By Mustapha Shehu
The Association of Applicants/Workers with Disabilities in Nigeria, on Tuesday, picketed the premises of the Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF) in Jabi Abuja for its refusal to employ people living with disabilities in contravention of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018. Section 29 of the Act, mandates all employers of labor in public organizations to, as much as possible, have persons with disabilities constituting at least five percent of their employment.
Speaking to The Politico during the picketing session at about 5pm, the Association’s National President, Mr. Godstime Onyebulam, said members of the association had picketed the PEF premises, preventing movement of traffic into and out of the premises since 10am and had vowed not to leave until appointment letter was issued to their candidate whose CV they had given to the Fund’s Head of Human Resources based on the Executive Secretary’s approval.
Mr. Onyebulam said, “In 2019, we met with the Executive Secretary and he assured us that whenever they are recruiting, they will do something. By November 2020, we got information that they were recruiting. We came here and met the Head of Human Resources who told us that the Executive Secretary had approved two slots for us – one senior, one junior.
“We submitted the CV and after two months, we came back in January and demanded to know why the appointment letter was not ready. We couldn’t see the Executive Secretary but the CSO told us that what the Executive Secretary approved now is either two junior staff or one senior staff or we should take the option of them training 15 or 20 of us which we refused.”
According to Mr. Onyebulam, the PEF continued to deny that it had employed some staff even when “We saw someone who collected his appointment letter, the last time we were here, and he was happy making calls.”
Even after accepting the one senior position offered by the Executive Secretary through the CSO., the Association’s President told The Politico that after submitting a CV, when they came back to check on the progress made, the CSO told them that “let’s see whether the position still exists.”
Public institutions in Nigeria that are considered “juicy” have become dens of corruption in the country. Employments are offered by cartels in these institutions only to applicants who can cough out hundreds of thousands to millions of Naira. For applicant with disabilities, it is a double whammy. They do not have the money to buy jobs and are discriminated against by employers.
The Politico tried to speak to the representatives of PEF at the picketing but they appeared unhappy that The Politico was there to cover the picketing.