One Voice reporter was riding a taxi to the office on Monday morning and the radio discussion  on safe male circumcision (SMC) steered the debate.

Stapora cap: What are they talking about?

Driver: Apparently there is a new method of SMC. I understand the Ministry of Health has discovered rubbers would do a good job because they have realized that we are afraid of the knife! They put the rubber and let you go about your duties and the rubber would choke the foreskin to death. Thinking of it makes my skin crawl.

Lady: If I was a man I would never do it. The foreskin is more like an eyelid. Do you think if a doctor removes your eyelid, you would ever be the same again? No ways, you would scare everyone.

Everyone laughs.

Stapora cap: (Giggling) So, who would see your missing foreskin?

Lady: Are you kidding? The whole town would know. Mxm, But the thing looks ugly without the cover. I agree with him.

Driver: (Laughing) What are you implying. Are you suggesting that she has been around the corner? (Gets an accusing eye)

But seriously. Why is the government so desperate to get our skins or is it because elections are near and they want to sell it to make muti?

Brief case: Shh! Listen to the radio!

Caller on radio: They want to castrate us like goats. What we know is that the rubber is used to castrate animals. But we aslo know how much they suffer before the work gets done. I don’t wish to go through that. Rubbers are for he-goats, not humans!

Driver: Coming to think of it, what is the purpose of going through all that pain if you still are at risk of contracting HIV after circumcision. To me the difference is the same.

Briefcase: (Seemingly irritated) I think the Ministry of Health still have a long way to go in its SMC campaigns. If you were listening, the message they want to put across is that SMC reduces the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases.

Stapora cap: No. The Ministry is insulting men. They are implying that it is the men who go around infecting women with the virus. If all things were equal something should be snipped off our women like they do in East African countries. We know when that thing has been cut, the women loose the heat and men would be safer.

Driver: I totally agree with him, the women should lose the skin as well. That is the only way Botswana can win this battle against HIV and AIDS, otherwise this SMC thing would never work.

Stapora cap: I think you are right. Do you know that I had to get new stitches after that girl made me do it before my wound healed. I could not help it. She just took off her clothes and mocked me. I did it, but hey, the repercussions were terrible. After that I stopped her from coming to my house.

Everybody laughed.

Lady: Oh! So you went under the knife? But I can bet you my last penny that the ladies would help the Ministry in its SMC campaigns if they want to. If we refuse to give it to any man with the “lid”, I tell you tomorrow the offices would be closed because people would be on sick leave and healing their special wounds.

Driver: I was planning to do it, but the rubbers must be even more painful. Help us God. After all I have heard, I think fate would decide whether I get infected or not. Not when I get offers like this. You will see, by next week when students are broke, I would be abusing condoms like they would not be available tomorrow.

Stapora cap: And the fuel too. I hope you always have enough to carry you through the month.

Driver: Of course. Men like you would call me at night to pick and drop off their catch and that is where the money is. The desperate the customer, the higher the prize. You know my man, I have delivered condoms for you in the heart of the night.

Brief case: (Getting out) At least you know that condoms are important.

They laugh and the taxi drives off. The topic changes to how stupid men with brief cases sometimes act.

Cartoon-for-14-9-2012