Chu'Emeka Makata, MD

I came out of my office following a cacophony in the lounge. I was determined to sanction the staff behind it because it has happened so many times. When they are not watching African Magic Channel and laughing on top of their voices, they are throwing banters even when patients are waiting to be attended to. This has to stop, I said to myself but what I saw when I stepped out took the wind out of my lungs. A man who despite his state I could see must have been a big fellow. Strangely, he had three arms rather than the usual two. He was brought to the hospital by almost everybody from his community. He was gravely ill. I managed to quieten the people down. This one needs intensive care I reasoned and without wasting any time, I started management.

As a matter of protocol, management starts from history. I therefore looked for the strange mans relative since he could not talk. To my surprise, the man had no family. All the people he came with were members of his community. He has actually been dwelling among them and he has touched their lives in one way or the other. They all knew him well and despite his strange anatomy, they all loved him. I figured out a woman who seemed most passionate about the strange man and asked her to tell me the man’s story.

Doctor, she started. This man was born into our community over forty years ago. At birth, he was noticed to have three arms. The mother who died about two weeks after his birth named him Democracy. She said she had an encounter with a spirit in her dream who instructed her to give him the name. His three arms she also named Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. Because of his strangeness, he was going to be prone to bullying she said but his three arms will be strong. He will use them to check any attempt to bully him. That came to pass like the mother said it.

 As he grew up she continued, those hands were not used just for his own personal protection. He protected all of us in our community. He provided shelter for us. He gave every hungry person food. He clothed us. Most importantly, he gave us freedom and maintained law and order among us. Nobody treated the other arbitrarily. He brought stability to our community and for the first time, we started living peacefully. Everybody loved him and we made him the leader of our community.

To cement peace in our community, he organised a vigilante group to help him in matters of peace and order while he attended to other community matters. The vigilante group started well but along the line they became envious of the achievement of Democracy. They were particularly displeased by the fact that he was given credit for maintaining peace in our community. They felt he was taking credit for the contribution they were making. They forgot that he employed them, gave them uniform and portfolio and paid them from our tax.

One day, the two leaders of the vigilante group came to Democracy’s house with a lorry load of their men. One of the Leaders was from Ota .The second was from Minna. They commanded their men to seize Democracy. They beat him so bad and dragged him into the house. They were there with him for some time. We cried on top of our voices but that was the much we could do because they were heavily armed. They even shot some members of our community who insisted on rescuing Democracy from them. Finally, they left. That was when we rushed in only to find democracy lying in the pool of his own blood. We lifted him up but he could not talk. His three arms were so weak .They actually appeared paralysed. We rushed him to the house of the medicine man in our community. He offered sacrifices to his ancestors. He gave us aboniki, shear butter and alovera to apply on his wounds. He said that, that will restore his arms. He also said he was going to bind the vigilante with the spirit of our ancestors so that they will never come to attack our Democracy or any other person in our community again. However each time Democracy appears to be recovering, they came to attack him. We have discovered that each time they attacked him; they gave him an injection in his arms. These are the containers of the injection and the label on it reads corruption. That is what they keep injecting into his arms and it is almost paralysing him because he can hardly use the arms again.

After the last attack, we were bringing him to the hospital when we met a very strong man of God on the way. He told us that these things are spiritual attacks and it is happening to Democracy because there is an evil spirit dwelling in him. That is why he has three arms in the first place. He said the only way to save him from further attack is to deliver him from the legion of evil spirit in him.

We took him to his church and since then he has been praying for him. We have also been praying and fasting with him but Democracy is getting worse every day. Today, he brought out a sharp cutlass and said that the Holy Ghost had instructed him to cut off his arms. We asked him which of the arms and he said all. Democracy managed to give us a sign that he does not want that so when the man of God left to sharpen his knife, we took him away from the church and brought him to you. Please Doctor, you have to save this man or we will all perish in the hands of those devilish vigilante. The worst is that those leaders of the vigilante have all retired. Since democracy is sick, they wear their agbada all around parading themselves as our saviours. They keep stealing our money and they keep driving around town in exotic cars blaring their siren to the discomfort of everybody. Please, save him for us or we are all finished doctor.

Her story moved me to the brink of tears but I am a doctor. If my emotion gets the better part of me, what will become of all these people looking up to me to save their dear Democracy? I pulled myself together and went ahead to examine the sick man.

On examination, I found a silent and chronically ill looking man. He was febrile, cyanosed and jaundiced. His fingers were clubed.He also had generalised lyphadenopathy.His hair was silky and brownish. He was comatose with a Glasgow coma scale of three and his pupils were fixed and dialated.His muscles were severely atrophied and he only showed flickers of movement in his fingers .

 In summary, I found a gravely ill looking man with paralyses of his upper arms. The man was suffering from complications of long standing battering with paralyses of his three upper arms-my diagnosis.

I started drug treatment after prognosticating for his people. I told them that Democracy is gravely ill. Our chance of restoring his health is slim. Even at that, his management will be multidisciplinary. All hands must be on deck. He needs drug as much as he needs care. He needs physiotherapy too to retrain his atrophied muscles and arms. Above all, he must be protected from these vigilantes, both the retired and the serving ones among them. They must be willing to go the whole nine yards in protecting him so that he can recover fully and get back to his work.

As at the moment, he has been responding well to treatment. He is critical but stable. If they are modest and willing, they can protect him. In the alternative they may fold their arms and watch them kill him. The aftermath is better imagined.

Robot  # 1 | 04.07.2009 08:32

He offered sacrifices to his ancestors. He gave us aboniki, shear butter and alovera to apply on his wounds. He said that, that will restore his arms. He also said he was going to bind the vigilante with the spirit of our ancestors so that they will never come to attack our Democracy or any other person in our community again. However each time Democracy appears to be recovering, they came to attack him . We have discovered that each time they attacked him; they gave him an injection in his arms. These are the containers of the injection and the label on it reads corruption. That is what they keep injecting into his arms and it is almost paralysing him because he can hardly use the arms again. ...Read the full article.