TQM report,
Prof Uzoma Okoye, the leader of the research team, made the appeal in Nsukka on Tuesday during a workshop organised for disability stakeholders in South East to create awareness on the Disability Act.
She said that the law provided a 5-year transitional period within which public buildings, structures or automobiles are to be modified for access and use by persons with disabilities, including those on wheelchairs.
Uzoma regretted that out of five states in the South East only Anambra State had domesticated the Act while others had not.
‘We organized this workshop to create awareness as well as tell Imo, Abia, Enugu and Ebonyi states government to domesticate the Disability Act in their respective states.
‘As the 2024 implementation date of the Act is fast approaching, expectations are that the Act will not experience obstacles in South East,’ she said.
Explaining further, Uzoma said that the research was sponsored by the Africa Polling Institute (API) based on a proposal written by the research team over non accessibility and inclusion of People With Disabilities (PWDs) in the South East region.
Stressing further she said that the forum would accord them the opportunity to release results of research findings of challenges facing disabled people in the South East.
‘Anambra is the only state in the reign that has domesticated the disability law.
‘Others have not even sent the bill to its State House of Assembly not to talk of domesticating the law,’ she said.
The professor said that the research was sponsored by Africa Polling Institute (API), adding that research findings revealed that PWDs in the South East do not have access to so many things as they were discriminate against.
‘From our investigation, PWDs in the zone are not included and have no access to so many things.
‘Some of them, especially those on wheelchairs can not access public pubic buildings, offices and residential houses.
‘In spite of the fact that the implementation of Disability Act will start by 2021 which public buildings, structures or automobile are to be modified for access and use by persons with disabilities, no attempt yet to modify public buildings in the zone,’ she said.
Uzoma urged civil society organisations, human rights activists and other organisations to help in promoting awareness on the disability act so that PWDs will enjoy rights provided for them in the Act.
‘They should also help to mount pressure on Imo, Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi States to domesticate the Act before the commencement of its implementation in 2024,’ she said.
In a remark, Prof Micheal Okolie, Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences at UNN, who was the chairman of the occasion, commended the organisers of the workshop. He expressed concern that most times goverment would be in a hurry to sign a law without putting measures in place for implementing of such a law.
The workshop was attended by stakeholders, representatives of organisations and some members of PWD from South East states.
SUN
