HOUSEHELP BROUHAHA
“Chimamanda’s children were falling sick so much. She had
tried all the home remedies her mother taught her, plus pharmacy prescriptions
but they kept switching symptoms. Once her husband returned from Abuja, they
went for laboratory tests only to discover their children aged 2 and 4years had
HIV/AIDS. They found out much later, that their 16year old housegirl, Angel had
HIV and had infected them by consistently using her own tooth to brush the
children’s teeth.”
I’m sure you may have your experience
, positive or negative ;I also know young people who were exposed to sex,
homosexuality and kinds of bad habits by ‘house-helps’, this then forces me to
ask this question, ‘Do we really need househelps?
Can we do without them? How can their excesses be checked?’. Even the popular
Proverbs-31 woman had servants, so what’s the brouhaha today?
That is an ‘Oyibo’ definition,
but it rightly captures the term. This is quite different from those relatives
who live or are trained (in business or academics) by a household, and thus
participate in household chores.
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We have established, especially
in today’s world, that the household needs the house-help as much as the House-Help needs the household, so
where do we draw the line? Must there
always the cold war between both parties, each trying to exploit the other or
being protective about exploitation? A case of ‘Prey and Predator.
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“We once heard in the news how a
houseboy, when the family head had travelled, killed his boss’s pregnant wife,
then raped her.”
I’m sure you may have your experience
, positive or negative ;I also know young people who were exposed to sex,
homosexuality and kinds of bad habits by ‘house-helps’, this then forces me to
ask this question, ‘Do we really need househelps?
Can we do without them? How can their excesses be checked?’. Even the popular
Proverbs-31 woman had servants, so what’s the brouhaha today?
From my observation, having a House-Help clearly seems to me like a ‘Symbiotic’ relationship. The household
is overwhelmed with house-chores and
their jobs/business , they need help in the house; meanwhile the House-Help needs the money to help
his/her own household. The worry now is why this relationship has been
unsuccessful in most of the cases we hear. By the way, it is not as if we don’t
have success stories of Househelp-Household relationships
Very few people, particularly in
Africa are unfamiliar with the term ‘House-Help’. So let’s define it, ‘Who is the
House-Help?’ Is it just someone who helps in the house? Google and Wikipedia
describes him/her as a domestic worker
who performs a variety of household services for an individual or family;
responsibilities may include care for children, care for the elderly,
housekeeping, cooking, laundry , ironing, food shopping and other household
errands. They may or may not live within the household where they work.
That is an ‘Oyibo’ definition,
but it rightly captures the term. This is quite different from those relatives
who live or are trained (in business or academics) by a household, and thus
participate in household chores.
I’ve seen and heard of cases
where the household maltreats, defaults in payment of the househelp; cases
where members of the household sexually abuse and threaten the househelp; cases
where the househelp takes over the household through witchcraft or sleeping
with the man of the house...is there an end to this craziness? Let’s lay down
our arms and chart the course forward
Should we take the Househelp for health screening, etiquette
training and spiritual deliverance before engaging them? Should the household be screened, interviewed individually and legally adviced on their relationship and conduct towards the househelps? Should legal contracts be drawn or helps allowed to join or form Labour Unions? Couldn't we all just act with love and respect one to another? Can't preying households be prosecuted or gold-digging helps jailed?
Share your thoughts....
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