While official statistics paint a stark picture of exclusion, voices like Elethu Mnyiphika’s are charting a new path for people with disabilities in South Africa.
The social media disability advocate “Chairperson OyiGhosti” is a powerhouse and a thought leader. And he believes true accessibility and ability start with changing the mindset, not just installing ramps.
Born and raised in Bizana in the Eastern Cape, Elethu (29), is a Mangosuthu University of Technology Accounting student. He is also living with a bone condition called “Osteogenesis imperfecta (IO)”.
Challenging condition to live with
The condition, also known as brittle bone disease, is a genetic disorder of connective tissues caused by abnormality in the processing of I type collagen. Symptoms include easily broken bones, a barrel-shaped chest, bone deformities like bowing of the legs, a curved spine and loose joints. According to expects, there is no cure for osteogenesis imperfecta. And it is diagnosed either in infancy or early childhood.
Diagnosed during his early childhood, Elethu describes his childhood as both interesting and a bit challenging.
“My bones would break easily, as a child you play rough and break bones. But with me it was different as I was a regular at the doctor. And this is because as a child you easily heal. That was until my parents were advised to take me to a bone specialist,” Elethu said.
Elethu has been through surgical processes where he got rods inserted in his bones for balance, as the condition deforms the bones.
Navigating life, school, tertiary
Elethu went through boarding school at Mason Lincoln special school. And he is now navigating campus life. He describes the two environments as different, with university a bit more complex. Moving around in a manual wheelchair may have been a mission impossible.
He is currently on an automatic wheelchair which is very convenient. However, it has its own challenges, as he describes it.
As Disability Awareness Month ended on December 3, Elethu fears that the spotlight on inclusivity will dim until the next disability month. But for a dynamic advocate like him, awareness is a daily practice. And access is a fight that never takes a day off.
Elethu lives by the saying “I choose not to put ‘Dis’ in my ability”. This is a quote inspired by Stephen Hawkings who was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author living with a disability.
Using his social media pages, Elethu educates and appreciates life through jokes on his physical limitations.
He strives for success, and says the university has been accommodative. Even though he has missed class because it was not accessible, or he had run out of batteries.
Employment sector lagging behind
According to Stats SA, in 2022, South Africa had a population of 62 million people. Around 3,3 million individuals identified as living with disabilities.
These, according to Elethu, are not just numbers but stories of potential unfulfilled. He recalls being excluded from a job opportunity because of his disability. The company had not worked with a disabled person, and they need to review the employment equity act. He was to be called again even though he had already been offered the job.
His message as Awareness Month concludes: “Disability is not a barrier; it does not mean inability.”
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