The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has made provisions for the 600,000 registered physically-challenged voters in Adamawa State to cast their votes on dedicated queues in the coming general elections.
The state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Barr Kashim Gaidam, who made the announcement at a sensitization forum for people with disabilities (PWDs) in Yola as part of preparations for the polls, said, “We want the physically challenged to be able to exercise their franchise with ease during the polls.”
People with disabilities in Adamawa State are vocal about their rights or interests. Three months ago, members of the state branch of the Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB), took a protest to the Government House, accusing Governor Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow of not giving them appointments.
Gaidam said nothing would be spared to facilitate voting for the physically-challenged, and that INEC personnel would take their permanent voter cards (PVCs) to their places of sojourn across the 21 local government areas of the state.
“We have reconstructed a ramp for ease of access to the state office for disabled people on wheelchairs. INEC shall work according to the guidelines and framework as approved on handling the PWDs across the state,” he said.
Gaidam added that the elaborate provisions for the physically-challenged was to make them feel recognized as very important stakeholders in the electoral process, clarifying that, “their PVCs would be distributed across the state ahead of time for them to have access to voting.”
In his remarks, a former Adamawa State Chairman of the association of people living with disabilities, Comrade Abubakar Hosere, praised the effort by INEC to ensure their participation in the election.
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