By Ahmad Tijjani Abdul
The Joint Clusters of People with Disability in Kano Civil Society Forum, weekend rejected recent elections conducted by the Kano Civil Society Organisations (CSO), over exclusion of it’s members from the exercise.
The Chairman People with Physically Challenge, Kano State Chapter, Yahaya A Yahaya, who addressed newsmen in Kano on Saturday revealed that his group were disenfranchised during the purported change of leadership by the factional group.
Yahaya said “We were not contacted, informed, or given the opportunity to exercise our right to vote or be voted for in the past pseudo election of leaders of Kano Civil Society Forum.”
He stressed “This hastily convened election is a blatant disregard for the fundamental principles of inclusivity, transparency, and democratic process. It is a gross violation of the rights of registered members of all Kano PWDs, who were deliberately excluded from participating in the electoral process.”
The PWDS Chairman explained that “It is particularly disheartening to note that five critical and registered clusters of persons with disabilities under the forum were systematically disenfranchised.”
Yahaya listed affected rights groups as “the Spinal Cord Injuries Association, Nigerian Association for the Blind (NAB), Physically Challenge, IDEA, and Albino.”
He lamented that “This exclusionary act is not only a betrayal of the principles we stand for but also a grave injustice to these vulnerable groups in democratic society like ours.”
Yahaya said “From the foregoing, the leaderships of all clusters of PWDs in Kano wish to reiterate their unwavering allegiance to the incumbent leadership of Amb. Ibrahim Waiya and his cabinet.”
According to the PWD’s Chairman, “We believe that their stewardship has been marked by inclusivity, effectiveness, and a genuine commitment to the welfare of the people of Kano State involved.”
The group therefore, called on all stakeholders, including the general public, to treat this factional election with the contempt it deserves.
Yahaya hinted that they would explore all legal and legitimate avenues to redress what he described as “injustice and restore order to the Kano Civil Society Forum leadership.”