Helen Bwembya: Blind but leading productive life

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

Hellen Bwembya writing her examinations in braille

SEATED in her usual spot in class and trying to read her novel in braille excites Helen Bwembya, who has now grasped the technique behind it.

Helen, 34, now realises that it is not difficult to learn the much-needed skill for every visually-impaired person.

Apart from the reading on braille, she also boasts of being able to walk on her own without any help or escort.

"I never realised I would be able to fend for myself in my blind state, as the visually-impaired are always considered burdensome," she shares.

Helen is one lady who has embraced her state of being blind and used it to help herself and her mother.

The only child she had died years back. She gives credit to the Zambia Library Cultural and Skills Centre (ZLCS) for the visually-impaired for enrolling her to learn all the stuff she now boasts of.

Helen dropped out of school in Grade seven due to financial constraints her family encountered.

The soft-spoken Helen narrates that she woke up one morning and discovered she could no longer see after a dental procedure where three of her teeth were forcibly removed.

"I used to experience constant toothaches which would result in migraine and I resolved to go to the clinic where I was told one of the teeth was rotten and needed to be removed."

"I had second thoughts over having it extracted but after further consultations I decided to go ahead," said Helen.

Little did Helen know that her consenting to the removal of her tooth would lead to blindness. In March 2005, Helen went to Chilenje Clinic in Lusaka to have her tooth removed but unfortunately the wrong tooth was forcibly removed, which led to intensive bleeding.

"The bleeding continued for days and in another attempt to remove the damaged tooth, the same dentist yet again pulled out other two teeth but the medical record indicated that he only removed one," Helen laments.

The repeated removal of the 'wrong' teeth obviously worried Helen; forcing her to seek further medical help from a dentist at Lusaka's University Teaching Hospital during the same month. Sadly, Helen was informed that in the next few months she would get blind because the sensory nerves which connect the teeth to the eyes were tampered with.

"When I was told I was going to go blind, I thought the dentist was joking but little did I know that the warning was serious," she chuckled. "It was tough going being blind and worse still in my youthful years."

"And what really hurt me was that I was now blind due to someone's carelessness," Helen narrated.

But before her sad predicament, Helen, who lives in Lusaka's Libala,' township, was a business lady dealing in the sale of bed sheets. "I used to travel to Nakonde to buy bed sheets which I would re-sell here in Lusaka.

That was the only business which kept me going," she said. Unfortunately, all this came to an abrupt end as she could no longer do the things she used to do.

Everything was being done for her by her mother and nieces because she had no strength and capacity to do anything.

"It was tough to have everything done for me ranging from the small things like warming bathing water and cooking for me," said Helen.

Helen and her mother have been unable to seek legal redress from the clinic due to lack of financial resources to hire a legal practitioner.

"We could not seek for justice because court cases take long to be disposed of and, besides, we do not have enough money to battle it out," Helen alleged.

A day in her life is torturous as every morning she has to fumble around trying to find her way around the house.

With the chirping birds and the sunlight that accompanies the morning, Helen sadly sits on her bed with nothing but memories of how she would be up and about carrying out her daily errands.

There was a point in time where she thought dying was far much better than living. It took close to four years for Helen to accept her condition.

And belonging to the Catholic faith, church members have encouraged her to remain strong and advised her to enrol at the ZLCS for the visually-impaired.

Initially she resisted but after further persuasion she gave in and enrolled at the centre where she has been since 2010.

"I'm really grateful to my tutors at the ZLCS, at least I am now able to fend for myself through vegetable-growing," she exclaimed excitedly.

After all she has been through; Helen has since advised fellow blind women not to wallow in self-pity but to realise that they can still lead a productive and exciting life.

"They should also come to the centre where I am at and learn what I have learnt," she advised.

Krummy's 'Kanselele' under fire

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

HE may be enjoying massive airplay with his song Kanselele, which features JK and `Donchi Kubeba' Dandy Krazy, but Krummy's lyrics are now attracting fierce criticism from some section of society.

The Children's News Agency (CNA), a project under the Media Network on Child Rights and Development (MINCRD), says it strongly condemns all radio stations and public places playing the song because of the line nangu ni kasukulu.

In a statement obtained by the Weekend Mail in Lusaka, CNA says the song is an affront to the fight against child sexual abuse.

"This song is unacceptable as it promotes certain behaviour in men who might in turn end up committing crimes like defilement.

