DIVA'S RAMBLINGS.....

Hey guys, it is another episode of my beloved Diva’s ramblings…..lol. It is a post where I talk about everything on my mind without a clearly defined topic.

So a couple of my friends recently got engaged or are preparing for their wedding, some recently gave birth and some are pregnant. So with all that is going on right now I was reminded that I am not where I thought I would be . I had a couple of bad days especially when my mum left, it took a whole lot of prayer, a small exercise of counting my blessings, eating junk food and watching movies to get me back to my preppy self. I am okay with my journey so far and I am appreciative of the vision that God has placed in me even if I am not there right now.

My mum recently got a phone that can whatsapp and after a load of ‘don’t subscribe to anything for me o’ and ‘what did you do to my phone’ and ‘I didn’t send you message o’, she is enjoying the whatsapp app and claims to be pinging when she is sending me a message…lol. 

We just came back from a warning strike and are warming up for an indefinite one but I seriously doubt the strike would hold. After 3 days of total lock up, even some community pharmacies in Oyo were said to have participated in the strike from 8am -1pm (a first in Nigeria, private pharmacies and pharmacists don’t participate in strikes), I seriously doubt federal government wants a repeat of that. I was asked to come to the hospital during the strike and I refused. The A and E pharmacy was being run by the corp members and our 'green horn' interns and I was not going to set my ‘Cinderella sized feet’ on the hospital grounds during the strike. At least we were considerate in opening the pharmacies and making our interns work.

I have been sent links to 2 articles that a ‘supposed’ journalist (Sahfeeyah Musa) lounging sorry that should be living in United Arab Emirate wrote on the issues troubling the healthcare system. When I got the link to the first article I read the whole thing and partly wish I didn’t. The article was totally flawed and biased. I wished I didn’t because I lost 3 minutes of my time reading the article. So when the link to the second part of the article was sent to me, I said to myself ‘what more does she have to say?’.  And I was right, the second part was full of blunders. She was comparing the salaries of doctors to other health care professionals and decided that it was right to compare the salaries of doctors who are consultants to the salaries of entry level pharmacists like me and other healthcare professionals. When I read that part, I knew something was off only for me to read comments made by people and my feeling were justified. I decided to investigate further and found out that the salaries for the different specialties in medicine were different. And I am like hmmmm, I didn’t hear anybody say anything about that o. People keep comparing themselves to their counterparts in the U.S for more money but don’t talk about the different salaries they get. Here is the link to the second article, i am sure some of you would get a kick out of it. So by all means knock yourselves out....Click here.

Anyway why I said I partly wished I didn’t read her articles was because even though she was wrong in most of her points, she also said something that spurred me to research on a topic more. The issue of surgeon general has stirred a lot of trouble lately. One part was saying it was meant for doctors, another part said it could be headed by other healthcare professionals too. On conducting my research, I found out that there were two types. The one in the army and the one that was in charge of the public health service corps. The one in the army can be headed by anybody in the healthcare team (the present US army Surgeon general is a Nurse..... Go Nurses!) and the other one is headed by a physician who is totally knowledgeable in public health and is totally involved (not one that has been working in obstetrics and gynecology unit of a hospital and is chosen to head it because a set of people decide that he is valuable to them achieving their purpose of world domination.....*justkidding*). I also noticed that all the US surgeon general were also military and that most of them had either studied or worked as other healthcare professionals. If anybody doubts me, google is your friend. Do your own research.

I have not written extensively about the issue because I want to compare the duties of the proposed Nigerian Surgeon General and that of the US surgeon general. I totally love the ideals and duties of the Office of the US Surgeon General but something tells me and I am positive beyond any doubt that the proposed duties of the Nigerian Surgeon General is waaaaayyyyy different. However I don’t have any proof yet because as with most things concerning the NMA I can’t find it online yet. But there is someone who has offered to publish the proposed bill and I hope then I would be able to write my thoughts. Till then i would keep my positivity to myself.

