"AGAH" (medilag students) - HOPE AGAINST SUICIDE. by Kingston O.

 Professor Boniface Oye Adeniran, MNI, an obstetrician and gynecologist at the college of medicine of the University of Lagos, also the chairman of the campaign against unwanted pregnancy, “C. A.U.P”.

Venerable Joe  Eziaghighala, a dignitary of the diocese of Lagos mainland African communion, the vicar of saint Bath Anglican Church Aguda Surulere, the Arch deacon of Aguda Arch deaconry in the diocese of Lagos mainland,

 In this interview, said in Nigeria generally the issue of abortion are found in the criminal and penal code –Prof. Boniface Oye.

In my lecture, I went through the historical periscope to situate the issue, the question, the subject matter of suicide –Ven. Joe Eziaghighala, a speaker at the event.

Can we meet you sir and who are you to “AGAH” and what is AGAH?

I am Boniface Oye Adeniran MNI, a professor of obstetrician and gynecology at the college of medicine of the University of Lagos, Idi Araba campus and also the chairman of the campaign against unwanted pregnancy, C.A.U.P. The C.A.U.P is campaign against unwanted pregnancy. It serves as the institutional base support for action group on adolescent health. The shorten form of action group on adolescent health is ‘AGAH’.          AGAH is an undergraduate body that serves as an advocate for sexual and reproductive health of undergraduate. They also provide youth friendly services for the undergraduate. This is a peer to peer program. It’s work better because their peers can easily listen to them. Their peers in trouble can easily information, support and advice from them.

How do AGAH help their peers?

If a victim is knowledgeable enough they can contact AGAH and they will be of help because they have an office and the office can link them for appropriate services within Lagos teaching hospital.

How do you handle the case of rape?

Rape is a violent crime and it should be reported to the appropriate authority. Lagos state ministry of health has appropriate program to address that particular case.  And has for the pregnancy, in Lagos state law there are only two indications to terminate pregnancy: one is to save a woman’s physical health and secondly to save a woman’s life. Those are the two indications to terminate a pregnancy in Lagos state. In Nigeria generally the issue of abortion is found in the criminal and penal code. The criminal codes apply to the Southern states of Nigeria and the penal codes apply to the Northern states of Nigeria and the federal capital territory Abuja. And there is only one indication nationwide except Lagos state that has amended its law. The only one indication nationwide to terminate pregnancy is to save the life of a woman.

What are your plans to extend this service to the secondary and the primary schools?

The medical student has organized this symposium to bring about awareness and to impact knowledge of the word suicide, predisposing factors and prevention even as doctor Ogbolu has delivered in his guest lecture. AGAH will link up with Dr. Ogbolu and they will bring about the necessary program that AGAH members can get involve with in preventing suicide in Lagos state.

----PART II

Can we meet you sir?

My name is Venerable Joe Eziaghighala, a dignitary of the diocese of Lagos mainland African communion, the vicar of saint Bath Anglican Church Aguda Surulere, the Arch deacon of Aguda Arch deaconry in the diocese of Lagos mainland. The society in focus AGAH is a society that my daughter belong to. She is a part of the editorial crew and she is instrument to inviting me to this program today. The program center on the subject of suicide and we look at it from a broad base perspective and this is why we are here.

How do you justify drug addiction leading to suicide?

There is no justification. There is no denial. We can deny the fact that atimes suicide can be drug addiction induced. It could also be induced for many factors that stands out as intervening as direct variables and its prevalent and that justifies the essence of this outing. It cut across the nook and crannies of the society, social strata’s, the professional learning of the society. We have heard the instances of directors that killed themselves, priest that killed themselves, rich and the poor, male and females, young and old drawn from across a broad strata of the society that killed themselves. So anything that involves bringing people together to discuss the matter. First of all, we must not deny the fact this is a prevailing reality. It has been there. In my lecture I went through the historical periscope to situate the issue, the question, the subject matter of suicide. I went back to happenings when Socrates was compelled to drink the hemlock many years before Christ. And we also looked at the Cleopatra’s, and Anthony, and also the popular ones the Romeo and Juliet and the others because the central frame work is terribly unwinding, it’s a broad base thing, it’s a challenge, it’s a hydra headed phenomenon. The point is this days we are compounded, the whole thing is compounded by the question and the subject matter of the New world order where people are closely knit together, in quote by the modern technology yet the nearer they are the farther they find themselves, they become. And you have that standing out instead of building bridges, the people are building wars.

What about parental infidelity, can it lead to suicide?

Yes, parental example, parental infidelity. We have seen, read of instances of somebody came home picked up a gun and shot the children, the wife and himself, left a note that he had discovered that the children were born out of wedlock whereas the woman was within the content of matrimony, a married woman. And we have also heard of instances of young girls who killed themselves because they were disappointed by someone who has promised to marry them. So infidelity whether it is within parental content or outside the parental content remains a prevailing phenomenon and that is why the bible put it clear; the law says ‘ thou shall not commit adultery because adultery leads to problem and so many complications, it does not end with just meeting in the bedroom. There are ripple effects and part of the effects is suicide. That we have recorded. Take a look at the woman that we are told of her story that at the end of the day after so many years the husband discovered that she was busy doing something out the approve limit of her being a married person but rather than facing the shame  she decided to kill herself.

What are the plans put up by AGAH to prevent suicide?

They have their magazine, that magazine when it goes into some people’s hands, you never know who will read them but there is a limit because they are students. They have limit to how far they can exact influence, because atimes influence is a function of how far you are connected in the society but I know that when they catch the light here as young as they are when they grow old they will not depart from it. They will be able to do better in times to come.

Please tell us about cases of suicide AGAH had prevented and mention what can lead to suicide?

Well about this. what I would say is that, it is not easy to have the record or the statistics base on the fact that all you do is to speak the word, you use the available media to reach out and when you reach out, you never know who is listening and more often than not those who listen and change their mind don’t come back to you but the fact remains that at the end  of the day somebody have been saved. For the second part of that question a lot of things can lead to suicide. We have the issue of self-image. When somebody have a bloated impression and at the end of the day its deflated or when somebody has a wounded impression, an opinion that is already deflated at the very beginning of the word that is a problem. And again I don’t think that there is a link from the D.N.A but there are some challenges that are there that span across generation, you have some families that you can trace up to three or four, five generations that have committed suicide. We also have the believe that atimes it can be projected spiritually. Somebody can be projected spiritually and he decides to do something. And again on the medical side. When some are sick and they get treated, when they begin to suffer at the extreme end they look forward to either using the means of intern to kill, to end or destroying their lives by their own hands. We also have the challenge coming from the society where people hardly have sympathy for those who are wounded. In life people are wounded and the best thing to do when people get wounded is not to destroy them and to delete every other thing concerning their future, people needs to know that things can still get better at the end of the day.
Their anniversary is coming on by November.