MANILA -- The local government of Quezon City, the largest in Metro Manila, has undertaken initiatives to empower persons with disabilities (PWDs), as it continuously looks for ways to make the city more PWD-friendly.
Arnold de Guzman, focal person of Quezon City’s PWD Affairs Office (PDAO), said the city is now 60 percent PWD-friendly since it has implemented various laws and ordinances that promote the welfare of differently-abled people.
“More companies in the private sector hire PWDs through the endorsement of our office. Since 2015, we endorsed more than 314 PWDs for employment and around 21 percent of them got hired,” de Guzman told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).
De Guzman said they have at least 20 partner companies, including fastfood chain Mang Inasal Philippines Inc., pharmaceutical firm Unilab, Hapee toothpaste manufacturer Lamoiyan Corp. and business process outsourcing services provider Accenture.
Acknowledging that the average number of PWDs they are able to help find jobs is only a hundred per year, de Guzman said he is confident that it will increase in the succeeding years because of the continuous training programs PDAO and its partner companies provide.
“There’s a possibility for increase, for example, our PWDs have three months training with a Japanese company about animation plus another month. It’s like an incubation period before they get hired,” he said.
“Even government office LTO (Land Transportation Office) approached us for endorsement of four deaf males and four deaf females that it would like to hire,” he added.
Likewise, de Guzman said in the Quezon City Hall, one percent of its workforce is comprised of PWDs.
“Since 2012 when PDAO was created, PWD employees in the city hall rose from 60 to more than 80,” he added.
However, de Guzman pointed out that not all PWDs endorsed by his office get employment because some lack the skills required by partner companies.
“That is why we make the effort to train them at the National Vocational Training Center. We also embark on two capacity-building projects yearly. We hope that these projects can enable them and increase the possibility of being hired,” he added.
Policies implementation on PWDs
Richie Palanog, a PWD who was recently elected as barangay kagawad in Loyola Heights, echoed de Guzman's assessment that the country in the past few years has strived to integrate the sector into mainstream society.
Palanog cited as an example the creation of a PDAO office in the city.
He said having PWDs as focal persons, instead of social workers who are non-PWDs in the barangays, makes a great impact on them.
“PWDs, as representatives in barangays, are more effective because they know the emotions, the challenges faced by PWDs. They know how to best help their co-PWDs, they share the same pains,” he said.
But Palanog pointed out that even though there are improvements made by the city government to make its environment PWD-friendly, it still lacks efforts in the actualization or strict implementation of policies.
"While we can say that the country has been improving in terms of providing PWDs the privilege they deserve, there is still a barrier. There is still some discrimination against us. Other private establishments are not complying with employment laws concerning PWDs,” he said.
Palanog also shared his personal struggles earlier in finding a job due to his disability.
"After graduation ko noon wala akong mahanap na trabaho, napakahirap kung walang kaibigan, walang magre-recommend sa akin bilang empleyado (I wasn’t able to find a job, it’s difficult if there is no one who would recommend me to get employed)," he said.
Palanog said there have been changes in the employment of some companies, as they become aware of PWDs’ capabilities to perform in the fields dominated by non-PWDs.
"Dati kailangan talaga na may taong mag-e-endorse sa mga PWD, ngayon may mga kumpanya na sila na mismo ang naghahanap ng PWD na mai-e-employ (Before, endorsements from other people are really important for PWDs, now there are already companies looking for PWDs to employ," he said.
Palanog added there are certain benefits, discounts and other privileges stated in the law and ordinances, which are not fully enjoyed by differently-abled members of the society.
“For example, we also have a city ordinance kung saan libre ang mga PWD sa sinehan kapag Lunes at Martes, pero dalawang sinehan lang ang alam ko ang nagbibigay noon sa amin (where movies are free for PWDs on Mondays and Tuesdays, but only a couple of malls I know offer that privilege to us),” he cited.
Republic Act 10754, or the Act Expanding the Benefits and Privileges of PWDs, prescribes at least 20-percent discount and exemption from the value-added tax (VAT) on goods and services that can be availed of by PWDs.
Meanwhile, de Guzman said his office already released more than 39,000 identification cards (IDs) for PWDs since 2012 to 2018.
These IDs entitle differently-abled people to discounts and exemptions from VAT on goods and services, as well as free medicines and therapies.
“There have been many improvements on promoting the welfare of PWDs in the past years, but there are still a lot of initiatives to be done,” he added. (PNA)