I am on a personal challenge not to respond to people’s nonsense anymore. I tend to speak my mind whenever I detect a load of crap coming from somebody but I am trying to shut up more now. It is not easy but I am trying to count to 30 before I speak. How well have I fared since I started? Not so good I am afraid but I would keep on trying. However I feel that by not saying what I feel is the truth no matter what, I may be cheating myself and lying to the other person. Oh well, it is all about balance I guess.

Well I think that is all for now folks. I am on call and I have documentation to do. I used to write a detailed call report after my call but after the person in charge wrote something I didn’t think was necessary I have decided not to write anything anymore. Is that like shutting up or like being stubborn in another way?.....lol Anyway I ain’t writing it and I am sure he is going to be shocked. Whateeeevvvvveeeeerrrrrrrr.

Thanks for stopping by. And this is a shout out to the reader (i didn't get her name) that called me yesterday asking for advice on an acne medication that I used. Thanks for calling me. It made my day cos it means that people are actually reading my blog and enjoy what I write. It made me feel like a star. Anyway apparently CLEAREX 10 is scarce (I just discovered that too) and according to a professional colleague it has been scarce for a while so the alternative being used that seems to be quite effective is CLEARZIT. I haven’t used it yet but I trust my friend’s judgement and I am on the lookout for it too as my clearex has finished and I am getting some annoying hormonal zits on my face.

Gotta run…… Oh! I forgot to tell you guys. Yesterday was my induction anniversary. I was inducted into the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria 5 years ago yesterday. I am grateful because it has been God all the way…

Luv ya,

Petite Diva….

LOVELY WASH DAY....18/1/14

Sorry guys, I have been MIA for a long time but my reasons have been explained to you. My mum is gone now (wailing….i am all alone again) and my modem or rather my internet provider seems to have started working again so I am back to regular posting. I have a lot to write on but I would start with my wash day of last week.

 

After wearing a wig for 2 weeks (which I didn’t like) I washed my hair again in preparation for the Ghana weaving (conrows) and braids that I wanted to be installed.

I tried some new things and loved how my hair felt afterwards. Here is what I did….

1.     I prepooed with hot oil on my scalp and my Emily millionaire coconut oil cream to one half of my hair because I ran out of the cream. To the other half I applied the hot oil to the length of the hair and also to my scalp. Covered with a plastic bag and a wig cap and left it overnight on Friday.

2.     I washed with my diluted VO5 shampoo the next morning and the part with the coconut oil cream was waaaaayyyyy softer than the other part with the oil. Definitely buying more of the coconut cream when my self-imposed ban on buying hair products has been lifted.

3.      My protein treatment consisted of food mayonnaise, egg yolk with a little bit of egg white, various oils. Covered with a plastic bag and 2 shower caps then did some house chores and left it on for about 30 minutes. After rinsing off, my hair felt really stiff. Not to worry, i was going to balance the protein with my moisture based deep conditioner.

4.     I did a tea rinse with brewed Top Tea (Ginger flavour).

5.     I applied my deep moisturising condition mix on my hair ( I didn’t rinse off the tea just allowed a lot of it to drain). My mix consisted of Organics Tea tree oil/cholesterol conditioner, honey, castor oil, argan oil and a few drops of eucalyptus oil. It was my first time trying this combination but I think my hair loved it. I also loved it because of the eucalyptus oil. I also think I might be trying this out a lot but not too much because I heard that honey lightens the hair. I covered with a plastic bag, shower cap and my mother’s conditioning cap. Left it on for 2 hours while doing some more house chores and watching a movie.

6.     I rinsed off with cold water. Allowed to dry a bit, applied my moisturising lotion and oils. Did you guys notice that I didn’t apply my leave in conditioners? I completely forgot. I was chatting with a friend and was distracted. It was when I was reading someone’s wash day post that I remembered. And I was about to go and weave my hair. I just applied my moisturizing leave in conditioner after sealing with my oil mix and went to the braider’s place.

