Putrajaya has let down the disabled community - Change the Government

The government never cared in the past, does not care in the present and will not care in the future. Only way to change all this is to change the government and real changes for OKU will come in like a flood. Do not cry over spilled milk but start campaigning for the Government which will treat you all as citizens of the country and not rubbish and a liability 

Putrajaya has let down the disabled community

The Prime Minister’s show of rhetoric on just how much the government has done for the disabled community is disgraceful

COMMENT

It is horrifying and heartbreaking that Putrajaya dares make the insidious claim that it has the best interest of the disabled community at heart.

Just last last week, prime minister Najib Razak said the government is attentive to the needs of the nation’s disabled community or orang kurang upaya (OKU).

The truth, however, tells a very sombre story. From pleas to an increase in allowance for the OKU to helping boost their quality of life, Putrajaya has repeatedly and deliberately let the community down.

In 2014, Women, Family and Community Development Minister Rohani Abdul Karim said she would consider requests that the Disabled Workers’ Allowance (EC) be increased from RM300 to RM500 a month in the 2015 Budget.

Rohani added that the request was in line with the ministry’s stand and was reasonable, keeping in mind factors such as the current price of goods.

“Besides the request to increase the EPC, the ministry also received requests to create an allowance for assistants to the handicapped.

“The rationale for this is that, as an example, the assistants are needed to help push their wheelchairs so that they can move around,” Rohani told reporters.

However, when push came to shove, the emasculated Women, Family and Community Development Minister looked the other way when Najib decided a paltry RM50 hike in allowance was good enough to make the disabled community happy.

That meant the allowance for a working OKU post-Budget 2015 increased to RM350 from RM300 while financial assistance for non-working OKU went up from RM150 to RM200.

What Najib hid from Malaysians was that the RM350 for working OKU applied only apply to those with a take home salary of RM1,200 and below a month.

That he disappointed the disabled community would be an understatement. If that dejection was not painful enough, the PM unabashedly proceeded to declare an increase in allowances of MPs, speakers and deputies of Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara effective Jan 1, 2015.

Is this what Najib means by having the OKU welfare close to his heart?

Stigma and discrimination continue to hound OKU

Now, with the 14th general election not far from the horizon, a hard pressed Putrajaya will not surprisingly go to any length to woo voters, even to the extent of making a mockery of itself.

So it was with Najib when in his speech on April 14 which was uploaded to his website, www.najibrazak.com, he behooved that eventhough the OKU comprised a mere 0.01% of the Malaysian population, their well-being was very close to his heart.

The premier’s latest rhetoric on just how much Putrajaya has done for the disabled community is both unbecoming and shameful. The RM150 per month to the disabled, as early as when they begin schooling and the RM350 monthly allowance are no favours from the government.

Likewise, the meagre RM200 and RM300, doled out to those who are unable to work and bedridden respectively, are no reason for the OKU to plead allegiance to Najib and his government.

It is stunning to see just how detached from reality the prime minister is when it comes to staking claims about having worked magic for the disabled people.

“To continue their studies in institutions of higher education, people with disabilities (are afforded) special channels to enable them to get quality education.

“At the same time, they are entitled to receive scholarships and a monthly allowance during their studies at universities, colleges, polytechnics and community colleges.

“The government also pays attention to the disabled when they enter the working world,” were some of Najib’s latest rhetorics.

This claim by Putrajaya of aiding the OKU when they join the labour force would be the last straw that breaks the camel’s back.

Is the premier ignorant of the struggles faced by the disabled community each time they venture out looking for jobs?

Does Najib not realise the discrimination and stigma that continue to hound the OKU and impede their efforts to be gainfully employed?

Indisputable truth of hardships facing OKU

That the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008 which like many other ‘ambitious’ piece of legislations, has yet to serve the OKU is yet another letdown by Putrajaya.

Then there is the half-hearted attempt by the Housing and Local Government Ministry in enforcing the Uniform Building By-law which continues to leave the OKU struggling to gain access into buildings which are not disabled-friendly.

The challenges facing the disabled community are endless. The constant battle to get employed, gain a roof over their heads, the unfriendly public transportation and the brutally tough surroundings have all worn many of the OKU out.

That said, to go for cheap publicity by rattling that the OKU enjoy free medical treatment at government hospitals and refrain from paying for specialist treatment, medication costs and third-class ward charges is unbecoming of the country’s leader.

Has the prime minister conveniently forgotten that it is the responsibility of the government of the day to look after the welfare and well-being of its people, both abled and disabled?

To zero in on the OKU and tout that he has their concern at heart is one big lie that premier Najib can ill-afford to make. After all, three things as the Buddha says cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth.

For when it comes to the prime minister’s rhetorics that the welfare of the OKU concerns him dearly versus the truth, it is the latter that is indisputable and irrefutable.