TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte, July 20 (PIA): Persons –with-disabilities (PWD) are still struggling against impediments to their mobility as some buildings remain PWD inaccessible, 30 years after the Accessibility Law Batas Pambansa 344 was passed in 1982.
Guesting in Kapihan sa Kapitolyo, Provincial Social Welfare Officer Arlene Semblante said that the Provincial Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (PCWDP) is still dealing with problems on accessibility.
In line with this, Davao del Norte Provincial Governor Rodolfo P. del Rosario who sits as chair of PCWDP, has a standing order for the Provincial Engineering Office (PEO) work with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to conduct accessibility audit of public establishments throughout the province.
Semblante said that del Rosario made such order last year in a meeting with members of PCWDP upon learning that even the Provincial Capitol of Davao del Norte fell short of the accessibility standards of Batas Pambansa 344 which is “An Act to Enhance the Mobility of Disabled Persons by Requiring Certain Buildings, Institutions, Establishments and Public Utilities to install Facilities and Other Devices.”
Among the noted inaccessible areas of the Provincial Capitol were its second floor and its comfort rooms.
Semblanted revealed that only the buildings of Davao Regional Hospital (DRH) were found at par with the standards of BP 344 based on a survey done last year by a composite team with members coming from DPWH 11 and from PCWDP of Davao del NOrte.
The team went around Tagum City to check public buildings, hotels and business establishments, Semblante said.
Meanwhile, orthopedic Engr. Darlito Palermo of Differently-abled Graphic Artist Association (DAGAA) called on fellow PWDs to continue pushing for their rights to free mobility which PWDs have yet to fully experience.
“If our environment is accessible, there would be opportunities for employment, and social integration. If it is free of barriers, there would be high chances for PWDs to uplift their standard of living,” he said.
Palermo looked forward for public transportation units in the Philippines to truly become accessible. “Only taxis are comfortable for us,” he said.
He noted that the reserved seats for PWDs of public utility vehicles (PUVs) fail to serve their purpose because PWDs are still having a hard time getting inside buses and jeepneys. “Di man din kami makakaakyat. (We still cannot get inside the bus),” he said. (PIA-11/Jeanevive Duron-Abangan)
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