CNA is very disappointed that as the Government and other stakeholders strive to end child sexual abuse around the country, artistes like Krummy are composing songs that promote the vice and radio stations are giving such tracks airplay and backed by renowned artistes JK and Dandy Krazy.

"The agency strongly condemns all radio stations and public places playing this song and allow it to be voted and danced to by the public.

The CNA therefore requests the Zambia Association of Musicians (ZAM) and the Ministry of Tourism and Arts to monitor and regulate the content of Zambian music to ensure that it does not infringe on the rights of the child, especially the girl child," the statement reads in part.

The agency has since given Krummy seven days, starting from last Monday, to adhere to their request to remove the line of nangu ni kasukulu failure to which they will seek further redress.

"We also seek support from the Ministry of Gender and Child Development, Child Protection Unit and religious organisations in stopping the spread of such illicit music on our airwaves and public places," the statements says.

When former ZAM president Maiko Zulu posted the statement on his facebook, a fierce debate started.

"I found that line offensive too I must say baba.how do we fight children's rights abuses with such lyrical content munyimbo.

It also promotes infidelity," Linah Ngawa Daisy posted. But Matongo Maumbi wondered why the song has become a hit and asked how many songs have such lyrics and go without any public cry.

"We receive foreign explicit music and turn our heads away," Matongo said. "It's just your dirty minds and probably jealousy, that's why it has taken this long to discover Cause you had no better ways of tackling it.

I'm very particular with music and illicit lyrics. I take time to understand the motive or story behind a song.

"In my understanding, he [Krummy] is simply saying my hands can't reach you or touch you, I'm moving on, it doesn't matter if it's a neighbour or a school girl.

To which any sensible adult will know it's reference to a college girl since most women in marriages complain of their hubbys going after these college kids," argued someone by the name Mpanga Ya Mambwe.

New braille ballot papers introduced

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

ELECTORAL Commission of Zambia has introduced new features on braille ballot papers to address challenges encountered by the visually impaired voters in the previous elections.

Speaking during consultative workshop on the participation of persons with disabilities in the electoral process in Lusaka, ECZ official Mataa Sikota said the new features will enable blind voters to take part in the 2016 general elections effectively.

Mr Sikota said the old braille voting ballot papers had inadequacies as they would easily be shuffled making the visually impaired voters vote otherwise.

"The new braille voting ballot is intact and does not move easily and this will enable our blind voters to vote for their preferred candidate unlike the old one which could easily scuttle if not handled well and a voter could either vote otherwise or it will be a rejected ballot," he explained.

Mr Sikota said the new features will allow blind voters to make their own personal choices during voting without having anyone to vote for them.

"In the past during voting, there was an issue of mistrust as blind voters used to have someone vote for them," he said.

However, Mr Sikota said the Commission is facing challenges in the non-availability of persons to offer sign language interpretation for the deaf.

He also said literacy levels in sign language and braille are still some of the challenges the Commission is facing.

And Africa Programme Director Wamundila Waliuya has since commended the ECZ for adding new features to the braille voting ballot paper.

Mr Waliuya said the features will enhance full participation in elections and secrecy. He said, We are now assured of having full access to the ballot paper and our autonomy and dignity have been enhanced."

Meanwhile, Mr Waliuya has urged ECZ to consider executing the September 2011 Lusaka High Court judegment.

"There are a lot of lessons that ECZ can learn from the judgement which can be used in the by-elections and the 2016 general elections," Mr Waliuya advised.

Zambia Federation of Disability Organisations (ZAFOD) sued ECZ in 2011 for failure to initiate reform to ensure equitable participation by persons with disabilities in the electoral process of Zambia contrary to Article 23 of the Constitution of Zambia.

New education curriculum framework welcomed

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

ZAMBIA'S new education curriculum framework which includes the use of familiar languages for instruction for grades one to four to equip leaners with vital skills and values necessary for contributing to the development of society and the economy.

Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education Permanent Secretary ChishimbaNkosha says the new curriculum has also been linked at all levels, from early childhood education to tertiary education and adult levels.

"The necessary career paths for learners at secondary school level have been provided. This will accord learners an opportunity to progress according to their abilities and interests," he says.

Mr Nkosha said this in his summary note contained in the recently launched 'Zambia Education Curriculum Framework 2013' in Lusaka.

