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DRAC takes awareness campaign on Ending Sexual and Gender based violence and disability based violence to Kwali Area Council

By
Agbo Christian
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On 13th June 2019, Disability Rights Advocacy Centre (DRAC) embarked on second Community town hall meetings on Ending Sexual and Gender based Violence and Disability Based Violence in FCT in Kwali Area Council of FCT. The project powered by CBM is designed to educate the people of  FCT in the six area councils of FCT on Discrimination against persons with disabilities (Prohibition) Act and Violence against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP ACT) using the simplified version of the Acts.

The event was attended by the some important elders of the community, leaders of disability community, youth leaders, women leaders, traditional leaders, CAN representatives and Chief Imam representing the Muslim community.

The simplified version of the Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018 and Violence against Persons Prohibition Act were displayed to them using well illustrated posters in local language to their own understanding. They asked questions after the presentations and their questions were well attended to. The Chief Imams and CAN representatives present gave their goodwill messages to the team.

The team assured the community that there will be second coming of the team which will centre on the economic empowerment of people with disabilities especially women and girls.

Rounding off the consultation, the community unanimously declared to promote and respect the human rights of Persons with Disabilities in the community and they also made commitment to change negative societal norms and practices against persons with disabilities especially women and girls.

Below are the community declarations:

  1. We declare that will seek to resolve Discrimination against persons with disabilities in our community.
  2. PWDs especially woman and girls are given opportunities like everyone else in the community.
  3. Existing and New buildings will be made accessible to persons with disabilities.

HERE ARE SOME PICTURES OF THE EVENT

YOUNG KENYAN ENGINEER CREATED GLOVES THAT TURN SIGN LANGUAGE INTO AUDIBLE SPEECH

By
Agbo Christian
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Twenty-five-year-old Kenyan engineer and innovator, Roy Allela, has created a set of gloves that will ultimately allow better communication between those who are deaf and those who are hearing yet may not necessarily know sign language. The Sign-IO gloves in essence translate signed hand movements into audible speech.

Allela’s gloves feature sensors located on each finger that detect the positioning of each finger, including how much each finger will bend into a given position. The glove connects via Bluetooth to an Android phone which then will leverage use the text-to-speech function to provide translated speech to the hand gestures of a person signing.

The inspiration behind the Sign-IO gloves comes from the personal experience of having a young niece who is deaf. He nor his family knows sign language and often struggled to adequately and consistently communicate with her. “My niece wears the gloves, pairs them with her phone or mine, then starts signing. I’m able to understand what she’s saying,” Allela shared in an interview with The Guardian. 

Allela’s vision for the gloves is to have them placed in schools for special needs children throughout his home country of Kenya and then expand from there to positively impact the experiences of as many deaf or hearing-impaired children as possible. His gloves are amongst a number of cutting-edge projects that are contributing to the growing market of assistive technology devices that seek to provide aid to those with specific impairments and limitations.

Many sensor-based devices are starting to be created to bridge communication and capability gaps between different populations and once available to the public marketplace are projected to generate revenue upwards of $30 billion by 2024 according to Global NewsWire.

While the gloves are currently in the prototype phase of development and not available to the public market, they are already generating quite a buzz and have even won some awards. Sign-IO was the 2018 grand winner of the “Hardware Trailblazer Award” at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) global finals in New York and also took home a second runner-up acknowledgement at the Royal Academy of Engineering Leaders in Innovation Fellowship in London.

DRAC engages Abaji Community to End Sexual and Gender based violence and Discrimination against persons with disabilities

By
Agbo Christian
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0

by Agbo Chris

On 11th June 2019, Disability Rights Advocacy Centre (DRAC) commenced its Community town hall meetings on Ending Sexual and Gender based Violence and Disability Based Violence in FCT in Abaji Area Council of FCT. A project known as STOP Sexual and Gender Based Violence (STOPSGBV) is powered by CBM.  The Community Town Hall meeting is to sensitize the locals in six area councils of FCT on Discrimination against persons with disabilities (Prohibition) Act and Violence against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP ACT) using the simplified version of the Acts.

The event was attended by the leaders of disability community, youth leaders, women leaders, traditional leaders and religious leaders.

The simplified version of the Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018 and Violence against Persons Prohibition Act were displayed to them using well illustrated posters in local language to their own understanding. They asked questions after the presentations and their questions were well attended to. The Chief Imam and the pastor present at the event gave their goodwill messages to the team.

