People With disabilities in Luweero district, have petitioned the Gender, Labour and Social development committee of parliament, protesting the absence of special needs education programs in government aided secondary schools.
Led by their district councilor, Deborah Nalubega, the petitioners said that Luweero district has more than 200 deaf and blind students, who are missing secondary education due to the absence of special needs education programme.
Nalubega explains that Shammah High school that was offering special needs education decided to suspend it last year after the ministry of education and Luweero district local government failed to pay salaries for teachers.
She said primary school with special needs education in Luweero have also remained with one teacher, after two others abandoned the pupils for lack of salaries.
The petitioners want the Members of parliament to introduce a bill which will compel the ministry of education to employ at least two teachers at every school to handle the deaf and blind students.
The PWDs also want the government to employ an interpreter in every public place, to ease communication and access of services in public places that include police,health center and district headquarters.
Nalubega argued that lack of basic education to blind and deaf has widened the communication gap and accessibility of basic services in the community.
James Lutankome, who is blind told URN Reporter that he has nothing to do but to stay at home and has no hope for doing any job because he has no education. His plight has been aggravated by lack of school fees.
The Member of Parliament for PWDs in Eastern Region Hellen Asamo Grace, says they were tasked by the speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga to carryout an impact assessment of the grants that are given to the disablitiies and they will soon table a report detailing their findings.
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