A coalition describing itself as the Pioneers of Nigeria’s National and International Disability Civil Rights Movement and Policy Changers has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to suspend the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution until specific constitutional guarantees for persons with disabilities are incorporated.
The group made the demand in a memorandum dated September 19, 2026, and addressed to President Tinubu through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi.
The memorandum, signed by Lady Omotunde Ellen Thompson, Co-Founder and Life Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of JONAPWD-National and leader of the Pioneers Ad Hoc Consortium; Chief Eric Ndubueze Ufom, President/CEO of Equal Rights for Persons with Disabilities International; and Brigadier General Dr. Lonsdale Oladeji Adeoye (Rtd.), President of the Foundation for the Support of Nigerian Veterans, outlined a series of demands covering constitutional reform, disability governance, financial accountability and compensation.
The consortium said it was submitting three legal and policy instruments to the Federal Government, including a 20th anniversary report on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD), proposed amendments to the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018, and a proposal for alterations to the 1999 Constitution.
According to the group, its demands are anchored on Articles 4(3), 33(3) and 35 of the UN CRPD, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Disability Protocol and Nigeria’s Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018.
The consortium claimed that more than 40 million Nigerians with disabilities, alongside other vulnerable groups, had experienced what it described as decades of structural exclusion.
“Disability rights are fundamental human rights, not acts of government charity,” the group said, stressing that governance and legislation impose a fiduciary responsibility on the state to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.
A major demand is for President Tinubu to direct the National Assembly and relevant executive representatives to suspend the constitutional review process until 13 accessibility guarantees are incorporated. These, it said, should cover physical accessibility, Braille and audio formats, sign-language interpretation, real-time captioning and direct representation of organisations of persons with disabilities, among others.
The group also called for an amendment to Section 42(1) of the Constitution to expressly recognise disability as a prohibited ground of discrimination.
It further demanded nationwide enforcement of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018 and proposed replacing the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities with a Federal Ministry of Disability and Institute for Rehabilitation Affairs.
The consortium alleged that the existing commission had been affected by financial corruption and other institutional challenges, arguing that a cabinet-level ministry would guarantee disability representation at the Federal Executive Council and provide direct budgetary allocations for disability affairs.
On compensation, the group called on the Federal Government to recognise and negotiate a N66 trillion general, structural and punitive damages claim which it said is pending before the Federal High Court in Abuja in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1824/2026.
It explained that the figure represents N1 trillion for each of the 66 years since Nigeria gained independence on October 1, 1960, which the group described as a period of systemic exclusion affecting eight categories of vulnerable Nigerians.
The consortium also called for a forensic financial audit covering the period from 1960 to date, including federal disability allocations, Central Bank of Nigeria microfinance disbursements, development credits and oil revenue proceeds allegedly earmarked for persons with disabilities.
It specifically urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and the Auditor-General of the Federation to conduct what it described as an exhaustive audit of federal disability-related funds.
Another demand is the establishment of a disability-inclusive and trauma-informed security framework. The group called for post-traumatic stress disorder and severe psychological trauma to be recognised as legal disabilities where applicable under the UN CRPD and Nigerian disability legislation.
The consortium also requested mandatory participation of its representatives in the vetting of leadership appointments for the proposed ministry and rehabilitation institute.
It said it had relied on United Nations archival records to document the historical participation of Nigerian disability-rights representatives in the development of the UN CRPD, including records relating to Chief Eric Ndubueze Ufom and Lady Dorothy Mbanefo.
The group appealed to President Tinubu to take what it described as decisive action to address decades of exclusion and institutional failures affecting persons with disabilities.
“Sixty-six years of state-sanctioned exclusion, institutional corruption, and unaddressed intergenerational trauma must end today,” the consortium stated.
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