The team assured the community that this is the beginning of their engagement in the community; another phase of the engagement which is the economic empowerment of people with disabilities especially women and girls will be introduced.

In the end, the members of the community unanimously declared to promote and respect the human rights of Persons with Disabilities in the community. They also committed themselves to change negative societal norms and practices against persons with disabilities especially women and girls.

Below are the community declarations:

  1. We declare that will seek to resolve Discrimination against persons with disabilities in our community.
  2. PWDs especially woman and girls are given opportunities like everyone else in the community.
  3. Existing and New buildings will be made accessible to persons with disabilities

HERE ARE SOME PICTURES OF THE EVENT

Exempt Prisoners, blind and deaf candidates from Post UTME, FG directs Universities

By
Agbo Christian
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0
Read what Nigerians are saying about the dreaded JAMB exam

The Federal Ministry of Education on Tuesday ordered universities and other tertiary institutions in the country  to exempt blind and deaf  people from the Post Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.

They were also instructed to exclude  prisoners as well as foreign centre candidates   from  the exam.

The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Sonny Echono, who gave the order, said   such individuals  were under the Special Needs category and  should  be considered for admission, provided they met the minimum requirements.

Echono spoke  at the 2019 Policy meeting on admission organised by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board  in Gbongan, Osun State.

He also said  no tertiary institution should collect above the ministry’s approved fee of N2,000 for any  post-UTME screening.

Echono said, “Admission to all programmes leading the award of  a first degree, national diploma and Nigeria Certificate in Education must be processed through the Central Admissions Processing System of JAMB. Also, all tertiary institutions must ensure that they update their matriculation lists on the Central Admissions Processing System as appropriate in content and on time.

“The board and the tertiary institutions should ensure that candidates under the Special Needs category are considered for admission provided they meet the minimum requirements. They are; blind and deaf candidates, prison candidates, foreign centre candidates. These candidates should be exempted from any other test apart from the  routine scrutiny of their credentials.

“In order to halt the substitution of candidates with impersonators, JAMB has been directed to make available to all tertiary institutions the facial and finger images of the  candidates of each institution for  screening. It is therefore not permitted for any tertiary institution to retake fresh photographs or fingerprints.”

The PS added that heads of higher institutions had been asked to set up an Ombudsman system where all cases of unethical behaviours between lecturers and students could be reported.

He said, “The system shall be monitored by the ministry and the regulatory bodies – the National Universities Commission,  National Board for Technical Education and  National Commission for Colleges of Education. All reported cases must be administratively disposed of within three months.”

Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, who also spoke at the event, called for a crisis-free admission process to ensure that only qualified candidates were admitted.

Oyetola was represented at the event by his deputy, Benedict Alabi.

AISHA, TALES OF TEARS….Lack of wheelchair prevented 18 years old Lady with disability from going to School

By
Agbo Christian
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0

Aisha Abubakar is an 18years old lady with disability from a poor family background, mobility has always been an obstacles for her to participate among her peers and also go to school.  Aisha stopped school because her parents can’t afford a wheelchair which will enable her go to school without assistance. This affected her psychologically and hampered her status a great deal within her community.  Mobility constitutes the greatest challenge faced by persons with disabilities and as such requires contribution of all stakeholders, government, and philanthropists etc to tackle especially providing the mobility aids to the rural and uneducated persons with disabilities.

Last week on my way from Damaturu to Maiduguri, I met Aisha under hot sun crawling on all fours alone, sweating profusely because the temperature on that day was over 38 degrees. With tears in my eyes, I stopped and approached Aisha, on asking why she is crawling all around without wheel chair and why she is not in school at that hour? Her response left me shattered and emotionally disturbed with the question why would such young lady suffered so much for a condition that’s not her making?

As a leader of persons with disabilities in the state and country at large and having a first-hand experience on mobility challenge, I decided to assist; on my way back to Damaturu, I purchased a tricycle for Aisha with a token for the routine maintenance and also a token to assist her school go back to school.  Aisha was so excited and she promised me to return to school the next day because lack of wheelchair was the only constraint stopping her from going to school.

I shared this story to ignite our generosity to have pity and empathy for persons with disabilities because PWDs desire and deserve much more in life. We must at individual; government and community level see persons with disabilities as key stakeholders who must be carried along to reach their peak, it is vital way to achieve total INCLUSION.

