Popular traditional medicine practitioner in Maiduguri, Borno State, Garba Maidawa (Mai Maganin Gargajiya)
A renowned traditional medicine practitioner in Maiduguri, Borno State, Garba Maidawa, has called for greater recognition and acceptance of traditional medicine, arguing that herbal healers have continued to play a vital role in treating various ailments despite what he described as widespread misconceptions about the practice.
Maidawa, popularly known as Mai Maganin Gargajiya, said he has spent decades providing traditional remedies to men, women and children for different illnesses with what he described as successful outcomes.
Speaking with journalists in Maiduguri at the weekend, the herbal practitioner attributed the low patronage of traditional medicine to ignorance, neglect and poor public understanding of its effectiveness.
He alleged that many of the criticisms directed at traditional medicine practitioners are based on misinformation.
According to him, some medical practitioners have failed to appreciate the potential of traditional medicine in treating certain health conditions.
“So, we are calling on the people to patronize the traditional medicine providers for effective and faster healing of any type of sickness or illness and stop premature death of innocent people or untimely death of innocent people.
“Most orthodox medical doctors have no experience or knowledge on certain illnesses and have either been stopped or denied research on such issues.
“Worst of it all, is the fact that some medical doctors have been deprived of carrying out certain operations or surgery, but still they breach the professional ethics and carry out certain operations unprofessionally leading to the dead of many innocent patients,” Garba said.
Maidawa noted that many people continue to hold negative perceptions about herbal medicine, with some believing that traditional remedies are unsafe or ineffective because many practitioners did not receive formal education in conventional sciences.
He maintained, however, that traditional medicine has long relied on natural herbs, leaves, stems and roots in treating diseases.
“The controversy is the issue of western education because some the traditional herbalists did not go to school to study physics, chemistry and biology but that is not all.
The challenges remain contradictory between the medical doctors and traditional medicine providers due to one reason or the other which centers on dose, quality, cleanness or effectiveness, diagnosis and treatment of patients,” Maidawa added.
The traditional healer, further, claimed that some orthodox medical practitioners privately seek herbal remedies or refer patients to recognised traditional medicine providers.
“But it is not surprising that medical doctors do refer their patients to the herbalists for herbs and leaves.
“In some cases even the medical doctors use and receive treatment from the traditional doctors, especially, those with identity, fostered organizations, logos, NAFDAC registration number and certificate indicating and proving their genuiity and approval,” Garba said.
Maidawa also made claims that traditional medicine has remedies for several major diseases, including HIV/AIDS, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, hepatitis, sickle cell disease and infections.
He further alleged that financial interests contribute to disagreements between some orthodox medical practitioners and traditional medicine providers.
“There is medicine for HIV/AIDS and even the killing and subduing the virus but most medical doctors don’t believe and agree to give their patients due to the fact that they will get healed and there will be no moe HIV/AIDS and this will deny them money.
“This is the reason why the medical doctors are always fighting the traditional medicine providers or herbs and roots traditional doctors,” Maidawa added.
