By Chikaodi Chukwuleta

The Chairman,  Anambra State Disability Rights Commission (ASDRC), Barr Chuks Ezewuzie has commendedthe Governor of Anambra State, Prof Chukwuma Charles Soludo, for uplifting persons with disabilities in the state.

Making the commendation at his office in Awka, Ezewuzie said although the ASDRC was established at the twilight of the tenure of Dr Willie Obiano in accordance with Section 3 of the Anambra State Disability Rights Law, 2018, as a one-stop shop for all disability services and  related matters  in the state, the commission came alive under Professor Chukwuma Soludo administration’s social agenda of uplifting the disability persons in the state.

He said the Soludo Governnent has begun the process of documentation of persons with disabilities at the grassroots level.

 According to him,  in line with the Solution Vision for persons with disabilities in the state, the governnment has approved the  appointment of  Liaison Officers for the 21 local government councils, 179 communities and 326 political wards in the state, with representatives from the various town unions and traditional institutions.

  Ezewuzie said that the “Umunna”  (kindred) initiative of Governor Soludo is capturing data of persons with disabilities starting from kindred, community, local government to state level, adding that the commision will regularly visit the grassroots to find vulnerable persons with disabilities and see what to do to get them to start school or get gainful employment.  .

 He further revealed that they have established the Persons with Disabilities Fund under the chairmanship of a commission’s member, Bishop Ezedebego, stressing that the fund  will attract support from international donors and philanthropists.

 He thanked Governor Soludo for the approval of memoranda to furnish and equip  the commission with a state-of-the-art equipment after creating an independent budget line for the commission, even as he said the commission has programmes to pull persons with disabilities out of poverty through establishment of Access Market Pavilion (AMP)  and cooperative society for persons with disabilities, credit facilities for enterrpreneurship with disabilities and trade fair for merchants and skilled persons with disabilities.

 He said that the commission is poised to actualize of the one youth, two skills for  persons with disabilities,  agricultural revolution of receiving and  distributing  cash crops for rural farmers with disabilities.