BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan ordered the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) and the barangays to come out with an accurate data on the number of persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the city so that the local government will be able to plan and program the necessary interventions that will help them improve their living condition.
The local chief executive said that PWDs are people with special needs that must be given appropriate attention by the concerned government agencies and the local government for them to feel that they are part of mainstream society for them to be able to uplift their current state of living.
In the message to the hundreds of PWDs who actively parcitied in the activities lined up for the celebration of the international Day of PWDs last Monday at the city hall grounds, Domogan pointed out that there is a need for the concerned offices of the local government and the barangays to conduct a census to ascertain the actual data of PWDs in the city so that appropriate interventions for the sector will be crafted and implemented that will contribute in ensuring their overall welfare.
“We need the data on the actual number of PWDs living with us in the different barangays so that we will be able to plan out the necessary interventions, programs, projects and activities that could be extended to them for the benefit of uplifting their growth and welfare,” Domogan stressed.
Earlier, Baguio City Federation of PWDs president Jon Paredes expressed the group’s gratitude to the local government for institutionalizing its support to the numerous programs, projects and activities lined up for the welfare of their members who belong to the marginalized families in the city’s 128 barangays.
He explained that the city’s PWDs will continue to be an empowered sector with the assistance of the local government because it is important that they will be able to share their skills and talents for the development of the city.
Paredes claimed that Baguio City is one of the PWD friendly local governments in the country because of the numerous programs, projects and activities that have been put in place side from the various interventions of both the government and private sectors which have significantly contributed in empowering the PWDs to be active members of the society.
While there are still various issues concerning the compliance of the government and private sectors to the provisions of Batas Pambansa 344 or the Accessibility law, the federation president underscored that the matter is a concern that needs sufficient national interventions but what is important is that the local government was able to do its part by addressing whatever gaps that need to be patched up to address the issues and concerns confronting the PWDs.
Baguio PWS joined their fellow PWDs in other parts of the world in the celebration of the International Day of PWDs to continue empowering the PWDs to continue being productive members of the society instead of being the problems of the people in the communities where they are living.
By Dexter A. See
