By Ola Ajayi

IBADAN—- SCHOOL for the hearing impaired students, popularly called Christian Mission for the Deaf, has produced a lawyer, Prosphen Okiemute, who has just been called to bar after graduating from the prestigious University of Ibadan.

The management of the school that has graduated over 3,000 students who are doing well in their chosen professions, said through its Supervisor, Mr. Peter Obadare, the school has proved to a very large extent that disability is not the end of one’s life but rather, an impetus that moves one to a greater height.

According to him, the student who graduated from the school some years ago, and has now been called to bar has proved beyond all reasonable doubt that “there is ability in disability.”

Obadare said: “She was able to surmount her challenges and graduated with a very good grade. We will celebrate her on January 28, 2019.”

He noted that “when the late Dr Andrew Foster, a deaf black American, established Ibadan Mission School for the deaf in May 1960, all he wanted was to ensure that people living with disabilities did not live a beggarly life but become important people like their counterparts.

“Though the vision of the founder still lives on 58 years after his death, the current management of the school is leaving no stone unturned to keep the flag of the school flying.”

Describing the school as an organisation dedicated to meeting the educational needs of the deaf in Nigeria, he encouraged parents who have children with challenges especially hearing disability, not to write them off but encourage them to become well meaning people in society.

He said: “We have graduated about 3,000 students from our college and about 2,000 from our primary section. We also have vocational centre which includes Tailoring, Shoe making, carpentry etc and we have graduated a good number of students who are self -reliant and dependent on themselves.

“Many of our students have graduated and are doing very well in their chosen fields within and outside the country.

“Due to an upsurge in our enrolment, we have acquired a large expanse of land on Ibadan-Lagos Expressway which we are presently developing. We need the assistance of the general public on the project. At present, we have more than 59 students abroad, some are studying while others are working and doing very well. We have also trained a lot of people in using sign language free of charge to ease communication with the deaf.

“Only recently, one of our students, Prosphen Okiemute graduated from the University of Ibadan and was called to bar which implies that there is ability in disability. We are also using this medium to appeal to parents and guardians not to keep their deaf children at home. They can as well do well academically or in any vocation appropriate for them. We have various cases of such students whom we have trained and are doing well and contributing their quota to the development of the society.

“We call on well-meaning individuals, corporate organisations and philanthropists to help us in any way possible as most of our students are from poor backgrounds. Some are orphans who are vulnerable in the society. People can take up their fees or provide food materials or help in developing our permanent site or provide scholarship to them, we will be glad to receive any assistance towards training the deaf.”