13th December, 2010
Last Tuesday, the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, Lagos State Government Secretariat played host to a display of musical talents by physically challenged people, during which they sang and drummed.
The event was the celebration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The auditorium was filled to capacity with disabled people. They were not sad; they rejoiced greatly and thrilled the audience with their performance.
A musical rendition from a band of disabled people supplied the music for the day.  Three blind men entertained the audience with their super rendition while a solo was rendered by a disabled man on a wheelchair. It is certain that from the high level of performance displayed by them, many able bodied people cannot match their prowess in music.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Youth and Social Development, Dr. Dolapo Badru stated that the theme for the celebration, Keeping the Promise: Mainstreaming Disability in the Millennium Development Goals Towards 2015 and Beyond, was timely as it provided the best available framework for fulfilling the promise by world leaders at the summit in 2000, to spare no effort to free the people from abject poverty and dehumanizing conditions.
“The Millennium Development Goals foster collaborative action to reduce poverty, improve health and address education and environmental concerns around the world’s most pressing development problems,†he noted.
According to him, the government would continue to respond to the yearning of the people and would not relent in its efforts to provide the basic necessities that would make life worth living.
The Special Adviser recalled the effort of the state government in rescuing and reuniting beggars from the state with their family members, saying that there was need to urgently act to mainstream disability in the MDG process.
“This concerns policy makers and technical experts specifically tasked with programming, monitoring and evaluation of current MDGs. Their task will not be considered successful if their policies, programmes, monitoring and evaluation do not include persons with disabilities.â€
Chairman, Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, Lagos State chapter, Mr. Okikiade Adeyemi, wanted governments in the 36 states of the federation to create an enabling environment for disabled people to develop their potential.
According to him, government should create avenue for news and current affairs to be interpreted in the American Sign Language and Braille for the benefit of persons with disability, adding that it has been a psychological torture for persons with disabilities to watch or try to listen to news.
Adeyemi stated that sign language would go a long way to assist those who have hearing impairment while Braille would assist those who are visually impaired.
