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BACKGROUND
This Easter was unique in the manner in which I personally marked it. Unlike previous years when my holidays were inundated with church activities, I decided to find a different way of reflecting in this yuletide. Of course one does no wrong if the period is devoted entirely for making time to further the course of the man (Jesus Christ) whose birth and death the world cannot stop celebrating. This time around I devoted my Easter celebration largely to reading.
Considering the demanding nature of the work environment, I decided not to spare any chance in my quest to update my vocabulary bank with the freedom and independence the Easter break banqueted. In fact, this time around the giver of light and darkness, ECG, was a good compatriot in my reading expedition.
I love words. There is nothing that keep me so excited than to chance upon new words, ones that I can apply in my every day interaction and thought-revving pieces.
In fact, I have come to believe that words are palm oil that galvanizes thoughts and convictions – (Full Credit to one of Africa’s erudite -The Late Chinua Achebe) -This explains my unbridled penchant to comb for new words. For most of the time that I spent scanning through my Oxford dictionary any time I chanced on a new word, one word caught my attention, plunging me into deep reflective mode.
The phrase ‘Placebo effect’ was deeper in meaning and more appealing to me considering the events that was unfolding in the political space.
For the avoidance of doubt, I wish to quote the meaning of said phrase as provided :Placebo Effect-‘‘(Pharmacology)The tendency of any medication or treatment, even an inert or ineffective one, to exhibit results because the recipient believes that it will work.’’
From the above quotation, two key elements of the phrase were thought provoking and instructive in my estimation: the fact that the treatment/medicine is inert, ineffective or contains nothing of medical value and the suggestion that the efficacy of such a treatment depended on the believe of the one to whom the said medicine is to be administered got me thinking deeply about this phrase.
For the little that I know about people in medical practice, I can say without any shred of doubts that these people do no easily give in to superstitions, beliefs and other subjective variables in the discharge of their duties.
In view of this, almost all their prescriptions are usually steeped and founded in deep scientific and medical basis. The fact that their prescription will be based on the subjective variable of a Patient believe regarding the efficacy of a treatment was most intriguing to me.
It is in my state of confusion that I consulted a friend nurse to help me with some explanations. While I cannot recount her use of some medical jargon to explain the phrase, all I made out of the probe, an ordinary man with no expertise in medicine, was that in some instances, medical practitioners tends to rely on the instinct of their patience, admistering inert yet harmless medication to their patience on account of their (Patience’s) request and believe in the efficacy of that medication.
This explanation and its medical underpinnings was not particularly relevant to me because I am not into medical practice. Nevertheless, I knew I couldn’t let this revelation go without applying it to the everyday political occurrence in our part of the world.
Specifically, I am inclined to believe that the political ritual of elections brings to life the real import of the aforementioned phrase as used in medical practice.
DISCLAIMER
I have not seen many years in politics. I wouldn’t claim I am even old enough to have had a firm and first hand grasp over the trickery that goes into elections in our part of the world. To this extent, I beg to speak to the issue of elections from the perspective of how I have grown to see and read of it.
OBSERVATION
It is my view that the political ritual of elections also give expression to the Placebo effect as we are told occurs in medical practice. In most election period, the masses usually have the tendency to call for a new political leadership believing that such will be the most prudent remedy for their ailing state of political, social and economic affairs.
In fact, the tendency are undergirded in, some occasions, either by the little largess doled out to them or interests that they(electorates) seek to garner should their preferred candidate get elected.
Rather than find a strong basis to support a political candidate, some of us dabble in trivial issues of height, ethnicity, supposed charisma, number of degrees earned, and a host of other flippant and subjective variables that is opened to all who follow politics in our part of the world. This situation is synonymous with the patient who prescribes a treatment though without any scientific or medical basis, counting only on intuition and belief.
I will not absolve the masses from blame in contributing to the kind of flagitious leaders they get, given their roles in dabbling in trivialities and allowing their subjectivity on issues to eclipse their sense of judgment.
For the Doctors(Politicians players/Educated elites/Opinion Leaders) who deceives the patient(Masses) into taking a dose when in deed such is not efficacious, I cannot but lay the lion share of the blame on them for such a gross deception.
What will happen if these political players can be frank about what the real issues in considering a leader should be? What will happen when politicians muster the political will to clarify what is plausible, feasible and tenable, given the circumstances at hand? Should every decision be based on political expediency, even when it flies in the face of prudence leadership and management?
Most of the masses who risk their lives after condoning or clamoring for a new leadership responses, have over the years been deceived into believing that all was rosy when in fact it was the case.
In the midst of glaring challenges, we continue to have politician promise heaven on earth all in the bid to arousing hope. Why can’t we be truthful to ourselves? Why can’t we limit the expectations of the masses most of whom wallow in abject poverty? Why should every decision be grounded on the quest to satisfy the masses even if it will cost the country’s long time fortunes? WHY? WHY?WHY?
We know how to give lights to Ghanaians to celebrate Easter, watch football matches and mark other festivities but we do not seem to figure out how to end the ‘Dumsor’ menace that has hit hard on industries and other economic players. Why do we dabble in such a slews of deception?
Let’s think generationally.
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