Leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Persons with Disabilities, PWDs, have thrown their weight behind the Abdullahi Ganduje leadership, in a show of solidarity and confidence.
The members of Special and Equal Opportunities Community, who endorsed Ganduje during a solidarity visit to the APC National Secretariat on Monday, expressed support for his administration and endorsed his approach to addressing the unique challenges faced by members of their community.
In his response, the party’s chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, emphasized the importance of tailored skill acquisition programs for persons with disabilities.
He said “We have to commend you for being here with us to pass a vote of confidence on our leadership. It shows your commitment and your love for the party.
“What we need to change the living standard of your members is skill acquisition in relation to the type of challenge that you have. It will not be a universal skill acquisition. It will be a specific skill acquisition prescribed for the type of challenge for your members. Some can use their voice and some can use their legs, and some can even use signal. So we are full aware of the challenges and we are here to solve the challenges,” Ganduje stated.
Earlier, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, assured the National Chairman that PWDs will continue to remain steadfast with him in his commitment to the advancement of the party and Nigeria as a whole.
“I the Senior Special Assistant to the President and Commander-in-Chief on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities together with the 36 states leaders of Persons with Disabilities and Federal Capital Territory, six All Progressives Congress Zonal Leaders of Persons with Disabilities in Nigeria having tested and tried your Excellency’s leadership in all facets, hereby pass VOTE OF CONFIDENCE on you as the APC Chairman.
“I along with leaders of Persons with Disabilities and other 35 million Persons of Disabilities in Nigeria are solidly behind your leadership as we need to encourage your Excellency more to maximize your continued efforts at making APC the greatest party in the globe.
“Your management of the affairs of APC in all spheres is excellent ang not questionable and we believe you will continue with the good work. Also, together with your Excellency, we can build a more equitable and inclusive society in Apc and Nigeria as a whole, where Persons with Disabilities will have the opportunity to fulfill their potentials and contributions meaningfully to the growth and development of our nation,” he said.
On his part, National Leader, APC, PWDs, Tolu Bankole , said “Most importantly, the economic decision to remove fuel subsidy and unify exchange rate in our opinion is the best but been the most affected population, we call for inclusion of PWDs representatives at all levels in the programs and efforts to cushion the effects on the most vulnerable Nigerians.”
He noted that the challenges faced by PWDs and calls for concrete actions to address issues such as accessibility, empowerment, healthcare, education, and economic opportunities.
“A certain percentage should be allotted to PWDS in the palliative list and other social safety nets in the short term while medium to long term interventions such as mass housing should be extended to PWDs.
“Moreso, the pains and pangs of Persons With Disabilities ranging from: lack of financial inclusion, accessibility, empowerment, health services at affordable cost, scholarship and bursary; as well as insurance policy at affordable cost are pressing and we hope to see policy initiatives that will give priority access to Persons With Disabilities in the coming months. Any support to PWDs today might turn out to be a help to self or close family members, he said”.
