After completing secondary school, Abubakar went into the onion business to support his family. \u201cMy parents were less privileged,\u201d he explains. \u201cSo I started travelling to Sokoto, Kano, Geidam in Yobe state, and places in Marte and Monguno LGA Borno State to buy onions in bulk.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every Tuesday, he and four other traders traveled along the Maiduguri\u2013Geidam route with a familiar driver, returning home on Wednesdays. It was a routine he trusted and one that would change forever in 2015.<\/p>\n
The Ambush on Damaturu\u2013Geidam Road<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t born blind,\u201d he says. \u201cIt happened close to Geidam market.\u201d<\/p>\n On that day, Boko Haram insurgents emerged from the roadside and opened fire on their vehicle. The driver, in panic, accelerated in hopes of escaping, but soon realized they were surrounded. He told the passengers to recite their shahada.<\/p>\n The driver eventually escaped, but two passengers were shot. One in the stomach. Abubakar was struck in the face.<\/p>\n \u201cI lost my eyes instantly,\u201d he recounts. \u201cI became unconscious.\u201d<\/p>\n He woke up in a hospital alive, but blind.<\/p>\n Choosing Faith Over Fear<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cOne thing I always say is Alhamdulillah,\u201d he reflects. \u201cI did not lose my life but only my sight.\u201d<\/p>\n His doctors, impressed by his intelligence, encouraged him to continue his education instead of giving in to despair. They advised him to enroll in the School for the Blind in Maiduguri.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was discharged, I went myself,\u201d he says. \u201cI met the principal, Mallam Ayuba, and told him I wanted to learn again.\u201d<\/p>\n To adapt to his new reality, he began from primary level, learning Braille and orientation techniques. Surrounded by much younger children, he remained undaunted.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t feel discouraged. I accepted it.\u201d<\/p>\n His quick learning impressed his teachers, who promoted him faster than usual.<\/p>\n From Blind School Student to College Graduate<\/strong><\/p>\n After completing secondary school again, Abubakar gained admission into the College of Business, Science and Management Studies in Konduga. He was the only blind student in his cohort.<\/p>\n \u201cI always sat in the front. Even if I came late, my classmates kept a seat for me,\u201d he smiles.<\/p>\n He wrote exams with a typewriter and relied on determination more than anything else.<\/p>\n \u201cWith my situation now, all I can say is Alhamdulillah. I achieved more than I imagined.\u201d<\/p>\n After graduating, the Borno State Government employed him as a teacher\u00a0 in the same school where he finished his secondary education.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel happy every day, teaching in the school that shaped me.\u201d<\/p>\n But he has one dream left: \u201cI want to continue my education. I want to become a professor one day.\u201d<\/p>\n Disability in Borno: A Quiet Struggle<\/strong><\/p>\n Across Borno State and Nigeria, many persons with disabilities face steep barriers stigma, inaccessible learning environments, and limited support services. Many visually-impaired children are still kept at home due to social beliefs or financial constraints.<\/p>\n Abubakar believes education is key to breaking these barriers.<\/p>\n \u201cTo my fellow disabled people whether born with it or affected later like me,\u00a0 I say: accept yourself and stay strong. Disability is not the end. It is part of Allah\u2019s plan.\u201d<\/p>\n He also appeals to parents:<\/p>\n \u201cDo not hide your disabled children. Enroll them in school, especially the free ones. Education gives them dignity. It helps them grow in both western and Islamic knowledge.\u201d<\/p>\n Abubakar does not ask for sympathy; he asks for opportunity. His story is a simple truth loudly lived. When education meets determination, disability loses its power to limit. On 3rd December 2025, the world marks the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992 to promote the rights and well-being of people with disabilities. On this day, Abubakar\u2019s footsteps echoing through the corridors of the school he once attended serve as a powerful reminder of what becomes possible when society chooses inclusion over pity.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Rukaiya Ahmed Alibe<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A former onion trader who lost his sight in a Boko Haram ambush rebuilds his life through strength, faith, and education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":53855,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,73,7,13,113,2,11,16,8,12,18,85,1],"tags":[225,53,222,54,48,223,163,203,224,142],"class_list":["post-53853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-education-en","category-education","category-environment","category-gender","category-health-en","category-humanitarian","category-lake-chad-basin","category-local-news","category-peace-and-security","category-regional-news","category-society","category-uncategorized","tag-ambush","tag-attack","tag-blindness","tag-boko-haram","tag-borno","tag-disability","tag-insurgents","tag-northeast-nigeria","tag-plwd","tag-yobe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53853"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53853"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":53858,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53853\/revisions\/53858"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/ndarason.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/12\/03c5ff57-917e-402c-b50e-6a2578cbb95c.jpeg\")