121 Deaths In One Day!

I have been putting this post off for a long time but as I was scrolling down on Facebook,  I saw 121 deaths in one day from my motherland, Sierra Leone. I cried.

God where are you?

Who wants to blog about sad stuff, who wants to blog about people dying or even wants to dwell on an outbreak that is destroying our nation one death at a time?! Definitely not me. I created this blog for all things sunshine, all things happy and all things good but unfortunately life is not like that. We wake up one morning and our happy days have been replaced by a deadly disease killing children, adults, the rich and the poor.

Where do we go from here?

I saw the report on the 121 deaths in one day from the BBC website and tears welled up in my eyes. I felt helpless and frustrated. Anger and disappointment filled me just watching my people suffer and die helplessly because our government is busy collecting funds and doing nothing constructive to contain, maintain and eradicate this deadly epidemic. We've become a nation with no hope. I see no way out and this is a bad place to be.

I have never witness anything so deadly. I have never encountered anything this destructive. When i lost a young friend to Ebola, it became more than just mere news, it became a reality. It hits home hard. Yea.... that put a sting on it for me. I have families back home,families consisting of young boys and girls who are constantly living in fear. Afraid and scared and locked within the four walls of their homes. Simply devastating.

Ebola is tearing my nation apart and if you haven’t heard what Ebola is by now, then I don’t know which planet you live on. Ebola is wiping my nation out one day at a time. Now Ebola may look like an African problem because of our poor and inadequate health facilities and mere ignorance which I can’t deny helped play a great part in its spread. I can’t believe there are people who still believe Ebola is a myth and just an easy way of conning money off the international communities. I’m just speechless.

If 121 death in one day is not a wakeup call then I don’t know what is. No country should have to go through this ordeal. No one deserves this, no one!

Employment affected and subsequently putting a dent in the economy. For a nation that was just finding its feet, that is the last thing we need. Education system interrupted and lives have been turned upside down in the pace of few months. People are overdosed from the excessive use of chlorine. You look around and people you once shook hands with are now suspects, even your family becomes a suspect. What a sad way to live.

Health workers in the forefront putting their lives at risk gets the hard fists of Ebola and just in case we haven’t shown enough gratitude, I SAY THANK YOU.

Health workers in the forefront,
Just In case You Forget, we appreciate you!

What is our government doing to help and protect us? Well from what I have learnt, not much. They are meant to seek our interests but the spirit of greed and selfishness won’t let them. They live in safety. They have flown their families out to safety and those who can’t are left at the mercy of this deadly disease. All I hear in the news is this money have been donated, this organisation have donated this amount of item…even if I tried I can’t call the amount that is being donated every now and again. What are we doing with all this funds? I am lost and perplexed. Surely there must be a way out.

Mr Government stop squandering all the money. Heck just stop! Selfishness and greed is not why you were put in authority. Remember these people voted you in because they trusted you. If you are not moved by the tears and cry of the nation can you be at least concerned and moved by the number of deaths per day and the alarming rate at which this disease is spreading. Stop being greedy. Stop and look around. The nation is dying a slow death. How can one be so heartless in the midst of all this?! Stop and listen to the death bells. Stop turning a blind eye to the real issue at hand. Are you going to wait for one of your relatives to be affected before you put real mechanisms and strategies in place to combat this deadly outbreak? Mr Government just stop, take a minute to look around and see what is happening, Maybe just maybe you will be able to open your eyes  and see the tragedy, pain, mayhem and confusion of the nation.

Mr Government, do you ever feel like you've failed us?!

Mr Government, How do you sleep at night knowing the multitude is crying, living in daily fear of death? Do you feel accomplished? Do you feel like you’ve done your best? Do you think you have lived up to the expectations of the nation? Or for a swift moment, do you ever feel a pang of disappointment and failure? Mr Government what are you doing? Stop playing and wake up to the reality of things.

I understand Ebola is not the easiest of things to eradicate or get under control. I totally understand it’s not the cheapest thing to maintain but if the outbreak was initially taken seriously and all precautions put in place as opposed to the continuous denial on the government and the people’s part then we won’t be in the 121 death per day zone. We won’t have lost so many health officials as we have already. We won’t have such high rate of death at all. We wouldn’t have lost so many friends and family to this deadly epidemic. There are African countries bigger than Sierra Leone but they weren’t blind to the realities, they valued life so they took precautions. Why are we like this?!!

