For those living with one form of disability or another, living a meaningful life could be mere wishes given the plethora of discriminations they encounter daily; abandoned by friends and families, they depend on goodwill of the public to survive.

 

A bill prohibiting discrimination against Persons with Disabilities now before legislators at the Lagos State House of Assembly is seeking to change all that and indications are that the law makers are poised to pass the bill soonest.

 

Details of the bill under the Special Peoples’ Law (SPL) were discussed at a one day workshop held in Lagos recently by the Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD); some of the sections of the bill include:

 

Section 21

 

This section of the law provides that no ‘Person with Disability shall be discriminated against on the ground of his or her disability by any person or institution in any manner or circumstances whatsoever.’

 

No Person with Disability shall be subjected to prejudices or harmful practices included those based on sex, work, age or tradition in any area of life.

 

Person with Disability shall have rights to sue any individual, corporate body or Government and its Agencies for damages in the event of the violation of their fundamental rights.

 

 

Government shall be required to provide free legal aid without condition to Person with Disability through the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) when required.

 

Another part of the law makes certain provisions for these special people, to enhance their quality of life;

 

Section 18 provides that:

 

Every public transport service shall operate in a way that would guaranty usage and allow for accessibility of Person with Disability.

 

All transport service providers shall make available and mark appropriately 1 (one) out of every 10 (ten) seats in a public bus for the use of PwDs.

 

Chairman, Disability Policy and Advocacy Initiative (DPAI), Mr. Barth Uche Ekugum, in a chat with Daily Times revealed that the aim of DPAI is to ensure that Persons with Disabilities are given equal opportunity to be someone in life.

 

“Persons with Disability should be given equal platforms to succeed in life and be discriminated against,” he said.

 

On the war against discrimination, Ekugum is confident that the war is being won, though slowly but steadily. He rates the compliance level at about sixty percent.

 

He also shared with Daily Times some successes recorded so far, which include one Ejiro Okotie, a Person with Disability who is currently on internship with an organisation in the United Kingdom.

 

He also lauded the response of some corporate organisations in complying with the Person with Disability law in Lagos, naming Guaranty Trust Bank and First Bank as some of the organisations that have complied with the law. Shell Petroleum is also an organisation that is regarded as an equal opportunity employer.

 

However, Ekugum called on all infrastructures to be PwD compliant before June 23, 2016 to avoid the frenzy that will follow.

 

“As from June 24, 2016, it would become unlawful for any public or private, state or federal parastatals to reject persons with disabilities. I am urging them to do it now as cost of effecting the required modification to building will be much cheaper now than later when there will be the mad rush to comply with the law at the zero hour triggering off the forces of demand and supply,” Ekugum said.

 

Executive Director of the Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD), Mr. David Anyaele, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), has called on the Federal Government to assent to the PWD bill now in the House of Assembly.

 

In his words, “we are living in a society that is designed without consideration for persons with disabilities, we are living in a society where government, state and non-state actors conduct their services, render their services in such a way that people with disabilities are completely excluded.

 

“This is why President Muhammadu Buhari must assent to the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities Bill into an Act so that this problem of continued discrimination against people with disabilities will be removed.”

 

The Chairman believes there is no other way discrimination can be totally eliminated against his members except the bill is signed into law and made an Act.

 

It is hoped that the federal government will heed this cry and take a cue from Lagos State Government

 

By: Stephen Adeniran

Daily Time