HILONGOS, LEYTE, Philippines — A female person with disability (PWD) of this town was chosen along with five others by the World Organization of Women (WOW) to represent the Philippines in the World Assembly of Women With Disabilities in South Korea on October 16-21.
The chosen PWD, Marta Villafañe, an employee of the municipal government, is the only one from the Visayas to complete the six Filipina delegates to participate in the event.
Carmen Zubiaga, president of Women with Disabilities Leap to Social and Economic Progress (WOWLEAP), Inc., informed Mayor Jose Emery Roble about Villafañe's achievement.
Villafañe is expected to present her active involvement in the organization of PWDs in Leyte province, including the staging of various activities that have encouraged others of the same condition to participate actively.
Roble, who has been giving full support of PWDs in his town, saw Villafañe as the country's ambassador.
"With her leadership qualities shining in the local organization, I firmly believe that her selection to represent the country is a recognition of her effort as a productive citizen," said Roble.
Villafañe, in an interview with The FREEMAN, recalled how she was injected with an anti-polio vaccine at her early age that unfortunately hit a vein to cause her confinement to a wheelchair.
She however declared: "We can't live in the past, that's why I want to be seen as a person not as a burden to society. This is an honor for me and a proof that people like us can be productive in many ways. - THE FREEMAN