APC PWDs passes vote of confidence on Tinubu, Ganduje

APC PWDs passes vote of confidence on Tinubu, Ganduje

Joel Oladele, Abuja 

Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have expressed confidence in the leadership of President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the party’s national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje.

This was disclosed by the APC national leader, PWDs, Hon Tolu Bankole,  in Abuja, during a solidarity visit of the PWDs stakeholders to Ganduje in his office on Monday.

Bankole used the occasion to laud the leadership prowess of both Tinubu and Ganduje, especially when it comes to inclusivity. 

The APC Chieftain also appreciated the first lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu for touching the lives of vulnerable Nigerians through her Renewed Hope Initiative across the country.

“Your Excellency Sir, this is our first meeting with you as Persons With Disabilities, PWDs since your assumption of office as the National Chairman of our great party. 

“Thus, it is apt to use this visit to say publicly that PWDs is better under His Excellency Abdullahi Ganduje than any previous party administration.

“Let me also use this medium to pledge the support of all clusters of APC PWDs in Nigeria and in diaspora to Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu whose Renewed Hope policies are beginning to birth a paradigm shift from a country for the highs and the mighties to a country where the child of a nobody can become somebody without knowing anybody. From an import dependent economy to a self sufficient economy. 

“Mr President can count on us as loyal party members that we will support his administration and our PWDs friendly National Chairman to guarantee internal cohesion in our party as he takes on the onerous task of ensuring that disability does not become an inability for us.

“Permit me to commend the Renewed Hope Initiative of Her Excellency, Senator Oluremi Tinubu which is targeting PWDs and other vulnerable segment of the society. Our governors and national assembly members have all shown commitment to alleviating the plights of PWDs,” he said

Also expressing the support of the PWDs specifically for Ganduje, Bankole stated;

“Again, Your Excellency, we are committed to the success of your leadership and you can always depend on us as your loyal soldiers as you lead APC to continuous victory.

“We stand with Dr. Umar Abdullahi Ganduje as the National Chairman and we say no to distractions.” 

He therefore appealed to states who are yet to pass the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act to do so as a matter of urgency.

 “Six years after the passage of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, only 13 states have demonstrated measures to domesticate the Act. They include Lagos, Anambra, Ekiti, Ondo, Plateau, Bauchi, Kano, Kaduna, Jigawa, Kogi, Niger, Kwara and the FCT.

“We call on the state governments who are yet to domesticate fully the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, to do so without further delay and establish the Disability Commission as enshrined in the Act. This is important because failure in this regard is tacit endorsement of discrimination and other harmful practices against Persons With Disabilities”.

Reacting, the APC national chairman  appealed to Nigerians to bear with the Tinubu led government over the current economic challenges, adding that it was part of the ripple effects of the past administrations.

He therefore pledged to deploy skill development as a way to change the fortunes of Persons With Disabilities in Nigeria.

“President Bola Tinubu from his extensive policies is taking Nigeria to the next level and there is need to bear with him because what is being is an accumulation of so many years of neglect, policy somersaults and other disjointed decisions by previous administrations.”

Commending the APC PWDs leaders for the confidence reposed in his leadership, he said: “We have to commend you for being here with us to pass vote of confidence on our leadership. It shows your commitment and your love for the party.

“What we need to change the living standard of your members is skill acquisition in relation to the type of challenge that you have. It will not be a universal skill acquisition. It will be a specific skill acquisition prescribed for the type of challenge for your members. Some can use their voice and some can use their legs, and some can even use signs. So we are fully aware of the challenges and we are here to solve the challenges,” Ganduje noted.