The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday said it will coordinate with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and public utility vehicle companies to ensure the proper handling of passengers with disabilities, particularly those with impairments that are not visible. 好色先生TV stock images
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday said it will coordinate with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and public utility vehicle companies to ensure the proper handling of passengers with disabilities, particularly those with impairments that are not visible.
This vow came in response to a viral Facebook video showing a 25-year-old person with disability (PWD) being hit and reportedly tased inside a bus. The passenger was said to have a developmental disability.
READ: PWD mauled on Edsa carousel; DOTr suspends bus driver鈥檚 license
鈥淲e will reach out to the bus company and transport companies and work with DOTr on how to handle people with disabilities who, in that case, sa pagkakaintindi namin ay nag-act up kasi na trigger siya ng noise (in our understanding acted up because聽he was triggered by noise),鈥� DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said at a Palace briefing.
He stressed that there are proper handling protocols for PWDs and that assault is never one of them.
鈥淜ahit hindi ka namin turuan, palagay ko alam mo dapat na hindi ka nambubugbog; more so, iyong i-taser gun mo. Palagay ko wala talaga iyan sa handling, kumbaga lahat tayo basic iyon, alam natin na hindi dapat sinasaktan ang ating kapwa lalung-lalo na iyong may kapansanan,鈥� he also said.
(Even if we don鈥檛 train you, I think you should know that you鈥檙e not supposed to assault anyone, much less use a taser gun. I don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 part of proper handling at all. That鈥檚 basic for all of us: we know we should not harm others, especially those with disabilities.)
Earlier in the day, Gatchalian inspected three electric buses intended for persons with disabilities at the agency鈥檚 Central Office in Quezon City. The DSWD鈥檚 PWD groups jointly operate the shuttles and GET Philippines./coa