By Lanre Oloyede
The National Director, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) Affairs of the City Boy Movement (CBM), Hon. Mohammed Abba Isa, has approved the appointment of Comrade Abdullahi Toungo as the North-East Zonal Coordinator for PWDs Affairs of the movement.
The appointment, according to a statement signed by the Director, Media and Communications Strategy, Mr Lanre Oloyede, recognises Toungo’s years of grassroots leadership, disability rights advocacy, community mobilisation and commitment to promoting inclusion and equal opportunities for persons with disabilities.
The appointment also comes as part of efforts to deepen the representation and participation of persons with disabilities in political and civic activities across the region.
According to the statement, Toungo will work under the Zonal and State Structures already established by the CBM National Headquarters in Abuja, in line with the movement’s existing organisational framework.
Born on January 1, 1986, in Toungo Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Toungo is a disability rights advocate, community leader and inclusion campaigner with considerable experience in grassroots mobilisation and disability advocacy.
He began his primary education at Toungo One Primary School, where he studied between 2000 and 2006, before proceeding to Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Toungo, where he completed his secondary education between 2006 and 2012.
He later attended Adamawa State Polytechnic, Yola, from 2014 to 2017.
Toungo has held several leadership positions within the disability community, particularly in Adamawa State. He served as the pioneer Chairman of the Association of Persons with Physical Disabilities in Toungo Local Government Area and later became a Zonal Chairman.
In 2022, he founded the Tinubu-Shettima North-East Disability Support Group, an initiative aimed at mobilising persons with disabilities and encouraging their participation in governance and democratic processes.
His involvement in political mobilisation continued in 2023 when he became a member of the Presidential Campaign Council under the Persons with Disabilities Movement, contributing to efforts to mobilise persons with disabilities and strengthen their participation in the political process.
He subsequently emerged as Adamawa State Chairman of the National Association of Persons with Physical Disabilities, where he has continued to advocate for the welfare, rights, inclusion and empowerment of persons with disabilities.
As an advocate for equal opportunities, Toungo has consistently called for the effective implementation of policies designed to promote the participation of persons with disabilities in employment, education, political activities and economic empowerment.
A key area of his advocacy has been the implementation of the 5 per cent employment quota for persons with disabilities, with calls for stronger enforcement of policies promoting inclusive employment in public and private institutions.
His appointment as North-East Zonal Coordinator is expected to strengthen the City Boy Movement’s grassroots engagement, mobilisation and representation of persons with disabilities across the six states of the North-East.
In the new position, Toungo is expected to deploy his grassroots network and experience to promote greater inclusion, participation, mobilisation and empowerment of persons with disabilities within the structure of the movement.
The City Boy Movement congratulated Toungo on his appointment and expressed confidence that his experience and grassroots connections would contribute to advancing the interests of persons with disabilities within the movement.
The movement wished him a successful tenure as North-East Zonal Coordinator for PWDs Affairs.
