Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) on Friday called on the Federal Government to strengthen the capacity of persons with disabilities to develop a supplementary Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) that ensures their inclusion in benefit structures outlined in the current law.

The demand was made during a two-day capacity building workshop to strengthen the capacity of PWDs to advocate for their inclusion in the PIA and Disability Laws, held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa, organized by the Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD).

The workshop with the theme: “Ending barriers against Niger Deltans with Disabilities,” was aimed at promoting equity, justice and inclusive development in the Niger Delta region.

The PWDs, drawn from various disability clusters in Bayelsa, presented a charter of demands to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), urging the agency to ensure their voices and needs were included in the PIA’s benefit frameworks.

They noted that while the current PIA recognised the interests of women, youths, and traditional rulers, it was silent on the rights and inclusion of persons with disabilities.

The group called on NUPRC to mandate Host Community Development Trusts (HCDTs) to integrate disability-related concerns in line with the National Disability Act, which stipulated a minimum 5 per cent employment quota for the disability community.

“One key provision of the PIA requires oil companies to contribute 3 per cent of their annual operating expenditure to fund HCDTs, which are responsible for driving development in host communities.” they said.

Mr David Anyaele, the facilitator of the programme and also the Chairman of the Abia State Commission for the Welfare of Disabled Persons and Founder of CCD, assured participants of his commitment to ensure that PWDs were not excluded in Bayelsa.

“Persons with disabilities have what it takes to elevate their families and communities.

“Globally, more than 1.3 billion people, about 16 per cent of the population, live with some form of disability.

“In 2018 about 29 million Nigerians are with a disability or the other (According to World Bank)

Disability growth rate in Nigeria is increasing owing to consistent conflict, violence, accidents and poor health care system,” he said.

Anyaele urged the participants to take the training workshop seriously for them to use it to support their families and better other PWDS in the society.

He said that the 1999 Constitution stated that the state social order is founded on ideals of freedom, equality and justice, saying that action of government must be humane to the people living with disability.

The facilitator, said that the government owes them the obligation to education, right to live, security amongst other care, in the society.

In his remarks, Mr Mayor Ekpomokumo, Chairman of the Joint National Association of Persons With Disabilities (JONAPWD), Bayelsa Chapter, said the leadership of various disability clusters was united in demanding full inclusion in the PIA implementation process.

“JONAPWD, as the umbrella body of all PWD organisations in Bayelsa, is demanding inclusion in every structure of benefit within the PIA.

“It’s a shared call among all stakeholders,” Ekpomokumo stated.

He added that the charter also involved other actors such as oil companies, traditional institutions, civil society organisations, and the business community.

The Chairman equally commended Gov. Douye Diri, of Bayelsa for signing the Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) Bill into law.

Also speaking, Florence Attah, Senior Programme Officer of CCD highlighted some environmental challenges, including water pollution, fish depletion and acid rain, amongst others, calling for urgent government intervention in that area.