I did like the way my hair felt and I do hope that because I conducted a hard protein treatment that my hair has been super fortified to withstand the stress of the Ghana weaving because mhen this hair really experienced some major pulling from my braider. I would have to warn her to be more gentle next time.  I really hope I suffer minimal breakage when I loosen it in 3 weeks time. I don’t have any pictures of the weaving but I would try to remember to get some shots soon.

That is all for today. I hope to write my thoughts on the ongoing battle about the creation of Surgeon General’s post in Nigeria and another episode of the ‘Diva’s Ramblings’ should be coming up very soon.

Hey, I hope you have not forgotten about our savings challenge. This is week 5. My savings has been depleted majorly this week because of my mom’s visit but hey if I don’t spend it on her who would I spend it on? It is all good, more money would come.

Thanks for stopping by.

Luv ya,

Petite Diva….

BREEZING IN AND OUT OF BLOGSPHERE

Hey guys, i know that it has been so long since i posted but i have some genuine reasons. First of all, MY MUM IS HERE! Yep! She is live and direct in Uyo and i have been really busy trying to make sure that she is not bored and she has something to remember about Uyo. Since i am going to work each day when i come back we go to different places. And i come back so tired and there is usually no light to inspire me to write. I really need a generator. But to have that i need to get out of this house. Oh well, It is well.

Then another reason, i can't understand why my modem for my laptop is misbehaving and my wifi modem is not acting up. Because of that i am always on my tablet. I just remembered that i can pair my laptop to the wifi modem......can you imagine? I am not serious at times.

Anyway i gotta go now but i promise to be back soon. I have lots to talk about. Washed my hair on friday/saturday and had conrows/braids installed that i super love. The beginning of my braid challenge has started. I hope i can see it through to the end.

That is all guys. Enjoy the rest of the week....

Luv ya,
Petite Diva....

SAVINGS CHALLENGE: WEEK 3/BUSINESS

Hey guys, i hope you are faithfully saving so that you can achieve the desired savings challenge outcome at the end of the year. This week is week 3 so you should put aside 3 times the base amount that you decided to save. It means if your base amount was 1000, the amount you would set aside this week should be 3000 (3 times 1000). If you don't understand, click here for more information.

My own challenge is going on great, i was given some money some days ago and instead of blowing it like i would have i took a small amount (i had an aso ebi that i had to sew so i paid the tailor with that amount) and shoved everything inside my saving container. I had to quickly shove it before i weakened and reduce the amount i wanted save. So when i did the calculation to see exactly what week the money would have covered, i saw that i had saved enough till week 10. Whoop! Whoop!!

I won't relax though. I had earlier thought that when my bottle was filled up i would break it and place it in a bank account but i think that i am going to keep filling bottles until the total amount is really large and it is not safe for it to be in my house.

Hey guys, did i tell you that i have another client for my hair business. Whoop! Whoop!! Mega Whoop!!! And she is my first client to officially pay the right consultation fee that i plan to collect. I am super excited. And guess what? I didn't even advertise to her. Apparently the sister of one of my guinea pigs.....lol actually my incharge has been following my blog and my wash posts and has been applying some techniques to her hair and it has worked for her. The new client said when she saw her hair she had to ask what she was doing and she referred her to me. Thanks ma... And with my latest client and the stress i encountered on Saturday after the stressful call, i think it might be necessary for me to get a shop.

It doesn't have to be that expensive or really pretty. It is just a place where i can wash and treat my client's hair. Because going to people's house limits me to one client a day and as i have post graduate studies/exams this year i cannot afford to be going to people's house everyday. I can treat over 5 or more people's hair in one day. I told a friend of mine about it but she didn't think it was necessary until i explained that it won't be open always, just about 2-3 days and it is going to be an appointment only place. And she was down with the idea. Another friend also concurred.

So now i am on the look out of a shop, someone who makes mirrors and mounts them and also i need to get a hooded dryer, washing stand and a generator. I won't be fixing weaves, installing braids or roller setting anybody's hair. I would just blow dry on cool air and encourage air drying which is better for our hair. Maybe as the business grows i would hire a hair stylist that would do all that but she won't only do it when i am around or have appointments. It won't be a regular salon just a hair clinic.

