The Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, Osun State Chapter have lamented over neglect of its members by the State Government.
They made their grievances known in a statement seen signed by the Chairman, Secretary and Women Coordinator of JONAPWDs, Stephen Oluwafemi, Smith Aghanti, and Elizabeth Ishola respectively.
They expressed frustration and feeling for being neglected many times by the officials of the Osun State Government.
The statement said, “We want to express our dissatisfaction and the feeling of neglect as we have tried to reach the Deputy Governor, Prince Kola Adewusi, who doubles as the Honourable Commissioner for Sports and Special Needs, to discuss the needs of the over 57,000 persons with disabilities but all our efforts through official avenues and means of lobbying have failed. We have several letters sent to his office but none has been responded to or acted upon by the Deputy Governor.
“One House Development Initiative been trying to meet the Special Adviser to the Governor on Special Needs, Hon. Kamil Aransi to discuss issues affecting persons with special needs especially on how the school for the special needs will meet up with their contemporary associates in other states in the south west region. We also want to state that the meeting between JONAPWDs and Hon. Aransi has no fruit while his office has not in anyway carried we the stakeholders along in his decision making. Hence, the obvious neglect.
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“We are using this medium to call on our performing Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke to immediately look into the Persons with Disabilities in Osun State an bring about inclusion. The implementation of the Disability Act is very crucial as it will bring a lot of succor to our people. Empowerment of our people through jobs opportunities is also very important to us. This and many others are what we aim at discussing with the Deputy Governor which has not materialized. We don’t know why his doors are shut at us.
“JONAPWDs in Osun State has five clusters which are; Albinism, Hearing Impairment, Visual Impairment, Physical disability and Spinal Cord Injuries. Planning for us without us may not bring expected results as the needs of each of the groups are not the same.
Thank you.”
Sodiq Lawal is a passionate and dedicated journalist with a knack for uncovering captivating stories in the bustling metropolis of Osun State and Nigeria at large. He has a versatile reporting style, covering a wide range of topics, from politics , campus, and social issues to arts and culture, seeking impact in all facets of the society.
