Follow Us on Google
From Fred Itua, Abuja
CHIEF Whip of the Senate, Mohammed Ali Ndume, has revealed plans by the National Assembly to amend relevant laws
establishing the National Commission for Persons with Disability, and melt sanctions against heads of Ministries,
Departments and Agencies (MDAs) who refuse to hire qualified disabled Nigerians.
He spoke when members of FCT Para-soccer Team honoured him with an award in Abuja, yesterday.
The Borno South senator, said disabled Nigerians who have the requisite qualifications should be allowed to get
gainful employments in MDAs and rise to become senior servants.
The lawmaker who donated N1 million to support the Team, said he’ll use his connections to get more opportunities
for disabled soccer players.
“This is the Para-soccer team of the FCT. They want to honour me. We’ve been supporting people with disabilities.
These people have families and they have made us proud. They’ve won laurels for Nigeria. This team was founded
over 30 years ago.
“I want to donate N1 million to support FCT Para-soccer. I’ll arrange for you to meet the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
He will give you all the support.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu believes in his Renewed Hope Agenda. We’ll have the national event in a grandeur
manner and all major political leaders will be there. We can arrange that this year. This year will be a year of Renewed
Hope for every Nigerian.
“We’ll make it mandatory for every MDA of government to employ people with disabilities. They’ll be placed in offices
and respected, become chief executives of such government agencies, become permanent secretaries. We’ve had a
disabled senator who was the Chief Whip.”
Misbahu Lawan Didi, Founder of Para-Soccer, who presented award plaque, Ndume played a critical role in the
passage of the Bill that established Disability Commission in Nigeria.
He also revealed how Ndume reached to the disabled community during the COVID-19 pandemic, and offered
financial and materials assistance to them.
“Para-soccer game was founded in Nigeria. There are over 5,000 members across Nigeria. You’ve done more the
disability community than any other politician in Nigeria. You played a role in the establishment of the Disability
Commission. During the COVID-19 pandemic, you reached out to many disabled people.
“You’ve given over 5,000 tricycles to disabled people. You’ve sponsored many of our events. We want other senators to copy
what Ndume is doing for disabled people in Nigeria. They need to copy him,” he said.
