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Rising above the cerebral palsy stigma – Nii Anyetei’s story
Nii Anyetei
He was diagnosed with jaundice at birth which later developed into cerebral palsy, but that did not stop him from finding success despite the challenges he encountered growing up.
Cerebral palsy is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture. It is most common motor disability in childhood.
Born in 1990, 33-year-old Nii Anyetei Akogyeram was a victim of stigmatisation from friends and mates at school with some calling him with names like ‘saliva boy’, ‘snake worms’ and other weird names which often provoked him.
With the help of the late Dr W.Y Anoff, who nicknamed him Professor and helped him with his speech therapy, Nii Anyetei refused to let his disability affect his education and career.
He currently holds a Diploma in Software Engineering from IPMC and now works with KFC, North Industrial Area branch as a Surveillance Officer.
Speaking to The Spectator on Monday, Nii Anyetei said, he did not attend a special school based on the advice of his doctor. He had his nursery and kindergarten education at Super Day school in Cantonment and was one of the best pupils in the school.
After completing his nursery and kindergarten education, his parents enrolled him in Mother Care school at East Cantonment close to the Airforce Officer’s Mess where he had his primary education.
“At my primary school I had enough love and care from my teachers and classmates even though other children in the school were scared of me because of my condition,” he said.
He later left Mother Care in class six and continued at the Air Force Basic School in Burma Camp where “I had much fun,” and was appointed a general overseer of the school. He said when writing the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in 2006, the school had to request for extra time so he could finish all his papers due to his condition.
He wrote the papers and passed with flying colours. He attended Armed Forces Senior High School and offered General Arts. “I failed my papers three years later and had to stay home for four years,” he said. His father later took him to M&J computer institute in Labone in 2012 where he became the best student in class and later assisted the lecturer in teaching other students
He passed his final paper and started working at Kenthouse Security Company as a controller and was later moved to administration. In 2015, he enrolled at IPMC where he later obtained a Professional Diploma in Software Engineering and Programming but could not cope with both work and school so he resigned from work.
Nii Anyetei said he loves sports and adventure, so at his leisure time he either plays football or basketball, swims as well as go for camping. He is a Christian and a member of the Prince Emmanuel Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church, at Ring Road.
He said in order to help curb the plastic menace, he and his friends make slippers and other products from plastics. “I am also an advocate for cerebral palsy because people with the condition are stigmatised, so I came up with a campaign to reduce it, or possibly end stigmatisation in the world,” he said.
Nii Anyetei is the founder of Cerebral Palsy Awareness Ghana, an organisation which seeks to create awareness, educate and help reduce stigmatisation of the condition.
“I want to help people with disability especially cerebral palsy, this is my burning desire,” he added. Touching on the country’s educational system with regards to inclusivity, he described it as very poor when it comes to persons with disability.
He explained that some head teachers refused to register children with disability for the BECE saying the only option for parents was to register their wards privately.
Nii Anyetei said, people with disability needed assistive devices for their education as most of them did not have good handwriting which affected them negatively in the examination.
“Due to my bad handwriting, I was not able to pass my examination, because the examiners could not see what I had written,” he revealed.
He, therefore, urges the government and the Ghana Education Service to provide persons with disability with assistive devices.
“It is needed, it’s going to be very useful because we can’t use our hands to write well,” he stressed. Nii Anyetei dreams of having a family of his own in the near future.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
The Dzidula Pink Foundation, a new organisation dedicated to cancer awareness, early detection, and patient support, has been officially launched in Accra, with a passionate call for national commitment to fighting the disease. The launch event, held last week Friday, carried the theme: “Beyond the diagnosis: A future of restoration, care and courage.”
Speaking at the event, Madam Abena Brigidi, founder and CEO of Nimed Capital Limited, emphasised that cancer remains one of the most devastating health challenges facing families across the country. “Cancer does not discriminate—it affects mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons. It drains families emotionally and financially, and behind every statistic is a human story and a future suddenly thrown into uncertainty,” she said.
Sharing her personal encounters with cancer, having lost both her husband and father to the disease, Madam Brigidi highlighted the emotional, financial, and physical scars left behind. “I stand here not just as a speaker, but as a witness to what cancer can take away,” she stated. “I have watched loved ones fight bravely, and I have felt the deep pain that loss leaves behind.”
She stressed that awareness and early detection are critical to reducing deaths, noting that many Ghanaians still lack access to proper screening, reliable information, and adequate treatment. She appealed to healthcare professionals, corporate institutions, policymakers, the media, and the general public to join hands in the fight. “Early detection saves lives. Your support today can lead to someone’s healing tomorrow,” she said.
Madam Brigidi further called for collective responsibility to sustain the foundation’s mission. “To our medical professionals, we need your expertise. To corporate partners, your resources. To the media, your voice. To policymakers, your support. And to the public, your compassion,” she urged. She also insisted that breast cancer awareness should not be limited to annual campaigns, saying, “Breast cancer awareness must not be seasonal.”
Mrs Diana Fafa Gozo, founder of the Dzidula Pink Foundation, shared her own cancer journey, describing the shock of diagnosis, the fear that followed, and the difficult path through treatment. Her experience transformed her pain into purpose and inspired her to create a foundation to ensure no cancer patient walks alone.
Mrs Gozo explained that many patients struggle not only with treatment costs but also with emotional resilience. She outlined the foundation’s initiatives, which include awareness and early detection campaigns, patient support funds, community outreach, and survival support circles. “This foundation is my offering of gratitude, courage, and compassion and a reminder that no one should walk the cancer journey alone,” she concluded.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) says it will deploy teams of Public Health Officers, members of its Sanitation Taskforce, and labourers, including sweepers and janitors, across all sub-metros to support the third National Sanitation Day exercise.
It explained that these teams will be equipped with waste collection trucks, tippers, and other tools to help with desilting, refuse collection, and transporting waste to approved disposal sites.
The AMA reminded residents that failing to comply with the sanitation directive or refusing to participate in communal labour is an offence.
It said offenders risk a fine of up to 100 penalty units, imprisonment between 30 days and six months, or both, with repeat offenders liable to additional daily penalties.
It urged all residents, traders, transport operators, market women, shop owners, landlords, tenants, and businesses to actively participate in the exercise.
The AMA said it counts on everyone’s collective responsibility to keep Accra clean, liveable, and resilient, especially as the city approaches Christmas and the New Year.
By: Jacob Aggrey
