A former Commissioner for Education in Lagos State, Mrs Folashade Adefisayo, has told the Federal Government to empower Nigerians with disabilities, to make them survive the prevailing economic hardships.
Adefisayo was speaking via zoom in a keynote address on Wednesday, to formally flag off the activities of the British-registered charity, Seeing Hearts Foundation in Nigeria (SHF).
She said that Nigerians with disabilities were at the receiving end of the current economic crisis, saying that government should come to their rescue to save lives.
Nigerians have been contending with intense economic hardships, due to a deepening crisis in the economy that has resulted to galloping inflation.
The development has prompted labour unions to embark on street protests, to compel the Federal Government to seek urgent measures to pull the country out of the woods.
According to the former commissioner, government should consider the plight of people with disabilities in their daily struggles to make a living and come to their rescue at a time like now.
She argued that people with disabilities appeared to have been excluded in ongoing efforts by the government to pull Nigerians out of dire straits and crippling poverty.
Adefisayo said that since there was hardly any job for the teeming population, the government should endeavour to support people with disabilities to acquire entrepreneurial skills to earn their living.
“There are no jobs any more so the government should support people to acquire entrepreneurial skills to survive the distressing realities of the moment.’’
She pleaded that people with disabilities should be given a sense of belonging for them to achieve their set goals and to contribute their quota to nation building.
In a speech, the Chief Executive Officer of SHF, Ms Tope Songonuga, said that she decided to bring the activities of the foundation to Nigeria, to show compassion to people with disabilities in the country.
“Our goal is to help people with disabilities to attain their life goals and to be the best they can be in a society in crisis.’’
Songonuga lamented that people with disabilities had been experiencing social exclusion, recalling that she had been a victim of social exclusion at age 15.
She said that the foundation had been supporting up to 18 visually-impaired people at the moment, assuring that the number would increase significantly in the years ahead.
In his contribution, a researcher, Mr Femi Samuel, disclosed that up to 29 million Nigerians were currently having one form of disability or the other.
He said that there were similarly, about 13 billion people with disabilities around the globe, many of them having challenges relating to their sights and that there was need for the society to assist people in need.
“Inclusivity is the best form of social justice, therefore, governments should do the needful by ensuring that people with disabilities are taken care of,’’ Samuel advised.
Two persons, Mr Monsuru Shodeyi and Miss Deborah Ogunsina, who were assisted by the foundation, expressed their appreciation to the foundation for adding values to their lives.
The SHF, established in February 2022, is currently active in South Western Nigeria with plans to expand its operations to other Nigerian cities.
