The Tribune

By Khrisna Russell

Deputy Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

THE Persons with Disabilities Commission is in “complete disarray” with Social Services Minister Lanisha Rolle at the helm, a commission member told The Tribune yesterday as he accused her of doing nothing to advance the cause of the body.

Former commission Chairman DeCosta Bethel said the Sea Breeze MP has shown utter insensitivity to the needs of those in the disabled community, adding she does not have what is needed to handle the complex issues of discrimination facing this group of citizens.

He claimed the minister was running “roughshod” over the commission.

“It seems as if she is insensitive to the needs of the commission and the persons (in the) disabilities community and the efforts that should put into the elimination of discrimination against them this is what the mandate is,” Mr Bethel told The Tribune yesterday.

“The first thing that has to happen is the make-up of the commission has to be as closely related to those in the community and that’s why the act states who should be on the commission, but she is running roughshod over it.

“Here it is, this is the end of February and no commission meeting has taken place because the old one expired after three years in December and there is nothing going on.

“She doesn’t seem concerned in the least bit.”

Mr DeCosta added that those gathered for a recent meeting with Mrs Rolle left the gathering upset and disappointed after she showed up late and offered a “half a” apology.

“She had called a meeting of the commission members – people who she asked to be on the commission. That meeting was supposed to start at 10.30am and at 11 o’clock she hadn’t showed up and this was inside the same building where her office is. She hadn’t showed up, she hadn’t sent a message to say she is going to be late or to say she coming or she ain’t coming.

“Then at 10 past 11am she came in, mumbled a half a apology and then proceeded to talk at us for 40 minutes non-stop.

“At that meeting, I was also speaking with a lady who was next to me and I asked her if she was on the commission and what did she have to do with persons with disabilities. She said nothing and it was obvious that she really did not qualify to be on the commission because the act states specifically the requirements that are needed to be on the commission.

“You know there are supposed to be five people, one each from the Ministry of Health, Labour, Works, Social Services and Education. There are five people, four of whom should be representatives of NGOs that are solely involved with persons with disabilities who should be parents and so on and so forth.”

He continued: “There was no one in the room that had a disability so I asked the minister was she satisfied that the people met the requirements of the act and her and permanent secretary were fumbling through the act and uneasy with the questions.”

He said it was disappointing that there has yet to be a meeting called by the new chairman of the commission to discuss the way forward for the next three-year term.

In January, businesses were still scrambling to make their businesses easily accessible to persons with disabilities. The deadline to comply with the law in this regard was December 31, 2017.

At the time, Peter Goudie, a former Persons with Disabilities Commission representative, said the vast majority of businesses in the country have no in-depth knowledge of disability laws or that they even exist and expressed concern that work in this regard could be in limbo as a new commission has not been appointed since the last group’s term ended in December.

Mr Goudie, who represented the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce on the commission, said the strides they made could be “dead on the vine” without the push of an active commission.

It came after a special report in The Tribune in December, which explored the plight of three persons with disabilities as they carried out their daily lives.

At the time, they complained about facing widespread challenges ranging from public sensitivity to many public places failing to make the necessary changes to accommodate their needs.