South-South Women With Disabilities Association (SSWWDA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to appoint Mrs. Halimat Tejuosho as Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
The chairperson of the association, Mrs. Ada Tariff, told newsmen over the weekend in Yenagoa that Tejuosho “is one of our own, administrator, a mother and humanitarian who showcases immense capacity to fill the vacuum at the Humanitarian Ministry.”
She said Tejuosho would ensure the presence of disability desks in the Niger Delta Development Commission and other federal agencies, something which has been missing for so long.
President Tinubu had earlier this year suspended the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu, and directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to investigate allegations of fraud in the ministry.
Ada said, “As we are all aware, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation has been vacant following the suspension of the Minister.”
The association with membership across the South-south region is made up of all the disability clusters of physically challenged including the blind, deaf, people affected by leprosy, spinal cord injury and albinism.
She stated: “We have gathered here today in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state capital to congratulate and appreciate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for a successful one year in office, including his progressive policies of the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“As women with disabilities, we also want to use this opportunity to thank our caring mother of the nation, the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Sen. Remi Tinubu for her firm support to Mr President, in addition to the agricultural support she has recently extended to women and youth as well as People With Disabilities across the country.”
Ada described people with disabilities as the most vulnerable members of the society, pointing out that it explains why the vacuum in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation affected them negatively.
