By Lenah Bosibori

Nairobi, Kenya: Alex Wambua is a clerical officer at the ministry of Trade and Industrialization, despite his disability he got employed and he is upbeat about the position.

In a recent interview with him at his office located at Nyayo House, Wambua said that growing up as a child with disability was not easy, he had to undergo many challenges before he accepted his condition.

“It was very difficult for me to play around with other children due to my condition, I never had friends, there was so much rejection from family members and also nuclear family,” says Wambua.

“But when you start becoming successful, everybody will now want to re-associate with you”, he adds.

After completing his high school, he pursued a diploma in Information Technology (IT) that has enabled him to work with Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) since 2013 when they started digital registration.

“I have been working with IEBC for three consecutive elections as a clerical officer and the recent as a Deputy presiding officer,” he adds.

When Covid came in 2020, he saw an advert similar to that one he held at IEBC and decided to give it a try.

“I applied as a clerical again with the national government back in 2020 to try my luck,” he says.

After two years, he received a call for an interview at the ministry of Trade and industrialization.

“This is my second month as a clerical officer at the ministry, I need to prove that everything is possible no matter how your disability is,” Wambua adds.

Challenges faced while at work.

Working at Nyayo House is not an easy task for people with disabilities, especially if one alights a vehicle at Bus station which many people refer to as downtown, like Wambua’s case one needs to board a motorcycle everyday which gets very expensive.

According to Wambua, getting to Nyayo House from the bus station has been very difficult since he is using crutches, blisters everywhere in his hands.

“When it rains, it even gets worse, I can’t run like the rest of the people, sometimes I get well wishers who offer me a lift,” adds Wambua.

He adds that any caregiver who has a disability or has a child with any form of disability to always support them not only mentally, physically. But also financially so that they can also recover.