BAGUIO CITY — Baguio City observes the national disability rehabilitation and prevention week.

Held every third week of July, this year’s (commemoration) was hosted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) as assigned by the National Council on Disability Affairs Board (NCDAB).

With this year’s theme “Kapag May Access, May Success (Where there is access, there is success),” the government is now on an extensive campaign on emphasizing the importance of providing accessibility to persons with disability through accommodating facilities, services and employment opportunities.

The city council as well is pushing for the recognition and provision of welfare for “differently abled” persons, with the approval of the Magna Carta for persons with disability which includes provision of privileges and incentives for them as well as deliverance from public ridicule and vilification.

“We have released around 800 IDs for persons with disability in the city through the Social Welfare Office,” said Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. “Rest assured all government controlled establishments would honor these IDs and give them the necessary privileges and incentives,” he adds.

On the subject of the padlocked pedestrian lanes for persons with disability along Magsaysay Road, Councilor Betty Lourdes Tabanda said “These would have been of great help to our (PWDs). Unfortunately, the abuse of these pedestrian lanes (by persons without disability) lead to traffic congestion, so we had to temporarily close off these pedestrian lanes until the necessary measures are taken.”

At the recently held press conference at SM City Baguio Wednesday, Naas Demyttenaere, SLU executive director for the Institute on Inclusive Education, invited the City Council to try to visit Session Road on a wheelchair to see how difficult it is for persons with disability to get around.

“It would be best if you consult actual persons with disability for your rehabilitation projects,” said Demyttenaere for the maximization of the ongoing restructuring of Session Road. The mayor responded by openly inviting Demyttenaere to visit him in his office to enable to talk to the contractors of the project. # Myko Franco Chiong