The government has been urged to take the issues confronting persons living with disabilities seriously as investigations revealed that a large number of them have no basic infrastructure to access public and private structures.
This revelation was made following a survey conducted by the CLEEN Foundation in lagos recently, which showed than more than 59 per cent of persons living with disabilities are systematically excluded from active participation in the society.
According to Eban Ebai, the Director of Progrmmes at CLEEN Foundation, the pilot survey, which aims at determining “the assessment of the access for people with disabilities in selected structures in Lagos State” was carried out in seven public structures “which looked at how accessible the building, their environment and their services are to people living with disabilities.
“The survey also inquired whether the respondents were aware of the existence of law and any sensitisation programmes by the Lagos State Government on the rights of persons living with disabilities and other issues.
“It is however sad that more than 59 per cent of the respondents told our researchers that they do not have access to public places like offices, schools, hospitals, eateries and other public places despite the Lagos State People’s Special Law 2010, which was passed into law eight months ago; also the survey revealed that more than 50 per cent of the respondents are not sensitised on government policies and laws upholding their rights.”
Ebai added that other states who have passed the bill on disability into law have, sadly, not enforced them, therefore denying people living with disability their basic rights to live and participate actively in the society .
Ebai said: “In Nigeria, disabilities accessibility of public and private structures has not been a priority to both policy makers and architects that design the structures. Irrespective of the fact that Nigeria joined 97 other countries in declaring support for disability rights on Friday, 24th September 2008, by signing both the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its optional protocol, she has not enacted a domestic act on disability rights.
“In the shelves of the legislature lies a draft bill awaiting presidential assent to pass it in to law. General public awareness campaigns as well as academic studies in the area of disability rights are low, with many treating disable people with reckless abandon and disdain; sadly while efforts to create an inclusive society are ongoing in the West, in Africa, due to the cultural beliefs and attitudes, persons with disabilities continue to be devalued and dehumanised.”
David Anyaele, the Executive Director of Centre for Citizens with Disabilities, stated that people living with disabilities are suffering in silence despite government’s seeming efforts to cater for them.
Anyaele said: “Nobody is immuned to disability and like I will always say, an able person today can become a disabled tomorrow and if not now then when such a person is old and he needs walking aids, hearing devices and other equipments to sustain the disability.
“So it is necessary for everybody to take the issues confronting persons living with disability seriously as this will breed a more inclusion society for all.
“We therefore call on the government to implement to the letter all laws concerning people living with disabilities as what we have now is that the laws are on paper but are not being enforced.”