A coalition of Nigerian activists demonstrated Tuesday in the capital city Abuja, demanding President Mohammadu Buhari sign a bill that aims to improve transparency, inclusion, and planning for national elections.

More than 200 participants from various civil society groups chanted as they converged at unity fountain Tuesday in Abuja.

The activists are demanding President Mohammadu Buhari sign into a law a bill that would promote the early release of funds for elections, the inclusion of marginalized groups in voting, and would authorize the electronic transmission of election results.

“In 2019, one truth that we’re not telling Nigerians is that resources were released six weeks to the elections,” said Paul James, one of the organizers of the protest. “So, if these things are coming close to the elections, it affects everybody that is working on the process.”

Activists at the protest say the new bill will make elections more organized, inclusive and credible if signed into law.

There are more than 30 million Nigerians living with disabilities.

“Election after election, people with disabilities have to surmount whatever challenge it is to vote,” said Grace Jerry, executive director Inclusive Friends Association, a group representing disabled citizens at the protest. “President Buhari, in case you do not know, people with disabilities had to crawl on the ground because of inaccessible polling units. To vote for you, people who are blind had to rely on somebody to vote and could not experience the secret ballot process.”

The president’s office released a statement late Monday denying claims of foot-dragging in Buhari signing the bill.

The president spokesperson, Femi Adesina, said the president had only received the bill from the senate on January 31 and had until March 1 to sign it.

He also said interest groups were taking advantage of “what they consider a delay in the signing of the electoral bill by the president to foment civil disorder.”

During an interview Tuesday with Lagos-based Channels television, Adesina said Buhari would sign the bill soon.

But protester James Paul has doubts the president will follow through.

“The government has not been very truthful with Nigerians, they have been dilly-dallying with what we thought would help to improve on the transparency and integrity of our elections,” said Paul. “Since 1999, the more money you pump into the election, the less participation you see in the election.”

Allegations of rigging and corruption are common during Nigerian elections.

Activists say the president already has declined to sign the bill five times and are hoping he will sign it this time round.

The Centre of Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) on Tuesday, 22nd February 2022 partnered with the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, Yiaga Africa and other CSOs in a protest towards urging President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the electoral bill transmitted to him by the National Assembly on the 31st of January, 2022.

Recognizing that the bill made favourable provisions for citizens with disabilities, the Centre’s Executive Director; Mr. David Anyaele, mobilized Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) to protest at the Unity Fountain, Maitama, Abuja, and urge the President to sign the bill, thus that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) can issue a timeline for the 2023 General Election in Nigeria.

According to Mr. Anyaele; “the bill which not only embraces inclusion and innovation but is also a bill that promotes transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s electoral process is a great input since the return of democracy in 1999”. He went further to urge the president to sign the bill as swiftly as possible and write his name in Gold as someone who enhanced the democratic tenets that brought him to power.

During the protest rally, speeches were made by Samson Itodo of Yiaga Africa, Ene Obi who is the convener of Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, and a host of other Executives of the plethora of Civil Societies Organizations, who in one voice, demanded that President Buhari, gives swiftly his assent to the electoral bill.

PWDs participated actively at the protest march as all clusters were represented at the event.

A 94-year-old Kenyan man has been reunited with his family in Majengo village, Mwatate, Taita-Taveta County after being away for 42 years, IgbereTV reports.

Hiltan Kalugho says he left home for Tanzania in 1980 to look for fortune in the neighboring country, leaving behind his wife and seven children.

“I left home in search of greener pastures because I wanted a good future for my children. Unfortunately, I was unable to come back home because I did not get the money I expected to get to feed my family,” he told Sunday Nation.

According to the senior citizen, life at the border town of Mororoni where he first worked as a gemstone miner did not, however, turn out as he had envisioned, forcing him to try his luck at livestock herding.

“We did not get any breakthrough. What we used to get was only enough to sustain us,” said Kalugho.

By this time, Kalugho says, he had refused to remarry and was yearning to return home. It took a Kenyan pastor who had visited the area to share Kalugho’s story on social media and reunite him with his family.

Kalugho’s son, Mnjala Mwaluma, said after unfruitful searches for their father over the years, he was called by the pastor to inform him that he had been found in Tanzania.

