By Mohd Khairi Mohamad Yusri
GOMBAK, 5 July 2019: IIUM Special Parents announced recently a proposal on the formation of a centre to extend support for persons with disabilities.
According to the Coordinator of IIUM Special Parents Group, Dr. Aida Mokhtar, the centre is aimed at providing rehabilitation services, employment training as well as religious classes for persons with disabilities.
The announcement was made at the special Hari Raya gathering at banquet hall, Muhammad Abdul Raouf building last Tuesday (2 July).
Head of IIUM Disability Services Unit (DSU), Prof. Dr. Ruzita Mohd Amin said, œThe centre is not only meant for students but also for staffs with special needs. It is intended to provide benefits for everybody.”
Meanwhile, IIUM Rector Professor Emeritus, Tan Sri Dato Dzulkifli Abdul Razak, does not want the centre to just focus at the IIUM level but to go beyond that.
œI would want you to go beyond your suggestion of having an institute (centre), Tan Sri Dzulkifli said.
œIt not about IIUM, it is about the community around us. If you can build an association similar to MAKNA (National Cancer Council of Malaysia), then you can share not only among us, but also with the disabled persons outside IIUM.
œI would like to encourage you to register your group as an NGO and the university will give full support, he added.
IIUM Special Parents Group has been set up to share information and experiences amongst special parents who face challenges of balancing their careers and taking care of their special needs children at the same time.
There are 72 Special Parents who are IIUM academic and administrative staffs who have children with disabilities in IIUM campus. ***