10
Jan
The Quezon City Council has approved an ordinance granting persons with disabilities more opportunities for participation in public affairs and livelihood projects.
The ordinance amends a 1994 measure enacted by the City Council in line with Republic Act 7277 known as the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons.
Under the new ordinance, the city government will create a Disabled Persons Affairs Office in lieu of the Disabled Persons Affairs Committee (DPAC), which was put up under the 1994 ordinance. The DPAC will be independent of the Office of Senior Citizen’s Affairs (OSCA) and will function with a separate allocation in the city’s annual budget.
The office will be run by a staff of 12 persons with regular appointments and a salary grade ranging from grades 4 to 24.
Councilor Ariel Inton, one of the authors of the new ordinance, said the DPAC is tasked to design and implement a yearly work program for persons with disabilities in the city, promote equal opportunity and accessibility of disabled persons, employment, health and socio-cultural employment.
The office will also give persons with disabilities a chance to draft and propose to the City Council legislative measures that would promote their own welfare as well as serve as a consultative body in the implementation of Batas Pambansa 344 or the Accessibility Law. – Romel Bagares