“Recently I received a call from a pastor telling me my father had been traced in Tanzania. He came with him to Mombasa where we went to meet him,” said Mwaluma.

Kalugho returned home last week to find that his wife had died in 2007, as did his two other sons.

“I feel so bad that some of my family members are not here to witness the reunion. I had longed to see my wife and all my children.” he said.

Persons living with disabilities in the 42 villages of Onna Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom state, have expressed gratitude to Apostle Elijah Jack, General Overseer of  His Divine Redeemed World Ministry, Mkpok, for providing Wheelchairs, Clutches, food items, and cash gifts to their members.

The message of appreciation was delivered through the chairman, Joint Association of People Living with Disabilities, Onna chapter, Mr. Anthony Ufot Joe, at the Church premises behind Mkpok police station during the weekend.

THEWILL reports that the appreciation came on the heels of the unusual gesture of the cleric penultimate weekend, who donated over 30 walking aids, including wheelchairs and clutches, food items and cash worth millions of naira to physically challenged persons in the council area.

Speaking during the visit at the weekend, Ufot Joe recalled that he casually mentioned to Apostle Jack, to extend a hand of fellowship to his members and never knew it could come within a short time and in such a big way.

“My name is Anthony Ufot Joe, chairman of Joined Association of people living with Disabilities, Onna Local Govt Area chapter,

“I was the one who met Apostle Dr Elijah Jack and pleaded with him to show some love to the people who were born different in his community and he accepted, I forgot about it thinking he will forget about us as other pastors and politicians in Onna have done to us.

“But on January 30th, Apostle showered us with crutches, wheelchairs, raw food items, and cash empowerment. Truly it was more than expected, we have never seen this kind of love before, that is why we have come to tell him to thank you.

“All of us would have come but I selected few of my members to come along with my president to thank apostle for entering the 42 villages in Onna to fetch all persons with disabilities and less privileged to bless us in his capacity, he gave us wheelchairs, clutches, raw food items, and cash empowerment.

“We pray that God will bless him more abundantly until he is able to reach out to people all over the world we are grateful, that is why we have come to say thank you” Joe narrated.

Joshua Jacobson Akpan from Ntan Ide Ekpe,  who is the president of the group, expressed heartfelt appreciation and pleaded that seed capitals be given to those who want to trade on commodities while those who are able to work with their hands be sponsored to learn trades; such as tailoring, hairdressing, weaving etc. to be self-reliance and end begging.

“I like what the man of God did for us the previous month and that is why we say a big thank you to him, May God bless and increase the man of God a thousand times in Jesus’ name amen.

“Some of us were unable to afford one meal a day, but knowing the man of God is a blessing to the disabled persons in Onna, we no more lack food to eat, we now use our clutches and wheelchairs to walk, no more dragging our bodies on the ground and dirty our bodies. We will one day move to our governor to give us our workshop because we are not beggers but physically challenged.

“Most of us have skills that if we are trained, we can also train others so that we will stop begging.

We should be trained in soap making, hair dressing, oil palm production, tailoring and embroidery, personally I will love to learn embroidering.” The group president appealed.

Responding to the encomiums poured on him, Apostle Jack likened the gesture of the group to the one lapper that return to give thanks to Jesus Christ after being made whole by His ministry. He however pledged to do more and to see them thenceforth, as his responsibility.

“I must say thank you very much for coming around to tell God thank you, I remember in the Bible story about the ten leper, out of the ten that our Lord Jesus Christ healed, one of them returned to say thank you.

“For this very show of your gratitude, I want you all to understand that this serves as an encouragement to me and I also know that once in a while I know I have people to care about, you are my responsibility from today, I am very excited and comfortable that you came around.

“Looking into humanity is my main responsibility and God, I want you to understand that as God gives me the grace, I will continue doing this empowerment without biases God gives me the enablement.

“I also want to Advice you not to look at your condition, rise up and work, you can achieve whatever you wish, and work consistently towards your goal, as God blessed me, the next phase of empowerment will be training on skills, any skill you desire to learn, indicate interest and you will be thought.

“You will discover that being disabled is not the end of your lives, there’s an ability in each and every one of you, you only need to discover it. God has a purpose for creating you, so that purpose must come to manifest.

