PWDs Should Have Free NHIS- Andrew Okaikoi

A former chairman of the National Disability Council, Andrew Nii Okaikoi, has advocated for free national health insurance scheme for all persons with disability in the country. According to Mr. Okaikoi, this will not only help most of the disable persons who are living in abject poverty but will also help them get the needed medical treatment. The former chairman of the National Disability Council was speaking at the maiden edition of the Dana Excellence Awards. Named after Dr. Henry Seidu Dana, Ghana�s Minister for Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs, who is the first visually impaired to be called to the Bar in Ghana, the annual awards gathered dignitaries, PWDs and other stakeholders who have excelled in their various fields of endeavor to celebrate excellence and encourage others to give of their best to unfortunate ones. The awards also seek among others to encourage society to appreciate the challenges PWDs face in their daily lives, in order to lend their hand of support to them. Mr. Andrew Okaikoi bemoaned the situation in Ghana where few resources are dedicated to the activities of the disability fraternity, questioning the rationale behind giving more to the privileged when the under-privileged need more to break even in an unfair world. �� when PWDs are given the right training and support, the incidence of begging on our streets would reduce drastically and PWDs would also contribute their quota to national development. We have a lot to contribute to the growth of this country, just give us a fair field and we will surprise the doubting Thomas,� he said. I believe in the government of President Mahama, Mr. Okaikoi stated, explaining that various meetings he has held with people in authority shows that, �the president has many plans to uplift the morale of disable people in the country.� He called for support to institutionalize the awards to serve as an encouragement to those already working for the disabled and change attitude towards PWDs. Emperor Gaza International Foundation (EGIF), in collaboration with the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) organized the awards. As an acknowledgement of his work during his days as a chairman of the National Disability Council, Mr. Andrew OkaiKoi was honoured. �this award is for your continuous support and dedication to the improvement of PWDs in Ghana,� the citation stated.