Author: The Nation

•Victims go solo to keep fit after being ostracized by mates, teachers, others
•Blame disease burden among members on lack of physical activities

In Tanzania, Kenya, Mali and some other African countries, People With Albinism (PWAs) are encouraged to participate in competitive sports and even represent their countries in international competitions. The reverse is the case in Nigeria. Here, PWAs are treated as sub-humans and ostracized from sports, leaving indelible scars in the hearts of many. Sports authorities are equally culpable as they haven’t deemed it necessary to provide an enabling environment for PWAs to engage and excel in sports. INNOCENT DURU reports.

Chika Umeh, a PWA picked interest in football at a tender age. He played the round leather game all through his secondary school days but the danger of exposing his skin to sunlight brought his interest in soccer to an abrupt end.

“I dropped out of that and got interested in basketball when I got to a tertiary institution,” he said.

“The advantage I had playing basketball was because it was played in the evenings.”

While Chika and numerous other PWAs in Nigeria quit sporting activities because of the effects of the sun on their skin, PWAs in some other countries are being provided an enabling environment and assisted to circumvent the challenge that the sun poses to their health.

In Tanzania, Kenya, and Eswatini, formerly Swaziland, PWAs have football clubs engaging in competitive games. In Mali, Zambia, and other African nations, PWAs have produced great athletes who have represented their nations at international competitions and won laurels.

While PWAs in those smaller African nations are making successes, Chika, a multi- skilled sportsman   battled emotional trauma fitting into his teams.

Recounting his ordeal, Chika said: “there is this kind of look that they usually give. It’s kind of a discrimination, isn’t it?,” he asked rhetorically and continued: “when they look at you, they suggest you are not fit for the game; you don’t belong here kind of look. Though sometimes they let me play, but when it comes to competitions, they just feel I won’t match up.

“Maybe they feel it might be too stressful for me or that I might not be able to withstand the pressure of the opposing team.

“They will tell you, oh no, you can’t do this because of your complexion.  You don’t need this stress. It’s sometimes hurtful, but you just have to let go of it.” 

While his mates trivialize his ability, Chika said “right in my own mind, I do believe I would live above their limitations. I always have this feeling that I can do it. But they always say, okay, ‘no, you will get in later’ but it never came.”

Going by his experience, Chika said he often felt sidelined, and being left out by society. 

“Sometimes when I see that a game is in the afternoon when it is hot, I feel it is   understandable to be left out. But sometimes when it’s in the evening or early in the morning when I won’t be affected by the rays of the sun and they come up with such attitudes, I feel sidelined, and get to wonder if there was something else to it.

“I would always feel bad, but wouldn’t betray emotions. I just let it be.”

“I would just come out, you know, do my own practices when it’s time to practice. At times I practiced with others when it’s convenient, but for the main games, I just wouldn’t put in too much hope, especially when I know that they may not give me a chance.”

After being emotionally brutalized and ostracized from competitive outdoor games, “I resorted to engaging in indoor games.

“At a point, I played chess, and I did taekwondo for a start.  I didn’t proceed to the advanced level. It’s just a personal love for it that got me into it.”

Chika still does taekwondo. “I do personal training. My coaches really encouraged me but I didn’t have much time to take it to the next level. Something else engaged me, so I didn’t continue that anymore.”

Had he been given the necessary support and encouragement, Chika said he would have thought of doing it on a much larger scale.

“I just do it personally now,” he said.

Like Chika, Akinsola Oluwayemisi, a 29-year-old PWA also picked interest in sports at a very tender age.

“I was participating in sporting activities when I was in primary school. I was taking part in relay races back then and good at what I was doing. I also liked volleyball but all the skills have vanished.”

Oluwayemisi said she stopped involvement in sporting activities after seeing a doctor who “advised me against exposing my body to sun.

“I didn’t feel good quitting because I really love sports. I felt really bad but there was nothing I could do.”

In spite of the setback the doctor’s advice caused her, Oluwayemisi has refused to give up on sports. “I no longer do exercises with other people but I do that alone in the house,”she said.

PWA feels separated, neglected not engaging in competitive sports

One may not appreciate how unhappy PWAs feel not engaging in competitive sports until there is an encounter with them. Our meeting with   the coordinator, Albinism Association of Nigeria, Somolu/Bariga LCDA, Abegunde Elijah, reveals this much.

“I feel separated, I feel neglected and not really good about it,” he said.

Before now, I took part in sports in the morning.In school, I was involved in swimming.  I stopped taking part in regular sporting activities because of the sun.”

