No few than 150 Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) on Tuesday benefited from the distribution of food items, ingredients and cash gifts as palliatives for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The palliatives dole out by the Network for the Advancement of Persons With Visible Disabilities (NAPVID) with support from Edo State government have become an end of year exercise to support vulnerable persons to celebrate the yuletide.
According to NAPVID’s executive director, Melody Omosah Esq, this year’s exercise was basically to assist the PWDs to cushion the effects of removal of petroleum subsidy by the federal government.
“Last weekend, the management of NAPVID deem it necessary to give out as a token for the celebration some food items to persons with disabilities. This wasn’t what was planned all the while, but we responded to calls from number of persons with disabilities who were asking for handouts to be able to be part of the Christmas celebration.
“Understandably so, following the removal of subsidy and subsequent dollar rise, the well-being of Nigerians to a greater extent has been compromised and it’s affecting everyone”, Omosah remarked
Omosah maintained that the yearly palliatives amongst other support for PWDs were courtesy NAPVID’s ‘Project HELP’ initiative made possible by the Godwin Obaseki-led administration to reach out to the needy.
In her remarks, the commissioner for Social Development and Gender Issues, Mrs. Christabel Omoh Ekwu encourage beneficiaries not to look down on themselves rather see themselves as capable to deliver on any task before them irrespective of challenges.
“Everybody have one form of disability or the other, so in that regard don’t look at yourself and say I’m a disabled person because I’m seeing people with tremendous abilities”, Ekwu said
One of the beneficiary, a visually impaired, Mrs Igudu Clara expressed appreciation to the organizers for yearly yuletide largesse for special persons in the state and prayed for it sustenance.
