Meet the Nigerian polio survivor who is helping victims of Boko Haram

 Ayuba Gufwan contracted polio when he was a child and lost the use of both of his legs. As a child and a teenager, he was trapped—only able to go as far as he could scoot on his bottom. What angered him most was being unable to attend school, which he knew would be his key to a better life.

When Ayuba was 19, his uncle gave him a wheelchair and, with it, the gift of mobility. There was no stopping Ayuba once he had his wheels: he began wheelchairing 14 kilometres a day to and from school. He went on to teaching college then earned a law degree. As an adult, he has become an outspoken advocate for polio vaccination campaigns.

But as much as he has wanted to stop polio, he also saw a need to help those already disfigured by the disease. In the city of Jos, he founded Beautiful Gate Handicapped People Center, which is primarily funded through small donations, to help the tens of thousands of disabled Nigerians.

“If you have a wheelchair, you can leave your house and do anything you set your mind to”

I noticed that all of the funding that came into Nigeria to fight polio was focused on eradication, not rehabilitation. Once a child is paralyzed by polio, he or she is simply abandoned—like I was. I set out to restore mobility to people who had lost it. I know from experience that if you have a wheelchair, you can leave your house and do anything you set your mind to.

We use a tricycle model, which works well on rough terrain. Everything is made from bicycle parts. It’s low-tech enough that any village bicycle repairman can fix it. We now have 49 people on our payroll including eight workers who are polio survivors themselves.

In the last fifteen years, we’ve given out 11,000 of these tricycles in 28 of Nigeria’s 36 states. In order to get a tricycle, you have to be willing to go to school or learn a trade. We want disabled people to be financially independent even if they are just selling something in front of their home.

Tricycle-style wheelchairs line up ready to be given away (Photo from Wheelchairs for Nigeria Facebook page)

 “As Boko Haram violence continues, we continue to help those injured by the group”

At first, we focused on polio but soon other people started knocking on our doors. We’ve also given out 4,000 to 5,000 crutches and other assorted mobility appliances like canes for the blind.

In 2011, we decided to start doing prosthetics. In 2010, Boko Haram set off a bomb in Jos and many people were killed and injured by the attack [Editor’s note: While Jos is the capital of the Central Plateau State, which is not part of the area controlled by Boko Haram, it is known for high tensions between Muslims and Christians. In the past few years, Boko Haram has carried out numerous attacks in the town]. Some of our very first prosthetics beneficiaries were survivors of the attack. Since then, as violence has continued, we’ve continued to help people injured by the militant group. In fact, in the next few months, a group of about 25 victims of Boko Haram are coming from Mubi and Maiduguri to be fitted with prosthetic limbs [Editor’s note: Mubi, located in Adamawa state, was under Boko Haram control. Maiduguri, in Borno state, is the birthplace of the militant group and the site of frequent attacks].

 Staff work on constructing prosthetic legs in the workshop in Jos (Screengrab from "Wheelchairs for Nigeria" YouTube page)

“I knew immediately that I couldn’t get up. I felt it. I felt that my legs were gone”

One success story is Jos native Mamaki, 38. He used to work as a mechanic before he lost both his legs in a Boko Haram bomb blast in 2010. Now he has two prosthetic legs, which he got from Ayuba's organisation.

Mamaki is seen here with his new prosthetic legs. (Photo by Ayuba Gufwan)

It was Christmas Eve, December 24, 2010. I had just closed up my shop for the evening. On the way home, I stopped at the market to pick up some food items for the holiday meal.

Suddenly, an explosion knocked me to the ground. I heard the noise and saw fire engulfing the wooden stands in the market. Many, many other people fell on the ground next to me. Others were running. I knew immediately that I couldn’t get up. I felt it. I felt that my legs were gone. Blood was rushing everywhere. I saw so many people I knew—friends— dying around me.

“My goal is to start a small shop”

“I stayed in the hospital for two months and three weeks. When I got home, it was a bad, bad time. My wife left me after the accident and I was left alone with my two sons, age eight and 11. I had to depend on the boys for everything.

All of that changed when I got a wheelchair from Ayuba. I still can’t work as a mechanic but I was able to start selling grain in front of my house. Now, I have two prosthetic legs and my goal is to start a small shop.

Observer