The Sunday Mail
“This is Super Story — a life of strife and sorrows.” These words were part of a signature tune on one of Nigeria’s most watched and popular television series — Super Story. Every Thursday, millions of television viewers from across the continent and beyond would never miss the episodes that were so emotionally charged. Some viewers would actually shed tears.
The signature tune and the unpredictable storyline, aided by the competent actors, served as the magnetic forces that pulled the viewers to their television sets. In one of the many exciting episodes of the series, the main character was portrayed as a severely impaired, facially deformed man who was abused, both physically and emotionally, by close family members and the community.
Abused and shunned, the main character wanders away and dies a pauper. Had Luke Mukuruzado (35), of Gutaurare, near Zimunya in Manicaland, watched this particular episode, he would have definitely made some comparisons between the life of the main character and that of his own.
Unlike the main character, Mukuruzado is not only alive and well but is determined not to allow the disability get the better of him.
Mukuruzado’s life is a typical example of how people with severe disabilities can often live unfulfilling lives. His lifetime nightmare began when he was only three years old, he was left unattended and crawled into a raging fire. Mukuruzado was burnt severely and got permanent facial deformities that still haunt him up to this day.
That tragic moment signalled the beginning of a life that is often punctuated by pain and suffering. Mukuruzado had his right arm amputated and also lost an eye. The remaining eye is almost buried in his skull, rendering his eyesight poor. Both his upper and lower lips were smothered to such an extent that his teeth remain exposed.
As a result of the severe burns, hair does not grown on his head and like an infant, one can easily notice the beating of his fontanel. He always wear a special hat that protects his exposed skull from the agents of bad weather. Wherever he goes, people always take notice of him, a fact he said he is now used to. For a man who has suffered so much, life has, indeed, been unfair to Mukuruzado.
In a life punctuated by strife and sorrow, Mukuruzado spent the better part of his early days hopping from one hospital to the other.
A series of skin grafting and plastic surgery operations were conducted on his tortured body. The operations left behind ugly, visible marks on almost every part of his body. He said as a child he was often kept hidden away from the public and was viewed as a burden.
He only went to school as far as Grade Seven.
“I literally grew up in hospitals. I was at both Harare and Parirenyatwa hospitals for very long periods during my early days. The burns were so severe that skin grafting surgeons from other countries were called in to assist,” Mukuruzado said. As he was growing up, diverse challenges haunted him.
Just like most of the severely burnt children in developing countries, he was at one time hopeless and staring at a bleak future.
“Some of the children were not comfortable playing with me and often derided me. I was often lonely. I, however, have a few memories that I still cherish,” he said.
Mukuruzado said the happiest day of his life is the day that his future wife accepted his hand in marriage.
“Due to my disabilities, most girls were actually scared of me. I met my wife at church and she and her family accepted me as I am. I still vividly remember the day I paid lobola and was given my wife,” Mukuruzado said with a chuckle. The couple is blessed with four children. As a disabled teen, he found it tough to get employment, and he resorted to repairing umbrellas.
“No-one was willing to hire me because of my disabilities. I ended up doing menial jobs and was never formally employed,” he narrated. Despite the physical and emotional challenges, Mukuruzado said he will continue taking life “head-on” until the day he breathes his last. When The Sunday Mail Extra recently bumped into Mukuruzado in Mutare, getting him to talk about his condition proved to be a mammoth task.
“My friend, I don’t want to be seen as if I appeared in your publication to beg for anything. I am not a beggar and will never be one. Although I am disabled, I can fend for myself and my children,” a defiant Mukuruzado said as he initially declined to talk about his life.
Apart from being a communal farmer, he is also a part-time photographer.
“I know people feel sorry for me but all is well with my soul. I can do what any other able-bodied person can do and I accepted my condition a long time ago.
“The only challenge I have is that of procuring a machine to instantly process photographs. My customers now demand that I process the photographs there and then,” Mukuruzado said.
According to the United Nations, a person is horribly burned after every five seconds. Victims are mostly from the developing world, where billions of people still rely on fire to heat, light and cook. Statistics released by the UN says there are more than one billion people with disabilities around the world, about 15 percent of the world population. Furthermore, the UN says most children with severe burns suffer their entire lives because most of them cannot afford surgery.
Many burn victims are deformed and disfigured and face a lifetime of pain and suffering. A burn injury not only disfigures, it can also destroy movement and function.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities advocates for the right to getting employed for disabled people.
However, the UN further states that persons of working age with disabilities are not getting opportunities to get decent jobs. The UN also states that in developing countries, up to 90 percent of this group are unemployed.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), excluding persons with disabilities from the labour market in some low and middle income countries costs economies as much as seven percent of Gross Domestic Policy (GDP).
