Fatimah answers questions at the dialogue attended by parents and teachers.
MIRI: Parents of children with handicaps (OKU) are urged not to worry too much about what their children could do when they grow up, as the government has allocated them one per cent of civil service employment.
Minister of Welfare, Women and Community Wellbeing, Datuk Fatimah Abdullah said the ministry urged government agencies to take qualified OKU as employees based on individual capability.
“Even in JKM (Welfare Department), we have an officer who is an OKU with eyesight problem, and he is in charge of senior citizens. This should be set as an example for other agencies and employers to employ individuals with limited abilities,” she said.
Fatimah who is also Dalat assemblywoman said this during a working visit to Special Education Integration Centre (PPKI) and dialogue with parents of students with limited abilities at SMK St Joseph yesterday.
According to her, the intake of OKU into the public sector is inline with the government policy of one per cent employment for OKU, depending on their abilities and available facilities.
“Therefore, parents do not have to worry too much. There are jobs allocated to them based on their abilities and the working environment,” she pointed out.
The Welfare Department engages a ‘Job Coach’ to help people with handicaps to enter the job market.
“Job Coach helps OKU and future employers to create a suitable working environment that took into consideration the abilities of special people, as well as provide a conducive environment that enable them to be productive,” she explained.
On SMK St Joseph’s plan to have a new and better PPKI building, Fatimah said they must first of all ensure that the new building is OKU-friendly.
“We hope the school can come up with a building plan with OKU-friendly facilities for such students to use,” she said.
At the function, Fatimah announced a RM10,000 allocation for SMK St Joseph to kickstart its new PPKI facility. SMK St Joseph principal Ng Meng Heong said the location for the new PPKI building had been approved by the Land and Survey Department.
“As our school also needs a facelift, we are looking to raise about RM5 million for the improvement of the school as well as for the new PPKI building,” Ng revealed.
A section of parents at the dialogue held at SMK St Joseph.