Genevieve Nnaji can aptly be described as the Marilyn Monroe of Nollywood as she is a combination of beauty and acting prowess. She graced the screen for about two decades before ‘retiring’ into the role of a producer where she produced Lionheart – the first Nigerian movie to make it to Netflix which paved the way for some of Mo Abudu’s movies to get there. Lionheart nearly won the Oscar Awards but lost because in the words of the cultural imperialists, it wasn’t Igbo enough as they criticized its ‘excessive’ use of the English language.

The news broke that the actress cum grandmother who turned 43 on May 3rd now has mental illness because she deleted all her posts on Instagram and unfollowed all her followers there. She was also silent on social media on her birthday.

Bad news usually travels faster than good news and trust the gossip blogs to add salt and pepper to it.

The popular Kemi Filani News Blog came out with a sensational caption on May 10, 2022 which read: I knew she was taking drugs – Reactions as Genevieve Nnaji reportedly tackles mental illness.
It is crass ignorance to think that it is only drug abuse that causes mental illness. Anybody irrespective of age, social status, sexual orientation, gender can be mentally ill and so it is highly uncharitable to opine that it is only when one ingests cocaine, heroin, marijuana etc that mental illness will come.

Controversial popular blog Gistlover whose identity of the owner has been wrapped in utmost secrecy also expectedly latched on to the trending news. It said that the ebony actress was taken to a psychiatric hospital in Texas, United States of America and the identity of the hospital was not disclosed to protect the screen diva.

The comment section of Kemi Filani News on May 10, 2022 was rather savage and shows that many Nigerians lack love and empathy when their fellow country person is in distress.

Mental Illness is really no big deal and can be managed just like hypertension or diabetes. In some cases, with doctor’s aid, some psychiatric patients have been successfully weaned off their medications and they don’t have to take it for life.

Genevieve later came out on Instagram with a paint brush which only aggravated the news that all wasn’t well with her.

I am not privy to whether she is mentally ill or not but one fundamental thing that we owe the thespian who graced our screens and gave us joy when she was at the apogee of her acting career is love.

We mustn’t be judgemental as all mortals including celebrities have their shortcomings and nobody is perfect.

Moreover, like said earlier on, mental illness can happen to anybody and even if it happened to Genevieve, she mustn’t be mocked and laughed to scorn for it. Love is the killer app is the title of a New York Times Best Selling Non-Fiction Book and it has been proven in all generations that love is the strongest force in the world from the great empires – Greek, Spartan, Roman, Vikings, Norsemen, Carthage, Trojan etc love always wins and we should apply this ancient language to Genevieve as she badly needs our love in this cold world if indeed, she is mentally ill.

Nigerians are quick to forget the good deeds of their heroes and heroines as the hardship of the day to day living which in the immortal words of Afrobeat Maestro, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti is ‘suffering and smiling’. That shouldn’t make us less humane and icy cold. Africans are naturally warm and full of compassion. Why the sudden contempt for the less fortunate? Why the asinine stigmatization?

The war against the stigmatization of the African mentally challenged will only be won if her celebrities are co-opted into it. If Genevieve is really mentally ill, this is the time for her movie colleagues and fellow celebrities to rally round her and push this taboo discussion mainstream so that they can use their star power to positively mould public opinion.

I wholly endorse what the Co-Founder of Red Media Africa, Chude Jideonwo is doing with his show and influence as he is in the forefront of bringing to the fore the discussion around mental illness. More celebrities should follow suit which will make Genevieve’s present travail if it is true not something to grace the headlines in a contemptuous way.

Genevieve is still a role model especially to single mothers whose future seems bleak as she was once a teenage single mum herself and didn’t let that stop her from achieving stardom as an actress and later movie producer. She was courageous enough to rise above her circumstances and her story is one of grass to grace as she boldly looked poverty in the eye and defeated the hydra headed monster.

While we wait for her or her media team to address the public on this, let us show more love to the African mentally challenged as that is the only language that they easily understand in a highly toxic environment like ours where wickedness walks on its two feet.

Thumbs up Genevieve! I remain your raving and die-hard fan for life!

SOURCE:https://africavoiceshq.com/2022/05/12/much-ado-about-genevieve-nnajis-mental-illness-by-tony-ademiluyi/