Make Sierra Leone Famous Podcast Unpacks “Salone man get badat”

In the third episode of the Make Sierra Leone Famous Podcast: ‘Salone Man Badat, Is There A Cure?’ our host Vickie Remoe is in conversation with Dr. Ramadan Jalloh, an islamic scholar and Jesse Lamboi, Christian, to discuss ‘badat’ from a spiritual and mental health perspective and why it is a problem in Sierra Leone.

What Is Badat and Why is it an Issue in Sierra Leone?

“Salone man get badat!” is a popular catchphrase in Sierra Leone. Badat is such a problem in Sierra Leone that it was once addressed in a speech by the late former President Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah. So what really is it?

Badat is the Krio word for envy and it is believed to be a major socio-cultural problem within the country. There is a widely held belief that Sierra Leoneans are envious in nature and are quick to wish for the downfall of those who are more successful.

Jesse Lamboi and Dr. Ramadan Jalloh revealed that from the religious perspective, Satan is the originator of badat. From the Quran, it is stated that because Satan refused to bow to the first man, envy was born which led to the sin of pride and had him cast out of heaven.

“When God questioned Satan on his refusal to bow, Satan replied, ‘I am better than him. You created me from fire and you created him from dirt-the clay so I am greater than him,’ Dr. Ramadan Jalloh explained.

Lamboi added that Satan’s envy of God’s power caused him to start a war in Heaven where ¼ of the angels rebelled against God and were casted down to earth as punishment for their disobedience.

In identifying the genesis of badat in human lives, Lamboi stated that badat usually starts at home, especially when the family dynamics are not so great- this is when the seed of badat is planted and grows as the children are getting older.

“Envy begins in the home because you will begin to look at the things done for your siblings and compare these things. For many Africans and Sierra Leoneans to be precise, most families are broken. Because of broken homes and its prevalence in our country, envy is predominant and it all begins from the homes,” Jesse Lamboi added.

Dr. Jalloh advised that in order to curb the growth of badat in children, parents must try to treat their children equally and be sure not to put more love in one child than the other.

“Parents have to make sure to maintain equality. Once you start discrimination and treasuring one child more than the other, you are planting the seed of badat and once they grow with that, it will definitely create a problem,” he said.

Dr. Jalloh further added that another thing that can get rid of badat in people’s hearts is to have a good connection with God and focus on things that will help in self development rather than wishing for negative happenings in the lives of others who are successful.

“Why don’t we focus on our work and identify the talents God has endowed in us. We identify such talents and focus ourselves there instead of looking at other people’s talents and wanting that for ourselves,” he said.

Make Sierra Leone Famous Podcast is Available on Video and Audio on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts

This episode also touched on badat in workplaces, the importance of self-belief, and what ‘Good Badat’ is. To catch a rewind of the episode, click on this link to stay in tune.

A new episode of the Make Sierra Leone Famous podcast will go out this Thursday at 10:00 AM. It will be available online via YouTube, Apple Podcast, Spotify, and Audiomack, so make sure to not miss it!