Mabalacat Association of Persons with Disability

Kiangan, Ifugao – The Municipal Early Childhood Care and Development Coordinating Committee (MECCDCC) sponsored a two day training-seminar to Barangay Health Workers, Day Care Workers, parents and families of children with disabilities (CWDs) last March 1-2, 2007. According to Municipal Mayor Albert Indunan, the prevalence of children with disabilities such as cerebral palsy, downs syndrome, mental retardation and sensory impairments in the municipality is at an alarming rate. Based on records, a total of 10% of its population of about 15,000 is affected with a number of cases still unreported. The seminar is in support to the ECCD’s objective to provide early identification, intervention and referral to developmental disorders and disabilities. With this, the training aimed to educate the community on the causes and possible interventions for disability. This initiative will hopefully contribute to the development of CWDs into productive adults and members of the society and to capacitate families and service providers in caring for them.

The Regional Committee for the Welfare of Children (RCWC) in coordination with the Stimulation Therapeutic Activities Center (STAC), an NGO member of the Regional Sub-Committee for the Welfare of Persons with Disabilities (RSCWPWD) served as Resource Persons.

Highlights of the training included the orientation of the community on the developmental stages of children from zero to six years of age and the roles and responsibilities of the community by Ms. Angelie Tabuno, Regional ECCD Coordinator of CAR. The facilitators from STAC: Ms. Maria Liza S. Garcia, Physical Therapist; Ms. Fleurdeliza B. Nawew, Special Education Teacher; Mr. Sonny Jim Sali, Occupational Therapist discussed the various categories of disabilities, causes, manifestations and symptoms, prevention and intervention for disabilities.

The advocacy for parents to subject their children for New Born Screening, a clinical test conducted from blood samples of newborns at a certain stage and time to identify potential metabolic disorders that may cause disability, mental retardation and even death was stressed during the sessions.

The training also provided an actual demonstration of therapeutic exercises to rehabilitate and strengthen the physical or sensory impairment of the CWDs. The training of DCWs on special education and behavioral modification techniques opened learning opportunities for CWDs in the day care centers. These contributed to the empowerment of and capacitating the CWD to develop personal esteem in improving their lives independently. Generally, the participants developed a better understanding on the misconceptions and discrimination of the society towards disability caused by cultural beliefs and traditions, wrong upbringing and ignorance.

The results of the training further inspired the municipality led by the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Officer (MSWDO), Ms. Tina Talosig to push through with the proposed establishment of a Community–Based Rehabilitation (CBR) and SPED Centers, intensify networking and linkaging for financial and rehabilitation assistance, as well as localize an organization of PWDs who will lobby for services and benefits.

The Makati City government will officially launch the Person with Disability (PWD) Transport ID Card Plus tomorrow and will be distributed to 2,353 qualified recipients at the Makati City Hall Quadrangle.

Makati Social Welfare Development (MSWD) chief Marjorie de Veyra said the PWD Transport ID Card Plus entitles cardholders to receive fare discounts at the Metro Rail Transit, Light Rail Transit, provincial buses and jeepneys in Makati. Additional benefits for cardholders are still being negotiated.

“Initially, the ID will offer discounts covered by national laws. We are studying other means that will enhance the services extended to disabled persons in Makati,” De Veyra said.

The distribution will be followed by the signing of a memorandum of understanding to be led by Mayor Jejomar Binay, Director Catalina Fermin of the National Council for the Welfare of the Disabled Person, Director Honorita Baydan of the Department of Social Welfare and Development-National Capital Region, and to be witnessed by the PWD Federation, local transport groups, and other stakeholders of the PWD Transport ID Plus.

Binay said the project, spearheaded by the MSWD aims to extend assistance to the city’s disabled citizens.

He noted that the project is backed by City Ordinance No. 2006-016, which is in accordance with Republic Act 7277 or the Magna Carta for the Disabled Persons.

“It will grant incentives and benefits to PWD cardholders up to 59 years old,” Binay said.

