The following article was written by POA Online Volunteer Cherryl Cruz

Londi de Wee is the Secretary General of the National Federation of People with Disabilities in Namibia (NFPDN). His first name originates from the Ngunis of South Africa, which means: “the one who looks (after)” — a phrase that definitely suits his role as the “guardian” of Namibia’s disabled. 

At first glance, there’s nothing really different about him. He laughs with the youth in
his gatherings and talks about how the 85,000 disabled people in Namibia are often seen as a curse or embarrassment by their families.  He tells about the eyewitness reports of physically challenged people tied to trees in Eenhana, and also informs them of the atrocious hygienic conditions of a shelter in Oshakati. According to him, this shelter is where handicapped children are left in bare rooms without any form of activity whatsoever. He gives these facts like any normal person giving a speech. But upon closer inspection, you’ll notice that he delivers it using ten pages of a special computer program that helps him decipher what he has written down.

You see, “the one who looks (after)” Namibia’s disabled is blind.

People like Londi serves as a role model not only for young people with disabilities, but also for those who continue to mistakenly believe that  people with disabilities are doomed to destitution.