President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed a visually challenged man, Samuel Ankeli his Senior Special Assistant. Ankeli has been saddled with the responsibility of handling issues involving people with disability. His appointment was confirmed by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in a statement.
Ankeli headed the Directorate of Persons with Disability at the Buhari/Osinbajo All Progressives Congress presidential campaign headquarters, the first of any such department in a political party in Nigeria. The Benue state indigene, married with children, also led a team that mobilised more than 24 million persons to support the APC in the presidential campaign. He studied veterinary medicine at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and worked with his state’s government before quitting and focusing on his activist role in promoting the welfare of the blind and people with disabilities.