PWD aged 60 years and above are already qualified for the national ID card for senior citizens.

The Podium, the upscale mall in Ortigas Center, was recently honored as a disabled-friendly establishment during the recent Apolinario Mabini Awards on the occasion of its anniversary in Malacañang Palace.

The mall, which is a joint venture between the SM Group and the Keppel Group of Singapore, was cited for being responsive to the needs of persons with disabilities by providing them with disabled-friendly facilities and services. These include ramps, rest room cubicles, and disabled parking slots, which can make their access to, exit out, and stay in the establishment more pleasant and convenient. Another SM Mall, SM City Dasmariñas, was also awarded as a disabled-friendly establishment during the said event.

President Arroyo herself handed the award to representatives from The Podium: Keppel Properties VP for Development Ng Chin Fei, SM Supermalls AVP Liza Silerio, and Podium Mall Manager Christian Mathay. Also present during the awarding were Kate Gordon, Philippine Foundation of the Rehabilitation of the Disabled Manuel Agcaoili, and Representative Amelita Villarosa.

Launched by the Philippine Foundation for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled (PFRD) in 1974, the annual awards were named after national hero Apolinario Mabini. Known as the Sublime Paryltic, he did not make his disability a hindrance to the creative genius he contributed to the Philippine revolution.

The Apolinario Mabini Awards were established with the aim of recognizing individuals, groups and agencies that have made outstanding contributions in the field of rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, and promoting the wider recognition of persons as self respecting and self reliant citizens.

Other Award categories include Disabled Filipino of the Year, Disabled Group of the Year, Employer of the Year, Local Government Unit of the Year, Rehabilitation Volunteer of the Year, and the Mabini Presidential Award.

To adequately equip the “disabled-friendly” websites as tools used to generate IT-related work opportunities for persons with disabilities, the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons started a three-day national workshop for webmasters here in Cebu yesterday.

The workshop, entitled “Webmasters’ Interface on Accessible Information and Communication Technology (ICT): Empowering Persons with Disabilities through ICT”, is being participated in by about 75 webmasters from government and non-government organizations nationwide. This event will assess the impact of three formerly held regional workshops that greatly inspired participating agencies to come up with websites that are accessible to the physically impaired individuals. It will also formulate relevant standards and guidelines to bolster economic activities supportive of the disability sector.

Among the topics discussed during the workshop was “outsourcing”, a phenomenon created with the advent of the internet, which allows internet users to compete and participate in globalization. These “internet users” can even be people who know only a thing or two about computers and practical encoding. Access to the World Wide Web is all that is needed. All users, including those who have disabilities, now have the opportunity to work online through adaptive technology.

Considering the fact that increasing Information Technology (IT)-related jobs brought by western countries have opened up many jobs for Filipinos, those with disabilities included, easy access to websites would be a good help.

Medical transcriptions, call centers, data conversion and others continue to boom nowadays. By having jobs like these within reach, the disabled persons are given a wider array of jobs to choose from other than craft-making and the likes.

“Our society is in dire need of citizens who are able to contribute to national development, and that includes people who, despite their disability, can perform duties most (other) people can,” Catalina Fermin, executive director of NCWDP said in a speech she gave on behalf of DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral. To adequately equip the disabled sector, the government aims to make all its programs open to them through full web accessibility and usability, prioritizing agencies with programs critical to economic activities of Persons with Disabilities.

One of the outcomes of this project will be a plan of action that will be developed and presented by all the participants to strengthen and ensure that their websites are fully accessible by 2007.

A census conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO) in 2000 revealed that there are about 942,000 persons with disabilities in the country, and the government must ensure that they are adequately supported and protected, the senator said.

“This is a conservative count as compared to the World Health Organization estimates for a developing country: That one says that out of every 10 people has a disability. Based on this projection, there are about 8.0 million Filipinos with disability, 80% of which are in the rural areas where they can hardly reach the gains of development,” she said.

