Inclusion Ghana, an NGO working to promote the rights of persons with Intellectual Disabilities, has called on Ghanaians to show love and compassion to such persons especially during this year's Valentine Day celebration. An intellectual disability occurs when an individual's Intelligence Quotient (IQ) is lower than that of an average person and has limitations in their functioning and adaptive behaviour capabilities. They include Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and autism which could be developed before, during or after an individual's birth. A statement issued in Accra on Wednesday by Mr Auberon Jeleel Odoom, Project Manager of Inclusion Ghana, said Valentine‘s Day was an opportune day to show love to friends, relatives, and all loved ones. "Inclusion Ghana wants to draw attention to a group of people that is worth our love but is often forgotten," it said. The statement said Valentine’s Day, celebrated on February 14 annually, was an important day to help Ghanaians understand this health crisis better and emphasised the need for compassion and acceptance for such ones and their families. It said intellectual disability could cause problems in schools, work place, social and communication skills and currently, there was no cure for intellectual disabilities but certainly there were some treatment and hope. The statement said persons having IDs were socially stigmatised, ostracised and sometimes killed in Ghana, and urged agencies, organisations, and individuals not to forget about these people since most of them lived in their communities. Inclusion Ghana, a member of Inclusion International, is an umbrella organisation and a platform working to achieve a higher level of inclusion and active participation of persons with intellectual disabilities and their families. Source: GNA