DEAR AUNTY DORA

Dear Aunty Dora

It is with great concern that I write  this letter , and  I hope it gets to you, in a better state of health than you were at the time it was being written.

My short letter directly pertains to your present health condition and of course, your presence at the National Conference. I feel deeply obliged to write you this letter because of the love and respect I developed for you during your reign as Director General of NAFDAC.

To me, and a host of other sane minded Nigerians, you remain the best human ever to have been appointed by any Nigerian government, both Federal and State alike. You were an epitome of responsibility, diligence and good change. Your commitment to the course presented our heavily blighted nation with an ember of hope in a pitch dark tunnel.You gave us a reason to believe that with a few more of your kind, redemption for Nigeria lurks around the corner.

You also set a convincing precedent and of course proof of the fact that women, if given the chance, could outshine the bulk of our chauvinistic male folks who egotistically feel leadership and governance in Nigeria is a boys only fiesta. The enormity of your impact can be better felt considering the fact that most Nigerians (myself inclusive) sparsely knew about NAFDAC until you came on the scene. Even now, the acronym has gradually ceased from being a household name to a "just another government parastatal”- back to the way it was before your tenure. That sufficiently lays credence to your accomplishments as its boss. It is even most amusing that we no longer hear of illegal ice cream industries, sachet water manufacturing companies, drug stores, to name a few. All those news now seem non-existent. Is it that fake food and drug manufacturers have repented, or turned a new leaf or that they have ceased to exist at Onitsha, Aba and Lagos or even Ibadan? Or could it be that the present NAFDAC set up frowns against such publicities? That I know is most unlikely. So, it leaves  me with one conclusion, NAFDAC is not as active as it was during Aunty Dora’s time.

I recall how much the word “NAFDAC” and “NAFDAC Inspectors” used to send chills down the spines of manufactures of drugs and food. The phrase “NAFDAC Number” was on the lips of everybody. Yes! Everybody! What happened to the radical campaigns against bromate in bread, mercury and hydroquinol in body creams?

Personally, for a quintessential woman like you, I still bear my reservations about what Anambra state must have denied themselves of when they chose not to allow “a woman lead them”.

Having said all these, I’ll plunge straight into what necessitated this letter; your current state of health and your apparent insistence to attend the confab.

Granted, patriotism is a noble idea, and it takes only a stoic, an amazon of a rare breed to do it the way you have done in the past few years. That notwithstanding, seeing you at the confab really gave me and a couple of your fans  and well wishers a lot to ponder on. It was torturously difficult to see the once healthy and physically strong woman you were now lost in rather shocking deterioration- A perfect replica of a brown skinned African woman. For a while, I doubted myself and questioned the wellness of my eyes.

Aunty, we love it that you love our nation even to the point of risking your own health, but please, it would do us great damage to see you get hurt in the event that you fail to take proper care of yourself because anything done in excess is a passport to tragedy. If for anything, my beloved mum sings your praise every day like you’re the best thing that has ever happened to Nigeria during your short reign as NAFDAC boss. I can’t even imagine the amount of hurt she’ll go through if she finds out about your current condition.

Like the local saying goes, “Soldier go; soldier come, barrack remain”. Nigeria would always be here for you to come back strong and healthy to continue your diligent struggles and contributions to her growth and betterment. But, it is of extreme importance that you take a while off to take proper care of yourself, if for anything else, your family and of course, my aging mother who sees you like her Ada. Also, your efforts towards a better Nigeria would no doubt be a light years more effective if done with a clean bill of health and in a physically fit state.

Finally, and most importantly, I hope the good Lord continues to answer the prayers of a host of Nigerians praying for your recovery and overall well being in the shortest possible time. We shall all continue to have our “Madam Nafdac” in our prayers and with that; it is easy to see that there will surely be joy in the morning.

May God continue to bless you, your household and our beloved Nation Nigeria which you have worked assiduously to improve.