TQM Report,
The National President of The Network of Disabled Women, Mrs Lois Auta has called on women with disabilities to come out in their numbers and run for political offices in the next general election.
She gave this charge on Friday 10th December, 2021 in a chat with The Qualitative Magazine (TQM) during conference organized by NDW in commomeration of Global Human Rights Day on Strategies for political participation of women with disabilities, legislative process and advocacy.
It is part of activities of NDW’s project supported by Disability Rights Fund to enhance the political participation of women and girls with disabilities.
Lois said that the event is all about creating awareness and sensitizing the public on the right of women with disabilities in political participation. The right to vote and to be voted for, right to contest for elective positions( President, Vice President, Governor, Senator, Representative, Chairman, Councilor).
“Women should understand that they have these rights and nothing is stopping them from giving it a try by next election”.
She expressed hopes that by the end of the two day event, the participants who are women with disabilities will begin the process of registering for their voters card, joining political parties, attending political meeting and taking the bold step of contesting for elective positions.
“some of them complain that as a woman and a woman with disability, the challenges are many. What if violence, attacks during political meetings and election day? How can they run?
“Yes, at times, they are challenges and if there is no challenge that we cannot come out to surmount them and with God’s grace by our side. So I want to see them coming out to run for offices. I want to see them becoming members of political parties”.
“Women with disabilities should know that they should participate actively in politics because it is their right” she added.
Imoete Edet, Chief Operation Officer at NDW told TQM that women with disabilities because of their experiences in the past, most of them don’t want to come out to participate in Politics but they don’t know that they have privileges. There are laws like UNCRPD and National Disability Law that gave them right to participate.
In the last two days, the participants were taking through the legislative process, the provisions of the National Disability Law, requirements towards participation in Nigeria, voter registration where INEC portal (https://cvr.inecnigeria.org/)was provided and why they join a political party and be active.
“Also, we highlighted women in politics. We brought out women with disabilities in Nigeria and we discovered that only like in the last few years, the percentage of women with disabilities by participating in volunteers in Nigeria drops from 8 cents to 1%. The President, Lois has defied all odds and contested for House of Representatives in FCT, though she lost the election, she won the process for her boldness to contest which shows that no woman with disability is restricted from contesting.
They were amazed with the report and the fact that one of their own has given it a shot in the past, so they promised to go out there to register as voters, join political parties of their choice and eventually contest for elective positions in the next general election.
He urged INEC to do following based on the complaints of the participants:
Ensure that ballot boxes are placed where wheelchair users and crutches users can access them without hitches.
Magnifying glasses should be in places where they are needed and persons with albinism should not be subjected to stay under the sun, canopy for shade should provide for alongside extending priority voting to persons with albinism.
Educate security operatives at the polling unit about special attention of PWDs because if there is attacks on the polling units, the blind women wouldn’t see where see where to run to, the deaf women would’ve be confused about what is going on because they can’t her and the women with physical disabilities can’t run at all.
There should be proper written instructions pasted at the polling units to assist the Deaf who they are at the polling unit.
INEC and its allies should do more in the area of voter education, taking it down to the rural area and also intensify training of adhoc staff on the requirements or materials for PWDs such as braille ballot guide, magnifying glasses.
A participant, Cynthia Onyinyechi, a women with albinism told TQM that the event has gone a long way to strengthen the capacity of women with disabilities in political participation, expose them to political system being practiced in Nigeria so that we should not be overwhelmed when we set out to contest, understanding roles of persons with disabilities and roles of INEC in the electoral process.
Speaking further, she highlighted that the challenge they may face while trying to contest is Inclusion and acceptance which is not peculiar to women with disabilities and again, she expressed dismay on the way persons with albinism are kept under the sun for hours during voting. INEC should ensure that priority voting is accorded to persons with albinism.
Maryjane Okeke, a participant and an amputee, while appraising the event said that it provided the opportunity to strengthen capacity of women with disabilities to overcome the obstacles in the political participation and knowing the right steps to take in order to participate actively and meaningful in politics.
She said that going forward, she would join a political party that will help her grow politically.
TQM learnt that NDW while encouraging women with disabilities to contest for elective positions, they would also standby and link up those who made the bold step to opportunities to help them make impact.
