Tanzania
is a big country, behind each stage of life there are strong stumbling blocks
for social-economic and political affairs for people with disabilities. Where
shall these impaired people go? How can they escape the iron life within their
country? For how long shall they suffer from these blocks?
In
Tanzania, particularly in public service, if one finds the available service
for people with disability, then one assumes that, there was either once a
disabled person worked at that particular place, or the one who served that
particular office had close and immediate tasted the disgusting conditions of
disability from the immediate important relatives, children, parents and other
family members.
| John F. Kennedy, former US President. |
John
F. Kennedy, the former US president, became aware with disability affairs when
his own blood sister was found having cognitive disability; and from his
immediate taste of disability, Kennedy made sure that all rehabilitation
centers for disabled people in the country were in good conditions.
 |
| Frankline D. Roosevelt, former US President |
Frankline
Delano Roosevelt, also the former US president, who was himself, had tasted the
side effects of disability by being rejected to some extend and got little
trust from his fellow Americans for his first term presidential election only
because he had disability; tried his all efforts to make sure all people in the
US have equal access to all matters related to human affairs including those
with disabilities. Nowadays one finds intensive services for disabled people in
America, all these services are the reflections of custodian classes who were
once affected by the unbearable psychological and physical pains resulted from
disability.
In
Tanzania context, it is not bad wish, but surely, things will be on their right
position if and only if one of the custodian classes will taste the
psychological and even the physical pains of disability. For instance, the
dormant and function-less official documents for people with disabilities will
become powerful, functional and active ones when one of the responsible custodians
will be of the group of disabled people in Tanzania.
I
therefore, hereby advice the president of next term in Tanzania to consider
people with disabilities by appointing some people with disabilities to be in
the cabinet.
Speech of the late Father of the nation, J. K. Nyerere on18 Februari, 1974 addressed issues of disability. It was presented in Kiswahili as follows:-
"…Wasiojiweza
wa nchi hii wanachohitaji sana ni nafasi ya kushiriki kwa ukamilifu na kwa
usawa katika mambo ya nchi yao. Kulemaa miguu au mikono maana yake siyo kwamba
mtu yule sasa ni mtu nusu. Maana yake tu ni kwamba yako mambo fulani kilema huyu
hawezi kuyafanya; na kwa hiyo ziko kazi fulani hawezi kuzifanya, na matumaini
fulani, ambayo hawezi kuwa nayo. Lakini yako mambo mengi mengine ambayo
angeweza kufanya kama sisi tulio na viungo vyetu kamili tungemsaidia ayafanye.
Vivyo hivyo kwa mtu aliye kipofu, au aliye kiziwi. Watu hao si wapumbavu, wala
si magogo, eti kwa sababu tu ya vilema vyao. Wanahitaji msaada wetu kuwawezesha
kuvishinda vipingamizi walivyo navyo, na kuwawezesha kuyafanya kwa ukamilifu
yale mengine wanayoweza kuyafanya.”
