NCPWD threatens to seal organisations not accessible to PWDs

James Lalu, executive secretary of the National Commission for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD),  has threatened to seal organisations and public facilities that are not accessible to people with disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria.

Lalu spoke on Wednesday when he received Fatima Waziri-Azi, the director-general (DG), National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), in Abuja

He said the constitution has made it mandatory for organisations and businesses to make their facilities accessible to PWDs.

“It is no longer an option for organisations to comply with the accessibility laws because we would enforce it,” NAN quoted him as saying.

“They will see our compliance and enforcement officers visiting their offices by the time the law takes its full effect.

“We will go all out with our media and our security officers to make sure that every office comply.

“Though, the law provides a transition period of five years, that is from January, 2019 to January, 2024.”

He added that the constitution provides for a national regulation on accessibility in Nigeria to every public building by January 2024 to make their facilities accessible to PWDs.

“Anything short of that, we are mandated by law to go and seal up any facilities that do not comply with the law,” Lalu said.

He said NAPTIP has shown good partnership towards achieving Nigeria’s desire for equal opportunities for the disability community.

“This is evident in the agency’s conversion of its policy documents into assistive devices especially for the visually impaired to enable them get acquainted with the workings of the agency,” he said.

He commended the commitment of NAPTIP DG towards making justice possible for the disability community.

“We remain very grateful to you and we are committed to sanitise the system to guarantee better future for the persons with disabilities,” he said.

Waziri-Azi, in her response, said NAPTIP has made its facilities accessible to PWDs.

“We have ramps and allocated five percent employment opportunities to them,” she said.

“We have ramps just at the main entrance into the NAPTIP office. We also have ramps in the main building and our rapid response code at the back has also been fitted with a ramp.”

The DG promised to continue to support policies that would help improve the quality of lives of PWDs.