According to her, she got an information that one Samuel Akonnor was yearning to tell her his story, and as a TV journalist, she expected the interview to be audiovisual, but just when the interviewee started speaking, Portia had to quickly intervene and stop him.
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‘It’s okay, don’t talk’ - Emotional Portia Gabor ends interview with man with disability [Video]
TV3’s Portia Gabor has highlighted many bizarre stories over the years through journalism, but a recent one about a man with a disability got her so emotional that she had to end the interview and beg him not to talk.
Portia Gabor sadly ends interview with man who falls, hits head against wall to speak
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“It's okay,” Portia said repeatedly while patting Akonnor on his shoulder to console him, confessing “I’m even emotional”.
The young man has a rare condition from infancy that makes it difficult for him to speak and express himself with ease. In his attempt to express himself verbally, he has to repeatedly and vigorously fall backwards and sometimes hits his head against walls and other hard surfaces. He sometimes suffers seizures.
Bent on speaking at all costs and almost hitting his head against the wall, Portia who could not withstand the sight of Akonnor hurting himself begged: “Don’t talk, Samuel, don’t talk.”
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The interview was originally meant to be audiovisual but it had to be changed to text messaging due to the inability of Akonnor to speak.
Despite his disturbing condition, he is determined to not let disability limit him, so he is currently studying art, which he loves so much, at the University of Education, Winneba.
He told Portia that he expresses himself through art although he has a speaking impairment. He offered to draw Portia and indeed made a beautiful portrait of her and then presented it to her.
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A woman believed to be Akonnor’s guardian said some lecturers at the UEW have been helpful to him in terms of showing him love and care to bring the best out of him.
She cited stigma as one of the challenges he has to grapple with, recalling a dramatic moment Akonnor found himself on a public transport and when he tried to tell the driver’s mate that he had reached his destination, all the passengers onboard the vehicle fled because of his speaking difficulty.
Currently, the young man who is now in his second year in the university needs financial assistance to fulfil his ambition to become a great artist and also take care of his medical bills.
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