Less than forty-eight hours after its inauguration by Governor Willie Obiano, the Anambra State Disability Rights Commission has swung into action to deliver on its mandate of ensuring a better inclusive society for People Living With Disabilities, PLWDs, in Anambra State.
The commission commenced with unscheduled visits to business premises in Awka to assess their compliance with the accessibility of public buildings for PLWDs.
Correspondent David Okpokwasili reports that according to Section 4 of the Anambra Disability Rights Law 2018, a public building shall be constructed with the necessary accessibility aids such as lifts where necessary, ramps, and any other facility that shall make them accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities while Section 34 and 37 of the law set up and empowers the commission to enforce the law.
On arrival at Everyday Supermarkets, Awka Mall, the members and staff of the commission led by its chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Barrister Chuks Ezewuzie were received by the senior management staff of the mall led by Engineer Solomon Anyakwelu and the Manager of the Awka Mall, Mr. Alfred Raymond.
The commission assessed the different parts of the mall beginning from the ramps, escalators, wall inscriptions and lighting system to ensure that each of them meets international standards and that people living with disability can move around the mall independently.
The team after the tour commended the management of the mall for complying with the accessibility features demanded of public buildings but made recommendations on the needed readjustments that must be made so as to make the mall more inclusive.
Speaking to the ABS, the chairman of the Commission, who is also the Special Adviser to the governor on Disability Matters, Barrister Ezewuzie said that enforcing that public buildings meet standard practices in accessibility for people with disability is a core mandate of the commission and stated that by the Anambra Disability Rights Law 2018, it is now a criminal offence for anybody to issue building permit without obtaining a Certificate of No Objection from the Anambra Disability Rights Commission.
Earlier, a senior management staff of Everyday Supermarket, Engineer Anyakwelu explained that the establishment complied with the accessibility standards, made alternatives where difficult and promised that the recommendations for adjustments made by the team will be implemented as soon as possible.
Contributing, a board member of the Anambra Disability Rights Commission and State Chairman, Joint Association of Persons Living With Disability, JONAPWD, Comrade Ugochukwu Okeke and the Media Officer of the Commission, Chidimma Ajemba commended the padding of the ramp, the lighting system, and proper wall inscriptions in mall.