By Winnie Onu, Makurdi
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has pledged to follow up on complaints about electoral accessibility and facilitate opportunities for persons with disabilities to serve as election personnel ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Electoral Officer in Otukpo, Benue State, Mrs Edu Ocheja, made the pledge during a community engagement organised by Community Inclusion Advocates (CIA), with support from the Disability Rights Fund (DRF), in Otukpo.
Ocheja, who presented a paper on the commission’s efforts towards an inclusive electoral system, encouraged persons with disabilities to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), participate actively in elections and report barriers that could hinder their participation.
She pledged to personally receive and follow up on complaints relating to electoral accessibility, adding that she would do everything within her authority to create opportunities for persons with disabilities to serve as election personnel.
Ocheja demonstrated measures for improving electoral inclusion by displaying accessible electoral materials, including a Braille ballot card.
The engagement brought together 30 persons with disabilities from different disability groups, genders and age categories to discuss their political rights and participation ahead of the 2027 elections.
Speaking at the event, the Coordinator of Community Inclusion Advocates in Otukpo, Amanyi Obeya Ignatius, called on political parties to provide opportunities for persons with disabilities to participate in party leadership and contest elective positions.
Ignatius said persons with disabilities should move beyond being regarded merely as voters and organise themselves into a political constituency capable of influencing electoral outcomes, shaping public policies and holding elected representatives accountable.
He also called for accessible elections, improved voter education, accurate electoral data on persons with disabilities and greater inclusion of qualified members of the community in the electoral process.
Other speakers, including Barrister Theophilus Odaudu, Programme Officer for Africa at the Disability Rights Fund, and Very Rev. Fr. Dominic Santa Oche, Parish Priest of St. Mary Pro-Cathedral, Otukpo, emphasised the need for meaningful participation of persons with disabilities in the democratic process.
In a position paper adopted at the engagement, participants identified inaccessible polling units, inadequate voter information in accessible formats, communication barriers and exclusion from political party structures as major challenges confronting persons with disabilities.
They urged INEC to strengthen accessible voter education and polling arrangements while calling on political parties and candidates to incorporate disability rights into their programmes and provide opportunities for persons with disabilities to assume leadership positions.
The participants further demanded clear political commitments to disability inclusion in education, healthcare, employment, accessible infrastructure and social protection.
They pledged to mobilise eligible voters with disabilities, document electoral barriers, engage political parties and candidates, and monitor their commitments before, during and after the 2027 general elections.
The participants called for sustained collaboration between INEC, political parties and disability rights organisations to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy meaningful participation in Nigeria’s democratic process.