I have done my part, please find someone around you and do yours.  There are many Aisha’s in our villages and towns that required simple assistance like wheel chair to keep them going and ultimately achieve their dreams. Please let’s support one another.

 Comrade Mohammed Abba Isa , APC Zonal Disabled Leader, Northeast

A man appeals for help from Buhari and Wike after being made blind by DSS bruality

By
Agbo Christian
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0

A Lagos-based businessman, Mr. Williams Nicholas Ejimozor, who reportedly went blind during interrogation by operatives of the Department of State Service (DSS) has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State to come to his assistance as he is fast losing grip of his life.

He made the appeal at the weekend while speaking with newsmen at Ikeja. According to him, his life has been shattered as a result of the illegal arrest, detention and alleged brutalisation by DSS officials for offences he did not commit.

The Rivers born Ejimozor, who is Chief Executive Officer of Willtracko Merchant Limited, a freight forwarding firm, said his problem began on May 9, 2014 when about nine DSS officers came to arrest him. The operatives were said to have stormed into his business premises by jumping through the fence and ransacking his office searching for what he did not know.

He said at the end of the search, the operatives displayed 53 pieces of fake dollar notes, which he said was beyond his comprehension. He was subsequently asked under duress to sign a document affirming that the fake dollar notes were found in his office. Since he did not keep such dollar notes in his office, he reportedly refused to sign the document.

His refusal to sign the document was used as an excuse to brutally assault him. He was beaten and taken to DSS office at Shangisha. Determined not to cowardly implicate himself, the freight forwarder who is also a pastor and author stood his ground declining to get out of the hook of the security agents simply by telling lies in his statement.

Based on his uncompromising stance, Ejimozor said he received no fewer than 50 slaps while undergoing torture. “They used gun butt to brutalise me, hitting my head repeatedly and telling me that the only way they could leave me was for me to settle them with the sum of N15 million since I was not ready to write my statement how they wanted it.”

After 25 days in the DSS custody, Ejimozor was moved to the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) of the Nigeria Police Force, Ikoyi. He was later transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti.

The police at Panti preferred some charges against him at Yaba magistrate court where he was granted bail. The prosecutors continuously absented themselves from court and the magistrate subsequently struck the case out for lack of prosecution. (The Guardian)

Ali Stroker’s Tony Win Is a Huge Step for Performers With Disabilities

By
Agbo Christian
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0
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP/Shutterstock (10299606aq) Ali Stroker accepts the award for best performance by an actress in a featured role in a musical for "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!"at the 73rd annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall, in New York The 73rd Annual Tony Awards - Show, New York, USA - 09 Jun 2019

By GORDON COX

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP/Shutterstock (10299606aq) Ali Stroker accepts the award for best performance by an actress in a featured role in a musical for “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!”at the 73rd annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall, in New York The 73rd Annual Tony Awards – Show, New York, USA – 09 Jun 2019

The 2019 Tony Awards made history when Ali Stroker won for featured actress in a musical, becoming the first actor who uses a wheelchair ever to score a trophy at the Tonys. But while the win was a landmark for actors with disabilities, it also pointed up how much work remains to done to make theater fully inclusive and accessible for people with disabilities, not only for audiences but for artists and crew members on stage and behind the scenes.

Most immediately, Stroker’s triumph at the ceremony felt to artists and advocates like a vital and still-too-rare example of representation.

“As a child I was told repeatedly that it would be nearly impossible to have a career in the arts,” said DJ Kurs, artistic director of Deaf West Theatre, the L.A.-based company whose revival of “Spring Awakening” provided Stroker with her Broadway debut. “A voice like Ali’s last night was unquestionably a huge moment in the development of the hopes and aspirations of thousands of children. In fact, I look forward to the moment when the Alis of the world are not regarded as trailblazers anymore.”

“For us, for the performers-with-disabilities community, Ali’s win is huge, because we have faced for generations a historic lack of representation,” echoed actress and disability inclusion consultant Christine Bruno (“Public Servant”). “But we hope that this is not a one-off.”

Signs suggest that it might not be.

“I think there’s been an inflection point over the last couple of years, and we’ve seen more representation on Broadway and Off Broadway of actors with disabilities,” noted Gregg Mozgala (“Teenage Dick”), an actor with cerebral palsy and also the director of inclusion at Queens Theatre in New York City. In addition to Stroker’s performance as Ado Annie in “Oklahoma!,” he pointed to deaf actor Russell Harvard’s role in the just-closed Broadway revival of “King Lear” and to the Deaf West revival of “Spring Awakening” as two recent, high-profile examples.

