Q & A Profile Feature

DISABILITY IS NOT INABILITY-Isaya’s story

By Louis Chikanya

Isaya is a Bachelor degree student from the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at St. Augustine University of Tanzania (SAUT). He has despised all odds and made up his mind to pursue university education while living with a critical level of disability. Both his legs are paralyzed and he needs support to walk. I was keen to know how he has managed to reach this level of education.

Briefly introduce yourself?

My name is Isaya Masirori, a student of Mass Communication at SAUT. I am from Luanda Kigunga village, Rorya District in Mara Region. Our family is more than a football team; I come from a family of 13 children and I am the Benjamin (last) in the family.Unfortunately, five other children have passed on. Now we are eight of whom four are disabled and the other four are okay.

I did my primary education at Luanda Kiseru from 2003 to 2009 and Ordinary level at Rorya from 2010 to 2013 and Advanced level at Tarime High School from 2014 to 2016.

Economically our family is very poor. Of all the children in the family, I am the first and perhaps I will be the last to reach this level of education. The rest failed to reach this level of education because of disabilities and others failed because of poverty. Our father could not afford to send anybody to school. Now our parents are very old; my father is 75 and my mother is 65.

Were you born like this? What is the story behind your condition?

I was born physically perfect, but when I was six, my legs became paralyzed. All of us who are disabled in the family were born perfectly, physically well; disabilities came later in life.

What things do you think the university and the society as a whole should change to accommodate people of your condition?

Yes, I think the university has to do something in terms of structures. The structural system of this university is not favorable for people with disability like me.  Some of the classes for example, have no disability friendly features. In my case I struggle to go up Mwanjonde to attend lessons. Again in the library books are available starting from the second floor, so I have problems going to read in the library. Furthermore, newspaper postmortem sessions take place in the last floor of the library which is at the very top, so I don’t participate in the postmortem sessions. But I don’t know what the university authorities can do to change the structures. In some places structures like our university buildings here are fixed with lifters for people like us to easily and comfortably move from one point to another.

There is also an issue of the way the toilets have been made. The system did not consider our conditions. One can easily fall over the toilet and get hurt.

There are also many disabled people out there who need support. I urge people of good will to come out to support the disabled struggling with life in the villages.

However, I am grateful to the administration for allowing me to use the room even before I paid anything. They have understood me and told me to pay when I am ready with the money.

You are studying Mass Communication, what area in media are so compassionate with?

When I graduate I would like to work for electronic media of radio and television. I want to work with radio and television broadcasting. That is why now I am practicing much in radio and television broadcasting.

What word do you have for people with similar condition as yours, who feel they cannot do what other normal people are doing?

Indeed people with disabilities do think they cannot do what normal people can do. But they should change their mentality. There is a saying that disability is not inability. People with disabilities should look forward and not just stay idle; they should keep themselves busy. For example, my brother who is also disabled does radio repair work. He is very good in repairing radios. Some can develop skills in computer repair, shoe repair and many more other skills. Usually these types of work do not require one to move here and there. For example, shoe repairing work does not require one to be moving, you do your work while sitting.

People with disability should forget their problems and start thinking of doing something to keep themselves busy. They should live just like evrybody else, taking interest in social activities like watching games. I personally like watching soccer matches and I am a supporter of Yanga Football Club on the domestic level and on international level I support Chelsea Football Club in the English Premier League.

Isaya Masirori posing in front of the Administration block at SAUT (PHOTO: courtesy of Isaya’s album).