The Students’ Representative Council (SRC) of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) in collaboration with the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations (GFD) has held a programme for persons living with disability on campus.
The programme dubbed “Touching Lives” was aimed at providing a high self esteem and confident-boosting environment for the disabled. This, the SRC believes, would enable them unearth their potentials to the fullest and make them understand their greatness and abilities go beyond their disabilities.
A guest speaker for the programme, Mr. W. Ansah, spoke about how the lives of persons living with disability can be developed. He indicated that, as a society we need to highlight developments made for persons living with disability as a national pride.
“We need to have a rethink of how we define our national pride”, he said.
Mr. Ansah again hinted that our inability as a country to develop the lives of persons living with disability has been left unconcerned, in that we only highlight some specifics such as corruption, high poverty rates and poor road networks as our national shame and this has to be reconsidered.
“Hardly do we talk about the things we have been unable to do for our brothers and sisters who are physically challenged, we need to rethink how we define our national shame”.
He also advised persons living with disability never to forget their colleagues whenever they get the opportunity to help them.
Obaahemaa Nana Ekua Apeatsewah 11 of Abura in the Central Region, gave a motivational speech by inciting in the persons present some confidence by advising them to be bold in other to sell themselves.
“You might have a disability, you might have some sought of physical challenge, but you still have to sell yourself”, Obaahemaa stated.
The chairman for the programme, Dr. Eugene Ghartey, the Vice Dean Of Students of the University of Cape Coast, in a remarks, commended the SRC for the effort put in place in organising such a programme.
Dr. Ghartey also assured that the office of the Dean of Students will work with groups who have persons with disability at heart, to ensure persons with disability on campus have a conducive environment and live their lives to the fullest.
The audience were thrilled with performances by some persons living with disability.
Present at the programme were the leadership of the SRC, some Local NUGS executives, students from the University of Ghana, Legon (UG), the University of Education Winneba (UEW) and the Cape Coast School for the Deaf and Blind.
Source: Godfred Mawugbe/choicism.com
