SPLENDID SURAYA: There is Ability in Disability

My name is Suraya Alidu Malititi. I am 31 years old. I was born on 24th February, 1989. My mother was a food vendor and my father was a butcher. My father is not working now but my mother is still in the food vending business.

I am the 4th of 6 children. I have four sisters and a brother. I suffered Polio around the age of 2. I am a first generation graduate because my father vowed to ensure I schooled to the highest degree, even with our financial difficulties. According to him, unlike his other children, I cannot carry anything on my head to sell, so I have to go to school so I could fend for myself with my education. 

I started nursery at Golden Kids Academy, then at Sawaba Last Stop in Kumasi. I was later moved to Best Child International School, then at Adukrom, now at Buobai. I did primary and JHS there. My batch was the first to write BECE for the school in 2004. 

I proceeded to Adanwomase SHS in the Kwabre East District. I then proceeded to Institute of Business Management and Journalism in 2007 and pursued Journalism. After that I worked as a Secretary at a business center at Sakafia Islamic School and later as a teacher at Best Child. I then decided to face my fears and pursue my passion - Journalism. I applied for a job at Kapital Radio and was offered one. 

I worked as a Broadcast Journalist from 2013 to 2017 when I resigned to concentrate on school, which I had started in 2016 at the Christian Service University College. I read BA Communications (Public Relations major) and graduated in 2019. Alhamdulilah, I humbly say, I  graduated top of my class. 

I have served as the Ashanti Regional  Secretary of the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations and I am currently the Regional Communications Officer. I also, together with other friends, started an organisation called Clean Your Community Ghana ( CYCG ) to cater for the sanitation needs of our communities, especially the Zango communities.

I am currently a freelance writer, and I'm looking to pursue further studies in Communication.

Being a disabled person hasn't been an easy battle but for me, it has been  more of self-stigma than external stigma, even though it was as a result of derogatory utterances from some people. I self-stigmatised for as long as I can remember. I was always asking myself whether I was enough and whether I belonged. Even when I am complimented, I will think,  is this person mocking me or they  mean what they just said. But things turned around for me when I joined the Ghana Society of the Physically Disabled (GSPD). I begun seeing myself in a different light. Bit by bit, I became as strong inwardly as I showed on the outside.

GSPD is one of the organisations under GFD (Ghana Federation of Disability organisations). It is the organisation for all those with physical disabilities in Ghana. So basically, what it does is champion the cause of physically challenged persons in whatever instance.

I aspire to be the best version of myself. In my relationship with Allah,  my career and my personal life. It is my dream to make a mark in the Communication's Industry. Maybe go back to my first love - the media, or enter the corporate world, but in the area of communication. 

Nothing will please me more than to positively impact someone either in worship or professionally.

My number one interest now is to go back to school. I want to get it over with. I would have preferred to get married first but I am single now and since I have not gotten who I am looking for yet, I would rather proceed with my education. For work, I only want part time for now.

I have had a number of issues with marriage proposals. Some of them are due to my disability and others due to incompatibility with character, religion or principles. 

I am looking out for two basic things from a future spouse by the grace of God. I want someone who has a strong relationship with Allah and a good character. before the physicality. This is  because I have always held the opinion that it would be difficult for someone with taqwa to intentionally hurt another person. I also feel that someone who is conscious of Allah will definitely  have more  positive than negative character traits. But of course, I want someone who is the coolness of my eyes as I hope to be for him in shaa Allah.

I hope that my story inspires you to give off your best at whatever you do and to love yourself whether you are disabled or not. Know that with determination, perseverance and moral discipline, one is bound to succeed.

I live my life with the notion that 'there is indeed ability in disability.'

Suraya on TV3

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Rubaba Mmahajia Rahma Sabtiu-Morla

WhatsApp - +233 5559392722

www.mmahajia.blogspot.com

www.rubabawords.blogspot.com

www.beforehermarriage.blogspot.com

www.strivingbeautifulsoul.blogspot.com

www.letterstomydotas.blogspot.com

THE AFRICAN MUSLIM WOMAN: Looking Through a Different Lens

When you meet someone for the first time, what do you see? Is there something about their appearance? Does that influence how you view their essence even before you interact with them? According to social psychologists, our impressions about others are often times based on our own perceptions about them.  Now, whilst this helps us to make snap decisions, it also influences our own stereotypes and biases about other people.

