The Chairman of the Abia State Commission for the Welfare of Disabled Persons, Dr David Anyaele, has identified barriers preventing persons with disabilities (PWDs) from accessing justice, urging them to move beyond legal recognition and actively demand their rights.

Anyaele spoke on Wednesday at a one-day capacity-building workshop on Access to Justice, Leadership, Advocacy Campaigns and Inclusive Governance, held at Sun Haven Hotel, Umuahia, the Abia State capital.

He said that despite significant milestones recorded by the state, including the enactment of the Abia State Disability Law in 2022 and the establishment of the commission in 2024 under Governor Alex Otti, PWDs continued to face serious obstacles in accessing justice.

He stressed that excluding persons with disabilities from the justice system undermined access to justice, while their exclusion from governance and development weakened inclusiveness and sustainability.

The commission chairman charged PWDs, civil society organisations (CSOs) and sign language interpreters to translate existing legal protections into practical action by demanding their rights within the justice system.

Illustrating the challenges, Anyaele asked participants to consider the plight of a deaf woman who approaches a police station to report violence but cannot communicate effectively because no sign language interpreter is available.

He also cited the experience of a wheelchair user unable to enter a courtroom because the building lacks an access ramp.

He described such situations as more than accessibility problems, saying they represented fundamental violations of human dignity and the protection of basic rights.

According to him, “When persons with disabilities are excluded from the justice system, justice is not accessible. When they are excluded from governance, governance is not inclusive, and when they are excluded from development, that development is unsustainable.”

The state Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection, Mrs Ngozi Blessing Felix, commended the Anyaele-led commission and its partners for promoting inclusive governance.

Felix, who highlighted the connection between social protection, poverty reduction and access to justice, pledged her ministry’s commitment to ensuring that PWDs were not excluded from the state’s development agenda.

The Abia State Coordinator of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), Mr Peter Omenka, said the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) Phase II programme operated in seven Nigerian states, focusing on ensuring that PWDs, women, children and survivors of violence could access justice without discrimination.

He said the workshop was designed to address gaps in rights awareness and professional interpretation, expressing confidence that participants would be better equipped to promote disability inclusion in government budgets and community-level governance.

The lead facilitator, Mr Godwin Unumeri, took participants through practical approaches to effective advocacy, emphasising that campaigns must be led by PWDs, evidence-based, inclusive, accessible and accountable.

He also guided them through problem identification and strategic campaign planning.

A disability cluster leader, Mrs Chioma Okafor, described the training as a turning point in their advocacy efforts, saying it had equipped participants with practical skills to build evidence-based cases and engage institutions more effectively.

“For years, our advocacy was based on emotions, but today, we have learned how to build evidence-based cases that institutions cannot ignore. This is a game-changer for our communities,” she said.

The one-day workshop was organised by the Abia State Commission for the Welfare of Disabled Persons in partnership with the RoLAC Phase II programme, funded by the European Union and implemented by International IDEA.

It brought together disability cluster leaders, organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs), CSOs and sign language interpreters from the 17 local government areas of Abia State.

Participants pledged to replicate the training within their respective clusters and communities, in a move aimed at strengthening evidence-based advocacy, holding institutions accountable and advancing disability inclusion across the state.