Only 32 persons with disability from Bacolod City registered during the PWD registration of the Commission on Elections at SM City Bacolod, Mavil Majarucon-Sia, Bacolod Election Officer, said yesterday. 

Lowell Raner, president of the Association of Disabled Persons-Bacolod, said this may be attributed to lack of mobility, financial problems and the bad weather. 

Majarucon said they also accommodated senior citizens who wanted to register for the May 2016 elections. 

The Comelec declared July 20, 2014 as the National Registration Day for Voters with Disabilities, which coincides with the National Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation Week on July 17 to 23. 

The registration at SM Bacolod started at 10 a.m. and ended at 6 p.m. yesterday. 

Raner said there are about 1,000 PWD’s in Bacolod City registered with their organization. 

He said there could be more than 200,000 PWD’s in Bacolod City but the problem is that they have no data bank even at the national level. 

Raner together with Arnold Ardosa and Gilmar Menionuevo, vice president and board member of the ADPB, respectively, were at SM City Bacolod yesterday to assist their members during the PWD registration. 

Raner said they have assisted PWD’s who have no companions, who sought their assistance during the registration yesterday, especially the blind and hearing-impaired. 

Ardosa said he hopes that the Comelec could put up satellite registration in major barangays of Bacolod so PWD’s who have mobility and financial problems could also register for the May 2016 elections. 

Meanwhile, the second Mayor Monico Cup for PWD’s will be held tomorrow at the University of St. La Salle campus from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., while a floral offering will be held on Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. the Mabini Elementary School. 

This will be followed by the induction of officers of the Association of Disable Persons-Bacolod at 10 a.m. and a forum on disability concerns at 1 p.m. at the MKK Hall behind the Bacolod City Government Center.*CGS