Nature’s Health: A Birthright of Africa

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CEM INSPIRATION | The phrase “health is wealth” is like an invention that would never go obsolete, but keeping and sustaining a good health altogether is a task of a lifetime.

Nature has blessed Africa with countless but undervalued resources to maintain her health. The medicines of Mama Africa have been conspicuously present in form of roots, leaves, fruits, and seeds. Sadly, it is a dent to the pride of Africa that we have placed higher values on alien lifestyle hence the gifts of our natural habitat can rot for all we care.

In a rush to meet up with the speed of westernization, we have plunged ourselves into the valley of xenocentricism and by so doing we have consciously approved the ethnocentric perspectives of the western minds. Our most cherished cultural heritage have suddenly become insipid in our psychological evaluation; so is there any dignity in eating like Africans?

The vapour of xenocentricism have so much diffused into our cultural marrows that peeling of oranges is almost translating to a taboo. Let me just assume it is indolence, but in place of that, we have chosen the juice across the Atlantic to the detriment of the local Orange Farmer whose oranges are wasting because of low patronage. The food processing “vultures” could not have imagined a better situation. No wonder they were hovering around praying and waiting to descend on the carcasses of poor sales. Mr Farmer is now compelled to sell everything at “kulikuli price”. Where is the joy of being a Farmer? Na wa o!

On a second thought, there is a flaming curiosity to find out why we still hold on to these threat infested lifestyle. What I got were responses that could frighten “shock” to astonishment; _”African delicacies are not really nutritious, our herbs are just too familiar, bitter kola is too bitter jor, indigenous ointment should just mind its business, blahblahblah, and yenyenyen”_ . Hmm, did you just say the above or are my ears deceiving me? The tables have suddenly turned, the ships are down, now you are asking; what kind of diseases are these?

Hello Mr Bigman, have you forgotten the times you casted aspersions on the provisions of Nature? What about the day you looked at Africa with disdain when she tried calling you to order? Were you not defiant to Mama Africa when she reminded you of your root? Madam Slay Queen, weren’t you the one bragging the other day that grilled meat and carbonated drink is your best food? Did you not boast about preferring N15,000 hypohalous cream on your skin to our N200 palm kernel oil? Did you not threaten to stop greeting us when we told you about the importance of locust beans? Since then, did we even have the “liver” to offer you bitter leaf soup? Abeg shift make we hear word!

By the way, those diseases are the aftermath of the lifestyle you adopted in place of Nature’s offer. So stop shouting “Village People” up and down before dem go vex reason your matter.

Here is a soft reminder and a call to action, since we started behaving like them everything changed. We enjoyed the food right, but our body bears the consequences. The drinks are refreshing no doubt but our health is deteriorating. Wake up Africans! See what you’ve got! The breasts of Mama Africa are full of health, cherish her milk, embrace her gifts, choose good health, and live in the natural grace of Africa. It is our birthright!