Episode 12 – Its enough
Format
Episode Number: TWELVEEpisode Title: It’s Enough
Focus: Alcohol Abuse
VO / SECTION / TIME
1 / Opening Program Signature tune / 45”
2 / VO1
VHT (YEKONANI) / Signature tune fades out as the Presenter’s Intro comes in…
Hook: Alcohol! Some of us love it, some of us have learnt to hate it. But why is it an issue today in Uganda, especially with young people?
Well, thank you for tuning in to Obbanywa, Uganda’s first ever distance learning radio program for Village Health Teams. I am Sister Constance and I work at the Health Center 4 in Obbanywa. Once again, we meet this week on our favorite radio station. And as the Village Health Team members continue linking our villages to health centers, we also continue to give the Village Health Team members more information on health so they can do their job better and get more community support.
And if you are a VHT member, as usual, expect our regular assignment near the end of each episode, that you can share with the other VHT members in your listening groups, with health workers at the health center, and VHT Coordinator during your regular meetings. Now, over to one of our Village Health Team member
I, Yekonani, have been in Obbanywa almost all my life. I have seen so many things. I have done so many, too. But young men in this village always surprise me when they do not listen to us, the elders. I used to drink a lot of alcohol in my good old days. Luckily, I have lived to tell the tale, and that time is past now. Looking back, I know I would have stopped drinking sooner, if I did not have friends who used to encourage me to drink it all time. Many of them are long gone now, many of them because alcohol really ruined their lives. Now, as a VHT, I want to help young men in particular avoid alcohol abuse and see the benefits of drinking responsibly, or even better—staying off alcohol completely.
(In fades the Obbanywa tune…) / 1’15”
3 / ‘Obbanywa’ tune (Intro) / 30”
4 / The Drama – “It’s enough!”
· The first three scenes of the drama
· Break - Infomercial (Alcohol assessment tool)
· After break – Last two scenes of the drama / 14’30”
5 / ‘Obbanywa’ tune (Outro) / 30”
6 / VHT (YEKONANI)
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VHT (YEKONANI) / Issue & Focus
As a VHT member, I have to be understanding and not judge these young men for drinking. I did not like being judged when I used to drink. I might have had my reasons, yes, but I wanted people to understand me. Some friends of mine at the time took alcohol because it gave them courage to do things they wouldn’t normally do and they felt it was the only way to have fun with their friends. And some drank because they believed it made them men. Personally, at the time of my youth, I drank because it made me forget my problems and I thought drinking would make those problems go away. What I found out, just like Niko did, was alcohol actually ended up causing more trouble than it could ever solve. And I know that we had all sorts of excuses that we gave for taking as much alcohol as we wanted, which was far more than is healthy.
Then I guess, knowing all this now can help you to get people to stop drinking…
It seems easy to say, and even feels so simple in my head when I think about it. But the reality is different because I cannot force people to stop drinking. All I can do is make them see that they have to take a decision on their own.. I also help them see that drinking too much alcohol is dangerous and can have serious impact on not only their lives.
But, where is the line drawn at abusing alcohol and responsible drinking?
VHT members have to know that to identify alcohol abuse, they can look out for someone who drinks so much alcohol to get them drunk, to a point of making them unable to fulfill their duties. For example, like Niko; he was at a point of being late for work all the time and not having enough money to take care of his home. Alcohol abuse makes a person behave in a way that may bring harm to himself and also to those around him.
And when do we say someone is drinking responsibly?
I can only say one thing. Knowing when to stop is responsible drinking. When one drinks responsibly, he does not at any point experience problems with their health, relationships, or at work because of alcohol. When a person drinks 3 or more alcoholic drinks, that’s when they lose control. I know this because I have been there.
I am glad to be talking to someone like you who has been through the experience that I can ask so many questions.
I am glad to be here. And please, ask me all the questions you have.
Well, tell us something; what are some of the things that can happen when someone drinks too much and loses control?
