Eid-il-kabir mubarak (The inspiring tale of Gambo Sambo)

I write this story with great humility and in great wonder over Almighty Allah’s miracles. This is the tale of a muslim man which is simple and yet powerful.Gambo is in his early 50s. A few years ago he was about to go for his PhD in England when he had a devastating car accident […]

I write this story with great humility and in great wonder over Almighty Allah’s miracles. This is the tale of a muslim man which is simple and yet powerful.
Gambo is in his early 50s. A few years ago he was about to go for his PhD in England when he had a devastating car accident that left him blind. He spent all his savings on medical treatment but to no avail. He then proceeded to do the incredible. He got rid of all his possessions and in his state of blindness self-taught himself poultry farming. He asked people to read out books and journals to him as well as browse the internet to get him information.
With Allah’s grace he was able to open a poultry farm in Zaria. He goes to the farm everyday and supervises all elements of the farming process, from feeding to incubation. Gambo knew nothing about poultry before becoming blind. He learnt all this with no vision. He told me “I cannot let my seven children starve”. Gambo is a nephew to the late Nuhu Babajo, a former deputy Governor of Kaduna State.
He is very happy and extremely grateful to Allah for His blessings. He remains very cheerful and full of faith, life and hope. It is really inspiring to see a blind person build and run a poultry farm from the scratch without any help, supervising and giving the most detailed instructions to his workers. He never tires or waivers in his reminders to me to remember the ways of the Lord. Gambo never once expressed any regret or bitterness over his state. He seems always happy and even sends me pictures of himself these days, trying to show me “his old age”.
I lost contact with Gambo for 20 years and have just reconnected with him masha Allah. At this time in my life I believe he exists to teach us all that our sustenance lies with Allah and in His will and worship; not material possessions. I call him everyday because he is a reminder to me to try to be as good a muslim as he is. His remarkable cheerfulness gives me light for my day and reminds me to strive and worship more. I do not know what  else to do other than to try and be a part of this miracle of a man that Allah has graced us with so that we can learn humility.
On a more sober note , he had a few thousand chickens before but he is now down to about 300. He has had difficulty securing funding to maintain this massive endeavor. His car has broken down and he takes the public transport to his farm everyday. He then goes to the internet cafe for 1 to 2 hours a day so that he can get updates on poultry science as well as visit some Islamic websites. This is a study in perseverance since we can all imagine how difficult it will be if we temporarily cover our eyes and ask someone to browse for us. One needs patience and deep faith not to despair and become frustrated by his disability.
He did not ask me to do this, but I will. His telephone number is 0809 722 0140. Anybody who can should please call him and listen to his positive message and uplifting Islam. I would also add, without his permission that he needs to access to any kind of help from NGOs, government or non-profit organisations so that he can maintain his life with dignity. Arrangements are being made Insha Allah to get him a laptop with voice activated commands for the blind so that he can browse at home. But beyond this, this willing slave of Allah needs our support and we should do whatever little we can. Like I said, he is not aware I am writing this email, but I believe that we, the many servants of Almighty Allah will do something through prayer, advise or support.
Even in the midst of our current abyss in Nigeria Allah is sending us clear messages in the form of people like Gambo. We should heed these messages and get inspired into doing good and rising above our individual challenges.
Dr. Zakari Tata is a Clinical Professor of Medicine, Michigan, USA.