Sindh to reserve LG seats for differently-abled people

CM says work needs to be carried out with love, affection and dedication

KARACHI:

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that his government planned to reserve local government seats for differently-abled so they could participate in decision making at the grass root level.

"I am keen to invest in the rehabilitation of differently-abled persons by establishing units in every district, but I need devoted, dedicated and god-fearing volunteers. "The service needs to be done with affection, personal care and love."

This he said while speaking at an International Day of Persons with Disabilities programme organised by the Sindh Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities on Friday at the Banquet Hall of the CM House.

The day is observed on December 3. The programme was attended by provincial minister Sajid Jokhio, Parliamentary Secretary Kulsoom Chandio, advisers, provincial secretaries and the host who was CM's Special Assistant for Persons with Disabilities Sadiq Memon

The chief minister said that there was a dire need to work for the rehabilitation of differently-abled persons all over Sindh. "The Sindh government is ready to support genuine organisations to establish autism centres, rehabilitation units for mental health conditions, intellectual disabilities, vision impairment and deaf or hard of hearing," he said.

"This is a sensitive work which could be done merely with funds, but we will carry it out with personal care, love, affection and dedication". He said that his representatives/ministers, who worked for the empowerment of differently abled persons, have completely changed in their daily life and approach to handling things.

"The service to the persons with disabilities has given them [ministers] a spiritual satisfaction and I have witnessed the same satisfaction among teachers, trainers, physiotherapists and volunteers serving to them," he said.

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Shah added that when he took over as a chief minister, there was a department of Special Education with some schools where enrolment was very thin. 'I have created a full-fledged department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities which has over 60 centres, some of them were devolved by the federal government to Sindh.

"We have worked on every kind of disability to bring them into the mainstream," he said. The CM continued that he would further strengthen the newly-established Sujawal rehabilitation centre. Shah revealed that his government enacted different laws to provide legal cover for the proper care, education, rehabilitation and vocational training of the persons with disabilities.

"I am trying my best to implement a 5 per cent quota of differently abled persons in government department jobs." he vowed. On the occasion, the differently abled children of different centres of different cities and NGOs staged tableaus, national songs and a one-act play to observe the day.

On the occasion, a ConnectHear Application was formally launched through which people with hearing imparity would be able to communicate. Presently, 3,000 persons were using the app. A unified sign language with 4000 words was also inaugurated and the Language Act of 2018 Rules 2021 were also inaugurated in Braille Language .

CM's Special Assistant Sadiq Memon said that his department has started registering persons with disabilities and so far, 245,000 persons have been registered. "The registration work is being carried out so that necessary schemes for their rehabilitation, education, technical and health -based can be made," he said. Memon thanked the chief minister for assigning him work which changed his life.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2021.