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Nigeria calls for establishment of ECOWAS agency for disability Affairs

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Nigeria calls for establishment of ECOWAS agency for disability Affairs
…To Seal Offices Not Accessible to Persons With Disability

By: Michael Mike

Nigeria government has called for the establishment of the ECOWAS Agency for Disability Affairs (EADA)

This, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mr. Abel Enitan said would ensure an all-inclusive region, where persons with disabilities in member states are not left

Enitan said this would add to help in the integration of all regional policies and strategies on disabilities.

The Permanent Secretary said this on Thursday in Abuja at the opening of a-two day maiden edition of meeting of ministers in charge of disability inclusion in West Africa. The meeting is meant to adopt the region’s action plan for the inclusion of disabilities.

He advises member states that are yet to ratify the relevant disability instruments to do so quickly.

He said: “In order to make an all-inclusive region for persons with disabilities in member states, Nigeria is calling for the establishment of the “ECOWAS Agency for Disability Affairs” EADA to integrate regional disability policies and strategies for rehabilitation and equal opportunity in the community, as well as provide a mechanism to protect, promote, support, and respect the actions of people with disabilities.

“This affirmative action must be viewed through the prism of human diversity, while ensuring that individuals with disabilities have as many opportunities as possible to participate in all levels of decision making in ECOWAS, in the spirit of “Nothing about us without us,” so that no one falls behind.”

The Permanent Secretary also stressed the importance of disability inclusion, which he said “remains a critical issue in the region, with millions of individuals experiencing barriers to empowerment initiatives and social protection, among others.”

He challenged the ECOWAS Commission to employ people with disability “as part of the Commission’s effort to prioritise inclusion.

He added that based on human right, “disability is a part of human diversity that must be respected and supported in all its forms, people with disability have the same right as everyone else in society.”

Speaking on what Nigeria has done to ensure inclusion, Enitan said Nigeria ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of people with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2007 and passed the Discrimination Against Persons with Disability (Prohibition) Act 2018 and subsequently approved the establishment of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, with the mandate to coordinate and implement activities that ensure the inclusion of persons with Disabilities into society in areas such as education, healthcare, employment, civil rights, and related matters, as outlined in the Act.

ECOWAS Commissioner for Human Development and Social Affairs, Prof Fatou Sow Sarr, on her part, stressed the vulnerability of people living with disabilities.

Sarr said the regional body has intensified efforts and is working with various bodies to initiate programmes to provide palliatives.

She also revealed that the Commission was currently implementing a pilot project in Togo and Nigeria which will provide assisting devices to children with disabilities.

This programme, she said, is expected to cover other member states in the future.

Meanwhile, public offices not accessible to people living with disabilities will be sealed, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Special needs and equal opportunities, Mohammed Abba-Isa, has said.

Abba-Isa said that President Bola Tinubu is expected to launch the presidential Committee for accessibility this third quarter.

The Committee, according to him, has been saddled with the responsibility of implementing the country’s disability Act.

Abba-Isa said Ministries, Departments and Agencies that fails to restructure to accommodate easy accessibility for people with disability will be sealed as part of the implementation policy of disabikity inclusion.

The presidential aide noted that the grace period given to the offices had expired.

He spoke in Abuja at the opening of a two day maiden edition of meeting of ministers in charge of disability inclusion in West Africa. The meeting is meant to adopt the region’s action plan for the inclusion of disabilities.

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

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

“We are going to launch a presidential taskfoce all because if you look at the moratorium or grace period given to all these buildings to modify or adjust has passed, the five years 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 implemetation stage. “

He stressed that Ignorance of the law is not an excuse.

So we are liaising with the Ministry of Humanitarian and Povery Alleviation, other agencies and the National.Commission for Persons with Disability to set up the committee and Mr President will soo launch the committee.

He said the committee is going to checkmate all the charade against accessibility of public buildings by people with disabilities.

He however said it is going to be a gradual process since the Act was recently signed into law.

Citing the case of United States, Abba-Isa said despite 35 years of existence of the law, there are still some buildings that are not accessibile for people with disability.

Nigeria calls for establishment of ECOWAS agency for disability Affairs

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Ex-NGF Coordinator Onaiwu urges support for NSA security direction

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Ex-NGF Coordinator Onaiwu urges support for NSA security direction

By: Michael Mike

A former coordinator of the Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, Earl Osaro Onaiwu, has called on the political class across party lines to support ongoing security efforts of the federal government.

Onaiwu in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday noted that insecurity is colour blind, has no party affiliation and was religious neutral, therefore, the need for politicians to eschew partisan slant on security matters.

He cautioned that failure by the political elite to support the fight against insecurity leading to several ungoverned spaces could disrupt elections, stressing that except there is a country, then elections are guaranteed.

The former NGF coordinator particularly commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for his coordination and strategic efforts in streamlining security policies and engagements in tackling insecurity.

According to him, the recent delivery of military hardware by the United States Government to Nigeria is a demonstration that the NSA was working and his recent foray to the U.S. is yielding the desired results.

“The season requires patriots and this means that irrespective of party affiliations, every politician worth his name needs to support ongoing security efforts as coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.

“Insecurity is colour blind, has no party affiliation, it is religious blind and those not respect societal status. Therefore, Nigerians, especially our political class, should lend their support, proffer solutions and galvanise the people to back the government’s security initiatives.

