Chima Azubuike
Thirty-four-year-old Haruna Yusuf is a polio survivor and a shoe cobbler at Gombe Market, Gombe State.
He had experienced tough times because of his condition but refused to give up on life having learnt he was affected by polio at age three.
Yusuf holds a Diploma in Social Development from the College of Administrative and Business Studies, Potiskum, Yobe State.
Narrating his ordeal to Saturday PUNCH at his workshop located at ‘Baban Kasuwa’ (the big market), Yusuf said life threw him several challenges which he converted to opportunities to forge ahead in life.
He stated, “I was born in 1986. I am from Pantami, Gombe State. My parents said I never took any vaccine when I was born as a normal child without any medical issues that could make me become a person living with disabilities.
“My parents told me that I was three years old when polio affected me. They said it started with a headache and they took me to see a traditional doctor for treatment without knowing it was polio. I attended Mallam Kure Primary School, Pantami, and Gombe Secondary School in 1991. In 1996, I used to travel to the East for business. I used to buy palm oil to sell. I also bought materials for making bags and for fetching water in wells. My parents sent me to school but later stopped sponsoring my education and I started business when I stopped schooling in JSS2. It was later I tried to secure admission to the College of Administrative and Business Studies.”
Unlike some polio survivors who eke out a living through begging for alms, Yusuf said he detested begging and hated the idea of being a burden to family or friends.
Yusuf added, “I repair and make new shoes. I started the business in 1999. I started the business with N5, 000. Before I used to make between N2, 000 and N3, 000 daily but now I make between N3, 000 and N5, 000 daily. Some people will tell someone with disabilities to beg to survive. But my father told me it was better to be educated, save some money and start a business. I listened to him and here I am today.
“Immediately I stopped attending school, I started a business by travelling to Onitsha to buy goods but one day, my father advised me to start my own business to fully support myself. When I was going to school I had no one to help me. I paid for school fees myself and continued with my business. I was in business before I returned to school to study for a Diploma in Social Development. I gained admission in 1996 and graduated in 1998 before I started making shoes.”
The father of seven added that life had not been a bed of roses for him, thus he decided to pull himself together to make headway in life.
He said, “I am happy with the news that polio has been eradicated in Nigeria. My wife is not a polio survivor. I made sure that my children were given vaccines to forestall polio. It amazes some people whenever they see my condition yet I have a business I run. I don’t just sit at home or beg to survive.”
Polio survivors’ tales of woes
When our correspondent arrived in the local government office of persons living with disabilities located around Tundun Wada, Gombe State, members were seen sleeping on the floor before Binta Idi, a 39-year-old widow, and women leader of people living with disabilities in the state rode in with her hand-peddled special bicycle.
The mother of six said she was into farming but had stopped for now. She said, “I am a polio victim. It happened when I was 14 months old just about to start walking. I had a fever and when I became well, I was unable to sit.
“When I was still in secondary school, babies used to climb my back to play. I felt angry and decided to drop out of school. It was in Government Secondary School, Nafada then. My late husband was not a polio survivor. My parents were unhappy when they realised that I was unable to do what my mates were doing. My father sold his farm produce to take me to a traditional hospital and also to the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital for treatment. I underwent physiotherapy before I was even able to move my legs. As a mother, I made sure my children were vaccinated against the polio virus.’’
She stated that she bought her special bicycle for N17, 000 six years ago from someone, adding that she found it hard to believe that Nigeria had interrupted wild polio considering what she and other victims experienced.
Idi said, “Government should employ us as ambassadors to encourage mothers to take immunisation seriously now. We don’t have a major person to speak for us ideally.’’
