Youla defends herself of her ‘exaggerated’ facial expressions in devolution conference

Citizen TV Sign language interpreter Youla Nzale wowed many after her interpretation during the opening speech by President Uhuru Kenyatta in 6th annual devolution conference in Kirinyaga.

Speaking to eDaily, Nzale said that she wanted to convey President Uhuru’s speech in its most real form to the deaf who, apart from signs, also depend on facial expressions to decode messages.

Nzale reiterated that she did not intend to overshadow the president with her delivery and was overwhelmed by the response from Kenyans after her session went viral.

“My emotions went hand-in-hand with the president’s tone. I tried capturing every moment in his speech – when he was serious, sad… Deaf people do not read, they cannot hear; so, they read the facial expressions.

“So, an interpreter needs to be happy, when the speaker is happy; sad, when the speaker is sad;