It occurs as a result of prostate enlargement in men. The prostate is the size of a walnut and is situated right below the bladder, playing major roles in the production of semen in men and the process of urination. The symptoms therefore include difficulty in passing urine, sudden need to rush to the toilet to pass urine, frequent need to pass urine, especially at night, blood in your urine and pain when passing urine. Sufferers of any of the above symptoms are therefore advised to immediately see a doctor, although it must be impressed that any of them does not necessarily translate to the condition.

In an article titled “Nzelu: To prevent prostate cancer in Nigerian men written by Dr. Abia Nzelu, Executive Secretary, Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CRCP-Nigeria) and published in a frontline Nigerian national daily, the Nigerian prostate cancer statistics is alarming and outrageous, given the fact that the disease is curable if detected early. He cited the case of the late Nelson Mandela, who was diagnosed with an early stage prostate cancer at age 83 and who underwent appropriate treatment, recovered fully and lived till 95. Other cases of full recovery will include Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Emperor Akihito of Japan, former US president, Ronald Reagan, former US Army chief, General Colin Powell, amongst others.

He thus blamed the cause of the high mortality rate in Nigeria on lack of awareness and inadequate infrastructure and manpower for cancer prevention and treatment in the country, problems a country like South Africa  (in Africa) and the US and most first world countries have mostly overcome.

More recently, the reality further bared it fangs on the nation, when top celebrities and dignitaries like the former deputy senate president, Mr. Wash Pam, Ibadan-based business mogul and Are Musulumi of Yorubaland, Alao Arisekola, former OPEC Secretary General, Rilwan Lukman and the late president General of the Urhobo Progress Union, General Patrick Aziza all fell to the disease in close succession. Surely, theirs weren’t a case of lack of financial capability to pay for the treatment; it simply was a case of late discovery, owing to poor awareness and inadequate attention and treatment facilities.

Also these quick succession of deaths, which took place within a spate of three months further underline the fact that many more unknown faces and names must be regularly wasting away dying unsung and most probably, undocumented. Dr Nzelu therefore concluded that to improve prostate cancer survivor rate in Nigeria, every man must know his risk of prostate cancer as well as the signs and symptoms. These of course, will be in addition to adequate treatment facilities on the ground, which is a responsibility of the government and all able corporate organisations.

Changing lifestyle responsible for increased cancer cases

Dr. Abiodun Popoola, a consultant clinical oncologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, while shedding more light on the cancer scourge in Nigeria says “the burden of cancer is increasing in Africa, Nigeria inclusive because of the ageing and growth of the population, as well as increased prevalence of risk factors associated with economic transition.” This he said includes changes in lifestyle and the recent urbanization/civilisation, which has resulted in the upsurge of confectionery food outlets, leading to a changing dietary habit from the traditional fibre-rich diet, to a highly refined carbohydrate and fat diet. He also cited the increased habit of tobacco use and lack of exercise.

He listed the common cancers amongst women in Nigeria to include Breast cancer, Cervical Cancer and Colorectal Cancer in the order of their occurrence. In men, he singled out Prostate Cancer, Liver Cancer and Colorectal Cancer.

Asked to shower some light on the causes of cancer, given that there are always contradictory messages out there, the gentle doctor spoke of carcinogens, which he described as environmental factors and which he categorised as agents capable of increasing the incidence of neoplasm (growth of tumour). He spoke of Chemical Carcinogens, which include tobacco smoke, industrial toxins (aromatic amines, benzene, nickel).  Next he spoke of Radiation, paying special attention to UV rays and ionizing radiation. According to PubMed, an online publication of the US National Library of Medicine, national Institute of Health, “Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is the major etiologic agent in the development of skin cancers. UVR causes DNA damage and genetic mutations, which subsequently lead to skin cancer.

Dr. Popoola also spoke of exogenous hormones: generally referred to as estrogen. While estrogen is a hormone necessary for the normal development and growth of the breasts and organs important for childbearing, experts however say that a woman’s risk for breast cancer is associated with lifetime exposure to estrogen. Understanding how estrogen works in the body, knowing about how chemicals in the environment can affect body estrogen levels, and how diet and lifestyle factors affect estrogen exposure over a lifetime, may help women make more informed decisions about their bodies and their environment. Lastly here are the dietary factors such as excessive alcohol intake, and high fat foods.

Another major factor responsible for the development of cancer, says Dr. Popoola is Heredity. This he said include Age, as in the case of prostate cancer. He says prostate cancer usually develops in men ‘over’ age 65. Other responsible factors are immune status, which may be influenced by AIDS, virus infections such human hepatitis B virus, which he says normally results in liver cancer. He also spoke of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) which causes Cervical Cancer and Schisomitois or bladder cancer.

Prevention

Dr Popoola classified preventive measures of cancer into three: primary, secondary and tertiary. The primary prevention he said includes a reduction or elimination of exposure to factors that can cause cancer. This he said include vaccination and tobacco control. The secondary prevention, he said will include ‘screening and early detection. Here he spoke of mammography, Fecal Occult Blood Testing (FOBT), colonoscopy and pap smear.

The tertiary preventive measure he said are prompt diagnosis and treatment. This includes effective therapy, symptom management, avoidance of use of oral contraceptives and HRT.

Popoola also spoke of General prevention, which includes exercising at least three hours a week, which could reduce the risk of cancer by 30 percent. The maintenance of normal body weight and avoidance of post-menopausal obesity; having children early in life for women and eating cruciferous vegetables, omega 3 fatty acids and soya beans.

Overall, Popoola says early detection is key to survival of cancer patients.