The Centre for Infrastructural and Technological Advancement for the Blind (CITAB) has criticised the federal government for keeping the Nigerian Farmcraft Centre for the Blind in Lagos closed for almost two years.
The organisation described the continued closure of the only federal vocational school for visually impaired Nigerians as a violation of disability rights laws.
Jolomi George Fenemigho, Executive Director of CITAB, accused the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, led by Dr. Betta Edu, of neglecting the rights of visually impaired Nigerians.
He described the government’s refusal to reopen the Farmcraft Centre as a violation of Section 5(1) of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, which guarantees the right to education and vocational training for disabled Nigerians.
“I ask this openly: would the government tolerate any other federal school staying closed this long without immediate response? Picture a federal university in Nigeria that has been shut for a full year. There would be headlines, emergency measures, and nationwide uproar. Yet when it concerns people living with disabilities, that same urgency disappears,” Fenemigho said.
“The government’s refusal to reopen the Farmcraft Centre is more than just negligence; it’s a violation of the law, flagrantly violating Section 5(1) of the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018,” Fenemigho added.
He also referenced Section 24 of the Act, which requires government agencies to promote inclusion, saying the Ministry has ignored its responsibilities.
Fenemigho criticized the mixed signals from the government regarding disabled persons.
“Blind Nigerians are told to stop begging and acquire skills, yet the Ministry keeps the doors locked where they are supposed to learn those skills,” he said.
The CITAB executive director called on the National Assembly and the House Committee on Disability Matters to hold Dr. Betta Edu and her Ministry accountable.
“It’s time to call Dr. Betta Edu and her Ministry to account and remind them that the law isn’t optional. Sections 5 and 24 are clear – open the doors and stop playing with people’s futures,” Fenemigho said.
He urged the government to immediately reopen the facility and comply with existing disability rights legislation.
Over 500 persons with disabilities on Monday shut down the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos, demanding the immediate reopening of the school, which has been closed for nearly two years without explanation.
The protesters, carrying placards and a large banner reading “Farmcraft Centre for the Blind,” blockaded major access roads leading to the airport, bringing vehicular movement to a standstill and causing gridlock that stretched for kilometres.
The crowd included individuals using wheelchairs, crutches, and white canes, as well as visually impaired protesters guided by their peers, with more participants reportedly arriving from across Lagos to join the demonstration.
They said their action was aimed at drawing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s attention to the plight of disabled students whose education has been on hold since the unexplained closure of the school in Isheri, Lagos.
The Nigerian Farmcraft Centre for the Blind, which falls under the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, has remained closed despite being the primary federal institution providing vocational training for visually impaired Nigerians.
The closure has left hundreds of visually impaired students without access to specialised education and skills training programs designed to make them self-reliant and economically independent.