DEAR Editor,-
I am a genuinely disabled person, am in possession of a disabled sticker for my car and am registered for disability tax with SARS. Arriving at Shelly Centre on Saturday, April 9, a woman who may have been temporarily disabled at some point or may have had a disabled family member in the past, parked in the disabled parking bay. She was most definitely not disabled and my mom, who was with me at the time, just said ‘Stupidity is not a disability’.
When my mom asked the car guard why she was allowed to park in the disabled parking when both able-bodied occupants could alight and walk without any problem or any assistance, the guard replied “She has a disabled sticker!”
So basically, what this means is that if you want to park outside the entrance to any shop, whether you are disabled or not, merely being in possession of a disabled sticker means – Voila! You are sorted! I am very sorry, but for someone who has had her mother confined to a wheelchair for many years, and with my inability to use, bend or move my left leg, what that woman did was beyond disgusting.
Disabled parking bays are not there as a ‘convenience’ for the disabled, but also for their safety because of the space required to exit and enter the car. At present, unless my car door is fully extended, I am not able to get in and out of the car because my leg cannot bend. Even with my car door fully extended, I battle. Disabled parking bays are wider than normal bays to prevent other vehicles from parking to close.
JENNA
