Meet the 37-year-old “most reliable” blind Nigerian mechanic

Emeka Abugu, a 37-year-old visually impaired mechanic, describes himself as the most reliable mechanic in his community at Enugu Ezike, south-eastern Nigeria.

He lost his sights during childhood to measles, but has not given up in life since then.

Reportedly, there was no drug for measles in his community at the time of his birth leaving him blind since childhood. At an older age, Abugu visited the hospital, but was told his eyes have become untreatable.

Abugu hails from the South-Eastern part of Nigeria. He has seven children and does all his mechanical repairs without assistance from anyone.

According to him, he learned the art of using tools for mechanical repairs through a little spanner he inherited from his father who used it for bicycle repairs. “Little by little, I started perfecting the skills; that is how I started fixing things,” Abugu told BBC Africa.

He lives in his own house. Although uncompleted at the moment, he has plans of completing the house in the future.

Abugu who attributes his ingenuity to spirituality said: “Any hard work that comes to me, I see it first spiritually.”

He stated that when he has work to repair; he visualizes how the parts were built in the factory to see if they are still in their rightful positions before he commences work.

“I’m familiar with all the tools I work with, I buy the parts myself that is how I charge my clients,” he said.

Abugu loves his family so much and he is keen on ensuring his seven children get quality education. “My biggest achievement is my family, if God provides enough money for me, I would love to send my kids to school,” he stated.

Abugu has this to say to everyone: “Everyone should try and vaccinate their children against measles, so they don’t find themselves in my situation.”

In this video, Abugu explains how he learned the trade despite losing his sight.