Members of the Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB) in Ondo State have appealed to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa to employ their members as teachers.
They lamented that the future of the blind community was uncertain.
The Chairman, Akilo Ojo Matthew, who spoke in Akure, said there was only one teacher in the special unit of Owo High School which before now had over 20 teachers for visually-impaired pupils. According to him, the teacher would soon retire leaving the pupils stranded.
Akilo noted that employing visually-impaired persons would help to provide quality education and employment opportunities for the blind and visually-impaired persons (VIPs).
According to him, a letter has been sent to Governor Aiyedatiwa to express their grievances at their exclusion from teacher recruitment in the state.
He added: “The School for the Visually-Impaired was established for us to learn how to read and write braille, and also to compete favourably with the able ones. The government went ahead to approve Owo High School for our secondary level.
“The special unit in Owo High School has only one teacher as we speak, and he will soon retire. The school used to have about 20 to 25 special education teachers.
“Finally sir, we appeal to you to recruit our members into both (Ondo State Universal Basic Education Board and Teaching Service Commission) so that we will be happy. We believe you will make us happy by granting our request.”