I had been standing in front of my clinic, in the sun,all day watching the demonstrators march up and down the street. There was such a unity of purpose but then there were some among the mob who would have uprooted all the electric poles and road signs if they had not been restrained by their more level-headed temporary leaders. I could not help appreciating the amazing amount of energy these young men had. They could literarily move mountains if their energy had been well coordinated and directed.

Suddenly I felt dry and uncomfortable. I was really thirsty and needed a drink. I went into my office and took out a bottle of coke. It wasn’t cold. There had been no light in our area for several days. Within minutes, I had emptied the content. There was a feeling of satisfaction for a few minutes but soon the thirst returned and I was restless again. Somehow all the bottles of water had been exhausted and had not been replenished.

As if he had read my mind, my colleague went to one of the ostensibly desolate shops behind us. I was wondering what he was doing there but when he emerged with two bottles of water, his mission became obvious. He gave me one and kept one for himself. Poor guy! As I finished drinking my own, one young demonstrator came and snatched his own! He just let it go and smiled at him.

My thirst quenched, revitalised, I could think better and more rationally. Water is wonderful. It is by far the most important nutrient for the human body. What can we do without water? How long can a man survive without water? People have survived without food for weeks or even months, but go without water for even just one day especially in our hot climate, the survivor will be in a desperate state.

I was still engrossed with thoughts about the usefulness of water when there was a shout of “Yeh! Yeh! My eyes! My eyes!” My attention immediately shifted to that direction. It was one of the demonstrators. Before one could say Jack Robinson, a thick crowd had surrounded him. One of his compatriots had thrown some petrol over the used tyre they had wanted to set on fire and somehow some of the liquid had landed straight on his face and into his eyes. Everyone in the

crowd instantly became a doctor and offered all sorts of suggestions, some of which could have been more devastating and resulted in greater damage than can be caused by petrol.

I ran back into my office and opened my tap; got some water and ran back to the crowd. I couldn’t get near the injured man. So I gave the cup of water to one of the leaders of the mob, “Open his eyes and pour water into them,” I instructed. He found his way into the thick crowd and carried out my instructions. He did more. He commanded all to move away and “let doctor see him.” I wasn’t able to assess the damage out there so I asked him to be brought into my office. The petrol had dissolved the fat on the surface of his cornea thus removing the superficial lining leaving a raw surface we call ulcer. I believe if the water had been poured almost immediately after, the damage would have been less. Now I was left with the task of treating his eyes and preventing him from going blind.

I wonder what would have happened to him if I had not been around. That morning, the demonstrators had stopped me several times on my way to the office but for the reasonable ones amongst them who shielded me because I was known to be a doctor. Some of my colleagues were not so lucky. One was dragged out of the hospital vehicle; his phones and all he had on him were forcibly taken away. Luckily, he wasn’t beaten up and the vehicle was not damaged.

I wondered what would have happened if no compromise was achieved on Sunday. The army of jobless youth would have gone really haywire, more damages would have occurred and more lives would have been lost. Next time we may not be this lucky. Goodluck and his team and the governors must keep to their promise to provide jobs for the restless masses of youth and channel their energy into productive ventures. Their patience is running out!

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