Living with Disability: The Story of 44-Year-Old Rahmatullah Majrooh
Rahmatullah Marjankhel
Ghazni, Afghanistan – 44-year-old Rahmatullah, commonly known as Majrooh, is a resident of Gawmishak village in Qarabagh district of Ghazni province. He contracted polio as a child and has been unable to walk ever since.
Despite the challenges posed by his polio induced disability, he manages to make a living by driving a taxi between his village and Ghazni city—a distance of about 60 kilometers—every day.
Majrooh shared the story of his difficult life, saying, “Forty years ago, during the war in our country, polio vaccine volunteers couldn’t come to our area confidently, or perhaps there were no vaccines available at all. As a result, I was deprived of the vaccine, which led to me contracting polio.”
Due to this disease, His body is partially paralyzed. He is married and the father of six children. Reflecting on the challenges of his condition, he said sadly, “People wouldn’t give me their daughter or sister in marriage. They said, ‘He’s disabled; he can’t take care of himself, how will he take care of a wife?’ But thanks to my father’s efforts, I eventually got married.”
44-year-old Rahmatullah, commonly known as Majrooh, is a resident of Gawmishak village in Qarabagh district of Ghazni province. He contracted polio as a child and has been unable to walk ever since. © Polio Free Afghanistan/2024/Rahmatullah Marjankhel
“Both of my legs have been affected by polio. Now I’m 44 years old, but unfortunately, I still suffer greatly from this disability. I wish I were healthy like others, so I could have served my family and community properly.” he added.
Majrooh, who despite his disability has received some education, states: “My younger brother would put me on a handcart early in the morning and take me three kilometers away to the local school. It was difficult for our family, but I still managed to study until the seventh grade.”
On this basis, a few years ago, Majrooh was a teacher in the local children’s education class in his village.
“When I could no longer teach, I turned to driving. It’s been nearly ten years now that I’ve been driving a taxi, even though my legs are paralyzed. I’ve modified the clutch of my car so that I can operate it with my hand instead of my feet, he explained.”
Majrooh is happy with how people treat him despite his condition and says that if he doesn’t go to the taxi stand for a day or two, the drivers and shopkeepers call to check on him.
But despite all this, he is also engaged in a very important task, which is raising awareness among people about the dangers of polio and the benefits of the polio vaccine.
Majrooh adds, “Both of my legs have been affected by polio. Now I’m 44 years old, but unfortunately, I still suffer greatly from this disability. I wish I were healthy like others, so I could have served my family and community properly.” © Polio Free Afghanistan/2024/ Rahmatullah Marjan khil
“Wherever I meet people, I share my life’s story with them. I tell them that because I wasn’t vaccinated as a child, I got polio and became disabled. This way, I inform them about the harms of polio and urge them to vaccinate their children,” he said.
Majrooh calls on all families to ensure that their children are regularly vaccinated against polio until the age of five to protect them from this devastating disease and safeguard them from suffering the same fate as him.
His older brother, Mohammad Siddiq, lamented, “If my brother weren’t disabled, I’m sure he would have achieved something through his studies and would have been able to serve his country. But unfortunately, polio destroyed his dreams.”
Majrooh says, “Wherever I meet people, I share my life’s story with them. I tell them that because I wasn’t vaccinated as a child, I got polio and became disabled. This way, I inform them about the harms of polio and urge them to vaccinate their children.” © Polio Free Afghanistan/2024/Rahmatullah Marjankhel
Religious scholars also stress the importance of vaccinating children against polio. One scholar, Mawlawi Zahoor Ahmad, stated, “We know that polio is a deadly and paralyzing disease with no cure, but it can be prevented with vaccination. Neglecting this responsibility is akin to throwing one’s children into a pit of destruction.”
He added, Vaccination is safe and halal. It’s the duty of every member of society to regularly vaccinate their children and safeguard them from polio.
In Afghanistan, thousands of people like Rahmatullah suffer from disabilities caused by polio because they were not vaccinated as children.
