53 years old Altin Sallaku has been paralyzed since young age.
In 2009, the state commission decided to assign the disabled with the full status of Paraplegic.
But in the next re-check in September 2023, the commission, through a video call, decided to cut off the package of financial aid the payments on hygiene and sanitation. The family members appealed the decision in November 2023 and received no response. Then they turned to Fiks Fare for help. The investigative program, after receiving the mother’s complaint about the interruption and delay in the response, went to enquire at the State Social Service.
In their response, the institution clarifies that it was interrupted for a check of the file by the ‘Task Force’, and that another date would be set for recheck, even though Altin was a beneficiary of the First Group. Since the recheck was also done and it was defined again as a Group 1 invalid, the family members still had not received an answer after 2 months.
80-year-old woman says that she and her 82-year-old husband take care of 53-year-old Altini and that their income is 20,000 ALL per month from the pensions they receive. With tears in her eyes, she affirms: “10,000 lek a month makes medicines for Altini, he takes 4 needles in the morning and 3 needles in the evening. He has to wear diapers, here. Do you know how tired I am, what can I say, he is sick. I’m asking for your help in this case, to get the assistance because I can’t make it. If you helped me, this is my last request as long as I’m alive, because I’m fading away, I don’t know what will when I’m gone”.
Altini, who does not understand, hear or speak, can not move half of his body, and to feed him his parents have to tie him up, they admit. He has been living at home with his parents for 12 years, having previously spent 10 years in the Vlora psychiatry hospital and before that in Berat.
Fiks Fare inquired several times with the State Social Service about Altini’s case and in February 2024 Altini also passed the re-check, but the payment still did not pass.
After continuous interest, on April 22, 2024, the answer said that the decision was in the Levan Administrative Unit, where it could be withdrawn by the family members. In it, it was said that the superior commission recognizes him as a disabled person of the first group and gives him the right for three years to benefit from all the payments provided for by the law on social assistance, which also includes the hygiene and sanitary package.
So after 5 months and Fiks Fare’s insistence, on April 22, Altini was returned the full payment.
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