While RA 7277, the “Magna Carta for Disabled Persons,” as amended, affords manifold services, including quality education, health and auxiliary social services for PWDs, Legarda said the creation of an office will add a salient feature to the law for the maximum benefits of disabled persons.

“Persons with disabilities are a country’s important endowments. Their rights and privileges must be protected and equal opportunities must be afforded to them to develop their abilities in all fields of human endeavor,” she said after a Senate hearing conducted by the Senate Committee on Social Justice, Welfare, and Rural Development which she chairs.

Senate Bill 2323, authored by Legarda, seeks to amend Sec. 40 of RA 7277, to pave the way for the establishment of a Persons with Disabilities Affairs Office (PDAO) in each province, city, and town.

A non-government foundation in coordination with the Quezon City government, the Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT) and a Taiwan-based computer center opened yesterday a computer learning center for the disabled in Barangay Nayon Kaunlaran in Quezon City.

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Councilor Bernadette Herrera Dy led city officials and guests in ceremonies that opened computer classes to the first batch of disabled students of the city.

Herrera Dy, who heads the Bagong Henerasyon foundation, is spearheading the Quezon City computer literary program, which includes the mobilization of “Computers on Wheels,” a 20-foot container van converted into a classroom.

At least 8,000 city residents, including public servants, students and out of school youths, were the beneficiaries of the program launched two years ago.

The Apec Digital Opportunities Center (ADOC) of Chinese-Taipei is the latest partner of the Bagong Henerasyon foundation in providing computer literacy classes to disabled persons.

Belmonte congratulated Herrera Dy for her initiative of bringing in foreign partners for the computer literacy program for city residents.

“Quezon City always welcomes those from the private sector that is willing to take part in the development program of the city government,” the mayor said.

He said the computer literary program will boost the status of the city as the information communication technology capital of the country.

Other guests in the launching of the computer center were Hsin Hsing Wu of the Taiwan cultural office; Chen Cheng Chung, secretary general of the Internal Cooperation and Donation Fund (Taipei) and Emmanuel Lallana, CICT commissioner.

Caloocan City Mayor Enrico Echiverri asked both government and private offices and establishments in the city yesterday to provide special or “priority lanes” for senior citizens and the physically-challenged.

The mayor said many of these special persons are regular visitors getting or submitting assorted documents, paying taxes and other transactions.

Most of the time, he said, they have to wait in long lines to avail of the services needed.

Echiverri said the priority lanes will be a big relief knowing that their condition usually makes it harder for them to promptly finish whatever business they are trying to transact.

The mayor said among the offices at City Hall commonly visited by senior citizens and persons with disabilities are the City Assessor’s Offices, the Business Permits and Licensing Office and the City Treasurer’s Office.

Also ordered to provide express lanes are those of the National Statistics Office (NSO), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Parole and Probation Office (PBO) and the local DILG.

A blind masseur from Bohol who was able to rise from poverty and help other disabled people become productive citizens received the 2005 Disabled Filipino of the Year Award yesterday.

Timoteo Quilas, founder of the Bohol Federation of Disabled Persons, led other recipients of the Apolinario Mabini Awards at Malacañang.

Quilas trained as a masseur after he lost his vision when he was a junior college student and already married. His practice flourished and he managed to send his three children to school. His wife, who had left him when he became blind, returned to him.

Carmen Salazar, a long-time teacher for the deaf and creator of the most number of instructional materials for them, received the Mabini Presidential Award.

Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca, a polio victim, received a special award because she did not let her condition stop her from becoming an outstanding student and a fearless media practitioner and public official, fighting anomalies and corruption in her province.

Other recipients include the Rondalla on Wheels, which was recognized as the Disabled Group of the Year; Ma. Corazon Tensuan, Rehabilitation Volunteer Worker of the Year; Philippine Postal Corp. (PPC), Employer of the Year; the cities of Bacolod, Candon (Ilocos Sur), Cuenca (Batangas), Laoag, Pasay and the Bulacan provincial government, local government units or LGUs of the Year.