The Permanent Secretary said while education has always been perceived as a social sector, it is also an economic tool for development.

In 1996, the Ministry of Education developed the national policy on Education called 'Educating our Future' in order to respond to the developmental needs of the nation as well as those of the individual learners.

"This policy has since become the basis of all the educational strategies that ensures the provision of quality education through suitable teaching and learning at all levels.

It is against this background that the framework has been developed to provide further guidance on the preferred type of education for the nation," Mr Nkosha said.

The framework is the philosophical rationale for the educational provision to nurture the holistic development for all individuals and promote the social and economic welfare of society.

Mr Nkosha said this implies that the achievement of fairness in education should demand for educational policies which value and promote a multifaceted development of the learners.

Gwembe DC hails State

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

GWEMBE district commissioner Alice Mwiinga has commended Government over the on-going construction of the Bottom road and bridges in the area.

Ms Mwiinga told Femail in an interview during the week that the construction of the Bottom road and bridges would ease movements especially for children who have to cross rivers when going to school.

She said during rainy season school-going children find it difficult to get to school, resulting in increased levels of absenteeism.

Ms Mwiinga said "Apart from challenges of crossing rivers when going to school, there is also fear of crocodile attacks here".

She has since called on Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) to cull the of crocodiles in the area as residents are living in fear.

The presence of crocodiles has also made it difficult for local farmers to attend to their fields. "On New Year's Day, a woman was killed by a crocodile.

This is why ZAWA needs to help us control these reptiles. They are found almost everywhere," she said.

Meanwhile, Ms Mwiinga has confirmed that farmers in Gwembe have received urea fertiliser under the Farmer Input Support Programme for 2013/2014 farming season.

She said the fertiliser has come at the right time when farmers are supposed to apply it to their crops.

"I can confirm that farmers in my district have started receiving urea fertiliser. They are happy because it has come at the time when it is supposed to be applied to the crops," Ms Mwiinga said.

A glance at local language school policy

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA and KELVIN KACHINGWE

THE new policy change may have started on Monday with the opening of schools, but it still continues to elicit different takes among the publics.

Local language for instruction from grade one to four and English as the official medium of instruction from grade five upwards! That is one of the most talked about policy currently.

 "Ooh! Poor me, just wondering which language my innocent girl will use in grade three. She has been rebased to pre-independence and colonial times, yet she is learning for the future.

"Which culture are we preserving? If I can remember my special paper II 'to preserve culture of language is to teach in native language from pre-school to grade four' and 'to preserve culture of dressing is to dress imibinde from reception to grade four," Irvine Mwitwa, a Luanshya resident who went to Mukuba High School and Copperbelt University, wrote on his facebook page. In response, CholaKasondeKaira said: "Mr Mwitwa, I can imagine a teacher in front teaching. Musanshecimoelyonafitatu, mwalakwatafinga (one plus three equals to what)?

Can she understand a thing? A pupil with English pre-education will just be wondering what the teacher is saying."

The Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education in its Education Curriculum Framework 2013 says education offered at grade one is meant to provide for the first competence level necessary for the learner to assimilate the learning in grade two.

"As such, the teaching and learning at grade one will start with imparting pre-learning skills in all learning areas.

At grade two, the emphasis is to develop and consolidate the levels of literacy and basic mathematical skills achieved earlier," the policy document, which has been prepared and published by the Curriculum Development Centre, reads in part.

The key competences for learners at primary school level will be literacy skills in English and a Zambian language or sign language, numeracy, information and communication technology and life skills.

"Language of instruction from grade one to four in all the learning areas will be in a familiar language while English will be an official language of instruction from grade five upwards.

"There is a change in the approach to the teaching of literacy in the early grades as there is clear evidence from studies conducted by the ministry and the monitoring reports by education standards officers that there is little learning taking place in public and community schools.

The inability by learners to learn content subjects is because many of them are not able to read and write," the policy document states.

At primary school level, the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education wants learners to have an opportunity to discover their abilities, interests and talents, implying that of all primary school learners shall be exposed to all the two career pathways; academic and technical.

The lower primary school will offer five learning areas, while the upper primary will offer seven learning areas with creative and technology studies comprising key content for technology studies, home economics and expressive arts from grade one to four.

These are some of the prominent curriculum changes at primary school level that the larger sections of society are not discussing and may actually not be aware of.

