More awareness, please
WHEEL POWERBy ANTHONY THANASAYAN
We have to be sensitive to the needs of the disabled.
IT HAS been more than three months since I was appointed MBPJ Councillor. There are 24 of us in the team and I am the only one with a disability.
Despite my physical difference, I am happy to say that I have not been regarded as a lesser person in any way. During my visits, I have always been assured of help, should I need any.
Disability seems to be nothing new at the Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya headquarters. No one fixes awkward stares at me, not even members of the public who drop by daily.
As a councillor, I take the opportunity to ask them if they are all right, whether their visit to the MBPJ had solved their problems.
Perhaps if all of us saw our interdependence on each other, there would be less discrimination in the world today.
As human beings we should learn to respect one another regardless of our backgrounds. By getting in touch with our vulnerability (we could find ourselves in a dependent situation one day), we are more likely to accept others in unique situations.
I was referred to a case where an elderly disabled man required a wheelchair ramp in his posh condominium in Petaling Jaya. He had forwarded his request to the residents’ association more than a year, but nothing was done about it.
The association gave several reasons for their inaction. One was that there was already a ramp in the basement. They also said there was no space at the entrance of the building.
The most shocking excuse they gave was that the ramp would “spoil the beauty of their condo”.
I made a visit with the MBPJ team to check out the venue.
There was ample space for a ramp if they remove a flower pot. The ramp at the basement was too dangerous for the elderly man to use. If he had a fall, there would be no one to help him.
Besides, it is most undignified to create separate entrances for disabled persons.
The elderly man’s wife was also frail even though she is able to walk. How could one expect her to help her husband at the basement ramp?
The developer of the condo was marvellous. He agreed to build a ramp to help the couple out. The residents’ association finally came to their senses and gave the green light for the ramp. It was built last week. There was a problem though: apparently a second grab bar was not included in the ramp.
This week the MBPJ team and I will visit the condo again to ensure that everything is built accordingly.
Although the ramp was initiated for the elderly resident in the condo, the feature was built for the benefit of all the residents should any of them - God forbid - become disabled one day.
The whole episode was a timely lesson for everyone involved.
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