Buhari appoints visually challenged man as special assistant

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed a visually impaired veterinary doctor, Samuel Inalegwu Ode Ankeli as his Senior Special Assistant, with responsibility for handling matters concerning persons living with disability.

Mr. Ankeli headed the Directorate of Persons With Disability at the Buhari/Osinbajo APC presidential campaign headquarters, the first of any such department in a political party in Nigeria.

“He led a team that successfully mobilized a large number of the more that 24 million disabled persons in the country to support the APC candidate and his running mate in the 2015 presidential election campaign,” a statement by presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, said.

Mr. Ankeli hails from Benue State. He went to school in Giwa, near Zaria and Kaduna before reading veterinary medicine at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

He worked with the Benue State government before quitting to give time to his activist role in the promotion of the wellbeing of the blind and people with all kinds of disability.

He leads a very active religious and sporting life. He is married, with children.