That is my plan for now. I really hope God takes control of everything. I just need to get the estimate and start a savings plan for it. Or should i get a loan? I really don't like loans. Don't i need a business proposal for that? I don't know how to write one o. Do i need to register a name with corporate affairs commission too? Okay, i am getting overwhelmed here. Too many things to think about.

I am going to carry out my research then map out a plan. It is all in God's hands. Thanks for stopping by. And a big thank you to my readers who have been following my wash posts and have encouraged me in one way or the other. I am extremely grateful.

Luv ya,
Petite Diva

P.S: I saw this picture and decided to share, i love the gown. Enjoy...

GETTING WIRED UP ABOUT MY LAST POST

I should have written this post on Friday but I was on call and I could barely rest for 5 minutes. I have been a hospital pharmacist for 3 years and that was the most hectic call I have ever done. The hospital has got to employ interns prompt or employ more pharmacists. This is getting crazy!

Anyway my last post which was a feature post ruffled a lot of feathers and I had to and still have to answer a lot of questions and try to explain myself. 

One of the comment I got from a doctor friend was that I was constantly posting anti-doctors write ups. I decided to go to my archives and check out the supposedly ‘anti-doctors’ posts and count them. And lo and behold I didn’t see any. I don’t write anti doctor posts or pharmacists-doctors post I write on the unnecessary faults of the doctors that I know can be corrected. When a person who is supposed to serve humanity and it says so in his oath and goes on strike for money or power or to stop another person from progressing and I speak my thoughts on the things i find wrong, it is then called anti-doctor. Wow! I am speechless. I know i have also written on the annoying attitudes of most pharmacists.

I have a right to say what I feel about a situation. I wrote the salary of the house officer and i was told by some people that it was unnecessary and it made me seem jealous. I couldn’t care less if a house officer is earning 1 million, it doesn’t concern me. If people don’t know this about me, I am not interested in money. If the person deserves it then please give it to him. And i am not jealous of anybody's earnings as i have come to understand that money would come when it is supposed to.i don't need to drag or bitch about to get it. I do what I do because I love my job and not because of money. I wrote it because I need to people to understand the significance of the demands that are being made. If the demands are granted there would be trouble in the healthcare system. 

Right now in most hospitals the only set of people who have interns are the doctors and they have way more interns than other departments. The reason given why we in the hospital i work is don’t have is ‘that there is no money’. Meanwhile the interview for other interns was conducted in September and new set of house officers were taking around November. Now this is happening on the present salary scale, I ask ‘what would happen when the proposed salary scale is implemented’?

Among some of the statements i read that was made by their association is that pharmacies, labs and radiology departments in public hospitals be contracted out meaning that those who work in such departments would be contract staff. When such statements and many of such are made and it is affecting the morale of other team members what do expect from the others?

I am not one to say something behind and not say it in your face which is why I have made my opinions clear and I am stating them here. A friend said she had a heated conversation with a doctor friend about all that is going on in the healthcare system and tried to make him see reasons about the part that his profession was slowly killing the healthcare system and she said he is no more speaking to her again. What?! I am sorry to say this but my thoughts about the guy is that he is an ass! I am really sorry. But why would you do that? How can you no more be someone’s friend because you don’t agree with her point of view? Are you her friend because she is a pharmacist or because she is a great person? She is not a robot and she is allowed to have her views.

A friend, a university classmate and professional colleague said some things about this whole issue and I didn’t agree and I tried to explain myself and what the whole issue is doing to the hospital community and she stated her own views too. And someone suggested that I either listen to what she says or defriend her and I was like ‘what the heck does that mean?’ She stated her point of view and I spoke my mind too, is that a reason to defriend her. Unfortunately i don't think i can and i won’t.

