The first day I set foot in the Hiroshima Prefecture, I heard of the “speaking traffic lights”. I also noticed that the pedestrian walkways on the streets had portions designed like brailles, then I thought within “what a prefecture full of the blind”.
I sighed and confirmed my thoughts to myself, saying if the majority of the people in this Prefecture were not blind, how come all the walkways on the streets had “walking brailles as eyes” and the “traffic lights spoke”.
The lights went “dump” when it turned red to signal a stop; just for those who wouldn’t see the red lights, and again when it was green, it “hummed” like the hummingbird, also to send the message you can move on and cross the street, as if it was singing the nursery rhyme “if you see the traffic light, there is something you should know, red means stop, yellow means get ready, green means go, go, go and go”.
Spending a year in Japan, specifically in the Hiroshima Prefecture and not having chanced upon a single blind man or woman (that is not the same as saying there is no blind in Japan, but I haven’t seen any yet), I was remorseful to have earlier thought that the Hiroshima Prefecture was a haven for the blind because of their ‘speaking traffic lights’ and ‘streets with eyes’.
I later understood that those provisions were made way ahead in the city planning stage for the “non-existent blind”, so should there be any as a result of accident, the refrain – ‘disability is not inability’ we sing with our lips in Ghana and do not work it out in reality, is made practical.
“What a love for the blind, what an all-inclusive society”! I exclaimed. Should all streets, particularly those in my home country have braille-like “eyes” like these and traffic lights have “mouths” as those here to speak to passersby, I am certain the blind can ever walk alone.
Then I began to cast my senses to Ghana, and asked how many of the buildings housing essential and critical services were disability-friendly?
Can the blind ever walk alone in Ghana? When the roads in my home country have been designed as if we can all see with our “eyes” yet no single day comes to a close in Accra without the blind being led by either a child of school going age or another elderly begging for alms especially when there is a traffic jam.
Yet here in Japan, when the blind is not forced on you like an unexpected parcel, or figuratively speaking there is no blind person here, the roads have “braille-like eyes” and the traffic lights speak for those who couldn’t see with their eyes but can sense with their souls.
I am not suggesting Ghana in one day should develop to become a superpower or leap to join the great 2020 countries overnight because after all, Rome was not built in a day (well who am I, to even make that suggestion if it was possible).
Nonetheless do we not have sayings in our Ghanaian local language, Akan, which goes as “w’abom na ɛkyerɛ w’adɔ (Twi) and another in (Nzema) which says “bɛnlea baka ti na bahɔ ɔbo ayɛne” to wit “ones circumstances determine how they live or organise their lives?”
So if no day passes by in the capital city of Ghana (Accra) without us chancing upon three or four blind people in the streets begging for alms because most economic institutions are not disability friendly or even being aided to walk in the streets, then why doesn’t the Ministry of Roads and Transport from this day onwards, consider giving the new roads to be constructed “eyes” and also going ahead to fix “mouths” on the old traffic lights so they could speak?
That I’m certain will enable the blind to walk in dignity, bearing in mind that their worth is not dependent on the children who lead them like sheep to the altar.
Someone might say I am demanding for too much, and ask me to first count how many hospitals, banks, schools, markets, recreational centres, restaurants and churches etc I found while in Ghana had provisions made for the disabled.
I will reply the fellow that it is a truthful observation he or she has pointed out though, as the facts speak for themselves, but shall we not move from stage four to five because we did not perform well in levels one and two? Certainly it will be wise not to as a Prophet will advise so you don’t cause many deficiencies.
However after critical analysis, and it is resolved that returning to correct the errors in classes one and two will not be possible, then obviously going forward is a must, thus standing still and continuing to develop the society by constructing more roads as the President has stated to do in his 2020 budget without the disabled in mind is definitely not an alternative.
Let me not drum my point any more, yet permit me to mention for the last time here, that in Japan, even places as “irrelevant” as beauty saloons have provisions made for the blind, and the disabled to walk in unassisted, obviously because the blind also has the right to look beautiful.
I will end my submission here, but let me recap that the blind can ever walk alone, not only in Japan but even in my home country Ghana; if our streets are constructed with “braille-like eyes” and then the traffic lights given “mouths” to speak to the blind to stop or move when the colour depicts so.
(I am the GHANAIAN villager that came to Japan officially known as Afiba Anyanzua Boavo Twum)
#Streets have eyes in Japan.
#Ghana can start changing our developmental narrative from little things as these.
#Traffic lights talk to the blind