Losing one’s source of income can be depressing, especially if it was as a result of no fault of yours.
It is even more disheartening when you’re a person with a disability.
But that is the story of Ellah Ametor Avumatsodo, an energetic and hardworking roofing contractor who lost his ability to walk, after falling from the 2nd storey of a building he was roofing.
Things went south for Mr. Avumatsodo as he was dismissed from his workplace.
He alleged on GhanaWeb’s People&Places programme that after he told his superiors at work about his recurring problem of not being able to sustain transportation cost to work due to his condition, his employment was terminated.
“With my disability, I can’t take trotro. If I stand with my wheelchair by the roadside public transport don’t pick me… so I use taxi every day to work. It was highway time.
“When I was there, they gave the thing to a private man and transferred me to Aburi.
“When the private man came, they transferred me to go and work at Aburi. And I went to the office to discuss with the HR and told them that with my disability if I say I’ll be going to Aburi where the tollbooth is and coming the monthly pay that you’re giving me won’t be enough for even my transport fare because I’ll use a taxi every day…
“Three months after working they transferred me to Dodowa again. And I went to the office to tell them that my name had appeared again, and they said ‘wait you’ll hear from us’.
“I waited for the company for three months…, Ella told Wonder Hagan.
He added that while at home he made calls to follow up on his situation but each time he was told he would be given feedback soon.
Eventually, by December, when he hadn’t heard anything from management of his workplace he decided to send an official letter to inform them and remind them of his predicament.
But in response, he was given a termination letter with the reason that he had consistently absent from work.
Ella noted that he intends to pursue the case in order to get justice. Making lemonade out of lemons, he currently operates as an Uber driver.
Through the benevolence of a friend who also found herself with a physical challenge, he acquired a vehicle with an assist device with which he drives.
It’s a pedal which he operates with his hand and with this, he has registered as a cab-hailing driver, serving customers, with the greatest care and safety.
