Mohd Armi bin Rusli is hearing impaired in both ears, but he can hear with the help of hearing aids. Without them, he is 100% deaf. However, he wants the public to know that the deaf community can live like ordinary people and have the same rights as other Malaysians. He is also on a mission to have at least one person who can communicate with basic sign language in every home.
Rojak Daily spoke to the 41-year-old to learn more about his project and how he impacts the deaf community. Deaf since a young age due to a bout of high fever but with perfect speech, Armi received his education at a regular school. He said his parents chose this path because there was probably a lack of information on special schools for the hearing-impaired back in the day. However, he said, “Alhamdullilah, if not for this choice, I may be unable to speak if I were sent to a special school. If I were comfortable with only sign language, I might not have been brave enough to use my voice.”
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Image credit: #SIGNONInterestingly, he only started wearing hearing aids when he entered Universiti Sains Malaysia to take his Organisational Management degree. He attributed this to being “probably shy” because “
hearing aids were expensive and cost at least four figures.”
Prices typically start at RM3,500 for a basic hearing aid device and
may go up to RM14,000 for a premium hearing aid.
At the age of 27, he started working with an NGO as a Sign Language Course Coordinator at the Malaysian Federation of the Deaf, where he started picking up sign language in Bahasa Malaysia and increased his knowledge of the culture of the deaf community.
Armi said, “It made me understand the communication difficulties they're experiencing. It also made me realise I needed to do something to help the Malaysian deaf community. I started Project #SIGNON to teach basic Bahasa Isyarat Malaysia (BIM) to the public for free every month, and my company, Esplora Solution, where we receive invitations to any party that requires us to train them to master BIM.”
“When I don't wear my hearing aids, I need to ask whoever's communicating with me to interact using BIM. Knowing that most people haven't learned it, I realised I needed to start teaching them,” Armi added.
Free sign language classes
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Image credit: #SIGNON
The project is a monthly class held at a location they collaborate with. In 2024, KTMB has allowed #SIGNON to use the facilities at KTM Sentul Station and Kuala Lumpur Station. The courses are free and cater to around 70-80 pax. Additionally, Armi also holds 2-hour private classes at a fee. He has also been invited to speak at numerous universities, such as Universiti Malaysia, and for companies like Petronas.
“During the three-hour programme, participants can learn more than a hundred signs. We teach basics such as the alphabet, numbers, states, family, etc. Next, they can build simple sentences about the topic they have been taught, like ‘Where are you going to eat today?’,” said Armi.
Armi explains that the amount of time needed to learn BIM depends on individuals but that they can communicate smoothly by the end of the classes. “I’m thrilled when people tell me that after my classes, people meet deaf individuals and try to interact using BIM. For them, it feels fun to communicate and be able to help them. This makes me very happy.”
Since starting his initiative in 2013, Armi has had almost 10,000 students. He has also over 300 students from private classes who have graduated.
Clearing up misconceptions
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Image credit: #SIGNON
In Malaysia, there are over 40,000 deaf people registered with the Malaysian Public Welfare Department. “If we look at someone, we can't tell if they are deaf because their physical appearance is the same as other people. I’d like to tell people to communicate via text on a mobile phone or by writing down words.”
“Don't raise your voice when talking to them because we can't hear. We also have difficulty communicating, and some of us are ashamed and prefer to be with our community. We live like normal people, too, as we can drive, cook, and more,” Armi said.
“Communication barriers are our main issue. When dealing with front counters, we always face difficulties in communicating with relevant officers as it invoices a lot of writing or texting and shows down all of our processes,” he elaborated.
Hoping for a better future for the deaf community
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Image credit: #SIGNON
Armi hopes for “more people to learn BIM and about the deaf community. My goal through #SIGNON is to raise public awareness, interest, and confidence in learning BIM so that they can improve their ability and skills in sign language. This could further reduce the communication gap between deaf and hearing people.”
We take our hats off to Armi for his noble cause! This is your sign to go and pick up sign language today!
Visit #SIGNON’s website and Facebook page to learn more about the classes.
Featured Image Credit: #SIGNON, Freepik
