Paddling against all odds

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Sabir Hossain had to pull a rickshaw van to support his family whenever his father fell ill.

He missed many classes but never gave up hope. Yesterday with the results of SSC 2008, Sabir has proved everyone of his mettle.

For Sabir, a student of Nilphamari Govt High School, has obtained GPA 5.

This lanky, dark boy never let poverty stop him from achieving his best. There was the night before the SSC chemistry exam when there was no kerosene oil in his house to light a lamp to study.

His father Emdadul Haque had gone out, despite his hip pains with his rickshaw van in search of work because he needed the money to buy medicine to stop the pain.

Late that night Emdad returned with a bottle of kerosene oil instead because he wanted his son study for the next day’s exams. Out of frustration for their desperate situation, Sabir cried that night and was unable to revise properly.

Now Emdadul is overwhelmed by his son’s result. Everyone at the school and in the village is nothing but admiration for Emdad and his son.

Sabir used to walk the seven kilometres to the high school everyday from his home in the village of Gobindopur until a generous neighbour donated him a bicycle.

His poor father could not afford to buy him textbooks but Sabir scavenged through the local old paper recycle shops and bought the sheets of books salvaged from there. His teachers donated him others.

Today Sabir is very grateful for all the help and encouragement he received to continue his studies.

His mother, Morzina Begum told The Daily Star that her husband was often out of wok with hip pains and Sabir was forced to go out on his fathers van to earn for the family.

Abdul Mazed, acting headmaster of his school, is proud of Sabir whose talent, Mazed says, is God gifted. The school exempted his tuition fees and helped out in other ways.

His teachers say he has been a polite and hard working boy all along.

Sabir wishes to be a doctor in future but for now he wants to study in Notredame College in Dhaka. However he is not sure if poverty will prevent him from doing so.

Despite all odds Sabir has come out with flying colours in the exams, but he is wary of his dreams, as he is not sure if its only tears that await him in his pursue of higher studies.

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