Liberia’s Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor has frowned on those in the practice of stigmatizing children born of physically challenged and visually impaired parents.
Vice President Howard-Taylor emphasized that in Liberia, the children of physically challenged parents are restricted to a particular institution of learning referencing the Group of 77 as a case study.
“Being a physically challenged parent does not mean that the child or children is also physically challenged, as such these children must not be subjected to the stigma of parents of physically challenged,” VP Taylor asserted.
The Liberian Vice president was speaking over the weekend, when she made her second acquaintance visit with the new management of the Group of 77 on New Port Street.
According to a Press Release From the Office of the Vice President, she promised to shortly hold consultation with the Ministry of Education for the purpose of designing a strategy to relocate the children of the physically challenged Currently occupying the facilities of the Group of 77.
Madam Howard-Taylor believes that instead of subjecting these children to particular institution of learning, they should be allowed to go to public schools in a regular system and interact with the regular children.
According to her, the relocation plan of the school from the Group of 77 to a suitable site, would create more spaces for training more people with disabilities to become self-sufficient.
VP Howard-Taylor used the occasion to announce several new changes within the new management team of the Group of 77 with the objective to enhance efficiency and productivity.
Meanwhile, the Liberian Vice President has appointed the Head of the Christian Association of the Blind (CAB), Beyan Korta as Adviser to the current management of the Group of 77.
She also disclosed that a further adjustment has been made to include a Deputy Executive Director for the Deaf and Dumb, Deputy Director for the visually impaired and Assistant Directors.
Madam Florence Wafia-Ciaphia is the current Executive Director of the Group of 77, appointed recently by the Vice President Howard-Taylor.
The Vice President presented two desktop computers to the new management team of the Group of 77, as a start up to the transformation of the institution.