WHILE government assistance to 80000 disabled people in the Eastern Cape has recently been cut on the grounds that it encourages dependency, disabled people entering Parliament need not fear that they will be elected. African National Congress national executive member Essop Pahad said on Tuesday that the costs of accommodating five blind, deaf or crippled likely ANC MPs will be borne by Parliament. Unlike those unfortunates living in the Eastern Cape, this assistance, said Pahadk, will have the effect of “empowering” disabled people.