‘We don’t need your sympathy'

By Gardy Chacha

Twenty years ago, Antony Ng’ang’a lived in a world of his own, separated from would-be friends by the painful reality that humans – both young and old – were born with a natural dislike for those without perfect bodies.

Ng’ang’a longed for acceptance but he was set apart because he had cerebral palsy.

The condition, which makes a child’s brain functions to be lower than expected, slowed Ng’ang’a’s growth.

Despite this disability, Ng’ang’a believed that one day he would walk, talk and express himself without difficulties.

He had to live with rejection. Apart from his impoverished mother (who died in 2004), nobody else was willing to take him in; put him through an education, and give him the proverbial last thread of hope.

Villagers despised him and looked upon him with a tempestuous side-eye that only made him feel loathed.

However, an aunt and uncle, realising that his future was grim, took him in and consequently found him a slot at Gatura Primary in Gatanga, a school for non-challenged pupils. Ng’ang’a embarked on a steady academic journey.

Shouldered on

Later, he joined St Paul Secondary School before proceeding to Global Institute of Tourism, Business and Management where he graduated with a diploma in mass communication.

But there were those moments in high school when he was bullied and he cried a lot. Sometimes, he stayed away from school to avoid humiliation. But he shouldered on.

For a long time, the effects of cerebral palsy had reduced his verbal capabilities to coos, phonates, and humming shrieks.

He had to struggle to become articulate – he now speaks English, Kiswahili, and Kikuyu.

Going through school was not easy but Ng’ang’a accounted for himself well.

Although he has been ridiculed, his experience when he applied for a job in 2010 at a local television station was the most disheartening.

“In my first application I hadn’t included my phone number.

“So, I took another letter and met the receptionist, director of news and head of programmes.

“I explained myself and handed in my new application. I was astonished when the receptionist tore it twice and threw it into a bin.”

He was further horrified when the receptionist described him as ‘this blind guy’ who couldn’t even communicate well. He felt judged and condemned for a situation beyond his control. There and then, he put a stop to searching for jobs.

He decided to focus on ways of making a livelihood from private practice.

Ng’ang’a, with the help of friends and well wishers like Sophia Jones of International Rescue Committee and Pauline Muthigani of Postal Kenya is working on a TV show and documentary , Voices in the Dark, that highlights the plight of children born with special needs.

Tackle discrimination

As a result of having suffered physically, emotionally and psychologically, Ng’ang’a has an instilled knack to tackle the discrimination that children born with disabilities encounter, especially in their nascent years.

Ng’ang’a, whose dream is to become a lawyer and fight for the rights of those born with disabilities, recently gave a talk at the annual Cerebral Palsy Society of Kenya walk, which raises awareness on the condition and said to people who discriminate the disabled: “We don’t need your sympathies. Just work with us and you will see how great our performance would be.”