Believe it or not, one of the most common things with young men who abuse alcohol is engaging in risky behavior like having unprotected sex. And I don’t have to tell anyone at this point in Uganda that unprotected sex puts us at the risk of getting HIV, or getting a pregnancy we don’t want.
That is not a good thought. But tell me this Mr. Yekonani, is that the only thing that we should be worried about?
Well, unprotected sex is not the only result of drinking too much. People who get drunk are also more likely to do things like; Acting violently, Making bad decisions, Spending too much money, Being a bad example for their children and siblings, Getting into accidents like Niko, Missing work, and even having health problems.
So, basically, alcohol is actually a poison. To me, that means that when someone drinks alcohol too much, it will damage a person’s liver, the brain and other parts of the body. And I cant imagine what a person would do if their brain, for instance, is damaged. Imagine how someone is not able to think clearly or to react quickly. No wonder, it’s so dangerous to ride motorcycles, bicycles or even driving vehicles after drinking alcohol.
So, Sister Constance, you can see how we, VHT members need to help our community. Young people, especially, need to know when enough is enough.
Is there a way this is done by your team?
Well, we have been given some training by the MOH in workshops. There are some questions that help us show someone how to know that they are drinking too much, or not for instance, ask them;
1. Do you drink alcohol once a week or more?
2. Do you have three or more alcoholic drinks when you go out drinking?
3. Have you ever had problems at home, school, or work because of your drinking?
4. Are you ever unable to stop drinking once you start?
5. Has a relative, friend, doctor, or other health worker ever suggested you cut down on your drinking?
(AMUSED) And if someone answers Yes, to all of these questions?
If someone answers “Yes” to two or more of these questions, then they are not drinking responsibly. But then, it is not worrying because, just like Niko, everyone else can change, and just like me as a VHT member, we can help others to see their problem and change as well.
(Sweeper – “You are listening to Obbanywa”) / 9’
7 / VO1
VHT (YEKONANI) / Tip of the Week –
So, Mr. Yekonani, what tips can you give to the listeners before we go on the assignment?
Thank you Sister Constance for that privilege. As a VHT member, I have some tips that I can share with my fellow VHT members listening to us.
First, you have to know that alcohol use can become an addiction and it is bad. Addiction is when the person needs it all the time and cannot live without it.
Then, if you drink alcohol, you better start looking at your own drinking habits and ways and then help others to also do the same.
Tell people that drinking all the time is dangerous to their health and life.
Let people know that it is not a good idea to drink alcohol that has not been allowed by the government.. This type of alcohol can be poisonous and can cause blindness or even death as you have heard on radio and read in the newspapers
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Every VHT listening to this program should refer to the orange section, page 89, in your VHT handbook for more information on “Alcohol and Drugs”. If you do not have a VHT handbook, ask your VHT Coordinator or District Health Educator for a copy.
(Sweeper – “You are listening to Obbanywa”) / 1’
8 / VO1 / Call to Action (Animated voice – “And now, your call to Action”)
VHT members,
Encourage individuals who may abuse alcohol to:
· Drink less alcohol.
· Set limits to the amount they drink and stick to them. As a very good rule, it is very good and safe never to have more than 2 drinks in one sitting.
· Get into other activities which do not lead to drinking
· Find friends who do not drink a lot
And for additional information, and advice, talk to your local health worker or call the toll free number 0-800-200-600 (zero-eight hundred-two hundred-six hundred).
Before we end this episode, let me remind all of you VHTs listening to this program to REFER the assignment section of EPISODE TWELVE on “ALCOHOL ABUSE” in your LISTENERS GUIDE BOOK. Think about each question, discuss with your fellow VHTs in the village and write your individual responses in the space provided below each question. / 40”
9 / VO1 / Closing Program Signature tune…(fades under)
Closing statement. “You have been listening to an episode of Obbanywa - A production from the Ministry Of Health. Please, tune in next week, at this same time, on this exact radio station. for another episode of Obbanywa”
Closing tune fades back in, then ends / 20”