Their interest is the use of Zambian local languages as a means of instruction. A survey conducted in Lusaka on Monday when schools opened revealed that all public schools were teaching in Nyanja, which has been designated for the region.

A grade one pupil at Lotus Basic School, Samuel Zulu, said it is easier for him to get instructions in Chewa because it is a language he uses with his mother and peers at home.

And Mrs Ingrid Ng'andwe, a grade one teacher at the same school, who is also Zambia Education Curriculum Framework Committee member, said: "The children have responded greatly to this development due to the foundation given to them in grade one at this school.

For us, we already had a programme to introduce children to local languages early." Mrs Ng'andwe added: "It is a good move by Government to give the pupils an opportunity to be connected to their roots, but the only challenge we are facing is lack of learning materials."

Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education permanent secretary ChishimbaNkosha said Government has decided to pick familiar languages as opposed to mother tongues because it is easier to learn in the former due to the environment one may be in.

The definition of familiar Zambian language by the Curriculum Development Centre is that of a local language that is commonly used by children in a particular locality.

This can either be a zone or a community language. "Like in Lusaka, they will be learning in Nyanja [Chewa] which is a familiar language and almost every child knows how to speak it," he said.

Mr Nkosha says the policy will only affect public schools as there is no piece of legislation to compel private schools into doing so, although Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education John Phiri is on record as having said private, missionary, quasi-government and Government schools will be required to follow the new curriculum.

The Zambia National Union of Teachers, Basic Education Union of Zambia (BETUZ) and Professional Teachers Union of Zambia have welcomed Government's move to introduce teaching in local languages from pre-school to grade four. BETUZ director - public and international relations Hilary Chipango says the revision of the curriculum is something the union has been looking forward to.

"The use of local languages in schools has worked well in other countries like South Africa, Botswana and Namibia, and I do not see any reason why it should not work well here," Mr Chipango says.

In February last year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) urged the use of books and textbooks in local languages to support education in mother tongues, which promotes linguistic and cultural diversity and serves as the foundation for all social, economic and cultural life.

"Books are a force for peace and development that must be placed in the hands of all," UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova said in her message for International Mother Language Day which was held under the theme "Mother tongues and books - including digital books and textbooks."

In exploring the link between languages and books, Ms Bokova said the death of books and textbooks in local languages "hampers development and social inclusion and represents a violation of the right to freedom of expression" and "encouraging teaching in the mother tongue aids the fight against literacy."

The Paris-based UN specialised agency estimates that if nothing is done, half of the 6,000 plus languages spoken today will disappear by the end of this century.

Well, with the new initiative by the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education, a few familiar Zambian languages will be saved from extinction! Still, a lot of questions remain unanswered.

How is the distribution of local languages? Have teachers been trained in local languages? Are teaching materials already available in designated local languages? What happens when a pupil moves to a different region?

"At the moment, we're looking at the seven main local languages, and it's not the mother tongue but familiar languages in a particular area because most Zambians are multi-lingua," Mr Nkosha says.

"As for the teachers, they will have to use the general principles of teaching African languages. We are also hoping by March, teaching materials would have reached all areas; the problem is the procurement processes which are a little long.

"And as for transition and transfers, it's not so much of a problem because in most rural areas, pupils are taught in local languages although in terms of transfer of a pupil to a different region, we will have to deal with that administratively so that the pupil is not disadvantaged." That is the prayer for most parents; pupils not to be disadvanted!

Checks coming soon in schools Education PS

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

EDUCATION, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education acting Permanent Secretary Henry Tukombe says random check-ups will soon be conducted in schools to ensure uniforms are not sold in schools anymore as was the practice before.

Mr Tukombe said in an interview with Femail that the selling of uniforms by school authorities has continued despite the ban.

The standards, monitoring and planning department will ensure that this ban is adhered to. Mr Tukombe said the ban has continued facing defiance because it is a money-making venture by some school administrations.

"The Ministry of Education has maintained the ban and there is no time it was revoked," he said. Government in 2012 banned the sale of uniforms by school authorities due to the exorbitant prices that were being charged.

Mr Tukombe also said, "It is only Catholic schools that have entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Education to continue to selling uniforms.

This is understandable because these schools have never changed their uniforms since they first started operating.''

He said it is wrong for parents and guardians to be pressured into buy uniforms from schools because they are usually costly.

He advised schools to desist from changing uniforms every so often because the practice is costly on parents.