PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari will this time sign the disability bill into after it has been passed four times by the successive national assembly, the Presidency has said.
Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Disability Matters, Dr. Samuel Ankeli, in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune, disclosed that over 25 million Nigerians were living with disability in the country.
He said the current administration of President Buhari was concerned about the plight of the vulnerable group, especially those with disabilities and would come up with measures to address some of these challenges.
Ankeli, said he undertook an advocacy visit to some state government, traditional rulers and tertiary institutions for them to support the quick passage of disability bill in the national assembly.
He said it was a good thing that the bill was recently passed by two chambers of the national assembly, waiting for harmonisation before it is eventually sent to the President for his assent.
“President Muhammadu Buhari will sign the disability bill into law this time. It has been passed four times by the national assembly,” he said.
He challenged State governments, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) Local government councils and the organised private sector to always involve people with disability in decision making and planning.
Dr. Ankeli further added that President Mohammadu Buhari is seriously committed to the welfare of people with disability, stressing that the President believed in peace and negotiation to ensure a violence free society so as not to increase disability.
He said his office would soon inaugurate a national committee that would take a holistic look at the issues of disabilities in order to articulate sustainable approach in addressing the challenges of this vulnerable group.
He particularly expressed concern about the high cost of supportive and training equipment for the disabilities, adding that concerted efforts would be made towards ensuring that most of these machines were produce in Nigeria.
He said: “One Braille machine is N180,000. Why should it be? Government is buying laptops for civil servants who are receiving salaries. What we are doing is a holistic approach.
“I’m talking with people that produce this Braille. They are coming to this country this year in August probably. Why can’t we have assembly plant and produce them and wheel chairs here? We import them at very high price because of exchange rate.
“We have a large consumer state here, so, they can come and assemble them here. Nobody had ever given that consideration. Why is it that a hearing aid is more expensive than a car. We can do some surgical interventions to some issues and it will work but where are the experts. All these issues will be put in proper pespective,” he said.
Braille is a system of reading and writing by touch used by the blind. It consists of arrangements of dots which make up letters of the alphabet, numbers, and punctuation marks