The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, has called on parents, guardians and care-givers not to relent in showing love and care towards victims of autism
Mrs Oyo-Ita made call at the premiere of an advocacy movie, Autism Spectrum Disorder, in Abuja to commemorate World Autism Awareness Day.
The movie, which premiered at the Silver bird Galleria featured top Nollywood stars including Segun Arinze, Hensaw Emmanuel and Eve Esin, among others.
While advising that proper management was vital for the happiness of victims and their families, she explained that Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental mental disorder characterized by social-communication challenges and restricted repetitive behavior, activities and interest.
“An autistic child needs the full attention of their parents to be able to cope in the society, and that is the only way autism can be handled. It is not their faults that they are in that condition, so they need to be totally accepted by the society, especially their families,” she said.
The Head of Service also called on schools and other public places to show love, understanding and patience to autistic children no matter how special their needs are.
Also speaking, Director of the movie, Mr Yaba Emmanuel, said the movie seeks to raise a voice against the common practice of stigmatizing autistic children, and how they can be successfully managed by their families.
