Emphasising ability in disability

Emmanuel Ukudolo

MOST of the People Living With Disabilities (PLWDs) detest any form of pity and discrimination.

Quite often, they pride themselves as capable of competing favourably with their able counterparts, if given equal opportunity.

The 2010 International Day of Persons with Disabilities provided an ample opportunity for the PLWDs to prove their worth. They did it in grand style.

Organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Youth Sports and Social Development, disabled persons from all walks of life, ranging from those with down syndrome, to the blind and the physically-challenged all came in drove to Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, venue of the event.

Those who would have anticipated a dull moment, would have been disappointed, based on the performance put on by the tireless standby band, who used every opportunity to entertain and make the point that though disabled, they are able when it comes to specific tasks.

Right from the lead singer to the drummer, the person on the keyboard and other sundry musical instruments, the performance was enviable. They were not alone. While they keep those in the hall busy with music, others were active outside with their paints and brushes, with which they created beautiful landscapes to the delight of visitors.

Beyond this, ornaments of various designs, fabrics of various kinds and sandals all dot the exhibition stand to the amusement of many who could not help but give kudos to the PLWDs for their creative ingenuity.

Speaking on the theme, “Keeping the Promise: Mainstreaming Disability in the Millennium Development Goals Towards 2015 and Beyond,” President, Lagos State chapter of the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD), Mr Okikiade Adeyemi, appealed to the state government to include disabled persons in its housing schemes, and the World Bank National FADAMA programmes, Small and Medium Scale Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) and the National Directorate of Employment (NDE).

According to him, since Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is about reducing poverty and hunger, it would be a good thing if every member of his association is included in every government scheme since disability is one of the causes of poverty.

“Please give equal opportunity for our members to benefit from all government’s activities and programmes. This will help to solve many of our present challenges,” he appealed, adding that poultry, fish farming, snail rearing are some of the vocations that can assist in tackling hunger and climate change.

Adeyemi called on government at all levels to address all the challenges militating against the realisation of the MDGs.

While noting the assistance that members of his association have received from telecommunication operators in the state in terms of technical education, he emphasised the need for more skill acquisition centres to cater for the ever growing population of young persons with disabilities.

He applauded achievements of the Lagos State Government in the area of roads, health care, poverty alleviation, youth empowerment, environment, security, law and order but drew attention of government to efforts to purchase buses for persons with disabilities.

“We are told that Lagos State has concluded plans to provide 10 new high capacity buses specially designed for the use of persons with disabilities. We hope that these special buses will be around before the end of his year as promised by the Ministry of Transport,” Adeyemi said, stressing that there are complaints that operators of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Scheme are preventing persons with disabilities from boarding the buses, adding that no condition is permanent.

He said: “Let us remember that everyone is a potential member of the community of persons with disabilities.”

The president called for improved cooperation, treatment and understanding of issues relating to disability.

“Let us remember to make life better for persons with disabilities in all areas, including access to public buildings and private ones too. It is a psychological torture for hearing impaired persons to watch or try to listen to news on television,” he said, while recommending that sign language be used to interpret news and current affairs for the deaf while Brail should be used for those with visual impairment.

According to him, one way those in this group could be discouraged from begging is for government to provide them with necessary means of livelihood.

The Head of Service, Lagos State, Mr Adesegun Ogunlewe, used his presentation to paint a gloomy picture of the plight of persons with disabilities, stressing that they are the most discriminated against worldwide in terms of education.

Ogunlewe, who spoke through a Director in the ministry, Mr Sewedon Oluseyiweno, explained that there are 650 million disabled persons across the world, adding that 20 per cent of them live in abject poverty in developing countries.

The Special Adviser to the governor on Youths and Social Development, Mr Dolapo Badaru, acknowledged that government is very much aware of the predicament of persons with disabilities.

According to him, government is responsive to their yearnings.

He added that the government would not relent on efforts to provide basic necessities of life that would make life worth living for those who are challenged physically in one way or the other.

“The establishment of vocational institutions for persons with disabilities is to avail this group of people the opportunity to be trained and be less dependent on their families and members of the public,” Ogunlewe said, adding that government had made provision for graduates of the institutes to be properly settled after their graduation for empowerment.

Beyond that, he said government had also embarked on continuous rescue exercise to remove beggars and the destitute from the streets so that they could be reunited with their relations, instead of exposing themselves to dangers in the streets.

He said: “I wish to seize this opportunity to advise our brothers and sisters from outside Lagos to discourage their relations who have one disability or the other from coming to Lagos to beg for alms. Instead, they should be encouraged to learn vocations of their choice in vocational institutions that abound in the state.”

He also called on policy makers to include persons with disabilities in their MDGs if their programmes must carry the hallmark of success.