President Directs Assemblies To Improve Facilities For PWDs

President John Evans Atta Mills

has directed the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to make budgetary allocations towards improving structures and facilities to make them easily accessible to persons with disability (PWDs).

Such a step, he said, was necessary for them to comply with the provisions of the Disability Law, which makes it obligatory for institutions to make their building friendly to PWDs.

He said the MMDAs should not relax until the expiry of the period of grace for some provisions of law to become effective before, they started working towards improving the access of such institutions to PWDs.

The Vice-President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, made known the directive by the President when a delegation from the District 403 “A” of the Lions Club International called on him at the Castle, Osu, in Accra yesterday.

The members of the delegation included Ms Kate Baaba Hudson, Chairperson of Zone 161 Lions Clubs International; Nana Baah Okoampah VI, Past Region Chairman and Current District Trainer(Anglophone); Ms Helen Obeng, Chairperson of Zone 162; and Lion Sam Attu, Chairman of Region 16.

The Vice-President said the PWDs had a great challenge in terms of their integration in society, saying “that is why we welcome any supplementary assistance”.

He commended the Lions Club for their role in public service and urged them to help improve the literacy level of the people, particularly the disadvantaged and the marginalised in society.

“I urge you in the pursuit of your public service to do more for the disadvantaged, particularly in respect of primary education,” he said.

Mr Mahama also urged the club to extend its membership drive to the youth and dispel the erroneous impression that the club was only for the affluent in society.

He applauded the advantages of the club to the people all over the world, stressing, “Lion has advantages that inured to the benefit of people around the world.”

The Past District Governor of Lions Clubs International, Mr Nelson Yao Agbesi, said the club had supported education and other social services, including the building of the Akropong School for the Deaf and also getting some of them enrolled in senior high school.

The Governor of District 403 “A” of Lions Clubs International, Mr Seydou Diakite, congratulated Mr Mahama on his election to the high office of Vice-President.

He also lauded the recent peaceful general election that ushered into office the NDC, describing the democratic credentials of the country as an indication of the growth of democracy in Ghana.

Story : Timothy Gobah