The Centre for Infrastructural and Technological Advancement for the Blind has lamented the non-involvement of representatives from each disability group as part of the government’s committee since the beginning of the CoronaVirus Pandemic.
The chairman of the group, Jolomi Fenemigho, in a press statement signed by the organisation’s media officer, George James, lamented the unavailability of disabled stakeholders from all the disability clusters as part of the government’s committee during these difficult times.
He said, “The Federal Government has failed to include the PWDs during these difficult times. The PWDs community is not even included in any decision or policy-making committee created to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.
This is highly shameful for a country that claims to run an all-inclusive government. For how long will people speak on behalf of the PWDs? When will disability stakeholders occupy seats at the round table?”
Fenemigho expressed disappointment towards the Federal Government’s actions; especially since the commencement of the lock-down which started on the 30th of March, 2020.
Reiterating the federal government’s inability and unwillingness to cater for the welfare of the disabled in the country, he said, “Even before the pandemic, the federal government did little or nothing to help the plight of the disabled in Nigeria and right now, why should everyone be surprised at their current disposition towards the disabled.
“During these difficult times, palliative ought to be distributed through the various disability cluster. Also, current information is expected to be disseminated through accessible mediums such as; braille, audio, accessible websites and mobile applications for the blind and low vision, sign language interpreters and SMS lines for the deaf are given out to the disabled community for survival, yet, the disabled are still ignored.
Fenemigho also advised that a database for the persons with disabilities should be created.
He added, “Before deciding to distribute palliatives to the PWDs, the federal government needs to set-up committees in all states and consult with disability clusters and groups to enable them actively participate during this lock-down and collate information of all disabled members.”