In tough economic times many countries struggle to maintain the level of support they give to disabled people, most of whom can no longer support themselves economically. Most societies agree that it is the duty of the State to support disabled people but they also resent those who feel it is acceptable to play the system and claim benefits for disabilities they do not have.
In a conference organised by the Gozitan Federation of People with Disability, Gozo Bishop Mario Grech called on the authorities to “catch the false disabled”. His logic is simple but robust: the State needs to invest heavily to support people who had disabilities and, as a consequence, it should not tolerate disability fraud.
He went further and used strong language to condemn abusers: “Whoever is participating in this corrupt practice is exploiting those who mostly need support to look forward to the future with confidence.”
In two small islands where everyone knows almost everyone else, it is difficult to understand how the false disabled are not known to the authorities who approve their applications for social benefits.
Mgr Grech attributes this failure to curb disability fraud to the authorities “turning a blind eye to abuses involving the issuing of certificates for imaginary disability”. Put simply, there is a lack of political will to stop medical professionals from aiding and abetting those who are prepared to fake disability to defraud taxpayers.
This seems to be a Mediterranean malady as those who follow Italian TV news bulletins are regularly updated on the latest police arrests of false disabled who, unaware of hidden cameras, are caught acting as people with no disability. In countries like Ireland, which has had to deal with a massive economic crisis in the last few years, people are encouraged to bring to report cases of alleged abuse by individuals who exploit social services.
Mgr Grech went further and appealed to employers to treat the genuinely disabled with more respect and dignity. It is a sad reality that disabled people continue to have difficulty finding employment, especially in private industry. The bishop attributes this to “the economy being driven by the market”. However, the reality is cruder than this.
The authorities are once again turning a blind eye to legal obligations that employers have to offer a small fraction of their jobs to disabled people. In most cases this is not happening possibly because of the lack of political will to enforce this socially just legal requirement. More needs to be done to ensure that our commitment to a fairer society is evidenced not only by very admirable laws in favour of the disabled but also by a steely political will to enforce these laws.
Another relevant point made during the conference was that those families caring for disabled people should be supported by the State to prevent more disabled people being ‘parked’ in an institution.
It is another shameful reality that many Western societies have tolerated the existence of ‘human scrap heaps’ that are filled with, among others, the long-term unemployed and disabled people who often end up living in institutions that rob them of their dignity.
The Church in Malta has traditionally done much to support disabled and other disadvantaged people. There is no doubt that it will continue to do so both materially and morally by appealing to the authorities to curb abuse by the false disabled.