- He lost his hearing while aged 13.
- He defied all odds stacked against him and emerged best student in the O’level exams with 20 aggregates.
- Ogwal says discrimination and ableism towards deaf people should be actively challenged and eliminated.
In 2010, while Alex Ogwal, a second born of 7, was 13 years old, he fell ill with malaria and went into a coma for three days.
He was in his third term for Senior One.
By the time he recovered, he had lost his hearing ability. The doctors pronounced him profoundly deaf, meaning he was unable to detect sound at all.
Sadly, the revelation marked the beginning of Ogwal’s battle with resentment and emotional and psychological abuse from friends, acquaintances and strangers.
Who he is
Ogwal comes from a humble family in Barr Village, Lira District, born to Cyril Omara, a construction expert and Dorcus Akullo, a market vendor in Lira city.
He got introduced to hawking juice and water on streets where he would save money to buy basic needs and educational materials, but as it was fate, all this happened when he had already lost his hearing.
Throughout his childhood, the parents struggled to provide for their children amidst the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) insurgency, living in camps and scavenging for survival.
They experienced first-hand what it means to lack food, water, decent shelter, education, and healthcare and always lived in fear of abduction and death.
Excellence amid trouble
Stigmatized at school and traumatized by the LRA war in Northern Uganda, Ogwal didn’t give up on his dreams.
All these did not stop him from topping his class and making it to university.
He now offers free sign language lessons and has recently organized the first-ever debate conducted in sign language.
Making impact
Today in the Youthful Friday, we tell the story of how he has remained brave and impacted society through Signs For All, an initiative through which he creates awareness and advocates for the rights of people living with hearing impairments.
Through Signs For All, he promotes sign language use and runs three centers where he offers sign language lessons.
The centers are located at Techbuzz Hub in Ntinda Kampala, Makerere University and Nkumba University.
In May this year, Ogwal organized the first-ever inclusive debate conducted in sign language.
“I went through hell to be where I am today and for that, I am determined to grow a family of five million sign language users,” he says.
However, his work is limited by funds and he invites well-wishers and donors to work with him in removing communication barriers.
Educational journey
Ogwal, 26, is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education at Makerere University, where he is the former chairperson of the Makerere University Disabled Students Association (MUSDA).
He started his academic journey at Igony Primary School, but before he could complete his first year, the LRA rebels attacked the village, and the family fled to Kampala.
His family returned to Lira while he was in Primary Three and Ogwal enrolled at VH Public School, where he sat his Primary Leaving Examinations, passing in first grade.
He later joined Lango College for his O’level and emerged as the best student with 20 aggregates.
He secured a scholarship in the same school and pursued Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and ICT.
He was admitted to Kyambogo University to pursue a bachelor of science in Chemical and Reaction Engineering, having topped his class with 12 points in 2015.
At Kyambogo University, he dropped out in his second year in 2017 due to financial constraints and the fact that he was required to hire an interpreter, an arrangement that was far beyond his reach.
“Interpreters are few and those available are expensive. Some asked for USh50,000, while others wanted USh80,000 a day,” he recalls.
Life after dropping out
Having dropped out of university, Ogwal resorted to working at construction sites to earn a living.
He did not want to go back to the village.
Fortunately, in 2019, he got an opportunity to study a certificate in Applied Social Innovation from the Social Innovation Academy (SINA) in Mpigi district for four months.
That is how he started the Signs for All initiative.
Ogwal’s secondary school journey was rough.
He was thrown into a world of silence and despair.
Unlike his primary teacher, who used to write notes on the blackboard at Lango College, work was dictated, and he had to write independently.
No one seemed to care that he was not hearing.
Worse still, his classmates resented him.
“No one wanted to associate with me. I had to bargain with my deskmate to allow me copy from his book, but on a bad day, he would cover his work,” Ogwal recollects.
His relationship with the teachers was not any better. Many denied him notes and ridiculed him whenever he performed poorly.
Dealing with stigma
His parents counseled him to ignore people’s comments and focus on his dreams by working hard and believing in himself.
This worked for him. It empowered him to overcome the stigma that he faced in school.
He aspired to be an engineer with a Ph.D., like his role model, Dr. Eng. Moses Okune, the former Prime Minister of Lango.
Ogwal was scolded and bullied in a school with over 1,000 students.
“I hated myself and would cry all the time. I would also wake up to demeaning nicknames like Adingyit (dump or stupid),” he recounts.
In fact, back home, some people called him the same name and this pierced through his heart, leaving pain in its wake.
However, rejection pushed Ogwal to think outside the box and stay in school.
He learned to study on his own. He would go to the library, compile his own notes and top his class, much to the shock of his tormentors.
“One kind classmate, Denis Omara, saved my life. He ‘whispered’ to me when I was at my lowest that life would be better. That lifted up my spirits,” he narrates.
Beyond limitations
Indeed, Ogwal defied all odds stacked against him and emerged the best student in the O’level exams with 20 aggregates.
He also topped his A’level class with 12 points.
“My parents and siblings do not know sign language because there is no one to teach them,” he says.
Ogwal says he spent nine years grappling with communication barriers.
He was lucky to learn sign language when he joined Wakiso Secondary School in 2019.
In the same year, after he acquired the SINA certificate, Ogwal continued his work at construction sites as he taught sign language as part-time.
A parent hired him to teach their son, who had a hearing impairment.
Ogwal’s student passed his O’level with a first grade and is now pursuing mathematics, economics, art, and ICT for his A’level.
Returning to school
Ogwal’s dream was to go back to school, and he achieved it by enrolling back in Senior Six instead of completing his course at Kyambogo, hoping to earn government sponsorship.
He joined Wakiso Secondary School for the Deaf, where he scored 12 points in physics, chemistry, and mathematics, earning him admission into Makerere University in 2020.
During holidays, he stays with friends and continues his two hustles while looking for his footing.
Ogwal to society
Ogwal believes that humanity has eroded over time, especially toward people with disabilities who are treated with sympathy rather than empathy.
According to him, people with disabilities still face stigma and discrimination from friends, family, and strangers.
However, he has learned to live with it and strives to protect people with impairments from going through what he experienced.
He believes those with impairments can co-exist with others and tries to promote inclusion by creating 5 million sign language users in the next seven years.
“Deaf people are normal people and can do anything except that they can’t hear. The society should treat them with respect, understanding, and inclusivity with equal opportunities to education, employment and social activities,” he says.
According to him, sign language interpreters should be provided in all settings to enable accessible information for deaf people.
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“They should also learn sign language so that they are able to recognize and appreciate cultures and language of the hearing impaired, as a valuable part of diversity.
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Discrimination and ableism towards deaf people should be actively challenged and eliminated,” Ogwal advises.
