PAGADIAN CITY, June 7 (PIA) - After the provincial government established the Person with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) two years ago, it urged local government units (LGUs) to establish PDAO in the municipalities of the province.

At the weekly ‘Kapihan sa PIA’ program aired at DXPR radio station, Mirriam Llanos, the PDAO provincial head said that their office is pushing for the implementation of Republic Act No. 10070 or “An act establishing an institutional mechanism to ensure the implementation of programs and services for PWDs.”

Llanos said their office is now focused on implementing RA 10070 by urging local chief executives (LCEs) to establish PDAO in their respective municipalities to ensure that programs and services are implemented for the vulnerable sector of society-- the PWDs and senior citizens.

Llanos added that when the PDAO was established on April 30, 2020 as one of the departments under the provincial government, it became a priority for their office to go to the municipalities and urge the LCEs to establish the PDAO.

“Currently, there are 18 PDAOs established in municipalities in the province where some of them are fully functional, while others have only recently been established,” Llanos proudly announced.

“We are doing this because Governor Victor Yu wants the province to be fully compliant with the laws for PWDs, one of which is the establishments on the Batas Pambansa (BP) No. 344 or Accessibility Law for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the Philippines,” Llanos added.

Meanwhile, the PDAO was also grateful that the good governor provided a brand new L-300 van that can be used to conduct home visit to PWDs and senior citizens in the province. (RVC/GCC/PIA Zamboanga del Sur)