The National Council for the Welfare of Disabled (NCWD) unveiled on June 29, 2005 the Disability Section under the provincial library. Considered to be the first provincial disability library section and only the third in the country with two others in the Metro Manila area, this project of the NCWD in cooperation with the provincial government aims to educate the public of the provisions of the Magna Carta for disabled persons and enjoin everyone in the proper observance of the law. “One of the projects of the NCWD is to inform our countrymen that there is really a Magna Carta for disabled persons so we started the establishment of libraries for the disabled. Ilocos Norte is the third, the first was in Cainta and second in Makati. Ilocos Norte is the first province where we are establishing this library section,” NCWD Executive Director III Catalina Fermin said. Through the disability section, information, education and communication (IEC) materials will be made readily available to the reading public and the PWDs for them to get the latest information on the rights and privileges of our differently abled countrymen and what should be followed accordingly by the government and other offices under the accessibility law, she stressed. Fermin explained that the minimum basic requirement under the magna carta are: (1) provision of a ramp going to the 1st floor and; (2) toilet for both male and female in establishments, restaurants and even in office buildings wide enough to accommodate wheel chairs. “With these reference books and materials our PWDS need not go to disability centers and the DSWD to have access to community based program in terms of training and employment and all available services because they can already read about them here,” the Executive Director said. Fermin shared that her attendance in regional committee meetings convinced her to bring the project to her home province. She said that the conceptualization started late last year. “I called up the Provincial Social Welfare Office (PSWO) thru Guadalupe Bumanglag. After discussing the proposal with the Provincial Director, we consulted Governor Ferdinand Marcos and he consented by providing us this small space, right at the entrance of the Provincial Library,” Fermin relayed. “We will also be having a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signing with the provincial government in order to establish the responsibility area of the local government unit and the council, Fermin added. The two parties agreed that the maintenance of library premises will be the duty of the provincial government of Ilocos Norte while NCWD will be in-charge of the provision of additional information materials, she added. The lady director added that these recent developments in the affairs of PWDs is still in keeping with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s signing of Proclamation No. 240 or the Philippine Decade for Persons with Disability (2003 to 2012) and in preparation for the Drafting of a National Convention in New York focused on different disabilities, self-help groups, prevention and education, and livelihood of PWDs. “We are also looking at the establishment of an Office for Persons with Disability Affair or OPDA to complement the DSWD,” Fermin said. The office will be tasked to know how many PWDs are in the province and their problems including the provision of asisstive devices like canes and wheel chair, the education of their children and if there are those willing to undergo further education themselves, she added. Still PWDs can avail of the Self Enhancement Assistance amounting to as much as P5000 from the PSWO, Fermin said. The Council can provide counter part funding but our concern is more on the development of policies, coordination of services of partner agencies for the Philippine plan of action and the implementation of magna carta, she explained. Other than the NCWD, she added that under the General Appropriations Act, government agencies are mandated to allocate one percent of their budget for PWDs and senior citizens. Unfortunately, the ordinance still has to be implemented, she said. She qualified however that the provincial government is very supportive to PSWO especially with the agency’s devolution to the local government unit. Fermin further explained that their main goal is the empowerment of the disabled and she felt proud of the notable accomplishments of PWDs in the province for having organized their group and initiating livelihood projects at the community.
Aleli Aggasid-Batara
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