Today, I am sharing two personal stories of my own struggles of identity crises but before that let's take a look at this photo appearing.

What do you see? This will not represent one of those global images that are imprinted on our minds about who sophisticated women are or who professional women are. 

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to who this woman is. This is Dr Rabiatu Armah, one of my mentors back home in Ghana. This is a woman who has risen through the high office of a member of a council of state which is an advisory body to the president of Ghana. She is also a professor and a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana and she is a member of the Ghana National Media Commission.

Now, in 2005, I was a first year college student. Really excited about that. I applied to intern in Ghana's biggest state hospital. On my first day that I arrived at work, my appearance became a subject of ridicule. The administrator said to me, 'People from your kind of community have nothing to offer here.' Wow! Now, the fact that a young girl from my supposedly kind of community made it to college was of no news to him. If you are wondering what kind of community I hail from, I put this up to show you.

So, my community is a very congested community with very busy markets and you will see children after school playing with car tyres. That is their toy. 

So let's come back to the story. I was left buried in my thoughts the entire day with no work assigned to me. I went back home and I came back to work the next morning but this time around, I demanded that work should be assigned to me. So, what did the administrator do? He pointed at this archived room and said to me, 'Go in there and find work for yourself.'

I went into this room that looked like a simile dungeon. Really dusty and I was completely settled but how disorganized the patients' folders were in that room. I remember that faithful day. It was a Tuesday. I immediately put myself to work. Well, I called for it I guess. And by the Thursday of that same week, I had completely cleaned up that room and organised all of the patients' folders.

And that was the only department that served the maternity ward of the entire hospital.

And do guess what happened? I became the most loved student intern that break. Yeah! And this same administrator became a mentor to me later on who would advise me and I will consult him on other issues about life and academic work.

So, the second story happened eight years after graduating from college. I applied to this big international organisation. One of those big opportunity everyone will look for and so what happened? Despite being preview to my resume, and hoping that my resume was going to speak for me, my application met some level of resistance that questioned my capabilities and skills. At the interview, they said to me; 'What can an African muslim woman offer us?'  Wow! I knew at that moment that if I were to stay at that organisation that I would have to work twice as hard just to prove my worth and then if I were to walk away, I will save myself some stress but then I will not give them an opportunity to get to know who I am and to change their perceptions about me.

So, I decided to stay and I pulled through that interview and guess what happened again? By the end of my contract, there was every reason why my contract should be extended.

Women from my community have had to deal with serious negative stereotypes based on their appearance. Up here, are women lawyers, educators and a psychologist. But what do we see?

I grew up shrouded in misconceptions. Polarized in a narrow definition of who I ought to be and not what I thought about myself. I wore these misconceptions until they eventually wore on me. That I was from the lows and in the gallows bathed with ignorance. But with commitment, consistency, integrity and  courage installed in me by my ancestors, I pulled through all of these.

To re-imagine my own misconceptions and perceptions about others, in my first travel to the United States, I travelled as a cautious optimist because I had seen on the media how African women and women in hijab will face disrespect and stereotype and discrimination. So, I was excited about my travel but at the same time, I was worried about what to expect. But then, I decided to open my heart to the experience. And guess what? I was greeted with love, friendship and so much love.

This is a photo of me and my first host family. They are an amazing people. So, what's the point I am drawing at here? Our conscious efforts and unconscious efforts towards people who are different from us contribute to how they see and feel about themselves. Now, there is enough empirical evidence to prove to us that every single human being wants to feel loved, respected and validated. 

So, if there is one thing that I want you to remember today, in my talk, it is to re-imagine your own narrative and stereotype that you have held about people that are different from you.

So, who is the African Muslim woman?

