PWD group seeks inclusion during Lagos APC events

Auditory impaired members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos state have lamented “their exclusion” from political activities and the recent LGA primaries.

The group expressed its concerns during a press briefing at the party’s secretariat in Ogba.

Onifade Fatai, chairman of the group, highlighted the marginalisation of the auditory impaired in politics.

“We make bold to say that the deaf are not being carried along in the scheme of things, despite all the talk about inclusive participation of persons with disabilities in politics and governance,” Fatai said.

“In actual practice, the deaf are being left behind, while our brothers and sisters in the other disability clusters get the nod whenever opportunities arise to include persons with disabilities in governance and policy formulation.”

He cited reliance on sign language interpreters, calling them outdated.

“One of the reasons given for not appointing deaf persons is the claim that we depend extensively on sign language interpreters, which supposedly allows third parties to know all our plans and actions. This is very unfortunate,” Fatai stated.

Speaking on the role of technology in easing the lives of PWDs, Fatai said “in this digital age, it is perplexing that some people remain unaware of how technology can bridge communication gaps with the deaf”.

He listed platforms like WhatsApp, Zoom, and email, noting that many individuals who are hard of hearing are content creators.

“We only require interpreters when engaging with the hearing community,” he added.

“This is why we are calling on more people to learn sign language.”