Sometime ago you will find a very famous little poster hanging in many offices in Juba. I used to have one in my little shack too. It is the one about alcohol drinking. It is called “I am call alcohol” or something like that. The little posters say “I” kill and do all sorts of things: breaking up families, destroying jobs, etc. It is no longer to be found in Juba, or the ones that are present, probably hidden somewhere collecting dust.
Just afew days back my next door neighbour was found dead in his house. Friends say he had been drinking all the hight before. And the diagnosis: “ketuk”! Last week another guy was brought into my clinic, very sick, with signs of liver failure. He had a very long history of drinking.
There are many stories in Juba in the past, with very similar endings, like people being found dead under trees. Now the phenomenon has gone up several scales for the worse. Many people are talikg about the epidemic of drinking in Juba, but nobody cares to do anything about it. The unfortunate thing is that people continue to drink during working hours, in the offices.
Moderation is the key. When alcohol consumption begins to interfere with your life, know that you are on the way down. With bars springing up in every corner of town, regulating it will be a tough job. I believe we have other pressing matters to deal with, but it is clear that the effects are being stored for a life time of troubles. A public health disater.
I think I will look for that poster again and hang it on the wall in my clinic. It will be a small step, but I know my patients will read it.
Just the other day . . . (sorry folks, will tell you later!)