“God uses situations that people grade as nothing or lost hope to glorify himself. I want you to know that in this life, you will be called and address as who God want you to be in Jesus mighty name Amen. God bless you all for coming around.” The apostle prayed.

A group has sternly warned the All Progressive Congress against disqualifying the former governor of Nasarawa State, Tanko Al-Makura, from the Chairmanship of the party.

The Progressive Disability Forum has warned the party against using the disability condition of the former governor as a basis to disqualify him from the race for the chairmanship of the party.

The National Coordinator of PDF, Abdulaziz Onibare, raised the concern in a letter addressed to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and obtained by journalists in Abuja on Sunday.

According to him, the party would be in contravention of the National Disability Act and its constitution should such a move succeed.

The letter reads, “It has come to our notice that some group of people is moving around castigating the person of His Excellency, Senator Umaru Tanko Almakura, questioning his capacity on the basis of his disability. They didn’t question his capacity when he was contributing his millions, time, and energy for the progress of the party.”

Onibare added that Al-Makura’s disability should not be a yardstick to measure his competence to lead the party as he has given his dues to the APC and represented the disability community well.

He said as such, the former governor should be given the opportunity to lead APC to a resounding victory as the 2023 elections beckon.

Onibare, who pleaded that its member’s contribution to the party should not be allowed to go in vain, lamented that the leadership of APC had continued to marginalise the PDF as it has never held any tangible position.

A community leader in Igasi Akoko in the Akoko North-West Local Government Area of Ondo State, Chief Ojo Ajaguna, who was reportedly kidnapped by gunmen on Friday, has regained his freedom.

PUNCH Metro gathered that Ajaguna fled the kidnappers’ den after the hoodlums slept off.

A resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said people in the community were sad when Ajaguna was abducted.

He noted that there was a celebration in the town after news filtered in that he escaped.

“The victim regained his freedom when the assailants slept off in the forest. The entire Igasi Akoko community was agog when he came back,” he stated.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Mrs. Funmilayo Odunlami, confirmed the development.

The PPRO said, “Yes, it was reported to us that the victim was abducted, but he came back home safely and we have commenced investigation into the matter.”

No fewer than 26 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have declared Tuesday, February 22, 2022, as National Day of Protest to demand immediate assent to the 2021 Amended Electoral Bill transmitted to President Muhammadu Buhari on January 31, 2022.

CSOs, which made this pronouncement, yesterday, in Abuja, included Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room; Yiaga Africa; Partners for Electoral Reform (PER); International Press Centre; Institute for Media and Society; Nigerian Women Trust Fund; The Albino Foundation; Centre for Citizens with Disability; Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ); Labour Civil Society Coalition (LASCO); Transition Monitoring Group; CLEEN Foundation; Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).

Others were: Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC); Nigeria Network of Non-Governmental Organisations (NNNGO); Inclusive Friends Association (IFA); Enough is Enough; the Electoral Hub; Centre for Liberty; Take Back Nigeria Movement; International Peace and Civic Responsibility Centre (IPCRC); 100 Women Lobby Group; Women in Politics Forum; Raising New Voices; Millennials Active Citizenship; Advocacy Africa and Ready To Lead Africa, among others.

The rights organisations said: “We are aware that on January 31, 2022, the National Assembly transmitted the Amended Electoral Bill 2022 to the President for assent, after expeditiously reworking the bill to meet his expectations.

“Recall that the bill allows electronic transmission of results, strengthens INEC’s financial independence and empowers the commission to reject falsified election results.

“Further aware, the bill, when signed, requires INEC to issue Notice of Election, not later than 360 days before the day appointed for an election. Therefore, the president has to give assent to the bill on or before February 22, 2022, if the dates announced for the 2023 elections are to be maintained.

“Concerned that the delay in granting presidential assent to the Electoral Bill 2022 will create legal uncertainties that threaten the integrity of the off-cycle elections in Ekiti, Osun, and the 2023 general elections, taking place 366 days away.

“The civil society community resolves to declare Tuesday, February 22, 2022, as the National Day of Protest to demand the President’s immediate assent to the bill…”

“Civil society networks will organise peaceful public direct-action activities to further the demand to assent the bill.
“We urge citizens across the nation to call on President Muhammadu Buhari to act on this, matter of urgent national importance.”