Sierra Leoneans are you ready to vote them in government again? Are you ready to beat your drums, cups and pans to make sweet music and moonwalk to the lies they will tell you once again? Are you ready to throw your lappa in the air and dance to the deception? Are the masquerades ready to go and the small and shallow minds ready to digest and collect that bag of rice and a gallon of palm oil? Shine your eyes my people, shine your eyes.

Why are we so gullible and satisfied with so little? Why do we fall for all these lies time and time and again? Why are we so easily fooled? Is this just mere greed on our part or maybe we’re just too trusting? Is this because of poverty and the incapability to provide for our own? Or is it just mere laziness and idleness? We need to do better. Only reward a great work with your claps and dances. You can’t reward a child for being bad, how do you expect them to act right and do better? To make our government work in our favour we have to speak up, act right and work with them.

Sierra Leoneans we have to drop this lackadaisical attitude. We have to do better, if our government have failed us then we need to get it together. We need to educate, enlighten and sensitize ourselves and acknowledge the fact that Ebola is real and that no one is exempted. I may not reside in Sierra Leone but from what I have seen some think this is one big joke. They think they are immune to Ebola. Let’s not act ignorant and put our lives at risk and the lives of others. Prevent and protect.

Certain precautions have been set in place like avoiding public gathering but in Sierra Leone the law is only for those who wish to obey it. Laws and regulations are made but not implemented. People do not acknowledge them or should I say the law only goes so far as your money is willing to spread?! The rich and the well to do are exempted from the law but what we are forgetting is that the rich and well to do are not exempted from Ebola. Get real Sierra Leoneans. Lawlessness is not the way forward especially in desperate times like these.

Now our only hope is God but…

However there’s hope but God helps those who helps themselves. God will only intervene when we are ready for him to. Ebola is not bigger than God, no never! Our God is ageless, timeless and he delivers us in time of trouble but don’t go organising a rally and expect God to show up and save you. It doesn’t work like that. God saves but he is not a magician.

Hope!

Not even Ebola can taint the beautiful image of Sierra Leone in my head. Not even Ebola can take away my fond memories of the motherland. Sierra Leone is still my paradise. Christmas is round the corner, what would normally be spent in Sierra Leone drinking coconut from the shell or star beer at number 2 or Lumley beach while enjoying the sunshine on my skin and breeze through my hair is now looking a lot gloomier, soggy and cold.

Not even Ebola can taint my memories of SIERRA LEONE!

Lumley Beach - taken on one of my holidays in the motherland.

What happened to Sierra Leone? I think Sierra Leoneans happened to Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone is down but we are not out. We shall rise again. We shall overcome. Our God delivers. He will not leave us neither forsake us. In times of trouble we must be bold enough to call on his name. I know the hardest thing to display now is faith. In the midst of trials and tribulations our faith is low and tested but we must not give up.

God will show up...and show out

God will show up and show out for Sierra Leone in Jesus name!

Here's a poem from a frustrated Sierra Leonean, living in Sierra Leone.

Hope in a time of ‪#‎Ebola‬ by VFORNA.

Ebola comes to a nation,

ruled by ‪#‎poverty‬, ‪#‎ignorance‬, ‪#‎corruption‬,

and there is more;

‪#‎tribalism‬, ‪#‎unpatriotism‬, ‪#‎greed‬.

These are the reasons why,

Ebola may succeed.

I close my eyes to pray,

yet all I see are people dying,

What is happening? 

The doctors and the nurses

the ones giving 

all the caring 

and ‪#‎sensitising‬,

God rest their selfless souls

but with them gone

Ebola may have won

Down my cheeks tears roll,

as I see a child of four in pain,

the mother dead,the two will soon meet again.

Oh ‪#‎SierraLeone‬, ebola has left its dirty,dirty stain.

Education on a stand still,

‪#‎vaccine‬ has not been found still,

People don't know their next step

as the nation tumbles down hill.

Ebola will end,yes it definitely will.

But first we must unite as a nation

Throw away the tribalism

Love our country,increase our ‪#‎patriotism‬. 

Lying - thieving politicians, 

put the country first, 

use the money 

the ‪#‎world‬ sends in. 

Life is but one chance

Sierra Leoneans, kill the ignorance,

Learn ‪#‎hygiene‬.

Ebola is real.

‪#‎Contagious‬,

a bleeder,

Killer headaches and fever,

Ebola is real.

But together,‪#‎united‬ against Ebola,

there is hope still.

~ Victor Osman Forna

Don't allow Ebola to taint this image of our beloved land inyour head.
We shall overcome!

Till then

Xoxo