Still, there’s further progress to be made. Some Tony viewers, for instance, noted on social media that at Radio City Music Hall, accommodations weren’t made for Stroker to move down the aisle and ascend to the stage to accept her award. Instead she entered from backstage.

“Broadway theaters [are] all made accessible to patrons, but the backstage areas are not,” Stroker said soon after her win on Tony night. “So I would ask theater owners and producers to really look into how they can begin to make the backstage accessible so that performers with disabilities can get around.”

But it’s not just issues of physical accessibility at play here. “Access doesn’t just mean structural access; it means programmatic and economic accessibility,” Mozgala said. “What is the responsibility of artists and institutions to make sure that when people go looking, they don’t say, ‘We couldn’t find anyone’? Who is welcoming and training the next generation of Ali Strokers, and how does the larger culture need to change?”

One in four people identify as a person with a disability, according to the CDC, and artists and advocates say that the ultimate goal is to see that fact reflected in the fabric of the entertainment industry at large — in front of the camera, on stage and behind the scenes.

“The last year or two has felt like a real sea change for us,” said Bruno. “There are definite things happening that show that the industry is starting to recognize that there is a lot of talent out there in the community, and that it just makes smart economic sense, too. Ali’s win feels like the manifestation of all the efforts that we’ve all been putting in for decades.”

EMMANUEL ANOH; AN HYBRID AGROCRATS TO MODIFY AGRICULTURE IN CROSS RIVER STATE

By
Agbo Christian
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0

By David Peter

David Peter, Program Director; Africa Farming Students’ Association (AFSA) entreaty the Executive Governor of CRS. Expressing; Emmanuel Enoh who served as the SA to the Governor, CRS on Civil Society and NGO merit the office of the Commissioner for Agriculture in recalling, the Governor statement; “Some commissioner will come back but not in the same ministry” the governor said.

Peter said; Mr. Emmanuel Anoh a Soil Scientist, Agronomist and a rare gem farming having techno-agro hands on learning experience on diverse agricultural value chain. He remarked Emmanuel, as a dedicated servant and innovator while serving as the Cross River State Cordinator, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria to have gear and sound agriculture in Cross River State to be kenspeckle thereby advancing the state to attract meritorious award’s towards the advancement of agriculture.

Continuing, he reacted to the governor second bid political appointments as “Hands on the plough” to advance the state is an exemplar of Emmanuel Anoh.

He also acknowledged Mr. Emma for resetting an agricultural pathway historically in the State by launching huge agricultural activities thus aren’t limited to;

i. “Cross River State Farmers Day were the governor was awarded as the “Best Performing Governor in Agriculture”.

ii. Farmers Anticipation in Calabar Carnival; The foremost ever farmers across 18LGA anticipates on the biggest street party in Africa thus leaving no rural farmer behind.

iii. An Isreali Rice Training Program in Abuja; Via The Governor Ben Ayade over 1,200 farmers were trained in an Israeli farm in Abuja on the aimed to eradicate hunger&poverty thus to create a sustainable self employment.

iv. Fertilizer distribution to farmers to harness agricultural productivity in the state.

v. Donations of writing materials to pupils and students in school on a courtesy’s of HE Ben Ayade to promote education via agriculture initiative.

vi. Technical training on various agricultural value chains.

vii. Engaging Cross River State in the Anchor Borrower Program in collaboration with CBN.

David Peter, strongly assured the Governor of the mandate for Emmanuel Anoh to be appointed as the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture pressing that no political appointees in the Governor cabinet was  awarded by President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who is the head of state and head of government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and also, the commander-in-chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, Muhammadu Buhari who honoured the Governor for his giants strides toward agriculture were the Governor was heavily represented by Emmanuel Anoh for the sustainability of the anchor borrowers programs.

He concluded that; Emmanuel Anoh hands is always on plough to ensure a sustainable agriculture thus employing food availability on the table to decline Zero Hunger and advancing agricultural employment in Cross River State.

NTA’s AGAINST ALL ODDS, A MUST WATCH FOR ALL NIGERIANS, BACK ON AIR ON TUESDAY

By
Agbo Christian
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0
JANET MOHAMMED

Against All Odds is a program designed to tell the story of people with disabilities, their exploits, challenges, smiles, pains and fears.

