People With Disabilities Deserve Share Of National Cake

Mr Eric Oduro Osae, Dean of Studies and Research of the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS), has stressed that People with Disabilities (PWDs), deserve their fair share of the national cake, just as others in Ghana �It is a right, not a privilege, and you must demand it,� he stated. Mr Osae was presenting a paper on �Accessing Funding Opportunities for PWDs, � at a day�s training in Ho on �Effective Engagement at the Local Level,� attended by representatives of PWD groups across the Volta Region. He said the three per cent PWD numbers of the 25 million national population figure, could not be dispensed with, as they mattered in all sectors of national life. Mr Osae said PWDs must demand answers to their concerns, and prevail on bureaucrats and elected officers to apply the rules and resources in the interest of PWDs, just as others. He said the practice where politicians would ferret PWDs out to vote and then vanish, staying mute over their concerns, only to return to ask for their votes again, must stop. Mr Osae said the good thing now was that benchmarks for national growth assessments, now included how well the interests of PWDs were handled. He asked them, (PWDs), to seek information and be bold in their approach, to ensure that their interests were catered for. Mr Osae said there were other sources of funding of PWD activities and programmes, which the PWD associations must know and pursue. He said he was looking forward to the day when the re-nomination of a District Chief Executive would be based partly on his successes on tackling interests of PWDs. The training was under the aegis of Local Government Network (LOGNet), a network of civil society organizations, with sponsorship from the UNDP. Mrs Christine Enyonam Kugbeadzor, LOGNet Volta Regional Co-ordinator said, the training was to give PWDs the skills to engage local level officials. David Appiah, Governance Specialist, UNDP, observed that voices of women, PWDs, youth and other marginalized groups, should be part of the process of governance.