I also explained to someone else that I don’t mind anybody getting whatever amount of money for their salary but I would like it to be defended. You cannot give me reasons like ‘I am superior to others’ or ‘I have been given a superior training to the others’ or  ‘you cannot allow others to be on the same level as I am’. It doesn’t make sense. Just stay with me now. If you were a CEO and a member of staff undergoes more training and gets another qualification and as is normal, the person is elevated to a higher position in his department and obviously gets an increment in his pay. Then another member of staff in another department comes to you and says because the other qualified member of staff has been elevated and the salary increased that the other member of staff should not be promoted and the increment given. And they have not acquired any further qualification and if their demands are not met they would go on strike. Like seriously? Do you honestly see what I am saying. It looks very petty. And I hope my doctor friends who are on the verge of defriending me would see how petty some of the demands are.

All I want is unity. We are a team whether we like it. We are a body. Even God knows that everybody cannot be the same. Even in the giving of gifts, it is said that unto some he has given the gift of prophecy, unto some the gift to serve, unto some the gift of giving. I can’t do your job and I never want to do it and trust me you cannot do my job. Together we make a great team that make a difference.

I would like us to work together, to respect each other and love each other as ourselves. Once that unity is in us then there is nothing we can’t accomplish. I am so not pleased with this doctors on one side and other professionals on one side issue. It is damaging to our growth. I would love a situation where we take on any opposing problem to us together.

I replied someone with this. Nigerian Navy Secondary School and Nigerian Navy has this motto “ONWARD TOGETHER”. I remember being in SS1 and some of my classmates were making some serious noise and I was reading or so. Some naval men were passing by and decided to punish us by flogging us. I asked them why they were punishing all of us that most of us in the front were not making noise. And the reply I got was that I should look at my badge and read what was written. And I replied ‘Onward together’. And the Naval man told me that my class was like a team, a ship that if some people mess up and the ship sinks it would not be the people that messed up that sink it would be the whole ship. Everybody would drown! That if we work together we move forward if we don’t we fail. And they proceeded to flog the heck out of everybody.

But they were right. When we started thinking like a team there was nothing we could not achieve. And that is what I want with the healthcare team because all this fight is causing us to sink.

There is another adamant position that the doctors are taking on the fact that they must be CMD. I would like everyone to watch BATTLESHIP. You all know the film that Rihanna acted. There was a scene where the American Naval Officer who was in charge of the ship that was trying to survive the alien attacks stepped aside for the Japenese Naval Officer to take charge of the ship. Why? It was because he had more knowledge of how to defeat the enemy. And these were men that literally were beating the crap of each other earlier. But the American Naval Officer knew that he didn’t have the ability to keep them alive and stepped aside because survival was the most important thing then. See my point! I really hope you do.I seriously hope you all watch the film. It is a cool one.

I think I have yapped a lot. Sorry it was a long write up but I had to answer some questions.

Hey! I washed my hair today but sorry I don’t have pictures because I was too lazy to take the pictures. I would try to take pictures on my next wash day.

Thanks for stopping by and I apologise if my post upsets anyone but I had to say the truth even though it was not pleasant. And good news, the impending strike has been suspended. Great news for everyone! Whoop! Whoop!!

Luv ya,

Petite Diva…..

FEATURE POST: WHY I AM VERY ANGRY TODAY?

I saw this write up a few days ago and i was mightly pissed. It has taken extreme strength for me not to hate some set of people. I want to really vent but then i remember friends who are members of the profession and try to cool down. I keep saying to myself 'personality over profession', however i don't know how long that can last in calming me down.

I can tell you this, i am getting fed up with them. If it is a war they seek, they would get it. I am fed up of all the intimidation. I am thinking of getting out. How much more can i take?! Honestly i serious need to get out before i hate my job.

Enjoy reading the article and see how unfair they are. A house officer that just left school and is clueless about everything earns over 170k now they want it to be almost double of that. That is really rich! But hey, i forgot. Someone said that those who study medicine have a superior training than every other person. I am totally inferior to them and i should not be called a medic or even be in a meeting with them because i am of an inferior breed.

