Francis Ndung’u, commonly known as Bruce, shares a powerful narrative of resilience that traces back to his birth on July 28, 1964.
Born into a family already facing trials, Ndung’u and his elder brother are physically challenged.
“My brother is deaf while I got polio at a young age,” he said, adding that this early diagnosis significantly impacted his family’s dynamics, leading to the separation of his parents due to societal taboos surrounding disability.
Speaking to KNA, Ndung’u says he relocated to Githiga to live with his uncle after the separation and began his education at the Centre for Disabled People, where he studied from 1969 to 1973.
Despite the challenges he faced, including being surrounded by peers with more severe disabilities, Ndung’u rejected the notion that his condition would define him.
“I saw my disability as just a minor disability, and my belief that everyone has capabilities beyond their challenges kept me yearning for more,” he explains.
His education journey was marked by determination, and he progressed through primary school, ultimately taking the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) in 1980 and achieving an impressive 29 points out of the 36.
He quickly interjects to say that despite his success, discrimination against his disability hindered his opportunities.
His estranged parents could also not afford his secondary school fees, and this setback led him to repeat class seven at Benson Njau Primary School, where he excelled again and this time gained admission to Starehe Boys Centre. He, however, still did not manage to join the school.
But Ndung’u was eventually able to complete his secondary school at Githiga Boys between 1982 to 1985, with support from a Swedish school that fully sponsored his studies. Notably, this kind of financial backing (full sponsorship) was crucial, given his family’s earlier struggles.
“I cleared high school and sought various means to become self-reliant by acquiring numerous technical skills, including carpentry and shoemaking, as education alone does not guarantee success,” he said.
Between 1989 and 1991, Ndung’u worked for his uncle on his horticulture farm but soon realised that his dependency was unsustainable.
He ventured out on his own, establishing a shoemaking workshop. This initiative marked the beginning of his entrepreneurial journey, paving the way for greater independence.
At the age of 28, he got married, became a father of six, and started balancing family life with his career and advocacy work.
In the late 1980s, Ndungu became actively involved in disability advocacy and joined the United Disabled Persons of Kenya (UDPK) in 1986, where he worked tirelessly to support disabled children who were often neglected.
“I realised that there are so many children with disabilities who are neglected, and this drove me to even establish organisations aimed at empowering individuals living
with disabilities,” he explained.
Ndungu’s advocacy work intersected with his political interests, and he began engaging in political discourse for good governance and calling for meaningful change, and with his involvement and drive a desire to challenge the status quo and address the systematic issues that kept many in poverty, particularly those with disabilities.
He says that his determination and activism bore fruit when the Disability Act was finally enacted after years of lobbying, and his journey now illustrates not just personal resilience but also a broader movement toward acknowledging and addressing the rights of people with disabilities in Kenya.
“There is an urgent need for systemic change in how society and the government support the people with disabilities, from employment disparity, Gender Based Violence, education opportunities, and even empowering them with essential tools for their trade,” Ndungú said.
Ndungú serves on the Kiambu Co-Citizenship and Development Committee, representing PWDs. He has gone further ahead and established a WhatsApp group to connect PWDs with resources and information about available support.
Currently, the National Fund for the Disabled of Kenya (NFDK) is carrying out an economic empowerment and inclusion programme in Kiambu County with about 94 people with disabilities (PWDs) drawn from nine sub-counties in Kiambu set to receive donations of wheelchairs, welding kits, barber and salon kits, farming tools, carwash machines, and sewing machines, among other things, worth Sh3, 128, 800 million.
Speaking during a recent event at the office of the Deputy County Commissioner in Kiambu sub-county, Tabitha Mihari, a representative of the Fund in charge of Advocacy, urged beneficiaries to be aware of their fundamental rights and privileges and challenge societal stereotypes in their quest for inclusion.
Five months ago in May, Kiambu joined Counties that passed the Kiambu County Persons with Disability Bill 2024, a noble law that will change and shape the future landscape of PWDs in the County.
By Geoffrey Muchemi
