00:00 Joint Memorandum Circular that was passed for the well-being of our countrymen with disabilities.
00:06 We will discuss this with Dandy Victor, the OIC Deputy Executive Director of the National Council on Disability Affairs.
00:14 Good afternoon and welcome to the new Philippines.
00:18 Good afternoon, Asek Peng and Abby.
00:23 Sir Dandy, for our countrymen, how many persons with disabilities are there in the country?
00:32 Can you explain the importance of this Joint Memorandum Circular for PWDs and senior citizens, sir?
00:40 First of all, thank you very much for giving us the opportunity to express our views on this Joint Memorandum Circular.
00:51 At present, based on the records of the Philippine Registry of Persons with Disabilities,
00:56 there are currently 1,324,206 persons with disabilities with ID as of December 19.
01:05 With the Joint Memorandum Circular, this is strengthening our advocacy to monitor the programs and services for persons with disabilities.
01:16 At this time, all agencies of our government will monitor their budgets,
01:22 how much budget they have allocated for our countrymen with disabilities.
01:28 For you, Minister, in the National Council on Disability Affairs,
01:33 what programs should be given priority for PWDs of our country?
01:40 At present, as far as the National Council on Disability Affairs is concerned, we have only one program.
01:46 This is the protection of the rights of our countrymen with disabilities.
01:50 More importantly, for us to realize these rights, we need to have support services for persons with disabilities.
01:58 Each category of persons with disabilities needs different support services.
02:05 That's why it's important for us to monitor the programs of each agency of the government
02:13 because this is what should be seen in our programs.
02:16 We have support services for our countrymen with disabilities.
02:21 Okay Sir Dandy, speaking of support services,
02:25 there are many amenities and places in the provinces where we see that it's not PWD-friendly.
02:31 How much participation can the local governments give for programs for PWDs?
02:38 That's right.
02:41 The duty of our local government units is very important
02:47 because they are the ones who are in charge of implementing programs in the localities and communities.
02:53 This is the existence of support services for our countrymen with disabilities,
02:59 for example, if you have clients or customers of deaf persons,
03:06 we need to have available sign language interpreters or front line services for deaf persons using Filipino Sign Language for example.
03:18 Sir, when it comes to employment for our disabled or differently abled countrymen,
03:25 are we looking forward to the joint memorandum that will give PWDs a productive experience in the Philippines?
03:34 That's right. With this joint memo circular, we can identify the budget that I mentioned
03:42 specifically for employment of persons with disabilities.
03:45 At the moment, there are more employment for self-employment.
03:51 But it's important for persons with disabilities to join open employment activities.
03:58 This is the existence of support services, whether it's in recruitment, hiring, placement, and daily entry for their livelihood.
04:08 When it comes to the health or well-being of PWDs,
04:13 what programs can be added by the collaboration of different agencies for the well-being of our differently abled countrymen?
04:22 With the joint memorandum circular, we will add our program in rehabilitation and habilitation services.
04:33 This is what our countrymen need to be able to adapt to their daily livelihood
04:40 because this is the big expense that our persons with disabilities are spending.
04:46 I hope that by the upcoming year, we can implement our PhilHealth coverage for our persons with disabilities
04:55 so that they can have a better availability of services as far as rehabilitation and habilitation.
05:03 As a last request, what is your message to our differently abled countrymen for the upcoming Christmas and New Year?
05:11 NCDA wishes everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
05:17 We hope that our countrymen with disabilities will be able to monitor progressively
05:24 the implementation of programs, projects, and activities for persons with disabilities,
05:30 especially with the joint memorandum circular.
05:34 Through this, we will strengthen the overall monitoring of all programs.
05:39 It's about time. There are many PWDs who will be happy with this news.
05:46 Thank you very much, sir Dandy Victor, the OIC Deputy Executive Director of the National Council on Disability Affairs.
