Acting PM: Govt focused on ensuring no Fijian is left behind

Acting Prime Minister and Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says Government is doing its best to bring persons with disabilities into the mainstream of national development.

He said there was still a long way to go “but we want to catch up very quickly.”

He said disability was not inability and opportunities should be provided so that persons with disability could become active contributors to society.

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum was speaking during the awards ceremony for Sign Language graduates at Lautoka Special Education Centre yesterday.

“Government is very much focused on in ensuring that no Fijian is left out in any of the development programmes that the Government puts out,” he said.

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said unfortunately previously many governments did not believe in mainstreaming persons with disabilities.

“Disability is not inability, and that is what we believe in, as you know this is why we are very adamant that the new Fijian Constitution has a right to persons with disabilities,” he said.

“The rights for persons with disabilities do not only mean that is an obligation on Government to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to services.”

He said it was crucial that Fiji’s education system recognise the needs of deaf students by adapting an inclusive approach to ensure students were not left out of school activities.

‘You will see for example there was discussion with the Fiji Roads Authority and the disability association to how we can make roads and footpaths more disabled friendly,” he said.

“They are obviously people who are very talented and who can make contributions to our country,” he said.

“As a Government we must always ensure that anyone who has the ability to contribute always contributes.”

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said Fiji was at a risk of depriving the country of talent readily available.

“You would have also heard through the budget as was highlighted by the general secretary, that we now also through the tertiary education scholarship and loan scheme we now will also fund a person with disabilities who wants to go to university and we will also pay for that.”

He said this was also crucial in terms of persons with disabilities not only contributing for their self-development but also for the country.

“We now have duty free and VAT free on things like wheel chairs, prosthetics also hearing –aids,  and also spare parts for all these things, all of these are VAT free and duty free,” he said.

“Government is also introducing digital television, once digital television is fully implemented  which should be in about 18 months’ time, we will have the opportunity to have people sign language at the top of the screen to say what is happening.”

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said it was important that people with disabilities were not marginalised in any shape or form.

“From next year for special schools we are now giving $500 for a child because that infact is very important and we recognise the fact that these children do need some special teaching assistance,” he said.

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