Ghana Federation of Disability demand an apology from Alban Bagbin

President of the Ghana Federation of Disability (GFD), Yaw Ofori Debrah has expressed the Federation’s disappointment in comments made by the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Alban Kingsford Sumani Bagbin about the appointment of Dr. Henry Seidu Daanna as Minister for Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs under the Mahama administration.

According to Mr. Debrah, the statement by the Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament was wrong and implied that persons with disability cannot deliver when given positions of trust.

He noted that the statement should be subjected to criticism or condemnation.

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Nadowli Kaleo, Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin has stated that Dr Daanaa’s appointment as Minister for Chieftaincy and Traditional Affairs was one of the factors that cost the NDC at the 2016 polls because he is visually impaired.

“There were some of these mistakes that cost us dearly. Let me cite another example, in our tradition if you are not whole can you be a chief or grandmother? So, if you form a government and make the minister of Chieftaincy a blind person and the chiefs are objecting and you don’t change him what are you telling the chiefs”, he asked party communicators during his tour of the Volta Region to solicit the support of delegates.

But reacting to this statement, Yaw Ofori Debrah says Alban Bagbin must apologise to the former minister as well as all blind persons as GFD never expected a man of his calibre to say such.

“As a matter of fact, we are raising concerns to the effect that the honourable Deputy Speaker of Parliament will recognize that the statement he made should not stand and for that matter he should retract and apologize to Dr. Daanaa,” he said in a telephone conversation with Israel Laryea on JoyNews Prime.

He added that, “you may remember that he made that statement in reference to the fact that; ministers appointed by John Dramani Mahama contributed towards his defeat, so we feel that it is not a statement to come from somebody of high repute like the second Deputy Speaker of Parliament who is the longest serving MP in the Parliament of Ghana”.

The president of Federation also went on to cite example like, David Blanket of UK who has distinguished himself as a minister in the British labour government holding position like, home affairs education and many others despite being totally blind.