President William Ruto’s government has been challenged to prioritise people living with disabilities in the country as he settles down at State House.
Members of Parliament drawn from both divides, have united to push for PWD’s rights and recognition in partnership with institutions offering specialised services like education.
Kipipiri MP Wanjiku Muhia, together with her Westlands counterpart Tim Wanyonyi and Nominated MP Jackson Kosgei and leaders from the Kenya Community Centre for Learning (KCCL) led the country in marking the awareness month for people with dyslexia.
The Kipipiri MP said that as legislators, they will not stop making appropriate laws and conducive environment for people with dyslexia in the country.
She urged the community not to shun dyslexic people but speak out and let their voices heard as they are important members of the society as well.
She called on the government to walk the talk and invest more on education and increase the number of teachers for special needs.
“I urge members of KEDIPA and myself to prepare to make several laws in regards to people with disabilities and keep the government on toes in realization of the constitution of 2010 which has a whole chapter on bill of rights,” she urged.
She was speaking on Wednesday, October 26 during the Go Red Dyslexia Runway and Gala Dinner in efforts to create awareness for people with dyslexia.
Dyslexia, according to medics, is a condition where one finds it difficult to read due to difficulty in identifying speech sounds and being unable to decode how the speech relates to words and letters.
This disorder is due to differences in the brain areas that process language and there are different types of the condition that can be diagnosed in different people.
They include visual dyslexia, double deficit dyslexia, phonological dyslexia, surface dyslexia and rapid naming dyslexia.
The legislator is best remembered for her amendment which led to the media being compelled to provide sign language interpreters for broadcast for the benefit of the deaf.
It is common practice today for every broadcaster to provide sign language interpreters and this is even the norm during public events where organizers have to have one.
Speaking at the same event, Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi, who also serves as the chairman of the Kenya Disability Parliamentary Association (KEDIPA) assured the country of good legislation to help people with disability.
Noting that the current parliament has a good representation of the PWDs, Mr Wanyonyi promised to offer his support for the society.
He also noted that the current administration led by President William Ruto had indicated to be transformative and exuded confidence that parliament will engage with the Kenya Kwanza administration for the better.
“We’re happy we have a new government and a president who believes in making new changes, and we are also going to reach out to him to ensure that whatever we are doing is supported from the highest office,” he said.
On his part, Nominated MP Jackson Kipkemoi Kosgei who also graced the occasion, exuded confidence that the current Parliament will work closely with KCCL to create awareness across the country for people with Dyslexia to be recognized.
The bishop, who suffered a bout of polio at a younger age forcing him to be confined to a wheelchair, said that people with any kind of disability have a special relationship with legislators and that their plight would be sufficiently addressed.
“We have only one message…we’ll say it in many ways but you have a friend and a partner in us. Currently, as my colleagues will say, we’re revisiting the law covering the same needs in Kenya with a view of making them more responsive,” he said.
Mr Kosgei promised to play a major role, together with his colleagues in the August House, in ensuring that progressive and good laws are passed in parliament and are fully implemented.
Through public participation, he said, all stakeholder would be involved in making policies and laws that will be friendly to all.