Elijah has not allowed the verdict of nature to extinguish his love for sports. To keep fit and maintain a healthy lifestyle, he said: | “I jog every morning now.”

In spite of the existence of disability laws that frown at any form of discrimination against people living with disabilities, Elijah expressed worries that the society has continued to discourage even the younger PWAs from engaging in sports.

His words: “The children face stigmatization just the same way we did when we were growing up.

“They are discriminated against in sports. They laugh at them saying that they can’t see.

“During sporting activities, they will just be mocking them saying they won’t see the ball.  They can even hide the ball and tell a child with albinism to start looking for it. That demoralizes and discourages such a child from engaging in sports.”

PWA quits sports after changing school

A female PWA, Omobola Kalejaiye said her interest in sports was dashed after she moved to a new school where no consideration was given about   her nature when fixing sporting events.

She said: “I was into running when I was younger. When I was in primary school, I was jumping too. I stopped after I changed my school. In the new school that I went to, there was nothing like jumping. All they had was volleyball, basketball and football.

“I couldn’t join them because they were doing all that under the sun. I can’t stay under the sun and be running or participating in football and basketball.

“I will need a very cool place. Secondly, the person that will anchor a game will be far from me and I may not see when he is giving me any instruction. If not for the danger of exposing my skin to the sun, I would have been participating in all those games.”

PWAs must be on top of their game – Lagos PWA Chair Tolani Ojuri

Lagos PWA Chairman, Tolani Ojuri, engages in sports and enjoins members to follow suit with warning that they should avoid exposure to the sun.

“We encourage our members to take part in indoor games for their physical health. We also encourage them to be on top of their game and as much as possible to aid their metabolism.”

Ojuri said he picked up cycling from childhood.  “It was just for me a hobby. I do it almost every other day, but I make sure it’s regular on weekends.”

Aside from cycling, the PWA chair said he probably would have taken to jogging. “I have not really been into competitive sports all my life but if I were to choose one, I will say probably athletics.

I can’t do that under the sun even if I am one.”

Ojuri dismissed fears by some parents that their children with albinism are too fragile to engage in sports.

“Yeah, some parents express some level of fear or concern for their children. But when they come into the cluster, we make them realize that their child is just like any other child and they can do virtually everything that the other children do as long as they are kept away from the sun.  And really, as the child keeps growing, they truly realize that there’s nothing fragile about the child.”

Calls for, enabling environment, sporting competitions among PWAs

Respondents called on the sports ministry to provide an enabling environment and organize sporting competitions for PWAs to boost their physical fitness and reduce disease burdens among them.

Omobola urged the authorities to create places where people with albinism could engage in sporting activities. “If I have a covered place I will participate in sports. The only issue is that the place must not be too bright.  It must be moderately lit.”

When people with albinism get involved in sporting activities, she said, “our spirit will be lifted. When that begins, people will laugh and ask why they are engaging in sporting activities but it doesn’t matter in as much as you know what you are doing. Once you are willing to do that, you will not listen to any side talk.

“If there is an avenue for people like us to participate in sports, I believe that we will have many people who will be interested in it.  Even the younger ones that are coming now will have been trained on how to participate in those games.”

Speaking in the same vein, Elijah said: “If I have a place that is covered, I will gladly engage in sporting activities.  I love table tennis, swimming, and jogging. I can play football with a few people.  But the fact that we don’t have any place we can take part without being exposed to the sun, many of us don’t participate in games.

As the coordinator or people with albinism in Somolu, Bariga, I can tell you that most of our people don’t engage in sporting activities. This is why most of us have infections. Many of our members are battling with cancer. If we are engaging in sporting activities, the health challenges will drastically reduce.”

He appealed to government to make provisions “for us to have our own sports centre in places like Shomolu LGA and Bariga LCDA as well. We will be very grateful to have that. We are trying everything possible to see how they can engage in sporting activities.  It has not been easy but we are making efforts to get this done. We need support from the government to get this done.”

Twenty nine year old Oluwayemisi said she is still burning with the passion of engaging in sporting activities.

 She said: “If I get a place that is covered, I mean a place that shields me from the sun, I will gladly go back to taking part in sports.”

Chika said: “If there are competitions among people with albinism, it will encourage many of our people to participate in sports. There are so many of us who are interested sports.  Many of us are passionate about sports. Most times when we try to engage, some of us just look away from the stigmatization.

“If we are given a chance, even if they are just indoor games, many will participate.

