LNFOD calls for inauguration of Disability Advisory Council
758 total views, 2 views today
By Retšelisitsoe Khabo
The Lesotho National Federation of Organisations of the Disabled (LNFOD) has called for the Minister of Social Development to put in place the Disability Advisory Council.
Advocate Nkhasi Sefuthi, the Executive Director of LNFOD called upon the minister of social development to ensure that the ministry allocates adequate and sufficient funding for financing the council.
Sefuthi said the council’s mandate in line with the Disability Act is to monitor the protection of the rights of persons living with disabilities and to provide directives and advice to all government ministries relating to all disability issues.
He said the Persons living with disability equity act entered into force on 12 March 2021 when it was published through a notice on the gazette.
Sefuthi said the persons living with disabilities act is the legislation passed by the parliament with the object of establishing the persons with disability advisory council, providing for equal opportunities for persons with disabilities, and recognizing the rights of persons with disabilities in Lesotho.
However, Sefuthi said even though the persons with disability advisory council has been established by this act, it has not yet been inaugurated by the minister of social development as prescribed by law.
He also added that LNFOD calls upon the media sector to spread their advocacy messages about the need to inaugurate a council and allocate a budget so as to operationalize the council for the sake of the vulnerable population of persons with disabilities living in Lesotho.
He said the council will play an important role in the rights of the persons with disabilities will be advancing effective monitoring of the human rights of persons with disabilities and taking into account the need for full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in the decision making processes affecting their lives in Lesotho.
He noted the dire situation of the human rights of persons with disabilities in terms of access to infrastructure, mobility, communication, education, health care facilities, and employment opportunities it is crucial that the council be inaugurated and be given an adequate budget to fulfill its tasks.
Sefuthi said LNFOD has initiated a campaign for the inauguration of the persons with disability advisory council.
He also added that the campaign targets the minister of social development since the law states that he or she is responsible for inaugurating the council.
Sefuthi also added that LNFOD is calling upon the minister of disability affairs to operationalize the persons with disability advisory council through the appointment of council members, and provision of budgetary and administrative support to the council.
He said the campaign goes further to target the private sector and the public at large to raise awareness about the rights of persons with disabilities and the means through which they can be promoted, respected, and protected by the community.
He said the campaign further advocated for the allocating of an adequate and sufficient budget for the council so that it may discharge its functions.
He added that so far LNFOD held a lobbying and advocacy meeting on the 30th September 2021 with the minister of social development, and the portfolio parliamentary committee on the social cluster to ask the acting minister of social development to speed up the process of setting up the council by appointing the members nominated by the different sectors into the council.
Sefuthi said Minister Keketso Sello acknowledged the essence of inaugurating the council but highlighted that the ministry did not budget for the inauguration of the council this fiscal year. He added that the minister pledged that, the persons with disability advisory council will be budgeted for this fiscal year so that it can be inaugurated in the next fiscal year.
Sefuthi said the ministry is legally bound to inaugurate the council because the law establishing the council is in force. He added that legally speaking, the ministry of social development is not justified to say it is unable to inaugurate the council due to budget constraints yet it is the one that published the gazette putting the law in force.
He said LNFOD had a conversation with the private sector including LCCI, and different taxi transport associations on how they can promote the enforcement and ensure the inherent human dignity of persons with disabilities in accordance with the act.
He also said LNFOD wrote to all sectors of the society represented in the council asking them to comply with section 5(1) of the persons with disability equity act by nominating and submitting the names of their representatives to the minister of social development.
Sefuthi said LNFOD has also submitted a list of names nominated by member organizations and submitted them to the minister. He said their expectation is that the minister will consider given names and gazette such names as members of the disability council so that they can start their work in accordance with the law.
Sefuthi added that LNFOD has also built the capacity of its member organization on articulate advocacy messages around the establishment of the council so that they can educate the public about the rights of persons with disabilities and self-advocate for the inauguration of the council on the rights of persons with disabilities.