“Only on Tuesday, the federal government received critical military hardware from the United States Government. This is cheering and it shows that the NSA’s recent visit to the United States and the subsequent hosting of delegations in the country is bearing the desired results.

“Also, renewed military and police onslaughts against terrorists and bandits show that the federal government is taking the fight to those who are intent on denying us our peace and well-being.

“The least we can do as citizens is to support the government, provide real time intelligence from our communities and do not engage in fake news on social media against government’s efforts,” Onaiwu stated.

He further called on governors to match the energy of the federal government by supporting the NSA to address the various security challenges in their states as well as continued logistics and equipment to the military and police.

Ex-NGF Coordinator Onaiwu urges support for NSA security direction

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Court Threatens Contempt Action Against IGP Over Alleged Disobedience in Anozie Abduction Case

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Court Threatens Contempt Action Against IGP Over Alleged Disobedience in Anozie Abduction Case

By: Michael Mike

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, is facing possible committal to prison following contempt proceedings initiated over an alleged failure to comply with a Federal High Court order relating to the abduction and disappearance of Mr. John Chukwuemeka Anozie.

The action was instituted by legal counsel to Mr. Anozie’s wife, Mr. Vincent Adodo, who accused the Nigeria Police Force under the leadership of the IGP of willfully disobeying a judgment delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja, on September 24, 2025.

In the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/865/2025 between Mrs. Nnenna Anozie v. Inspector General of Police, Justice Binta Nyako ordered the IGP to produce for prosecution operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) alleged to have abducted Mr. Anozie from his Lekki residence in Lagos on June 15, 2017.

The court also directed the police authorities to forward the investigation report and legal advice on the matter to the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation for appropriate action.

The court further awarded ₦2 million in damages against the IGP for failing to respond to a Freedom of Information request submitted by Mrs. Anozie seeking details of investigations into her husband’s disappearance.

The SARS operatives listed in the judgment include officers attached to the former SARS unit in Akwuzu, Anambra State, who were accused of involvement in the alleged abduction.

According to court documents, despite being served with the judgment in October 2025, the IGP has neither complied with the orders of the court nor paid the damages awarded. This development prompted Mrs. Anozie’s legal team to initiate contempt proceedings by serving the IGP with Form 48 (Notice of Consequences of Disobedience to Court Order) and Form 49 (Notice of Committal to Correctional Centre).

The applicant is now seeking an order of court committing the IGP to Kuje Correctional Centre until he complies fully with the judgment.

The motion for contempt has been scheduled for hearing on February 9, 2025, before the Federal High Court, Abuja.

As of the time of filing this report, the Nigeria Police Force has not issued an official response to the contempt proceedings.

Court Threatens Contempt Action Against IGP Over Alleged Disobedience in Anozie Abduction Case

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VP Shettima Lauds Massachusetts Tech Institute’s Impact On Global Innovation Ecosystem

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VP Shettima Lauds Massachusetts Tech Institute’s Impact On Global Innovation Ecosystem

Urges African entrepreneurs to close ranks to fully harness continent’s huge potentials

By: Our Reporter

The Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, has lauded the transformative impact of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on the global entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem that has raised over $1.5 billion dollars and created over 30,000 direct jobs in 20 years.

He, however, urged African entrepreneurs to close ranks in order to fully harness the continent’s huge potentials, leveraging MIT’s resource mobilization network and job creation opportunities.

The Vice President made the remarks on Wednesday when he received a delegation from Kuo Sharper Foundry Fellowship 2025-2026 led by MIT’s Executive Director for the Kuo Sharper Centre for Prosperity and Entrepreneurship, Dina Sherif, on a courtesy visit at the presidential villa.

Senator Shettima called for unity of purpose among African professionals and entrepreneurs, saying “Africa is the new frontier and future belongs to the continent but its people must unite to transform potentials into tangible results that impact lives and livelihoods.

“Africa is blessed with enormous human and material resources but its people must fuse into one to benefit from the tremendous opportunities that abound across the continent,” he added.

He disclosed that Nigeria President Bola Tinubu is daring to leverage available opportunities to transform the entire economy, noting that “President Tinubu is not afraid of taking bold decisions that will reposition Nigeria’s economy and better the lives of the livelihoods of the people.”

Earlier in her remarks, the leader of the delegation, Sherif, said the delegation was at the Presidential Villa to brief the Vice President on the activities of MIT’s Kuo Sharper Centre for Prosperity and Entrepreneurship, assuring that the Centre is dedicated to “fueling the engine of entrepreneurship across the world”.

She noted that the team was in Nigeria in view of the Kuo Sharper Foundry Fellowship programme, which, according to her, has helped to entrench the spirit of entrepreneurship across the continent.

Sherif underscored the significance of collaboration among African startups, noting that Nigeria is a leading country, as evidenced in the progress recorded by startups across the continent.

She further assured of improved support for African-based startups from the centre through its various initiatives.

Also present at the meeting with the Vice President were the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mrs. Zubaida Umar, and some fellows of the Kuo Sharper Foundry Fellowship 2025 – 2026 Session across Africa.

VP Shettima Lauds Massachusetts Tech Institute’s Impact On Global Innovation Ecosystem

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