Entrepreneur Makes Case For Disabled

President, Lagos State Persons with Disability Cooperative Multi-Purpose Society, Mr. Vitus Nwanafio on Sunday in Lagos urged the state government to provide land for disabled entrepreneurs to build workshop.

Nwanafio said in an interview with newsmen that members of the association needed government support to set up businesses.

He said 15 members of the association had secured a N10 million loan from the Bank of Industry to start their own small- and medium-scale businesses.

He, however, identified land as the greatest challenge facing the members.

“I have been training some persons with disabilities (PWDs) in my engineering workshop in Ikeja but we want the state government to provide plots where the association can build its own training workshop.

“Disability is in the mind. We are working on importing wheel chairs called life stand for PWDs which can help them to function as normal people in almost every field as long as they have their hands.

“We intend to employ 60 per cent disabled people and 40 per cent able-bodied people and we want government to give us a space because it is expensive to purchase plots,’’ he said.

Nwanafio, who founded the Accident Victims Support Association after losing an arm in an accident in 2003, called for government support for the NGO.  According to him, the NGO operates in Lagos, Ibadan and Enugu to save accident victims.

He called for partnership with the state government and support from individuals and private organisations.

“It’s been tough maintaining our three ambulances; we need support to put our vehicles together,” he said.