Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has handed over the Southwest Zonal Office Facility to the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) to enhance support for persons with disabilities in Southwest zone.
During the handing over ceremony on Thursday, the Director-General of Oyo State Agency for People With Disabilities, Barr. Ayodele Adekanbi, said the gesture is in demonstration of Governor Seyi Makinde’s commitment to promoting disability inclusion and providing equal opportunities for all.
He added that the Moniya Rehabilitation Centre facility will serve as the zonal office headquarters, reducing the need for individuals to travel to Abuja for attention.
The Director General, who equally commended Governor Makinde for his inclusiveness, noted that the Governor has employed over 500 persons with disabilities into civil service and appointed 33 individuals into political offices.
Barr. Adekanbi however appealed for creation of more access to funding to address the needs of persons with disabilities.
“On behalf of His Excellency, Seyi Makinde, our own Angel, the man that has shown us love, I welcome you all to the rehabilitation centre of the disable, the zonal office of the National Commission for persons with disabilities at the Southwest.
“I appreciate the Governor for his inclusiveness for approving the rehabilitation center to be used as the office of Southwest Zone of National commission for Persons With Disabilities.
“This development will give all people with disabilities the dividends of democracy whilst I assure of my support during the construction of the center”, he said.
Olubukola Akande, the coordinating director of the Oyo State Agency for Persons with Disabilities, stated earlier in his remarks that Oyo State Agency with persons with disabilities has been established since 2022 but couldn’t begin operation until the tale end of 2023.
He claimed they received correspondence from the National Commission regarding their plan to choose Ibadan as the headquarters for the South West zonal office last year.
According to him, the Moniya rehabilitation centre has a great history behind it and chosen for its conducive environment as the zonal house headquarters to meet the needs of the Persons With Disabilities.
He said: “This centre alongside other centres, about six of them, established by the federal government in the 1970s, was operated as a kind of joint venture program by the federal government and state government. They both began the operation of the Ibadan centre and after a short while, Oyo state took charge of the running of the centre.”
Mr Akande however commended the Director General for ensuring proper handing over, as well as for his efforts in driving the agenda of the persons with disabilities.
He equally commended Governor Makinde for being a backbone and supporting the persons with disabilities, saying, “We are handing over this building to the national commission to play a supportive role to the Agency and Oyo State Government.
On his part, the Executive Secretary, National Commission for Persons With Disabilities, Ayuba Gufwan, stated that the members of the cmmission could not just stay in Abuja without travelling throughout the country to discuss issues pertaining to individuals with disabilities.
According to him, it would be inappropriate to manage the affairs of people with disabilities in one place due to the large population, which is why the commission decided to establish a southwest zonal office headquarters in order to lessen persons with disabilities’ suffering instead of travelling to Abuja for care.
He said: “It is our desire that we would have our presence across the 36 states to coordinate the affairs of persons with disability matters.
“35 million is actually a big number. Now is the time to work the talk. We now have agencies and offices that coordinate the affairs of persons with disabilities at our door step.
“As we commission, I wish to inform you that we are desire to reduce the suffering of persons with disabilities and we are hopeful that issues affecting the PWDs would be at the forefront.
“To make Nigeria great, all hands must be on deck, so 35m people which constitutes the persons of disabilities can not be ignored as there is ability in disability.
“I call on you all to rise up and let’s move forward and make Nigeria conducive for everyone. The number of persons with disabilities increases on daily bases.
“Oyo State Governor has done exceedingly great regarding the affairs of persons with dissbailities and other State Governors must also emulate. And we hope the Governor would do more.
“We are going to get the staff trained and also all the orientation they need as we are committed to ensure that the office is effectively running.
“I urge the persons with disabilities to remain calm and keep supporting the agency led by Barr. Adekanbi. May the goood lord bless you all,” he said.
In their separate goodwill messages, the representative of Commssioner for education, and host of others commended Governor Makinde and Barr. Adekanbi for their efforts regarding the affairs of PWDs.
Stakeholders across the six states in the Southwest zone equally commended the development, stressing that the new development will give an edge to those people who have been neglected to be attended to.
According to them, despite political affiliations, Barr. Adekanbi should be commended for his strong leadership, building strong relationships with key stakeholders in the Southwest, and making sure that individuals with disabilities are included everywhere.
The highlights of the event included the signing of the memorandum of understanding and the paper transferring the facility from the Oyo State government to the National Commission to Coordinate the Affairs of Persons with Disabilities.
The event was attended by several stakeholders from Southwest zone, including the Executive Assistant to Governor Seyi Makinde on Disability matters, Hon. Olufemi Timothy and representatives from Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Lagos.
