More Deaths More Money

I met a fella that I haven’t seen for a long time at Cape Verde International Airport. We sat at one of the cafés at the airport lounge waiting for our flight to Senegal to be announced. Then, I decided to take a Lansoprazole capsule for my stomach ulcer, which is subsiding at the moment.

The guy looked at me and said; you don’t have to take that medicine. I said what do you mean? This is a medicine for my stomach ulcer and so, if I don’t take it, how do I get cured? He replied; if you have faith you’ll be healed. I recalled immediately who I was discussing.

Now, let me tell you a bit about this guy. He is an insufficiently educated businessman. A member of a Christian denomination known as Faith Tabernacle; is a born-again Christian that ends his greetings with: it’s well or God is in Control. A man who believes that he can escape a dangerous situation by saying: it is not my portion.

Thereafter, he started complaining about his friend, a medical doctor that recently opened his private practice. His grouse with the medic is that the physician wants him to retain his hospital for all the medical needs of his company.

And so, I asked him why he has a problem with that. He said everyone that works for his company is a member of Faith Tabernacle. And hence; they don’t need the doctor’s services.

And that the most annoying thing is that the doctor doesn’t let him be; the medic kept disturbing him, listing ailments that are common today, which can be covered by what he called medical insurance.

He continued, my brother; can you just imagine what that useless man that called himself a doctor is wishing me - ill health. I reject it in Jesus’ name. It will never be my portion and that of my family including my staff, in the mighty name of Jesus – Ameen!

Furthermore, the manner in which the doctor has been persuading him shows that he is likely to be praying that a lot of people should fall ill so that he’ll be making money. Then I quipped, more illness more money. He replied, exactly; that’s what I am saying.

At this point, I started laughing to his displeasure. I asked him if he’d ever heard of ‘prevention is better than cure’. He said yes and I said that’s exactly what the doctor is offering you. Well, it’s your decision to make.

Nevertheless, nobody is in doubt that God heals but I have frequently heard that ‘heaven helps those who help themselves’. Your faith can heal you but you still need to visit a doctor if you are unwell. But then, pray to God to direct your physician to get your diagnosis right.

Let me use myself as an example. I am someone who doesn’t indulge in self-medication. When I suspected I might have a stomach ulcer, I consulted my doctor who confirmed so. He prescribed some medicine for me including some diets that I must avoid.

After I have finished the course of medication that he prescribed including avoiding those diets that he advised; the irritation in my stomach didn’t abate. I became a little agitated and thought, perhaps I have been poisoned. Anyway, I prayed to God to reveal what could be wrong with me.

A few days later, I was reading a post by Dr. Karen Amaechi, which she called: U is for ULCERS (read it here). I took particular attention when she wrote: “To effectively get rid of the ulcers, you have to make some sacrifices”. One of the sacrifices is to “avoid peppery and oily foods”.

Unfortunately, my doctor told me to avoid peppery but not oily foods. And I am somebody that eats my yam with red oil, which was why my stomach irritation didn’t stop even with the medication that I was using.

Well, I have stopped eating oil entirely and I feel much better now. I guess God answered my prayers by reading Dr Amaechi’s post.

All the same, I told the businessman that if he avoids doctors because he doesn’t want to be one of the ‘more illnesses’ that will give the doctor ‘more money’, then, his family will surely make more money for a company like Dignity. He asked; what does the company do?

Well, Dignity is a funeral services company. It has just informed its shareholders that revenue rose 24% in the first quarter. The reason for this increase was attributed to a 19% increase in the number of deaths within the same period.

The businessman reacted, that means more deaths more money for the company. And I said exactly! For a second, doubt was written on his face and he thus asked; how did you get this information? I am a shareholder. So you have shares in a company that wishes death so that they can make money.

In the U.S. and Europe, it is called capitalism. A company like Dignity exists for people like you who wouldn’t go to Hospital. The truth is, the more you visit your doctor the less money a company like Dignity makes. And the less you visit your doctor the more profit Dignity makes.

Before he could ask further questions our boarding announcement to Dakar, Senegal was called.

Inside the plane and halfway into our journey, the crew demanded if there was a doctor in the plane because a female passenger was distressed. A doctor tried to help but couldn’t do much as the lady died subsequently (this is no fiction).

On arrival at Dakar, the businessman was visibly traumatized as well as all of us on the plane. He managed to say: what a terrible world, I said yeah; and an income for another funeral services company.

He looked at me and asked; what did you just say now? And before I could volunteer an answer; from the airport’s public address system came: the final boarding announcement to Paris.

I turned to the businessman and said; that’s my call; but remember, more illness more money for the doctor, or more deaths more money for the funeral director, it’s your call.

~ liberate your mind

Comments

  1. First of all,i love the way you have written this piece; a dose of funny,intrigue,facts all embedded in one write-up..nice! i felt i was watching a movie until you finally had to board and i realized am still in Nigeria..lol

    Well,it seems the African man,sorry to say,some Christians especially have taken religion out of context and do not really understand the word "faith". And these fatalities or should i say beliefs usually happens when it comes to health issues, no one will say ,i believe in God and nothing will happen to me and stand in front of a moving trailer or a train. I don't even know what to blame because even the educated ones amongst them sometimes have this mentality. Let me borrow the theme "It is well"..

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    1. Rashidah, thanks for the compliments

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  2. The average Man is always thinking someone is after his pocket, a scarcity mentality that is driven into most of us as we grow up, you can see this attitude in almost every sector of their lives. they key is Knowledge, we must do our best to keep educating anyone whatever chance we get. Sad for the lady that died on board.

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    1. Thanks Oyidiya, you have said it all - knowledge is the key

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  3. Faith?... faith without work is totally baseless.. Let him know that so the should be that ur drugs will bring u healing.
    May the soul of the woman rest in peace..

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  4. Beautiful piece! I must say I didn't know what to expect when I read the title, but I loved it. Also, thanks for the mention. Glad to know I could help you in such a short period. Have a swell day.

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    1. Doc; Thanks for the compliment and I hope you won't send me a bill for taking your Ulcer prescription without your consent?

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