Ghana Disability Forum supports Ivor Greenstreet

Ghana Disability Forum (GDF), an amalgamation of groupings of persons with disability,  has described the election of Mr Ivor Greenstreet as the Flag bearer of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) as a proof  that persons with disability could be trusted with leadership roles in various fields of endeavour.

‘’You stand tall before persons with disability in Ghana and Africa at large, hence you are not only our role model but you have become the beacon of hope for  us  Persons With Disability ( PWDs).’’

The Chairman of GDF, Mr Alex Tetteh, stated this when members of the forum thronged the CPP Headquarters to congratulate Mr Greenstreet on his election as the presidential candidate of the CPP for this year’s elections.

Positive influence

He said the forum greatly appreciated the heroic efforts  of Mr Greenstreet in politics and the positive influence on its members who were  savouring his victory.

Mr Tetteh explained that  the forum is a social media group which has a WhapsApp platform with the sole aim of advocating the implementation of the Ghana Disability  Act 715.

He said members were offering voluntary monitoring and evaluation, research and education on issues of equal opportunity for PWDs in Ghana in the hope of eliminating poverty among its members.

Mr Tetteh also said members were hopeful that when Mr Greenstreet was given an opportunity to be in the highest political seat in Ghana, he would facilitate the full implementation of the Disability Act as it was meant to fulfil the expectations of persons with disability.

CPP Delegates

Mr Tetteh also used the occasion to congratulate the CPP delegates on showing that disability was not inability by electing Greenstreet, which was re-assuring.

Mr Greenstreet,  commended the members for  coming to congratulate him and expressing their solidarity with him.

He observed that politicians had always used rhetorics  and paid lip- service to the plight of persons  with disability.

He said, for instance, that despite the coming into force of the Disability Act almost 10 years ago, the plight of the disabled had remained the same if not worsened.

Political rhetorics

Mr Greenstreet noted that if buildings in Accra were still  not disability -friendly, he could imagine the plight of the disabled at the local level where they faced all sorts of discrimination and other forms of marginalisation.

He said when mandated to govern the country by the people of Ghana, he would see to the  full implementation of the Disability Act, which deal with access of the disabled to quality education and health,  as well as collaborates to end discrimination against persons with disability.

The National Chairman of the CPP, Mr Edmund Delle, said according to statistics, about 20 per cent of the Ghanaian population  had  some form of disability, which  translates into about 4.8 million persons  who are living with disability.

He  assured them that the CPP would work closely with them and include them in the party’s manifesto  to ensure that this huge constituency identified itself with the party and voted for it in the 2016 elections  to ensure total victory.