By Leonard Okachie
The Abia State Commission for the Welfare of the Disabled Persons says it will engage therapists for persons with intellectual disabilities across the 17 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.
The commission’s Chairman, Mr David Anyaele, made this known during a town hall meeting with persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Ukwa East LGA.
He said that the initiative was to help them speak, play and live independently of their parents or care givers.
Anyaele, also said that the commission would train healthcare officers to provide services to enable those with disabilities go to school without discrimination.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the care givers had complained about the harsh economic situation faced by members of the intellectual cluster as they neither hear nor talk.
Anyaele, who was accompanied by some board and staff members of the commission, said that the commission was visiting the LGAs across the state to hear directly from the PWDs and the peculiar needs of their clusters.
NAN further reports that different disability clusters in the LGA, including the blind, the deaf, physical and intellectual, were present at the meeting.
Anyaele said that Gov. Alex Otti had shown commitment to supporting PWDs, to the extent that he ensured the establishment of a Zonal Office of the National Commission for PWDs in Umuahia.
The chairman said that the commission had carried out some activities since inception including data of PWDs, capacity building for PWDs leaders, training of all LG Mayors and Permanent Secretaries on disability laws, Inclusion and others.
He said that all the primary health centres were being made accessible, while stressing that the commission would keep making its suggestions to ensure the buildings and toilets were accessible too.
In a remark, a board member of the commission, Mr Stanley Onyebuchi said that the purpose of the meeting was to give room for interaction between the PWDs and the local government chairmen, to know their needs.
He further assured that opportunity would be given to the various clusters to present their peculiar needs.
In their presentations, the physical cluster requested that their children with disabilities be sent to school.
They said that most of them were not educated due to the mindset of their parents who saw nothing good in them.
The cluster also requested constructed wheelchairs and machines, motorcycles as well as skills acquisition opportunities.
Similarly, the blind cluster requested a mini-bus as source of income as well as allowances for the up-keep of the less educated members.
Also, the deaf cluster requested a school for the deaf and deaf scholarship for members within the local government.
They complained that there were so many deaf people including adults and children who do not understand sign language.
In a response, the Chairman of Ukwa East Local Government Area, Mr Chibunna Akara, represented by his Deputy, Mrs Thelma Ekeke, expressed happiness for the enactment of Abia State Disability Law, but prayed for its implementation.
The chairman, who promised continuous support for the PWDs, said that ramps would be provided in the buildings at the LGA headquarters for accessibility.
(NAN)
