Visually-impaired applicants allege exclusion from Lagos employment

Job applicants with visual impairment have decried alleged exclusion from the recruitment by the local government civil service commission in Lagos State.

The applicants, under the state chapter of the Nigeria Association of the Blind (NAB), explained that they sat and passed aptitude tests and were scheduled for screening in October 2025, but were asked to go home on the screening day.

The protesters in a letter signed by the NAB Secretary, Isaiah Daniel, and Chairperson, Skill Acquisition and Employment Committee, Oluwakemi Odusanya, said the Local Government Civil Service Commission promised to contact them, but they had not heard from it since then.

The letter read in part, “The Nigeria Association of the Blind writes with deep pain, and a profound sense of disappointment over the continued neglect and deliberate sidelining of qualified persons with visual impairment in the ongoing Local Government Civil Service recruitment process in Lagos State. Since October 2025, several applicants with visual impairment have participated fully in this recruitment exercise.

“These applicants successfully completed the online aptitude tests, met requirements, and WERE scheduled for the initial screening stage —proving, beyond doubt, their competence, and capacity. However, on the very day scheduled for their physical screening, these applicants were turned back, instructed to ‘go home,’ and assured they would be contacted later. Months have passed. No calls. No emails. No explanations. Only silence.”

The group said they had visited the commission several times, only to be told that the “the Permanent Secretary is not on seat.”

“This explanation has now become a painful refrain—one that deepens anxiety, erodes dignity, and communicates clearly that the lives and futures of blind applicants do not matter to the Local Government Civil Service Commission despite the concerted efforts being put in place by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to ensure an inclusive Lagos society where there is fair and equal opportunity for persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the state.

“As far back as July 2025, a formal letter was written through the Lagos State Office for Disability Affairs (LASODA), to the permanent Secretary, local government civil service commission, presenting the details of candidates with disabilities who underwent the test and seeking the attention of the P.S on the matter. The letter was duly received and signed, yet, no action was made till date,” it added.

They lamented that qualified blind applicants continue to roam the streets unemployed, burdened by uncertainty, economic hardship, and emotional trauma not because they lack merit, but on account of visual impairment.

The association maintained that the alleged exclusion violates the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, which prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of disability, mandates equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation in recruitment and placement.

“It also violates the Lagos State Special Peoples Law, 2011, which guarantees equal rights to employment for persons with disabilities, protection against systemic exclusion within state institutions; the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), ratified by Nigeria, which affirms the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others and the obligation of governments to promote inclusive public-sector employment

“How long must competence wait because of disability? How long must blind citizens beg for rights already guaranteed by law?” It queried.

The body appealed to the state Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to use his good offices to prevail on the commission to review “its discriminatory disposition” to blind applicants in the state and give immediate employment to all qualified applicants with visual impairment who participated in the recruitment process.

“As earlier stated, we are aware of the efforts being put in place by the governor to ensure an inclusive Lagos society. However, the ongoing exclusion of blind persons by the civil service commission, if not urgently addressed and blind applicants in the state given their fair share in the employment process, would be a huge drawback on the success of those efforts.

“In the spirit of fairness and equity, we appeal to the governor to step in and ensure that the civil service commission does the needful and give these blind applicants their fair share of the employment quota. This is an appeal for justice, dignity, and lawful inclusion. Persons with visual impairment are not asking for shortcuts. We are asking for fairness. We are asking to work, contribute, and live with dignity,” NAB stated.

The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, claimed that persons living with disabilities, including visually-impaired applicants, had been employed by the commission, saying more candidates would be contacted.

He, however, cautioned that not “everybody can be employed.”

But the affected applicants faulted the commissioner’s claim, insisting the commission had not recruited any of them.

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