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Uplifting the handicapped
TONY OKERAFOR
NIGERIA, like
every other nation, has her own fair share of the less fortunate. These are
persons who, largely through no fault of theirs, find themselves having to
grapple with the daily demands of normal life, in spite of their handicap. This
category of people includes the mentally retarded, the blind and the visually
impaired, the deaf, the crippled and such persons with other seriously
debilitating physical conditions.
Without mincing words, the plight of these
less fortunate members of the Nigerian community can best be described as one of
marginalisation and prejudice. It is little wonder that they have, for so long,
remained the lone voice in the wilderness. In many places of employment
throughout the country well-founded charges of bias against the handicapped
abound. It is, however, more disheartening to note that this form of prejudice
meted out to this group of Nigerians actually derives its legitimacy from the
negligence and the culpable indifference of the larger society.
Having said that, it would be unfair to
ignore the philanthropic efforts of many a voluntary organisations or
God-fearing citizens who have helped to improve the lot of the disabled
Nigerians through the award of scholarships, creation of job opportunities and
the provision of assistance to disabled schools and rehabilitation centres.
There are also a number of similar gestures of good-will by the respective tiers
of government. As a result, more handicapped citizens are afforded the
opportunity of acquiring university degrees or learning a vocation.
But, all the foregoing notwithstanding, so
little has been achieved vis-a-vis availing the handicapped members of our
inherently superstitious society with the opportunity to prove their mettle and
thus, be more of an asset than a burden to the country. The truth of the matter
is that the combined efforts of both the public and private sectors of the
economy - towards ameliorating the hardships of the less fortunate folks amount
to nothing more than scratching the problem on the surface - a mere drop in the
ocean. There are indeed many other issues, more fundamental that have been
glossed over.
Of course, there will always be those who
would not wait to cry foul at the suggestion of providing some kind of
constitutional guarantees for these less privileged. Rather than regard the
guarantees, prima facie, as privileges, they should be seen basically as
safeguards of the rights of this largely ignored lot to equal job opportunities
with their able-bodied counterparts, as well as ensuring that they are entitled
to the same kind of compulsory education, equipment and conducive environment
for maximum performance.
But, how do we, in the first place, get
the government and people of this great nation to understand that the country
could be even greater if they took a more determined steps to address the
legitimate concerns of its forgotten compatriots rather than
lip-service-responses and stop-gap measures? Perhaps, apart from the mentally
retarded, the visually handicapped citizens are the most deprived of the lot of
the disabled in the country, especially terms of the provision of educational
aids had employment aids and employment opportunities. They are also the least
understood and the most neglected of the unfortunate voices in the nation’s
wilderness of indifference.
It is an established fact that hundreds of
the blind and visually impaired are either attempting or have indeed scaled
through tertiary education, and beyond, with only a few or none of the basic
special aids at their disposal. You would practically need to experience it to
truly appreciate the rigour and the bitter frustration that some of these
persons undergo in the bid to be useful to themselves and to a nation that
hardly sees the need to address their real concerns.
Apart from removing the heavy duties on
special aids for blind education, such as the Perkins Brailler, government
should begin to work towards establishing a national library for the blind in
this country. Afterall, less than half the money needed to set up a university
to begin developing braille sections of their libraries. Who says that the
country does not have the kind of resources required to put a braille press in
place?
The situation here for them is so
terrible, and the prejudice so acute, that even those who desire to set up
self-reliant ventures on their own are discouraged by lack of even the most
basic of infrastructure. The architectural designs of public buildings are such
that one would think that disabled people do not exist in Nigeria.
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