It is a weekly program which comes up every Tuesday by 9.30am to 10am (live) on NTA and repeat broadcast on NTAI by 3am. This Tuesday episode will be a bumper edition because the talkshow will be x-raying the Disability Law and possible ways it can be implemented. It will be aired live by 9.30am to 10am on NTA Nationwide.  

It is a must watch for all Nigerians because you will understand the contents of the Disability Law and its implementation from our guests who are well experienced advocates in disability matters.

Our Guests on this Tuesday were drawn from different clusters, Misbau Lawal Didi, a polio survivor and APC Disability Leader, Idemudia Lawrence, a deaf person and a senior staff of Ministry of women affairs and social development and Obinna Ekujereonye, the President National Association of the Blind (NAB) Abuja chapter.

The host of the program is Queen Janet Mohammed, a deaf lady and a TV presenter and it is produced Dochima Pius. On Tuesday, the program will be co-presented by Queen Janet Mohammed, Dochima Pius and Sign Language Interpreter Bukunmi.

Lets endeavour to tune in by that time and phone in to ask our questions. Disability law is a human right based law, it requires everybody’s understanding and attention.

CROSS RIVER STATE GOVERNMENT COMMITTED TO ELIMINATING MALARIA IN THE STATE – IVARA ESU

By
Agbo Christian
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0

The Deputy Governor, Professor Ivara Ejemot Esu says the administration of Senator Ben Ayade is committed to supporting all necessary measures and partners in ensuring that Malaria is eliminated in the State.

Professor Esu made the assertion while performing the State Official flag off of 2019 Mass Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets Distribution Campaign at Ikot Nakanda, Akpabuyo Local Government Area.

The Deputy Governor said, the fact that malaria is a killer disease second to HIV/AIDS and its proven co-relationship with a wide range of other diseases, calls for global efforts for its elimination.

He called on all members of the public and Security Agencies to maximally participate in this exercise to ensure that it is peacefully conducted and call on household members to endeavor to redeem their nets soon and imbibe the culture of sleeping inside the net.

Professor Esu maintained that, the State House of Assembly will soon pass a law against the misuse of mosquito nets for gardening, fishing and other unwholesome practices in the communities.

The Deputy Governor thanked the President Malaria Initiative (PMI) USAID, the Federal Government of Nigeria through National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP) for the donation of over 2.5 million Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets in the State.

The wife of the State Governor, Dr. Linda Ayade represented by the former Commissioner for Health Dr. Inyang Asibong expressed her strong passion for Child and Maternal Health adding that she would spare no efforts in ensuring that, women and children receive the best of care in the state through her pet project “The Mediatrix Foundation”.

She pointed out that, more than 90% of all Cross Riverians are at risk of Malaria and almost everyone suffers at least a bout of it every year.

Dr. Linda Ayade therefore informed the women, especially the pregnant women that regular use of the LLINs is a sure way to reducing Malaria deaths by 20 percent and Malaria incidence by 50 percent in children less than five years of age in the state.

The Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health Dr Joseph Bassey stated that, about 2.4 million Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets worth more than 2.3 billion naira has been shipped into the State for this year’s exercise.

Dr Bassey maintained that, in Nigeria, 92 percent of the population are at risk, contributing to an estimated 11 percent of Maternal Mortality and 30 percent under 5 mortality as well as 60 percent of outpatient visit in our health facilities.

On her part the Head of Local Government Administration, Akpabuyo Local Government Council, Mrs Theresa Ezima noted that, malaria is the commonest sickness in Africa and it is fast in taking lives.

Mrs Ezima emphasized that, all hands must be on deck to create effective awareness among the people in an effort to secure lives which is one of the cardinal responsibilities of Government.

She said that, the flag off ceremony is a welcome development meant to heighten the fight against malaria parasites in all communities in the area.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor, Professor Ivara Esu on his way back from the flag off of the Mass Distribution of LLINs Campaign, witnessed an accident scene involving a motorcyclist and a passenger Bus, where 3 persons were seriously affected.

Professor Esu however intervened and directed his men in the convoy to convey the victims immediately to the General Hospital for Medical Attention.

He further directed the Permanent Secretary, Ministry Of Health Dr Joseph Bassey to take charge of the situation at the Hospital.

Kebeh Eteng , Deputy Governor press unit, Calabar.

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