•The drance drama

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At a time the world is busy searching for a cure for the dreaded HIV/AIDS pandemic, a group in Rivers and Bayelsa States has come up with an unusual weapon for fighting the killer disease-dance steps!

Mr. Selepre Tombie, executive director, of Providence Youth Organisation, said that there could be no better way to get youths, who are the major victims of the scourge, to guard against AIDS than the use of dance and drama.

Said he: “We are the pioneer community-based organization in the two states, that uses the strategy of enter-education to fight the virus. Over the years, I have carried out community outreach programmes where we develop and train cultural troupes in the Niger Delta region and use them in the dissemination of information of HIV/AIDS.
“This approach has been affective because the messages are presented to them in their languages and with their own people.

“Basically, our target audience are the youths. They are the most vulnerable group to HIV infection; they are attaining sexual maturity in a less restrictive social milieu open to the combined influences of society and peer pressure,” he said.

Mr. Tombie told Daily Sun that the group, formed in 1996, has worked and collaborated with many non-governmental organizations and corporate outfits, including UNICEF, Youth Profile, The Adolescent Programme (TAP), Shell Petroleum and the Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria (PFN).

The author of a popular dance drama on HIV/AIDS, entitled, “The Scourge,” said his group has also presented, “massive awareness-raising campaigns” in some universities.
Perhaps, one of his major pains, is that there is, “a lot of hypocrisy and lip service about HIV/AIDS” in the country.

“The so-called big NGOs and government parastatals get huge grants from donor agencies to fight HIV/AIDS in the Niger Delta region and the country in general.
“But often times, over 80 percent of the grants for specific projects goes into administration, project cars and huge salaries. Nothing goes to the CBOs and NGOs working on HIV/AIDS and they lack the capacity to access funding from donor agencies”.

Mr. Tombie, whose organization could not participate at the World Conference on HIV/AIDS aka ICASA held in Abuja in 2005 due to cash squeeze, despite appeals to government establishments, regretted that only those who are violent attract official recognition.

“It is disheartening when you see budding Niger Delta youths go through such pains and disappointments even in their efforts to enlighten their fellow youths. They gain no recognition or support but if you carry arms, you will gain recognition and be given millions of Naira,” he said.
Also, he expressed concern over alleged sexual exploitation of less privileged girls in the region by money-flaunting oil workers.

He observed that in the bid to abort unwanted pregnancies that result from such relationships, the poor girls drink concoctions and where this fails consult quaks with the attendant risks and complications.
According to him, the common but often dangerous ‘home-made’ abortion ‘drugs’ are mixture of local gin (Ogogoro) and herbs, potash (akanwu), Small Stout mixed with ampiciline capsule, Krest and Andrews Liver Salt, White Quinine, Lime and ‘Uda’.

Mr. Tombie, who has been offered admission by the London-based School of Veneral Diseases for a one-year course in HIV/AIDS prevention, urged the youths to steer clear of destructive sexual practices.