Glorietta 4, Greenbelt 3, Market! Market!, Podium and SM City Dasmariñas earned the Disabled-Friendly Establishment award.

President Arroyo led the awarding ceremony, together with representatives from the Philippine Foundation for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled Inc. (PFRD).

Quilas’ group managed numbers of people with disabilities and secured an annual aid of P60,000 from the provincial government to provide them with skills training in preparation for launching livelihood projects.

With chapters organized in 36 towns, those who completed skills training established their own cosmetology, dressmaking and electronic repair shops.

In 2002, Quilas’ group was judged the Best People’s Organization in their region. It also received the Gawad Geny Lopez National Award as Bayaning Pilipino in 2004 and a P500,000 cash prize.

Salazar, meanwhile, taught hearing-impaired children for 20 years and was promoted to the post of school principal after being awarded the 2002 Civil Service Award — the highest presidential award given to government employees.

She authored a book with sign language illustrations to make reading easier and involved her students in school community programs.

Salazar received many other awards and most of her pupils became teachers, teacher aides, computer encoders and bookkeepers, among other vocations.

Tensuan, for her part, helped raise funds for the Sunshine Home for the Blind that served as a dormitory for visually-impaired students without permanent residence in Manila.

She was active in efforts to establish links with government agencies and bring about solutions to basic problems faced by disabled persons. She also co-founded the Handog Lingap sa Maykapansanan Foundation, which oversees projects and services for disabled persons.

The Rondalla on Wheels (ROW) is a special feature of the Bahay Mapagmahal, a dormitory that houses handicapped children with no place to go. The children composing the group come from depressed areas all over the country and enjoy free education from elementary to high school at an educational institution for crippled children.

ROW harnesses the music potential of children as well as youths with disabilities and stages concerts in different parts of the country.

The PPC was cited for employing 27 deaf persons and even awarded a deaf employee, Romarico Mateo, as one of its outstanding workers. It also conducts training programs to improve their skills.

The LGUs were honored for the various programs they implemented for disabled persons while malls were awarded for their accessibility to those with physical disability.

The PFRD launched the Apolinario Mabini Awards in 1974 to give recognition to individuals with disabilities, professionals and various groups that distinguished themselves in their chosen fields of endeavor or have rendered outstanding services to people with disabilities.

The awards were named after one of the country’s foremost heroes, Apolinario Mabini, known as the “Sublime Paralytic,” whose disability was not a hindrance to his participation in the 1898 Philippine revolution.

Those living with a person with disability knows for sure how expensive it is to cater to this kind of lifestyle especially with the other expenses they have to incur like medication, treatment, therapy, care taker and other special needs.

Good thing the Republic Act (RA) 9442 which amended RA 7277 known as the Magna Carta for Disabled Person took in effect some privileges to ease out on some major expenses. The law was signed last April 30 by President Arroyo.

RA 9442 provides twenty (20) percent discount to persons with disability: (Sorry this law is for Philippine residents and citizens only)

1) from all establishments relative to utilization of all services in hotels and similar lodging establishments; restaurants and recreation centers.

2) (a minimum of 20 percent discount) on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema houses, concert halls, circuses, carnivals and other similar places of culture, leisure and amusement.

3) for the purchase of medicines in all drugstores

4) on medical and dental services including diagnostic and laboratory fees such as, but not limited to x-rays, computerized tomography scans and blood test in all government facilities, subject to the guidelines to be issued by the Department of Health (DOH) in coordination with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PHILHEALTH).

5) on medical and dental services INCLUDING diagnostic and laboratory fees, AND professional fees of attending doctors in ALL PRIVATE hospitals and medical fascilities, in accordance with the rules and regulations to be issued by DOH in coordination with the PHILHEALTH.

6) on fare for domestic air and sea travel.

7) in public railways, skyways, and bus fare.

How to get the ID card.

File your application form together with the following valid identification:

1) Residence certificate or barangay ID from the municipal mayor or barangay captain of the place where the person with disability resides.
2) The passport of the person with disability concerned or
3) The transportation fare discount ID issued by the National Council for Disability Affairs (NCDA).

