By Ishaq Dan-Imam, Lokoja.
Persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Kogi State have begun an aggressive political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the inauguration of the Kogi APC Disability Campaign Network to canvass support for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo.
The network, known as KAD-CAN-WIN for Tinubu/Ododo 2027, is a coalition of politicians, activists, party loyalists and stakeholders within the disability community committed to mobilising PWDs, their families, friends and associates across the 21 local government areas of the state for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Speaking at the inauguration of the campaign leadership in Lokoja on Wednesday, the Director-General of the network, Hon. Yakubu Abdulhakeem Nazir, said the initiative represents a new phase in the political evolution of persons with disabilities in Kogi State.
Nazir said PWDs could no longer afford to remain on the margins of Nigeria’s political process, stressing that the disability community had moved beyond merely demanding political inclusion to actively pursuing political participation in elections, governance and decision-making.
According to him, persons with disabilities constitute a significant electoral constituency capable of influencing electoral outcomes when properly organised and mobilised.
He said the network had begun mobilising PWDs and their families across political divides to support the APC candidates, particularly Tinubu and Ododo, whom he credited with policies and programmes that had positively affected the disability community.
“As we formally inaugurate the Kogi APC Disability Campaign Network, I call upon every executive member, every stakeholder and every member of this network to understand the enormous responsibility that lies before us.
“This network must not exist merely in name. It must become an active and effective political structure.
” Let us take the message of inclusion, unity, progress and responsible political participation to every ward, every local government area and every senatorial district across Kogi State by organising, mobilising, educating and encouraging the electorate to vote for APC in all elections,” he said.
The Director-General, however, urged APC leaders at the state and local government levels to make PWDs an integral part of the party’s campaign architecture rather than treating them as mere voting blocs during elections.
He called for their involvement in campaign planning and political consultations from the state level to senatorial districts, local government areas and wards.
“Engage us; listen to us; consult us; involve us in all campaign programmes and give us a seat at the table,” Nazir appealed.
He said the disability community has a substantial political and electoral presence, claiming that more than 100,000 PWD voters across Kogi State were being mobilised in support of the APC’s electoral fortunes in 2027.
Nazir also explained why the network had chosen to support the APC, citing what he described as the party’s contribution to the legal and institutional advancement of disability rights in Nigeria.
He noted that the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, was signed into law under an APC-led Federal Government, providing a legal framework for protecting the rights, dignity and participation of persons with disabilities.
The Director General recalled the administration of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello, saying it took steps towards establishing the Kogi State Office for Disability Affairs as an institutional platform for advancing disability inclusion in the state.
While appreciating successive APC administrations for what he described as increased political recognition and opportunities for PWDs, Nazir said the disability community must reciprocate the support by actively participating in the political process.
“It is under the APC-led administration in Kogi State that persons with disabilities began to receive greater recognition in the area of political inclusion and participation,” he said.
Also speaking at the event, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo on Disability Matters, Hon. Mukaila Sheidu, disclosed that the state government was developing a comprehensive database of persons with disabilities across the 21 local government areas.
Sheidu said the database would enable the government to better identify the needs of PWDs and design targeted intervention programmes, while also improving economic and development planning for the broader wellbeing of citizens.
The move, he explained, would also provide the government with reliable information needed to formulate policies and programmes capable of addressing the specific challenges confronting members of the disability community.
The Secretary of the campaign network, Ibrahim Daniel Arome, said PWDs in Kogi State were determined to play a decisive role in the 2027 presidential election, projecting that the group would deliver more than 100,000 votes for President Tinubu.
Our correspondent reports that the inauguration also featured the presentation of appointment letters to members of the campaign network, alongside goodwill messages from patrons and leaders of the disability community.
Among those who commended the initiative were prominent PWD politicians in the state, including Joash Femi Onimayin and Solomon Yahaya.
They described the establishment of the campaign network as a strategic step towards strengthening the political voice of persons with disabilities and ensuring that they become active participants in shaping the political direction of Kogi State and Nigeria.
The inauguration therefore marks more than the creation of another campaign structure ahead of 2027. For Kogi’s disability community, it signals an attempt to transform electoral strength into political influence and to ensure that persons with disabilities are not only counted as voters, but also recognised as stakeholders capable of contributing directly to political leadership, policy formulation and governance.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.