Ellen meets visually impaired group of continuous support

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has assured the visually impaired of her continued support aimed at giving meaning to their lives because as citizens they too have rights.  

 An Executive Mansion release said, Mrs Sirleaf made the comments when a visually impaired graduate, Mr. Naoh Zawu Gibson, who was accompanied by his two sisters paid her a courtesy call to commend and personally extend to her thanks and appreciation for unding his successful completion of the Cuttington University in Suakoko, Bong County.  

Thirty-six year old Naoh Gibson, who received a degree in Public Administration, said he was not born visually impaired. He narrated how he commenced his early education at the Morris Zayzay Elementary School in 72nd, Paynesville and later enrolled at the United Blind Training Academy where he acquired specialized skills in the use of the Braille.

Naoh Gibson later entered the Kalita High School on the Somalia Drive and later enrolled at the Calvary Temple High School where he graduated in 2005.  Although Mr. Gibson had stayed outside the walls of a formal tertiary institution of learning for some four years, he said that did not deter his ambition to pursue greater knowledge.  

He had a couple of bumpy-cum-rocky starts on entering Cuttington during freshman and sophomore years and was forced to drop from a Ministry of Education Tuition Aid Program because of his inability to meet the required Grade Point Average.  

A smile-beaming Noah said he remains particularly grateful to Her Excellency, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who intervened and offered to underwrite his unhindered pursuit of academic studies with a full scholarship, which paid for 57 credits, accommodation, feeding and allowance from 2013 to 2015 when he completed his undergraduate studies.  

He also praised President Sirleaf for equally extending her goodwill and humanitarian gesture to his comrades namely: Emary Jessie who did his major in Public Administration & minor in Education; James Y. Togba, major in Public Administration & minor in Sociology; Leon T. Kegbeh, major in Public Administration & minor in Sociology (currently employed at NASSCORP); Korto G. Kollie, major in Agriculture; while John Kolleh, who did his major in Public Administration & minor in Sociology, is deceased.  

On what message he had for other visually impaired and physically challenged, Noah Gibson called on them to learn to preserve; be able to withstand challenges and above all put their trust God.  

In his special message to President Sirleaf, Mr. Gibson appealed to the Liberian leader for her consideration to be appointed as an Assistant Minister at the Ministry of Information in order to assist in clearly articulating government’s policies or preferably the National Transit Authority (NTA) to contribute to national development.