I would be posting all the information i can get on all their demands and i would leave you my readers to judge. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

PRIVATIZE PUBLIC HOSPITALS NOW; MEDICAL WORKERS TELLS PRESIDENCY

...As they set to shut down Hospitals from January 15th

Fejiro Oliver

The medical workers in Nigeria under the umbrella of JOHESU has called on the Presidency to kill the idea of Surgeon General in the country to allow peace reign in the health sector or witness a total closure of the nation’s hospitals.
This warning was handed over on 6th January 2014 during a press briefing by the union in Lagos. In a press release sent to us, they enumerated the problematic areas of the health sector as;


1. Post of Surgeon-General in Nigeria and Arbitrariness in the Health Sector
2. Skipping of CONHESS 10
3. Consultancy Status for Healthcare-Providers
4. Implementation of Agreements signed with Government since 2009
5. The National Health Bill
6. Amendment of Act 10 of 1985
7. National Health Insurance Scheme
8. Double Salary for Honorary Consultants

According to them “the information provided on the need for the post of the Surgeon-General cannot be a compelling factor to waste scarce public funds for an ego trip. The precedence of a Surgeon-General draws its parallel from only the U.S.A. It is not the norm in any other part of the world. The best in terms of ranking ever achieved by a Surgeon-General was as an Assistant Secretary of Health. Today the incumbent Surgeon-General reports to an Assistant Secretary of Health in the United States which promotes the concept. 

It is instructive to note that the office of the Assistant Secretary of Health to which the Surgeon General reports in the U.S.A. is junior to the Minister of State for Health in Nigeria.” They further noted that creating such an office will be a duplication of the Minister of Health, since there is a director of Public Health under the ministry. Their refusal also stemmed from the fact that the bill has already been rejected by the 6th National Assembly as well as the Justice  Abdullahi Gusau Committee on Harmony in the Health Sector. 

They berated Olukoye Kuti who created the Medical Salary Scale in the nineties which is the bane of the health sector today. The statement wonders why a Medical Doctor should earn 200% salary above his colleague in any sector. “The insistence that other health worker must not be allowed to skip CONHESS 10 which is now a major demand in the quest to placate Doctors not to go on strike is a national embarrassment and fraud. Doctors are now demanding to enter the public service on salary GL 14 after National Youth Service.”

They urge the government to respect the court ruling which allows for them to skip CONHESS 10. The Medical workers asked the government to immediately obey the court judgment on the issue of consultancy which was stopped. They wonder why there can be no consultant in other medical field when they are specialized professionals, just as it obtains in other parts of the world. 

They bemoaned as situation where ‘the promotion of our members has been withheld for decades. Professional regulatory laws and service circulars continue to be recklessly compromised by the Federal Government working on the advice of the Federal Ministry of Health, like we recently witnessed again at NAFDAC for instance where the Director-General of the Agency has been re-appointed in flagrant violation of Section 9 of the enabling NAFDAC Act which provides inter-alia that the Director General “must have a good knowledge of PHARMACY, FOOD and DRUGS”.

Further they urged the government to implement the new wages and call duty allowance. The issue of the National Health Bill according to them contradicts the constitution, especially some paragraph which vested power on it to regulate the medical profession when an act has been passed vesting such powers on the various medical boards. 

They demanded for the amendment of the act coined by Kuti. “The foundation for all the years of injustice in the health sector is grounded in the military drafted Teaching Hospital Act 10 of 1985, a creation of Late Olikoye Kuti. The statute facilitates imbalance in board appointments in favour of doctors, stagnation in the career strata of health workers as well as other exclusive privileges for doctors in a multi-disciplinary sector”, it stated

The statement exposed that consultants in the medical and dental council earn double salary as honorary consultants since they are University employees but also collect money from the teaching hospitals where they come once a week to choose patients to treat. They therefore called on the government to privatize medical services in private hospitals.

