Writing tributes and eulogies is not what I am usually comfortable with. The reason is simple. In our environment, you just can’t make an unfriendly statement about the dead. It is a very old tradition of ours and it has stuck with us from generation to generation. This was painfully brought to the fore by a priest when during the funeral service of a member of his church had this to say during the homily: “How many us in this hall today can swear that so far he/her has lived the type of life this man lived so that on a day like this the priest would not be forced to lie and you would just giggle at us because you know him well?” To me those were words on marble.
It happened that it was a harvest of deaths in my neighbourhood a couple of weeks ago. First was the death of a nine year son of my friend who was on holidays. He had sustained what was definitely and aptly described as green stick fracture of the radius and ulnar bones of the right forearm. To my friend he believed that the traditional bone setters were the best option in this type of situation. They were invited to treat the boy. This was of cause without my knowledge. It was a couple of days later that the boy was brought to my facility. By this time the boy was in serious abdominal pains with breathing challenges. He couldn’t open his mouth because of spasm of the muscles of mastication and facial expression. This was straight forward trismus from tetanus.
The disease is caused by gram positive bacteria known as clostridium tetanus. The generalized skeletal muscle spasm is caused by preformed toxin known as tetanospasmin which on binding to the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord trigger off the contraction. Because of collateral morbidity and exhaustion the prognosis is always poor. The young lad passed on the next day. The other deaths were that of two childless women who passed away in their sleep due to complications of long standing hypertension and depression. Both also had kidney failure.
The one that shook us most was that of Alhaji Idrissa Seidu who also passed on while asleep. The medical history has it that a week before his demise, he had collapsed and was quickly revived. I must confess that I did not know whether he had any health condition. The news of his death was like a rude awakening to members of our community and it spread like wild fire. In keeping with Islamic injunction he was buried that same morning. The spectacle of this man who had NOTHING, going by today’s values, wrapped in simple white cloth and escorted by virtually all who heard in close area of Satellite town to his final resting place was something else. There was no organized convoy of cars and no casket. The crowd could only be described as a mob that needed no security escort. They were all appreciative mourners who were just saying: “thanks Alhaji for touching our lives.”
Alhaji Idrissa Seidu was our local security personage who had a small kiosk at close 20 junction Satellite town, Lagos. For some unexplained reason no one on the neighbourhood ever called him Aboki or Maigadi. Some of us, who after living with him for more than twenty five years, didn’t even know his name. You may say that it is quite possible, Lagos being what it is, but not for a man who touched our lives the he did. To all of us Idrissa was simply Alhaji.
The kids knew him more than some times their parents. For my kids he was God sent and a blessing to me. My children during their formative years attended a nearby private school, the Learning field School in Satellite town. On countless number of occasions, as they passed by on their way to school, they would collect biscuits from him and when I sent him the money the next day he’ll politely decline to take it. And I wondered how he managed to replenish his stock. My only conclusion that he considered the Kiosk business as a means of keeping himself away from boredom while concentrating on the job of a watchman.
Just before his demise, my first daughter came on a research visit to Lagos from Benin and had to stay with us. Little did I know that she brought a token gift for Alhaji? After she had delivered her present, she still collected her traditional biscuit and refused to pay! Alhaji merely laughed and she mocked him. When she told me about the incident, I had wanted to reprimand her that being a big girl now that she was not supposed to do that. But for some reason that I couldn’t explain, I kept my peace. She wasn’t around when he passed on because she was rounding up her master’s degree program, her immediate junior had gone for NYSC posting and the second is doing her last week in Chemical Engineering.
I am sure that he also touched the lives of other children in the neighbourhood.I wondered whether he ever got angry. Even when you came back late, he knew the sound of the cars in the neighbourhood and their owners, even those of us who lived opposite. He would come and politely open the gate even when you insist to do it yourself to save him the trouble. He would ask you to remain inside your car, and that could easily be interpreted as: “stay and let me chest the bullet if they come!” Honestly he could go that far. It so painful that we took him for granted and slept with our eyes closed and our senses oblivious of whatever happened. He has so humbled us and made to realize that you don’t have to be rich and powerful to touch people’s lives.
What we didn’t realize all the years we lived together was that we had a gentle Gideon in our midst. Now the hollowness of our safety is creeping in. I am aware that hs son has stepped into his shoes. The young man is meek and gentle in appearance. My wish for him is to further his education even on part time bases. I have my doubt that with the current economic meltdown and cluelessness in the country, we have the collective capacity to make it happen. But with God nothing is impossible. For now it is well and good night Alhaji drissa Seidu.
We will continue the review of the HIV 2016 guidelines in a fortnight.