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Momodou
Denmark
11787 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Apr 2008 : 15:15:40
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Foroyaa Editorial
Dr Njie Should Advise His Colleagues and Act
The opening statement of the Secretary of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Malick Njie, at the Third Congress of the Gambia Federation of the Disabled is sound and therefore appealing to the congress participants.
He said: “It is a tragic story that people with disabilities are often neglected, traumatized and excluded in our homes and communities and reduced to objects of charity in the name of sympathy due to ignorance. This should change now if we are to protect the rights and welfare of persons with disabilities and ensure their needed contribution to national development.”
This statement is profound and accords with the letter and spirit of section 31 of the Constitution, which states in subsection (1) thus: “The right of the disabled and handicapped to respect and human dignity shall be recognized by the state and society.”
Dr Njie talks of the need for behavioural and attitudinal change. This should start with cabinet members. People living with disability also wish to be treated as human beings and not “objects of charity”. If they are availed with avenues for a dignified and productive life they will of course abandon the humiliating and undignified life of begging.
What they want from government is not for the police to harass them and chase them out of the street in the name of cleaning the street. What they want is to be treated with dignity and to create avenues to generate income to enable them to live in a dignified way.
What is lacking in Dr Njie’s statement is the lack of an outline of government policy and plan of action. The recommendations of the GFD congress have been spelt out. These recommendations include the formulation of a policy on disability, the signing of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Disabled by the Gambia Government and increased employment.
Dr. Njie is the Secretary of State responsible for people with disabilities. Let us hope that he will convince his colleagues, particularly the Secretary of State for the Interior to avoid chasing the people with disabilities from the streets. Let us also hope that he will look into the recommendations of the Third Congress, particularly, on policy formulation and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Disabled. Let us further hope that the policy paper will lead to a cabinet paper and plan of action that will mainstream people with disabilities.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues
Issue No. 41/2008, 9 – 10 April 2008
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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