Special sports athletes protested in Lagos and Benin City on Monday at being left out of the upcoming Delta State 2022 National Sports Festival.

The event takes place between November 28 and December 10.

The National Stadium in Surulere was blocked by para-athletes in Lagos, which resulted in traffic congestion on the Ojuelegba-Iponri road. The athletes urged Sunday Dare, the minister of sports, to include them in the yearly celebration by carrying placards with various messages on them.

“We are aware that about seven of our special sports events have been removed from the next sports festival, so we want to draw the attention of those concerned,” said athlete Yemisi Adewole in an interview with The PUNCH.

Deaf sports players, under the direction of coach Sunny Aimufua, held a protest march to the Nigerian Union of Journalists compound in Benin City, the capital of Edo State. They were protesting the ministry’s decision to make deaf sports optional, as opposed to the permanent status they had previously had.

In large numbers, the athletes attacked the NUJ building, holding placards bearing various inscriptions.

Some of the inscriptions include, “The Deaf are human beings, so treat us as one,” “Deaf and hearing people are one,” “No more depriving the deaf of their rights,” and “Minister of Sports should please come to our rescue,” according to the News Agency of Nigeria.

We are here to protest the deaf sports’ exclusion from the upcoming National Sports Festival in Delta in November, stated Aimufua. Furthermore, it is regrettable that participation in the sport is now optional when it shouldn’t be. When you make participation in a sport optional, you cannot talk about development.

“In addition, the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, and Committee of Deaf Sports are the three main sports committees in the globe. The ministry is now favoring the other two while ignoring us.

They claimed that when a sport has no infrastructure, it becomes optional. Since most Nigerian stadiums include tracks utilized by both able-bodied athletes and para-athletes, we must understand that deaf athletics cannot be an optional activity. Therefore, why won’t deaf athletics be allowed?

“The ministry ought to cease engaging in political games with deaf athletes who are distinct individuals; instead, they should be supported.” Several of them are working for the states, and they have received training.

“One of our athletes, Edo Assurance Omoria, is the deaf long jump champion of Africa. How would she advance in her profession if she didn’t take part in the NSF? Because of her performance at the African Championships, Governor Godwin Obaseki upgraded her from level five to level twelve on my advice.

“We want the ministry to make sure that the athletes compete at the NSF in Delta and restore deaf sports to its permanent status,” he continued.

The competitors were aware that the festival was changing into two separate Games, according to Peter Nelson, Director of the National Sports Festival and Para Sports at the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and Sports.

Nelson said, “The Para Sports Festival for Special Athletes has the minister, Sunday Dare,’s approval, so this protest is completely unnecessary, and the second edition will take place next year.”

It was found that several of the athletes from different regions of the nation had already grasped the transition of the sports festival in their individual conversations.

Oluwasola Aiku, the captain of the Ondo State Para-athletes, verified that they had been enrolled by the Ondo State Sports Council for five Para-sports at the National Sports Festival.

“In Ondo State, there isn’t a demonstration going on. I recently completed our festival participation forms, along with a few other athletes. Our registration for Para-athletics, Para-powerlifting, Para-table tennis, Para-swimming, and Para-canoeing has been completed by the state. We are excited for the next Para-sports festival since we recognize that the previous one was primarily a test run, Aiku added.

The Para-sports festival held its first edition in April in Abuja. It is anticipated that the festival will be held every two years after that, starting the following year with its second edition.