Abia First Lady Distributes Food, Cash to 400 Persons With Disabilities

Mrs Otti pledges quota for PWDs in skill acquisition, says true measure of society is how it treats most vulnerable

UMUAHIA — The wife of the Abia State Governor, Mrs Priscilla Otti, has distributed food items and cash assistance to 400 Persons Living with Disabilities, PWDs, in Abia State under her Safe Tent Care Initiative.

Speaking at the Support for PWDs Food Distribution Programme in Umuahia, Mrs Otti said the intervention was a practical response to the current economic hardship facing vulnerable groups.

The Abia First Lady described the outreach as the beginning of a more frequent intervention from her office.

She noted that although she could not attend the recent women’s August Meeting due to official duties, she was determined to extend the same support given to regular women to women with disabilities.

“The true measure of a society is not how high its strongest can rise, but how faithfully it reaches for those who face the greatest barriers,” Mrs Otti said. “My dear brothers and sisters living with disabilities, you matter, you are seen, and you belong.”

She explained that each verified beneficiary would receive their cash allowance before leaving the venue.

Mrs Otti stressed that the outreach was not an end in itself, but an act of solidarity. She said her office was moving from relief to resilience by ensuring inclusion of PWDs in all empowerment programmes.

“We don’t just believe in handouts. Beyond this, we will ensure that we include people living with disabilities in all our empowerment programs,” she said.

Listing challenges confronting PWDs, including unemployment, medical expenses, limited mobility, stigma and social exclusion, the governor’s wife said her office has maintained direct engagement with the disability community since 2023.

She recalled that in 2024, more than 600 PWDs benefited from a food outreach during the fuel subsidy removal crisis, while in 2025, about 100 entrepreneurs with disabilities received solar power systems through a partnership with Trudu Energy.

Other interventions, she said, include recapitalization grants for small businesses, provision of care materials and mobility aids, and dedicated quotas for PWDs in skills acquisition programmes.

“We just signed an MoU with the National Directorate of Employment to train about 200 women in vocational skills. I will ensure that there is a quota for people living with disability among that group,” she announced.

Mrs Otti also disclosed that Abia will soon launch the National Community Food Bank for the Southeast, an initiative of the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, which was launched in Anambra State on Wednesday to tackle food insecurity among widows, the elderly, nursing mothers, children and PWDs.

She commended Senator Tinubu for her annual interventions for PWDs every December and appreciated the State Ministries of Women Affairs, Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection, and the Abia State Disability Commission for their partnership.

“The Government of His Excellency, Dr. Alex Chioma Otti, believes in an Abia that belongs to everyone, an Abia where opportunity does not discriminate,” she said. “May we continue to build a society in which dignity is protected, opportunity is expanded, and barriers are dismantled.”

Delivering a goodwill message on behalf of the Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection, Mrs. Blessing Ngozi Felix, Mr. Imo Obinna Sebastian said the administration has given PWDs a sense of belonging.

“This initiative is a bold step towards building a more inclusive society where everyone, regardless of ability, has the opportunity to thrive,” he said.

“No government has carried you along like this before. You feel at home. Your voices are heard. You are not nobodies anymore. You are part of this state, you are part of this government.”

He commended the First Lady for her “amazing” and “incredible” commitment to the welfare of PWDs.

On her part, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Dr. Maureen Aghukwa, said the food distribution was beyond palliatives, describing it as an act of compassion, inclusion, and shared humanity.

“Today is not merely about the distribution of food items. It is a demonstration that every citizen matters and that no one should be left behind,” she said.

“Persons with disabilities are valued members of our society with talents, dreams, abilities and enormous contributions to make to the development of our state. Disability should never be a reason for exclusion.”

Dr. Aghukwa commended Mrs. Otti’s Safe Tent Initiative for providing practical support to vulnerable families, noting that food assistance at a time of economic hardship is a meaningful expression of care.

She urged beneficiaries to continue to believe in themselves and take advantage of empowerment opportunities, while calling on families, communities and institutions to support PWDs not only through charity but through education, skills acquisition, employment and entrepreneurship.

“As we distribute these food items, may we remember that the greatest gift we can give one another is compassion expressed through action,” she said.

Earlier, the Chairman, Abia State Disability Commission, David Anyele, said the programme was dedicated to Women with Disabilities as part of the 2026 August Meeting celebration.

Anyaele noted that women with disabilities face double disadvantages — as women and as persons with disabilities — but are making progress in Abia due to deliberate government policies.

He urged beneficiaries to network and identify specific needs that could catapult them to greater heights.