Drama
IT’S ENOUGH
1. SCENE 1
2. LOCATION: INT. LOCAL PUB. DAY.
3. B/G SFX: ROWDY BAR AMBIENCE, LOCAL MUSIC BLARES IN THE BACKGROUND.
4. CHARACTERS: KEN, NIKO, BAR WOMAN.
KEN AND NIKO ARE HAVING A GOOD TIME. IT IS CLEAR THAT THEY ARE DRUNK AND NIKO IS SOMEWHAT SLURRING FROM THE LIQUOR
5. NIKO: Now this is what I call Kyakunywa! Eh! Eh! Eh! Ken! You always know what to order. Ehhhhh!
6. KEN: I told you Niko. I’ll teach you things…
7. NIKO: Eh! Can we get more of these?
8. KEN: But you are the one buying this time, Niko.
9. NIKO: Come on Ken. You know my situation these days. No money man… Tomorrow maybe.
10. KEN: You keep saying that. No money no money…
11. NIKO: Come on Ken. Don’t I buy for you when you are broke?
12. KEN: … Okay okay. You don’t have to tell everyone in the bar. I don’t have enough money on me today
13. NIKO: But Ken, I saw you putting some money in your socks
14. KEN: Eh man! That’s only 5000/=, and I need it!
15. NIKO: C’mon! What for? I thought you said you wanted to have real fun tonight!
16. KEN: Ohhhhhhh. Make no mistake about that. In fact, a serious man should not go back home alone. I must get a take-away tonight!
17. NIKO: (DRUNKEN CHUCKLING) Where are you going to get a girl to take home at this time of the night apart from these barmaids? Besides, what happened to Rosemary? (LAUGHS MOCKINGLY) Did Ox dig you out? (LAUGHS)
18. KEN: Niko, you can be so slow sometimes. With all these girls hanging around this place, why would I be thinking of Rosemary? I hit and run.
19. NIKO: What’s with you and these women?
20. KEN: Where else are you going to get such cheap women? No strings attached, they don’t have to spend the night… It works for me just perfectly. You should try it out yourself!
21. NIKO: Get serious! I have a wife. You know she would kill me!
22. KEN: Your Corine is pregnant naawe. Surely, she would understand that you are missing out on some things… Wait… (STOPS MID SENTENCE WITH A WHISTLE OF WONDERMENT) Look look… Whoa!
23. NIKO: What what?
24. KEN: I have just spotted a hot one!
25. NIKO: Where?
26. KEN: There. Look. In the short yellow skirt…
27. NIKO: That one? Naye Niko! You have no taste at all!
28. KEN: What has taste got to do with anything here?... (PONDERING) She must be new. I know all of these girls and I have never seen this one before...
29. NIKO: How can you know all the women who hang around here?
30. KEN: It’s called skill, my friend. This one is mine tonight.
31. NIKO: Ken, wait! I thought you didn’t have enough money?
32. KEN: Waaaaaa! From experience, that one looks like she will cost only 3000/= , both for waragi and everything else afterwards.
33. NIKO: Yeah?
34. KEN: Or even less if you know how to bargain… she’s coming this way! (CALLING OUT) Excuse me… Nyabo…Psst..
35. BAR WOMAN: (OFF MIC) Are you calling me?
36. KEN: Yes. Are you busy?
37. BAR WOMAN: (SASSY) No, am not? Are you?
38. KEN: Just enjoying the evening, that’s all. We could get busy together…
39. BAR WOMAN: How about that one sitting with you?
40. KEN: He is with me. He’s my friend. Is it a problem for you?
41. BAR WOMAN: (FEIGNING RUDENESS) Sorry I am not that type!
42. KEN: (LAUGHS) Don’t worry, only one is interested.
43. BAR WOMAN: That sounds much better, which one is it?
44. NIKO: Of course, its me!
45. BAR WOMAN: So, what are you waiting for?
46. NIKO: What do you mean?
47. BAR WOMAN: Are you going to buy me a drink first or do you want us to go somewhere private?
48. KEN: Let us go some where private and we will discuss from there!
49. BAR WOMAN: And… what about your friend?