She is just another woman. She is a woman who is breaking barriers. Who is building bridges so she can promote global citizenship. She is a woman who just wants to be seen for the woman in her. Who wants to be loved just like any other woman. She is courageous, resilient. She is defying her fears and she just wants to be broken away from the shackles of misconceptions that has held her for decades over centuries. She wants to be seen for the woman in her.

So, I invite you and I invite you and I invite you that you look through a different lens to re-imagine who the African Muslim woman is. Thank you.

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TEDx Talks
23.5M subscribers
Published on Mar 4, 2020
Asmau Ayub is a passionate leader from Ghana who travels to speak about mental health, religious tolerance, gender stereotyping, and promoting inclusiveness as a tool for global citizenship. As the Executive Director of the Rayuwa Foundation, she holds a degree in Psychology, Masters in Counseling Psychology and multiple training certificates in child protection, human rights, and youth development. Asmau is keen on engaging young minds on rewriting narratives about global misconceptions on African culture, unlearning toxic conditioning and reimagining openness on global perspectives. Her talk focuses on reimagining the African Muslim woman.
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You may check out the video on YouTube. Title: LOOKING THROUGH A DIFFERENT LENS

https://youtu.be/vHLN9fc0SHA

Transcribed by;

Rubaba Mmahajia Rahma Sabtiu-Morla

www.mmahajia.blogspot.com

www.strivingbeautifulsoul.blogspot.com

www.letterstomydotas.blogspot.com

www.beforehermarriage.blogspot.com

www.rubabawords.blogspot.com

THE MAZE - Power like Rum Doth Come to Some

Assalaamu alaykum wa Rahmatullaahi wa Barkaatuhu my dear brothers and sisters. I pray that you are doing super great by the unflinching grace of the Most High, the Most Great. It’s been long I wrote an article and I am glad I finally gathered some energy to do this. Do keep up with reading them so that we both benefit – smiles!

So, what am I writing about? Well, I was going to write my personal take on the life of an amazing khalifa of Islam, Umar ibn Al-Khattab, radiyallaahu anhu but I decided to write on something else first. By this, I am pre-informing you of an article to come on this noble companion and friend of the Prophet Muhammad suallaahu alayhi wa sallam. Now, to what I am writing on…

I found myself reading a book before its publication. It actually took so long for me to settle on reading it because it was a novel and I have kind of outgrown reading novels – I appreciate more, reality or at least drama. When I finally did, it blew my mind.

At a point in the novel, I was arguing with the author, who happens to be a friend, in my head. I told myself;

 ‘No, he has to change this part of the story. This is not acceptable.’

I was convinced that I will do whatever I could to make him change the storyline. Sometimes I had to put the reading on hold just to breathe in some air because the story was just taking me up and down, up and down.

One thing I noticed was, I could simply not foretell what was going to happen next – the book was full of suspense, the kind that will leave you wide-eyed with surprise. From the beginning to the end, you just have to be ready to read something that will surprise you.

The author was so vivid and detailed in his description that you could see the characters in the story walking. Yes! You read right! Smiles! The imagery in the story is one of a kind. I could see Wumpini, the main character’s village with all the children and adults in it. I can even imagine how the tree under which Wumpini saw a charm one day fits perfectly in the village set-up. I can see all of Wumpini’s childhood mischief and the kind of eye with which his sisters stared at him in annoyance. I can see them all.

The amount of mixed emotions that erupt from this novel is also another reason why I believe everyone should read it. One moment you are totally laughing and then suddenly, you feel angry, either with the author or the characters in the story. You can be totally sad and then surprised. Sometimes even, you will find yourself totally feelingless. Smiles!

The Maze, that is the title of the novel, is a book that features an unaccountable number of issues; poverty and affluence, birth and death, marriage and divorce, polygamy, literacy and illiteracy, discrimination against women, child and forced marriage, superstition, family, societal and country conflict, tribalism, deceit and loyalty, friendship and enmity, and many more.

As the subtitle, poweloyaltycome to some like rum, suggests; the Maze in summary makes us understand in clear details how much we as humans are ready to sacrifice just for the want of power. It tells us just how intelligently scheming we can be just because of power. However wrong these schemings are; the story gives you a clear definition of what loyalty to either good or bad is.

