Dubai: A fourteen-year-old student has been branded as a UAE success story by none other than Lieutenant General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior.
Shaikh Saif took to social media on Tuesday night, and reposted a heart-warming video of Abdul Rahman Abdul Hamid Al Bastaki who has been battling cancer for over a year and half.
“Emirati student Abdul Rahman. The success story of a UAE student who was helped by the government system and by his own strength and perseverance. May God bless him and his loved ones,” tweeted Shaikh Saif.
The Ministry of Education had earlier posted a one-minute video clip of Al Bastaki, who is currently enrolled in ninth grade at the Shaikh Mohammed Bin Rashid School in Dubai.
The interview with Al Bastaki explains how he was able to overcome his battle with cancer, and how he managed to successfully maintain his high grades with the help of e-learning platforms.
“The first motive behind trying to study and succeed is my friends because they were so close to me. I didn’t want to be held back and end up in a different class. They may also forget about me because I was in a different country, and they wouldn’t know when I would come back,” said Al Bastaki.
“Secondly, I used to always be the top of my class, the least I’d get was third in the class. That’s why I was determined to remain at the top, I didn’t want my grades to be affected by my illness,” he said.
“The ministry provided me with teachers to tutor me. One teacher was in America and the other from the ministry in the United Arab Emirates. Finally, I want to thank God for everything. I want to thank my supportive parents.”
“Thank God I succeeded while I was abroad.“