“We have so many of us going into the entertainment industry.  Some are doing well, so if given a chance in sports, why not? We will do well.  What they could only do is maybe set some standard, like it’s done in the other person. If they set standards, it will motivate many PWAs to want to engage in sports.”

Lending his voice to pleas of his members, the PWA chairman, Ojuri said authorities should actively engage persons with albinism with necessary support when it comes to sports.

 “If you are going to have indoor cycling, the space must be covered, if you are having indoor tracks, the space must covered. They must be shielded from the rays of the sun, especially at the peak of the day.”

African countries where PWAs are excelling in sports

In many African countries, PWAs have long put the challenges of sunlight and failure of sports administrators behind them.

They are making successes and grabbing global media attention.

In Tanzania exists a football team known as Albino United FC. It was founded in 2008.

The team was formed by young men with albinism to challenge dangerous superstitions and discrimination in Tanzania, where they are often targeted for body parts used in witchcraft. They gained international attention through documentaries and support from organizations like Everton FC, using football to promote acceptance and show they are normal members of society, despite facing threats and hostility in some areas.

PWAs in Kenyan are also   making strides through initiatives like the Black Albinism Football Club (BAFC). Like in Tanzania, they are using football for inclusion and awareness against stigma, with players facing challenges like sun sensitivity and vision impairment but finding empowerment.

Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) also has the Bright Stars Football Club, a team for persons with albinism. The team plays matches to promote inclusion through sports and educate the public on albinism.

Apart from football, PWAs in Kenya are also making strong statements in the area of athletics.

The prominent Kenyan albino sprinter breaking barriers is Jairus Ong’eta.

Read Also: Adeshina, three other Nigerians for historic PFL Finals in Cotonou

Ong’eta made history as the first person with albinism to represent Kenya at the World Para Athletics level, winning gold and inspiring others despite stigma and vision challenges. Another inspiring figure is Samson Ojuka, a long jump para-athlete also with albinism, aiming for the Paralympics and advocating for better support for Kenyan para-athletes.

Both athletes are crucial in challenging stereotypes and advocating for inclusion, proving that individuals with albinism can excel in sports.

Mali: PWAs in sports from Mali are known through the inspiring story of Adiaratou Iglesias, a Paralympic champion who fled persecution in Mali for Spain due to albinism-related attacks, becoming a world-class sprinter who uses sport to challenge stigma, while Mali itself has athletes with albinism in sports like athletics, despite facing significant discrimination and threats in their home country, highlighting both talent and the urgent need for protection

Zambia: PWAs in Zambian sports are making strides despite significant stigma, with individuals like Paralympian runner Monica Munga using sports to challenge myths, while organizations like the Albinism Foundation of Zambia (AFZ) advocate for inclusion, organizing events in sports like swimming and indoor games to raise awareness, though challenges like sun sensitivity, fear from attacks (witchcraft myths), and lack of resources persist, with focus shifting towards sports like swimming, gymnastics, and chess, and increased community sensitization.

Efforts to speak with NSC unsuccessful

Efforts to speak with the DG of National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade  to speak on what the commission has done or is doing to create enabling environment for people with albinism to participate in both indoor and outdoor games like their counterparts in other African countries were  unsuccessful as the mobile line was reachable.

Online search shows that while the National Sports Commission (NSC) of Nigeria aims to provide equal opportunities to all sports and athletes, specific, dedicated programs explicitly for people with albinism  are not directly mentioned in recent information.

“Existing reports suggest that individuals with albinism have historically been left on the sidelines in Nigerian sports, and no person with albinism has ever represented the country in any sports tournament. The primary focus of the NSC, as per recent updates, includes general talent identification, grassroots development, and supporting various sports federations, including those for para-athletes,” the search result revealed. 

Long before, a  Commissioner for Youth and Sport, in Ogun State, Afolabi Afuape advocated for the engagement of  people with albinism  participation in sporting activities in the country.

He said being persons with albinism  does not stop them from participating in any sporting activities of their choice, calling on the Federal Government and major stakeholders in the sporting industry to encourage their  involvement in sporting activities.

” There are so many in-door sporting activities that special people like albino can engage in. I will like to assure you that the Ministry of sport will immediately enroll as many of you that have interest in sporting activities as the Governor has more interest in the success of the people with special needs in the society” Commissioner said.

Laudable as the remark was, it has not been implemented. Persons with albinism in the state and the country at large are still sidelined from sporting activities. Instead of encouraging them to participate in sports, the society thrives on using them for ridiculous content creation that further distresses many of them.