Accra, Oct. 20, GNA - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Thursday presented 500 wheelchairs valued at 25,000 dollars to physically challenged persons in Accra. Dr Emmanuel Abu Kissi, Leader of Area Seventy of Latter-Day Saints, said the Church was making the donation to support the physically challenged to give them hope.

He said the Church should not only focus on the provision of the spiritual needs of the people but also contribute to their socio-economic development.

Dr Charles Brempong Yeboah, Deputy Minister of Manpower, Youth and Employment, commended the Church for the kind gesture. He said the Ministry had developed the National Social Protection Strategy to support the disadvantaged to become more productive instead of depending on charity and other social assistance. Dr Yeboah appealed to the Church to make its employment resource centres and training facilities easily accessible to physically challenged persons in order to provide them with the needed human resource base.

He gave the assurance that the Ministry would present the Disability Bill to Parliament next week to ensure that the welfare of the physically challenged were catered for.

Mr Alexander Tetteh, National Administrator of the Ghana Society for the Disabled, who received the donation, called on the Government to expedite the passage of the Disability Bill and called on employers to consider employing the physically challenged since disability did not mean inability.

He asked the beneficiaries not to use their wheelchairs for begging or any activity that brought dishonour to physically challenged, but to use them as means of transport to eke out their living.