1re L2a

Blaise Diagne High School

Kepha the fighter

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The scriptures are quite candid: have you seen a man who works hard? He will sit among the rulers. This is
especially true when one gives ear to the tale of the physically challenge Wycliffe Kepha Anyanzwa. Kepha
was written off some thirty years ago as a bother and a good for nothing by his close relatives, the church
and his foes alike. But a face-to-face encounter with his witty tongue and booming voice immediately
displays the confidence and determination that have driven him to the winning edge.
Kepha says his creeping paralysis is the result of a poor judgement by careless physician at the then King
George Hospital, now Kenyatta National Hospital, at his birth. But he says one thing kept me going. This
was the strange voice that was with me from the age of eight which told me that although I was disabled
physically, I could not afford to be damaged psychologically.
School days for Kepha were a misery. My teachers were totally insensitive to my needs. Most of them seem
to enjoy whacking me. Whack! Whack! Whack! Was it their business he recalls?
After school Kepha applied and qualified a position at the Embu Vocational Training and Rehabilitation
Centre, where he specialized in leather work. He graduated in six months and was immediately recruited by
the Association of Disabled Persons.
W here he was employed in leather worker. He worked seriously over his childhood ambitions of developing
a simple and affordable transport kit a simple and affordable transport kit for those disabilities like himself.
Having had poor parents he had never been able to have a wheelchair to get himself around Nairobi. But
with the help of friends and my big brother , Kepha told me we were able to assemble a number of
materials, and our mobility problems was half solved.
It was in 1978 that Kepha got his big break in the form of a training opportunity in Swedens Stockholm State
Engineering College. Back home in Nairobi in 1989, Kepha and Co were able to come up with the first-ever
Kenyan-made, motorized wheelchair from junk motorcycle parts. There was so much interest in the project
that in no time at all Kepha motorbike and fabricators Engineers was established and what had started as a
simple idea in a ramshackle garage soon became a successful company with a record-setting growth curve.
But a cunning and fast-learning Kepha was not satisfied. After much soul-searching and help from western
donors he has moved into more complicated area of modifying cars for the disabled. He has been working
fully on this since 1992.
Thus Kephas effort at easing the plight of a small proportion of the worlds 500 million disabled has been
him a little bit happier than he was all those years. I feel that I have done better than the most able-bodied
persons, Kepha ventures proudly.
BBC focus on Africa 2000

A- Reading Comprehension
I-Read the text and fill in Kephas profile

2pts

First name: ------------------------------------------------------------------Last name: -------------------------------------------------------------------Place of birth: ----------------------------------------------------------------Kephas psychological characteristic ------------------------------------Nationality: -------------------------------------------------------------------Name of his Company: -----------------------------------------------------First occupation: -------------------------------------------------------------Second occupation: -----------------------------------------------------------

II- Read the text and say whether these statements are true or false by circling, justify by quoting a

passage from the text

Statements

2pts

Justifications

1-Kepha abandoned the challenge.

2-Teachers were helpful to Kepha.

3-Kephas disability is congenital.

F
4-Kepha went to Sweden for medical care.

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-----------------------------------------------------III-Read the text and fill in the chart. The first one is given as an example 2pts
F

Problems
1-Disability

Causes

2-----------------------

2-Kephas teachers

3----------------------4-Mobility

3-Relatives, the Church and the foes

4----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1-Poor judgement

IV-Match words in column A with their definitions in column B

a- old or second-hand articles sold cheaply.
b- not to show a feeling of sympathy
c-Babies are doing it before they walk
d- Accessible to everybody
e-Clever
f- To hit somebody sharply

Column B

Column A

1- Affordable
2-to creep
3-insensitive
4-to whack
5-Junk
6-cunning
7-disable

2pts

B- Linguistic and communicative competence

I-Complete this paragraph with the appropriate compound noun taking words from the box.
Number 5 is given for you
Lamp ----Horse
Keeper ----- Clergy
Cloth ----- Chamber

2pts

Every Sunday, the ---------------- (1) man is preaching at the church. Before the mass starts the---------------- (2)
maid the room needs to be cleaned and perfume is spread. The time ----------------- (3) was hung up on the
walk and it was 9 oclock sharp. On the table------------------ (4) was burning a candle and the Bible was put
next to the bowl of biscuits. If you look up on the far corner of the vestibule was set a lamplight (5) that was
lighting the room in which dominates the psalms.
Report the second paragraph of the text and take into considerations all the modifications 2pts
Kepha said, my creeping paralysis is the result of a poor judgement by careless physician at the then King
George Hospital, now Kenyatta National Hospital, at my birth. But he said one thing kept me going. This
shall have been the strange voice that was with me from the age of eight. The voice told me, although I was
disabled physically, I could not afford to be damaged psychologically.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------II-Complete Kephas psychological portrait with modals: Can Could May- Might - 2pts

Should Teachers in Kephas and his entire environment might (1) help him by giving comfort.
Kepha was sad and was sole in the attitude of the society. Fortunately, Kepha----------------- (2) learn
very quickly and very often surprise people who were stigmatizing him. They -------------- (3) have
been less hard in their treatments. Since Kepha was physically handicapped the society --------------(4) have been his first support but nonetheless they thought he was good for nothing. Kepha was left
by himself and his situation was getting better and better because of his commitment and
determination. He ----------------- (5) head a successful life and back from Sweden he created a
company.
II-Compare Kephas situation with the handicap in the Senegal context and see what they

have in common?

6pts
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