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Story by David Ogot snr. Pix 'goinghomedotcom' ©July 2003
David Ogot snr. giving his presentation 'It is possible' during the launch of 'Nobody Kicks A Dead Dog' video on alcoholism
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I started smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol in form one in Lenana High School in 1974
to show I was a tough guy and thus impress girls. This was the impression many of us had from
all the movie heroes, ranging from the late John Wayne to Clint Eastwood. Tough talking, hard
drinking macho types who always got the bad guy, then the girl before riding or driving off
into the sunset.
From that first puff and sip began a harrowing 27-year journey of horror, despair, confusion
and anger. 27 years of lost opportunities and missed chances. It led me initially to stealing
from my parents to buy alcohol and later to stealing things from my house to sell for peanuts
to maintain my drinking.
Constant nights in police cells for various reasons ranging from drinking at hotels with no
money to pay the bills, to be found walking all over town at odd hours without identification
papers to being caught up in swoops of night clubs or chang'aa dens.
Finally on October 1 2000, I landed at Asumbi Treatment Center, in Homa Bay and there for
the first time I learned what it meant to be alcoholic. It was here that I decided to fight the
stigma and shame attached to alcoholism and which prevents alcoholics and their families from
seeking treatment. It was during my stay here that I made up my mind to make Kenyans aware of
the fact that alcoholism was a disease and not a sign of moral depravity, sin or simply people
who had no will power.
For it is only by educating all Kenyans constantly right from primary school on what the drug
alcohol is and what it’s effects are that we shall accomplish demand reduction when Kenyans
finally begin making an informed choice on whether to drink alcoholic beverages or not. But most
of all it is only by telling our stories that we will overcome the stigma which is currently
killing alcoholics.
Together with my wife Eileen, we started a non-profit organisation 'goinghomedotcom' to
assist families of those living with an alcoholic as well as the alcoholics themselves, by
talking to them and getting their loved ones into treatment. The organization would also create
awareness on the disease and the drug that causes it, especially through the media, as I am a
trained journalist and producer. From this, last year we produced a forty-minute documentary on
alcoholism entitled 'Nobody Kicks A Dead Dog
Assistant Minister for Health Abdi Kochalle speaking during the video launch.
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This video was launched at the French Cultural and Cooperation Center on the 21st. of August
by Assistant Minister of Health Abdi Kochalle, who ably stood in for the then Minister of
Health, Prof. Sam Ongeri. Also present were the then P.S. Health Dr. Julius Meme and National
Coordinator, National Agency for the campaign Against Drug Abuse (NACADA) MR Joseph Kaguthi with
the press amply represented including the Secretary General Kenya Union of Journalists, Ezekiel
Mutua at the function that was organised as a mini-workshop by goinghomedotcom. The video
has done very well having been aired on Citizen TV in December 2002 and then due to public
request again in January this year. Tens of schools and education institutions have bought the
video for their awareness education, as well as many doctors, with bulk orders coming from the
Department of Social Services and National Museums of Kenya as well as several rehabilitation
centers.
It is also to this end, that we have put up a website, the first of its kind in the region
where one can find several articles of interest to those who would seek to learn more about this
disease, those who are already caught up in it and those living with them. The site
www.goinghomedotcom.org also has a permanent listing of
various places one can go to get help or advice. This was to fulfil a vow I made to myself
after I left 'rehab' that no Kenyan would have to be thrown about to quacks or suffer because as
happened to me even when I realised I needed help, there was no one to tell me where to go.
The site also has an online newsletter entitle 'Dala' which means home in the Dholuo one of
the Kenyan languages which deal with topical issues concerning the use of alcohol and other
socially acceptable drugs such as tobacco that even the mainstream media steer clear off for
various reasons least of which his offending their advertisers who sell these products. Yet
these issues must be addressed.
Housed on this site is a discussion board which allows users to talk about all and everything
under the sun concerning alcohol and other drug use and having their answer posted on the site
where others can chip in with suggestions for recovery or how to go about a particular problem.
All these are archived on site so that even months or years later one can see what people were
talking about at a particular time or how people have gone about solving obstacles on their way
to a sober life.
Right now I continue to create awareness by not only giving talks at schools, workshops, and
seminars all over the country but also through articles in the press and talks on radio and
T.V. The second documentary in the series will also be out shortly. For it is only through our
stories that the stigma will finally be overcome, for that is in line with goinghomedotcom's
slogan 'touching lives through inspiration.' With this, I feel I am finally home.
David Ogot is a freelance
journalist/producer who has personal experience with alcoholism. He can be reached at
goinghomedotcom@yahoo.com or alternatively at info@goinghomedotcom.org
A condensed version of this article appeared in the first issue of 'MONEY' magazine August, 2003
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