You (the person with disability) will need a 2 copy 1×1 picture.

Type of disability

Disabled persons was defined in the said law as those suffering from restriction or different abilities as a result of a mental, physical or sensory impairment to perform an activity in the manner or within the range considered normal for a human being. Impairment is any loss, diminution or aberration of psychological, physiological, or anatomical structure or function.

In their application form the type of disability can be either:

1) psychological disability
2) mental disability
3) hearing disability
4) chronic illness
5) visual disability
6) speech impairment
6) learning disability
7) orthopedic (musculoskeletal) disability
multiple disability.

You may get the above application form (Philippine Registry Form For Persons With Disability) from your local municipal offices, barangay offices or to your local DOH offices.

Do not waste a single moment, go visit your local municipal office or barangay offices and get a disability ID card to enjoy the said benefits.

You should not worry about being ridiculed and mocked for identifying yourself or a family member as a person with disability as the amended law also prohibits verbal or non-verbal ridicule and vilification against persons with disability.(I wish the U.S. government have this kind of law inact so that mother with a child with autism who was literally carried off the plain will be meted with this penalties).

Those who will violate any provision of this act shall suffer;

1) First offense: a fine not less than P50,000 but not exceeding P100,000 or imprisonment of not less than six months but not more than two years or both at the discretion of the court.

2) For subsequent violation, a fine not less than P100,000 but not exceeding P200,000 or imprisonment of not less than 2 years but not more than 6 years or both at the discretion of the court.

Do not abuse the system though as those who will will be imprisoned for not less than 6 months or a fine not less than P5,000 but not more than P50,000 or both at the discretion of court.

If the violator is a corporation, organization or a similar entity, the officials directly involved shall be held liable.

If the violator is an alien or a foreigner, he shall be deported immediately after service of sentence without further deportation proceedings.

In line with the global celebration of the International Day of Disabled Persons last Dec. 3, the City of Manila will play host to the staging of the third ASEAN Para Games from Dec. 14-21 at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.

Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1982, this year’s occasion aims to promote understanding of disability issues and encourage support for the upliftment of the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.

Through the third ASEAN Para Games, organizers not only hope to allow the region’s disabled sector to enjoy life and human rights fully and become productive citizens but also promote solidarity in the region.

The Philippines is hosting the Games, presented by the PCSO, PSC, and DPWH and backed by PLDT-Smart, Systems Technology, Inc., Pag-ibig, SM Shoemart, Philpost, NBN-4, Manila Bulletin, Philspada, and the City Government of Manila under Mayor Lito Atienza, for the first time under the auspices of the Philippine ASEAN Para Games Organizing Committee (PAPGOC) chaired by former Philippine Sports Commissioner Michael Barredo.

Barredo, who is the Board of Governors chairman of the ASEAN Para Sports Federation and president of the 113-nation member International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA), expressed the importance for nations to take cognizance of the needs of their disabled in so far as their mental, physical and spiritual strength is concerned.

“I may have lost my eyesight, but I gained a vision. And that vision is to see the disabled being able to participate in the mainstream of society, particularly in sports,” said Barredo, a former athlete who lost his eyesight more than 20 years ago.

Over 1,000 of the finest differently-abled athletes from all over Southeast Asia are expected to showcase their athletic prowess in the Games also supported by American President Line, Pfizer Inc., Red Ribbon, Radioworks, Sports Radio, IBM Computers, Mettaphione, GSIS, and various national government agencies.

Among the sports included in the calendar are athletics, swimming, powerlifting, badminton, table tennis, wheelchair basketball, goalball, chess, wheelchair tennis, and judo, while demonstration sports include sailing, boccia, tenpin bowling, and fencing.

The ASEAN Para Games were started in 2000 during the 10th Paralympiad Malaysian Games held in Kuala Lumpur wherein the 10 Southeast Asian countries unanimously decided to establish a regional federation, which organized the biennial Games to promote the spirit of regional solidarity.