The Maze is a story that touches on almost every aspect of our lives. It fits so well in our political world. It talks about a lot of social rights and wrongs. It is an inspirational book that motivates one to yearn and belief in a future of success no matter where one is coming from.

I remember how unhappy I had been after reading Prof Ama Atta Aidoo’s Changes. The end of the story was a no no no for me. The Maze, written by a medical doctor – Gubli Natogmah, gives you so much to talk about long after you have read the last word. You could go on and on and on about what you think should have or shouldn’t have and that is the beauty of the story. I cannot say whether you will be happy or sad after you have finished reading this book, but you will definitely get a lot of vocabulary (smiles) and you will definitely request for a part two of it (smiles) because in the end, you will have so many unanswered questions to find answers to or you will have answers that will not be enough to answer the many questions that will emanate from this book.

Sorry I didn’t narrate any part of the story to you; that is not part of the plan. This book is going to be launched in a number of regions. It was launched in Tamale on the 3rd of August, 2019 at the Picorna Hotel.

To read the first few chapters; copy this link into your google search engine.

www.modernghana.com/amp/news/615533/book-power-doth-come-like-rum-to-some-first-3-chapters.html

For more information about this book and how to get one for yourself and for your family, contact the following people;

The Author; Dr Yakubu Abukari Natogmah, writing as Gubli Natogmah – +233 245 232 084

The CEO, Nayzee Creations; Fatima Zaara Dan Saabo – +233 268 963 566

You may also get in touch with them on facebook and WhatsApp.

Thank you for your time. Reading definitely adds unto you so just keep reading and learning and leading. And most definitely, do not forget me in your du’a especially my daughter and my son. May Allah azza wa jal increase us in love for His sake solely. Aameen Yaa Waduud Yaa Allah. Jazaakumullaahu khayran always!!!

Rubaba Mmahajia Rahma Sabtiu

+233 555 392 722 (Whatsapp)

www.mmahajia.blogspot.com

www.beforehermarriage.blogspot.com

www.strivingbeautifulsoul.blogspot.com

www.rubabawords.blogspot.com

www.letterstomydotas.blogspot.com

THE PHENOMENALLY PHANTASMAGORICAL PHAIZA -Phai's Henna Parlour

CEO - Faiza Abubakar aka Princess Sharp. Married to a supportive husband and blessed with three children.

COMPANY - Phai's Henna Parlour.

A level 200 student of Valley View University, studying Business Management.

Faiza's love for art plays a big role in who she is and it is this love that brought about this Henna Parlour.

She loves animations, calligraphy, sculpting, tapestry and embroidery.

Henna is the name given to temporary body art.

At Phai's Henna Parlour, they offer the following services:

1. Henna (temporary body art)

This comes in different types which are the Sudanese and Tanzanian henna.
















2. Bridal grooming which include - turmeric scrubs, dukhan (body smoking), halawa (sugar waxing) and herbal/traditional aphrodisiacs.

The scrub exfoliates, smoothens and adds radiance to the skin.

Halawa is used to remove hairs from the skin. It softens the skin and adds some glow to it.

Dukhan is a Sudanese body treatment that detoxifies the skin and also adds some glow to it.

3. Selling of incense burners and varieties of aromatic woods which can be used for aromatherapy, body smoking and as air fresheners.

4. Face painting for kids programmes.

5. Bottle crafting and sculpting.

All these come at a very affordable cost and they provide home services too. They also do casual henna that cost very little.

Contact Faiza through the following:

1. Phai's Henna Parlour (Business)
2. Hajia Phaizer Majestic (Personal)

Appearance on GTV

Instagram:
Phaishennaparlour

Twitter
Phai's Henna Parlour

Snap Chat:
Phai's Henna Parlour

Mobile - +233 554839395


To profile your business on this blog, please contact:

Facebook: Rubaba Mmahajia Rahma Sabtiu-Morla
WhatsApp: +233 555392722