Osun PWDs complain of neglect by Adeleke administration

Persons With Disability, PWDs, in Osun State have expressed frustration over alleged neglect of their members by the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke.

This is as they insisted that planning for PWDs without involving them may not bring expected results as the needs of each of the groups are not the same.

They bared their minds through a statement jointly signed by Tubosun Olabomi, Team Lead, One House Development Initiative, Stephen Oluwafemi, Osun State Chairman, Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, JONAPWD, Smith Aghanti Secretary, JONAPWD Osun and Elizabeth Ishola Women Coordinator, Osun JONAPWDS l, on Monday in Osogbo.

In the statement the PWDs revealed that they have tried unsuccessfully to reach the Deputy Governor, as well as the Commissioner for Sports and Special Needs, Kola Adewusi.

They disclosed that they had reached out to the Special Adviser to Governor Adeleke on Special Needs, Kamil Aransi, to discuss issues affecting their members and on how the school for the special needs will meet up with their contemporary associates in other states in the South West region

They also disclosed that more than 75,000 PWDs in the state are in need of government intervention in one way or the other in their lives.

The statement reads, “We want to express our dissatisfaction and the feeling of neglect as we have tried to reach the Deputy Governor, Prince Kola Adewusi, who doubles as the Honourable Commissioner for Sports and Special Needs, to discuss the needs of the over 57,000 persons with disabilities but all our efforts through official avenues and means of lobbying have failed.

“We have several letters sent to his office but none has been responded to or acted upon by the Deputy Governor.

“One House Development Initiative been trying to meet the Special Adviser to the Governor on Special Needs, Hon. Kamil Aransi to discuss issues affecting persons with special needs especially on how the school for the special needs will meet up with their contemporary associates in other states in the south west region.

“We also want to state that the meeting between JONAPWDs and Hon. Aransi has no fruit while his office has not in anyway carried we the stakeholders along in his decision making. Hence, the obvious neglect.

“We are using this medium to call on our performing Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke to immediately look into the Persons with Disabilities in Osun State an bring about inclusion.

“The implementation of the Disability Act is very crucial as it will bring a lot of succor to our people.

“Empowerment of our people through jobs opportunities is also very important to us.

“This and many others are what we aim at discussing with the Deputy Governor which has not materialised. We don’t know why his doors are shut at us.

“JONAPWDs in Osun State has five clusters which are; albinism, hearing impairment, visual impairment, physical disability and spinal cord injuries.

“Planning for us without us may not bring expected results as the needs of each of the groups are not the same.”