Begoro (ER), June 20, GNA - The Committee for People of Disabilities in the Fanteakwa District has accused the District Assembly of refusing to allocate part of the two per cent per annum share of the District Assemblies Common Fund to support their initiatives since 2006. "Several attempts to access the fund in support of disabled initiative has never been welcome by the district administration," Madam Yvonne Boaduaa, Chairperson for the Association, said at a press conference held at Begoro. She said for instance, a request for the fund to support women and some men with disability to venture into income generating activities were turned down by the administration.

Madam Boaduaa said instead, the group was directed that a district federation of all groups of disabled be formed, registered and a proposal developed by the Business Advisory Centre for them on the project before the fund would be released. "This we did with the registration of more than 200 people but nothing was heard from the assembly till now". She said in January this year the group met and decided that they would access the fund to undertake a district conference on the Disability and Domestic Violence Laws but the assembly told them that it was not a priority and sheer waste of scare resources.

Madam Boaduaa further alleged that an application by the group for support to assist Master Amos Agyekum, a physically disabled who lost both parents, to pay his school fees at Begoro Senior High School had also not been honoured. She therefore appealed to the government to establish a committee of inquiry to investigate the disbursement of the Fund since 2005, adding that, the unfriendly stance of the assembly was doing more harm than good to the image of the government.

Alhaji Seidu Abanga, Fanteakwa District Co-ordinating Director, however denied the allegations and said the group did not understand the concept of the two percent disability common fund. He said the fund was not meant to give physical cash to disabled persons but rather to support them in their trade. Mr. Abanga said last year the assembly spent over 10 million cedis on physically disabled in the district in several ways.