Sensitisation
By Olufunmi
The All Right Foundation (TAF Africa), a non-governmental organisation, says it is targeting 300 persons with disabilities across six communities in Kano State for sensitisation to their electoral rights and participation in the electoral process.
Mr George Dominic, Assistant Programme Manager of TAF Africa, disclosed this during a voter education and sensitisation programme in Rimin Kebe community, Kano, on Monday.
Dominic said the initiative was aimed at raising awareness among persons with disabilities about their voting rights and encouraging them to participate actively in elections.
He said the programme was designed to empower eligible persons with disabilities with the information and knowledge needed to exercise their voting rights and elect leaders of their choice.
According to him, the organisation is targeting 50 beneficiaries from each of the six communities, comprising male and female persons with disabilities of voting age.
Dominic explained that the sensitisation was necessary to ensure that persons with disabilities understood the provisions of the Constitution and Electoral Act guaranteeing their participation in the electoral process.
He said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had also been taking steps to facilitate their participation, including the provision of assistive devices at polling units to support voters with disabilities.
The programme manager urged eligible persons with disabilities to take advantage of the available provisions and turn out in large numbers during elections.
He said the organisation had also engaged the media to amplify the message and reach more persons with disabilities beyond those physically present at the sensitisation programme.
Dominic added that transportation reimbursement would be provided to participants to ease the cost of attending the programme.
He urged persons with disabilities who were unable to attend the event to obtain relevant information through the media and other platforms to understand their electoral rights.
Citing Section 54(1) and (2) of the Electoral Act, Dominic said the law requires INEC to take reasonable steps to ensure the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the electoral process.
He said such measures include collecting disaggregated data on persons with disabilities according to their categories of disabilities and providing assistive devices to facilitate voting.
Dominic also urged eligible Nigerians to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and use them to participate in elections rather than keeping them solely as a means of identification.
“We are not asking anybody to vote for a particular candidate. We are saying that it is your right to decide who leads you,” he said.
He added that persons with disabilities were integral part of the democratic process and should exercise their voting rights to help elect leaders capable of addressing the country’s challenges.
In his remarks, the Sarkin Kutare of Kano, Isiayaku Muhammed, expressed satisfaction with the initiative and urged other non-governmental organisations to emulate TAF Africa.
Muhammed also urged the participants to make good use of the information provided and vote wisely.(NAN)
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