SIR: Persons with disability, otherwise known as differently-abled individuals, encounter immense challenges that leave them at the mercy of socio-economic elements. Due to their disabilities, they often struggle to survive. Those with profound physical challenges, especially blindness, spinal cord injuries, leprosy, cerebral palsy cannot but resort to depending on others to survive.
Consequently, street begging, considered taboo in some societies, is rampant among persons with disability – no thanks to the lack of governmental and societal support towards the welfare of persons with disability.
Apart from persons with hearing impairment, majority of persons with disability depend on begging to survive as they are not physically fit to do manual labour to earn a living. Those with family struggle to feed them. Some would have to go to big cities where people are more charitable to do begging and return home as soon as they are financially well-off.
In some cities like Lagos and Abuja where many persons with disability make substantial income, the ban on street begging has been imposed and thus their source of livelihood have been adversely affected.
Although street begging is a condemnable, the imposition of such ban without proffering any fundamental solution to the delinquency is unfair, almost cruel.
Even though this lingering problem can be resolved through the establishment of social security disability benefits, the needs of persons with disability cannot be totally satisfied, again no thanks to Nigeria’s fragile economy and bad leadership.
In order to become financially, economically and intellectually independent, all persons with disability should be guaranteed education as disability is no longer, since the inception of special education in Nigeria in the middle of nineteenth century, a barrier to education.
The government at all levels should do everything possible to make education accessible to all persons with disability. More numbers of special schools should be constructed and specially equipped in the vicinity where there are dozens of persons with disability.
Parents who have children with disability should dispel the negative myths that persons with disability have no future and will have nothing to give back if they send them to school. Education offers them valuable and useful knowledge that will help them to break the barriers that lies on their path like a barricade.
Education must be made compulsory for all persons with disability. When all persons with disability are educated, life will become easier for them. In fact, education turns disability into ability. Persons with disability who are educated aren’t likely to engage in street begging. Even if they are unemployed, believe me, they won’t. They are likely to start their own business.
•Ibrahim Tukur, (Deaf Student)
Bayero University, Kano.