Democracy Day or Discrimination Day? PWDs in Nigeria Still Shut Out of Governance
By Job Napoleon- Convener: Nigeria’s National and International Disability Civil Rights Movement & Policy Changer Advocate and a Person with Disability Academic Don in the University of Calabar
“A democracy that excludes 35.5 million Nigerians with disabilities is not just incomplete — it is unjust. True democracy is only real when it is inclusive, accessible, and leaves no one behind.”
— Chief Eric Ndubueze Ufom, President, ERPWDI
While Nigeria marked its annual Democracy Day, for over 35.5 million persons with disabilities (PWDs), it felt more like Discrimination Day—a stark reminder of systemic exclusion, broken promises, and unfulfilled rights. Despite Nigeria’s ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2010, the treaty remains largely symbolic, lacking real enforcement and impact. The country’s failure to implement this 21st-century human rights instrument continues to deepen inequality and injustice in the disability community.
A Treaty Ratified, But Not Respected
Nigeria signed the UN CRPD in 2007 and ratified it in 2010. Yet, 18 years on, the treaty has neither been domesticated nor fully integrated into national law and practice, as required by Section 12 of the 1999 Constitution. As former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned, “Signing a treaty is an announcement of intention; implementing it is the test of commitment.” That test, for Nigeria, remains failed.
Article 4 of the UN CRPD mandates governments to adopt legislation and measures to secure the rights of PWDs. However, Nigerian authorities continue to treat disability rights as charitable gestures, not enforceable entitlements. The result is a nation where PWDs remain shut out from political participation, justice, education, healthcare, employment, and even public infrastructure.
The 2018 Disability Act: A Flawed Step Forward
On January 23, 2019, Nigeria passed the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act 2018—a delayed response to global and domestic pressure. But even this legislation suffers from constitutional and operational flaws. It imposes weak penalties for violations and lacks the mechanisms to ensure its implementation. While the law exists on paper, PWDs continue to encounter inaccessible public buildings, discriminatory employment practices, and exclusion from governance.
Toxic Leadership, Donor Distortions, and Internal Strife
The struggle for disability rights is also being undermined from within. Misinformation, disunity, and corruption plague the leadership of key disability organisations. Many current PWD leaders were not part of the original legislative struggles and have sidelined the movement’s pioneers, such as Lady Omotunde Ellen Thompson, Chief Eric Ndubuisi Ufom, Dr Samuel Ankali, Late Mrs Ngozi Pauline Ikebuaku, Mrs Patricia Ovuoke of the Kpakpando Foundation, including the founder of Kpakpando-, Sen Osita Izunaso, then in his capacity as APC National Organizing secretary, among others who fought for the rights Nigeria now refuses to enforce.
Lady Thompson, Co-founder and Chairperson BoT of JONAPWD Nigeria, a woman of distinction, has been relentlessly persecuted for demanding transparency and adherence to the association’s original constitution. Her case highlights the broader crisis: women and ethical leaders are often bullied out of decision-making spaces in favour of opportunists prioritizing personal gain over collective progress.
The September 2023 ruling by Justice Emmanuel Ayade declaring the controversial 2014 JONAPWD constitution “a worthless piece of paper” further revealed the rot. Yet, international donors—including some well-meaning ones—have continued to support programs aligned with fraudulent leadership, often bypassing grassroots voices and fuelling fragmentation.
The High Cost of Inaction
Because Nigeria has refused to implement the UN CRPD, persons with disabilities have faced devastating consequences:
- Lack of access to inclusive education, healthcare, and employment.
- Persistent exclusion from political processes and national decision-making.
- Inaccessible environments and poor legal protection from abuse and exploitation.
- Intensified poverty, marginalisation, and vulnerability to crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.
In rural areas, many PWDs died from a lack of access to health services and post-COVID-19 recovery programs. The continued silencing of their voices has worsened Nigeria’s broader issues of insecurity, food shortages, and intercommunal violence. Disability inclusion is not just a human rights issue—it is central to national development and security.
A Call to Action
As Nigeria commemorates Democracy Day, it must confront this critical question: Can a democracy that excludes over 35.5 million of its citizens truly call itself democratic?
We call on the Nigerian government, civil society, and international partners to:
- Domesticate the UN CRPD through National Assembly legislation.
- Amend and enforce the 2018 Disability Act in line with global standards.
- Purge corruption from disability leadership, and prosecute those who have abused public trust.
- Include pioneer disability rights leaders in governance and policy reform.
- Invest in education, healthcare, economic empowerment, and political inclusion for PWDs.
- Audit the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) and other publicly funded disability programs.
Without inclusion, democracy remains an illusion—as Chief Eric Ndubuisi Ufom rightly said. Until Nigeria prioritises the rights, dignity, and voices of persons with disabilities, its democratic celebrations will remain hollow to those forced to watch from the margins.