Deaf community calls out ‘fake’ entities
Dodgy centres under the spotlight
The association warned the public against the National Sign Language Institute of Namibia, saying it is a money-making scheme.
The Namibian National Association of the Deaf (NNAD) says there are institutions and sign language training centres that are misleading the public and spreading false information.
In a statement, it called out small institutions that charge large sums of money for sign language lessons.
"NNAD applauds those who are truly helping us in making services accessible through legitimate interpreting and training.
“Some are profit-driven and, as such, they have encroached way too deep on our efforts to train qualified interpreters," the statement read.
New kids on the block the National Sign Language Institute of Namibia (NSLI) in particular was highlighted as a “money-making scheme”.
"The public is encouraged to stay away from individuals offering sign language training and asking for high fees. Non-recommended institutes are NSLI and the Namibian College of Interpreting.
“Stay away from these - there is no working relationship between them and us," the statement read.
Shocked
NSLI charges N$1 500 for video-recorded lessons and N$350 per month for two Zoom lessons a week.
The institution’s founder, Linea Kapofi, was shocked at the allegations and said in order to become a true representation of what she believes, she took it upon herself to bring communities together through a uniting language such as sign.
She said she received training in Namibian sign language from the University of Namibia under the bachelor's degree (honours) in education programme as well as a two-week interpreting training course in October 2021, of which NNAD was the organiser.
"Our classes are not solely conducted by me as I am merely the facilitator of the workshops. Sign language must be taught by the daily users of the language, thus I am fortunate to have a team that supports NSLI when conducting workshops," she said.
Kapofi added that her company is a registered institute and if all parties work together, they can create spaces for all Namibians "to receive the resources and support to create the lives they want".
‘King Gucci’ called out
NNAD has also called out social media sensation Louis ‘King Gucci’ Newawa for making a mockery of sign language on his social media platforms.
"We do our best to guard the language against mockery and thus we are requesting that you cease pretending to use Namibian sign language as it affects us - and it is punishable."
The association hopes to see all defamatory videos removed from his Instagram page and for institutions to involve it in sign language business registration.
Furthermore, it urged Namibians to recognise and respect the rights of deaf persons in Namibia.
In a statement, it called out small institutions that charge large sums of money for sign language lessons.
"NNAD applauds those who are truly helping us in making services accessible through legitimate interpreting and training.
“Some are profit-driven and, as such, they have encroached way too deep on our efforts to train qualified interpreters," the statement read.
New kids on the block the National Sign Language Institute of Namibia (NSLI) in particular was highlighted as a “money-making scheme”.
"The public is encouraged to stay away from individuals offering sign language training and asking for high fees. Non-recommended institutes are NSLI and the Namibian College of Interpreting.
“Stay away from these - there is no working relationship between them and us," the statement read.
Shocked
NSLI charges N$1 500 for video-recorded lessons and N$350 per month for two Zoom lessons a week.
The institution’s founder, Linea Kapofi, was shocked at the allegations and said in order to become a true representation of what she believes, she took it upon herself to bring communities together through a uniting language such as sign.
She said she received training in Namibian sign language from the University of Namibia under the bachelor's degree (honours) in education programme as well as a two-week interpreting training course in October 2021, of which NNAD was the organiser.
"Our classes are not solely conducted by me as I am merely the facilitator of the workshops. Sign language must be taught by the daily users of the language, thus I am fortunate to have a team that supports NSLI when conducting workshops," she said.
Kapofi added that her company is a registered institute and if all parties work together, they can create spaces for all Namibians "to receive the resources and support to create the lives they want".
‘King Gucci’ called out
NNAD has also called out social media sensation Louis ‘King Gucci’ Newawa for making a mockery of sign language on his social media platforms.
"We do our best to guard the language against mockery and thus we are requesting that you cease pretending to use Namibian sign language as it affects us - and it is punishable."
The association hopes to see all defamatory videos removed from his Instagram page and for institutions to involve it in sign language business registration.
Furthermore, it urged Namibians to recognise and respect the rights of deaf persons in Namibia.
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