FG to seal offices not accessible to people living with disability

Mr. Mohammed Abba-Isa, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, has threatened that the government might close any public office that does not provide access for individuals with disabilities.

He said this in Abuja during a two-day inaugural meeting of West African ministers in charge of disability inclusion, which aimed to adopt a regional action plan for disability inclusion.

According to Abba-Isa, President Bola Tinubu plans to establish the presidential committee for accessibility this quarter.

He stated that the committee is responsible for executing the provisions of the Disability Act.

The presidential aide pointed out that the offices’ grace period had ended.

He said: “Mr. President has mandated my office to make sure I implement the regional action plan.

“We are going to launch an accessibility committee. We are going to engage with all the MDAs.

“We are going to launch a presidential taskforce, all because, if you look at the moratorium or grace period given to all these buildings to modify or adjust, it has passed—the five-year moratorium period.

“So we are now in the implementation stage, and Mr. President has given us the mandate.

“All these offices that did not comply, we are going to seal them because we are at the implementation stage.”

According to him, lack of knowledge or ignorance of the law is no defence.

He added: “So we are liaising with the Ministry of Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation, other agencies, and the National Commission for Persons with Disability to set up the committee, and Mr. President will soon launch the committee.”

He stated that the committee will ensure public buildings are accessible to people with disabilities, putting an end to any obstacles or excuses.

He, however, acknowledged that it will be a gradual process, given the recent enactment of the law.

He pointed out that in the United States, where, despite the Americans with Disabilities Act being in place for 35 years, some buildings still lack accessibility features for people with disabilities.