| Bishop Ezeokafor |
The bishop of Awka Diocese was recently
sent interview questions bordering about Sickle Cell Anemia and related issues as
it concerns the church. Following are excerpts of the questions and his responses
1.
Research has it that, despite the
fact that we now live in an information age, babies with sickle cell anemia are
still being born. How do you react to this and what is the Church doing to stem
this tide?
It
is unfortunate that there are still cases of sickle cell anemia. One would expect
that as the awareness of the challenges that sickle cell anemia poses to those
who suffer from it, determined steps would have been taken to ensure that no
one is born with that condition. This is however not the case as a result of a
lot of factors. First, in as much as we can be said to be in the information
age, it has to be noted that what has happened is that it is easier to access
information now than in previous years. This does not however mean that the
average level of awareness of socio-economic, political and medical issues in
our community is satisfactory. It is still the case that so much of the
information out there in the public domain are inaccessible to many people in
our communities, either because of illiteracy or poor educational background. So,
I will not be surprised that many people in our communities do not know much
about sickle cell anemia and therefore cannot be expected to take the necessary
precautions to prevent more people coming into the world with that condition.
The second point is that the health challenges that those with sickle cell
anemia put up with are sometimes explained in terms of what is called
“spiritual attack.” This diagnosis favors resort to deliverance prayers, vigils
and other spiritual exercises as remedies. Some of the so-called men and women
of God who propagate such views about illnesses hijack consciousness and
channel it to the spiritual realm with the result that the precautions that
should be taken to forestall such illnesses are completely ignored. As already
said, it is quite unfortunate that there is such a level of ignorance and
misinformation in our communities.
As
always and in line with the Biblical injunction in Ecclesiasticus 38:1-15, the
Church champions the cause that the intellect given to human beings by God is
for a purpose. Science and technology, rightly understood and practiced, are
part of God’s providential plan for guiding the world. Therefore, the Church
takes seriously the scientific finding that the health challenges faced by
patients of sickle cell anemia are rooted in the genetic endowment they receive
from their parents. Consequently, the Church makes it mandatory that intending
couples should know their genotypes. The Church also discourages people most
likely to have babies with sickle cell anemia from getting married to each
other. This way, if people most likely to beget children with sickle cell
anemia are discouraged from getting married, the condition will resolve itself
over time.
2.
One of the major challenges of
sickle cell patients is that of stigmatization, both from immediate family
members and the general public. How is the Church helping to correct people’s
wrong perception of sickle cell carriers?
The
greatest source of the stigmatization of sickle cell patients is the
interpretation of the phenomenon in terms of “ogbanje” or in terms of malevolent spirits who decide to be born as
human beings in order to cause misery to their families through their health
challenges. In these interpretations, the sickle cell patient is treated as if
he or she is not a patient but the agent of the misery of the parents. Such
perspectives are heightened by the interpretation of sickle cell anemia in
terms of “spirit forces.” The Church however defends the medical interpretation
of sickle cell anemia. From this medical point of view, sickle cell patients
are rather victims of the ignorance or the foul-hardy decisions of their
parents who have the genetic pre-disposition that could result in the begetting
of offsprings with sickle-cell anemia. Sickle cell patients are therefore
entitled to the support of the society and should not be treated otherwise.
3.
Many folks have hidden behind the
name – Sickle Cell Foundation – to rip off the gullible well-meaning members of
the public, when their foundation makes no impact whatsoever on those living
with sickle-cell anemia. How does his Lordship react to this trend?
This
is really unfortunate if such foundations for sickle cell patients make no
impact on the lives of those it is established to serve. If this lack of impact
is as a result of ineffectiveness on the part of those concerned, I would beg
that something be done immediately so that the foundation serves those it is
set up to serve. If however, such foundations are set up with the fraudulent
intention of ripping off well-meaning members of the public, the act is despicable.
4.
Recently, people living with
sickle cell anemia have decided to take the bull by the horn by going about
more intensive sensitization project, starting from Anambra State. How can the
Church partner with them in realizing this cause?
I
am happy that those living with sickle cell anemia have taken up their cause. They
are indeed the best placed to champion it. This neither disqualifies other
people who are not facing this challenge from championing the same cause nor
should suspicion be raised that advocates who are not sickle cell patients are
out to feed fat on other people’s difficulties. This is because none sickle
cell patients might have been motivated to champion the cause either because
they lost friends, relatives and loved ones to the complications of sickle cell
anemia and therefore decided to join the fight against this preventable medical
condition or because they are genuinely interested in the eradication of this
condition. I am making this clarification because the Church is already
committed to the cause of stopping sickle cell anemia by addressing the root
cause. A lot more can still be done to sensitize our people. Indeed, the Church
is ready and willing to partner with any group to do this. To the glory of God,
the return of schools to their original owners by the administration of the
erstwhile governor of Anambra State, His Excellency, Chief, Sir Peter Obi,
means that the Church has the platform to carry out this advocacy. The schools can
serve as launching pad for such sensitization efforts. But before the schools
can be effectively used, a whole lot has to be done first – the teachers have
to be educated, teaching and learning materials have to be provided, etc.
5.
One of the prime suspects that
runs Sickle Cell Foundation Nigeria, has been contacted by a reporter and from
his response it was gathered that he neither has offices in the South-east, nor
representatives, yet he added the prefix ‘Nigeria’ to his foundation. It was
also gathered that he has collected some multiple millions from the federal
government and yet he has not impacted on the lives of sickle cell patients.
How would you react to this?
Well,
I will not quarrel with him for adding the prefix ‘Nigeria’ to his Foundation even
if it has nothing on ground in the South-east. I am more interested in what he
is spending the millions he has received on and on whether the failure of the
Foundation to impact on the lives of sickle cell patients is due to poor
management or embezzlement of funds. If he has spent commensurate sum of money on
anything related to the fight against sickle cell anemia, even if not in the
South-east, I will congratulate him while drawing his attention to the
South-east as also needful of such efforts. But if he has mismanaged the grants
received or diverted it to other purposes, I can only say that he is feeding
fat on the misery of other people and should desist from doing so and change
his ways.
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