“We put on record that 50% of total health budget is dedicated to the payment of only consultant doctors in Federal Health Institutions. This is the main reason why Nigerian Medical Association and Medical and Dental Consultants of Nigeria continue to agitate against Integrated Personal Pay Roll System (IPPRS) because it subsequently will detect those who earn double salary. Government therefore needs to privatize medical services in public hospitals in Nigeria.”

They asked for a meeting with Mr. President who is the father of the nation to enable them air their views, while a fifteen days ultimatum was given to the government to meet their demands.

Consequent upon this and the expiration of the 15 day ultimatum earlier given,  the Joint Health Sector Unions and the Assembly of Healthcare Professionals of Nigeria in league after appraising all its options painfully direct all its members to proceed on a 5-day warning strike from Wednesday January 15 to Tuesday January 21, 2014 to enable government led personally by President Goodluck Jonathan redress through constructive dialogue its prayer/grievances as reflected in this position paper which shall be made available to government. The condition precedent to dialogue with President Jonathan is a minimum conditionality which is also non-negotiable as the President who is the father of the nation must be willing to give all his children a listening ear in a conflict that continues to fester as a rotten and infected wound because the future of healthcare-providers in Nigeria can no longer be left with Presidential aides who find it difficult to disguise their affection for the interest of only one profession in a multi-disciplinary sector.

In the event that Government does not enter into meaningful dialogue within two weeks of this notice, we shall be left with no option than to commence a more excruciating and total nationwide strike to enforce our liberties.

I am going to vent some more. It is really demoralizing.  

Thanks for stopping by.

Luv ya, 
Petitediva.....

Post culled from secretsreporters.blogspot.com

A PROUD MOMENT TO SAVOR

Today I had to get over my fear of talking in public without being forced to do so in a presentation, fear of victimization and fear of looking stupid to stand up for the right thing to be done in my department.

Something was done about 10 days ago and when someone complained the excuses given didn’t hold water at all. A lot of us were bitter and complained but only one had been brave to confront the 'powers that be' and they tried to shut him down. As I was not going to complain behind and not say my mind I knew I had to overcome all my fears and say something. Not just for me but for others that would come after me.

I had made up my mind to say something but you know when fears come in and try to weaken you, you begin to think that it is a bad idea. Only for a friend who was not going to be present during our meeting to say that she didn’t trust my other colleagues to say anything but she trusted me to speak up for justice. That was it! I had to trust that I had a little of Madiba’s spirit in me and trust God that I would say the right thing and in the right manner.

So today after praying for courage I stood up and made my mind known in the most respectful way I thought was possible and it felt good. It felt really good. It was not easy for me to stand up and talk, about 2 minutes to standing up I was still having doubts and butterflies in my belly but once I did and the consequence of fighting for the right thing to be done hit me, that was all the motivation I needed. Some people tried to tease me concerning my words but I didn’t mind them. I was on a mission and I needed to finish it for my sake.

I may not have been able to change what has been done but I have been able to let them know that what has been done has been a real injustice and hopefully seeing as a lot of people were in agreement and supported me with suggestions and encouraging words, I would have helped in preventing any more injustices in that line or any other type as they know that they would be questioned.

Like I said it feels really good to know that I can stand up for what is right and not chicken out. Trust me I had so many thoughts flying through my mind. What of if I am victimised? But I had to remember that in this life you have to stand for something else you would fall for anything. I know that I want to stand for the right thing in life and I don’t want to ever be seen as a coward so I called on God and remembered that South Africa won’t have been where it is today if Madiba and his comrades were quiet and not resilient in their efforts to make their country a great one even in the face of death. I asked God to give me the eloquence and the ability to say what I needed to say in the best way possible just like he gave Mandela and his comrades when they had to defend themselves. And you know what? He did. I am so empowered I feel like there is nothing I cannot do now. 

So cheers to a mini Mandela….Me….lol. Thanks for stopping by guys. I really do hope you enjoyed today’s write up.

Luv ya,

Petitediva.