An Open Letter to my Kopa Sanitarians.

February 06, 2017

An Open Letter to my Kopa Sanitarians.

Let me use this opportunity to congratulate you on this great achievement of yours, for being part of the hundred of thousands of youths that have been called up to serve their father land. It is indeed a great opportunity. It will do you good to remember that there are many of your colleagues who desired to reach that height but couldn't, for one reason or another.

First and foremost, remember that many of your senior environmental health graduates fought for what you enjoy today but could not go for service in their own time. I was fortunate to be one of such. Do not forget also, that many of your colleagues in some Schools of Health in Nigeria, up till this moment, can still not go for NYSC for various reasons. Do you now see reasons why you should be grateful? I bet you do.

But here is the purpose of my short letter to you. I just wish to call your attention to few things.

For a starter, be a good ambassador of the Environmental Health Profession. Whether you are still in the camp or already at your PPA, represent this profession well. As an EHO, you should be the vanguard of clean and healthy environment, not the one who degrades it. Correct attitudes of others towards the environment, so much that even Camp officials or your boss at your PPA will know your distinct profession.

Do not just be carried away by the khaki. It may be tempting. But rather show to the world, I mean your fellow corp members. Many other graduates from other higher institutions have over time felt we went are inferior to them, this is the opportunity to disabuse that notion.

Contribute positively to discussions and don't just sit and watch. Talk more than sports and fashion, and be versatile in your discussions. Be proud of who you are and mesmerise others with the intricacies of the environmental health profession.

More importantly, please use the period of this service to develop yourself. There are many programmes which will be brought to you and sometimes at ridiculously low amounts, you must grab it. The profession is still groping with the issue of unemployment so don't come back to become addition burden on your self, family and nation.

Management courses, HSE, Administration and skill acquisition are what you should be interested in. In the world of today, it is not a crime to work in other field apart from your core professional course. So, dear Kopa, avail yourself these opportunities which will come around you.

This may cost you some of your allawee, but I guess it's better to suffer a little now as a form of sowing seeds than eating all that is not even sufficient.

I called it a short note, but it's already becoming an epistle. Sorry, if I'm beginning to bore you with all these stuff. It's just that I am concerned about you, because you are the future of environmental health practice.

In case you need any advice, question, query or clarification, you can always send me a mail or whatsapp. I will be happy to help. Remember, your future is not in the hand of the Nigerian Government, the decision is in your hands.