In a significant effort to promote gender inclusion in governance, more Nigerians are supporting the seat reservation bill for women in parliament, urging the National Assembly (NASS) to pass it expeditiously.
Experts, gender advocates and citizens made the demand during a radio programme, _Public Conscience_ , produced by the Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development (PRIMORG), on Wednesday in Abuja.
On 9 July 2024, the House of Representatives passed the Constitution Alteration Bill to provide Special Seats for Women in the National Assembly for a second reading. The bill proposes the creation of 74 seats in the Senate and House of Representatives to be contested by women only.
During the programme, a development consultant and governance expert, Agianpe Onyema called for the passage of a special seat bill for women in the two chambers of the Assembly to be a priority while noting that the buy-in of the Federal Executive Council is crucial.
Onyema described reserved seats for women in parliament as a good measure to bring more women into governance, adding that beyond handing out seats to women, deliberate steps should be taken to create level playing fields for women to hold positions in political parties and appointive positions.
She identified support from male politicians as vital to women’s inclusion and knocked past and present administrations for failing to implement 35 percent affirmative action.
Onyema lamented: ‘It is embarrassing that the Nigerian government has been unable to implement 35 percent affirmative action over the years.
‘We need the executives’ buy-in for the bill for special seats for women in the parliament to come to a realisation. Let this bill be a priority area for the 10th Assembly, and the president needs to support it.
‘We can’t lose hope. The unique seat bill is one of those temporary measures to correct gender imbalances, and it has been done in so many other countries and organisations – these are used in bringing in gender quotas. If you are making decisions for everybody, you need everybody on board. When it comes to social issues, women are more inclined. We need to be deliberate.
‘It’s pretty embarrassing for Nigeria given the level of women underrepresentation. Nigeria means a lot to Africa but is still lagging in women’s inclusion; even Ghana passed the Affirmation Act last year. Everybody agrees that we must do something for women to enter political leadership’.
She called for continuous awareness of the need for women’s involvement in politics, regretting the gender bills stepped down by the ninth Assembly before the 2023 general elections.
‘The gender bills that failed were not only about special seats; one of them was to include more women in political party administration. I think that needs to come back. And another one on appointive positions, which means 30 percent of women appointed were to be put across the board’, she stated.
Similarly, the Assistant Secretary of the Nigerian Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Laraba Murey urged the 10th National Assembly and the executives to focus on efforts that will include more women in governance.
Murey voiced concerns at the pace of the lawmakers working on the reintroduced bill for special legislative seats for women, tasking lawmakers to expedite action before the next general elections.
She called on women not to relent in demanding more inclusion, as well as use the 2027 general elections to express their discontent during polls if the present-day leaders fail to pass the bill for reserved seats for women in the parliament.
The NAWOJ officer said: ‘Speaking from the point of a woman, I’m worried about the slow pace of the bill for special seats for women in the parliament. 2027 elections are around the corner, and the men are already geared up, even though the women are creating forums to create awareness at the ward level.
‘In politics, women are trying to compliment the men. If we are allowed to come to the table, we will do better and administer empowerments that cater to the roots of women, and it will go down to the grassroots.
‘Sometimes cultural norms are the challenge. What we can do is to speak up continually. If the woman wants to come out for a position, she has to do double. She is expected to stay in late-night meetings till the end. In politics, she has to do more’.
Murey called for more education of citizens on the importance of inclusive governance in the country, urging that such sensitive subjects should be included in the nation’s education curriculum to change the orientation of the younger generation.
‘We need more education. So, can inclusive governance be included in school curriculums? Can we do something more relatable to Nigerians? Can we still get the buy-in of the men and the leaders at the local government level?’ she asked.
Some Abuja residents, who called into the programme, supported the bill to create special seats for women in Nigeria’s parliament.
Ken from Kado, Abuja, said: ‘Our women should be allowed to contribute. A woman with opportunity seems to have superpowers above others. Women should not suppress others when they have opportunity’.
Yakubu from Airport Road, Abuja, said: ‘I support women in positions. If women are in the position, they can do a lot. But the problem is that women in power don’t love themselves’.
Nathan from Wuse, Abuja, said: ‘In the words of President (Bola) Tinubu, power is not given a la carte. Were the men who have seats given special seats? Women should come together by themselves, raise a common voice, and put certain people in certain positions rather than being handed special seats’.
_Public Conscience_ is a syndicated weekly anti-corruption radio programme of PRIMORG, which draws the government’s and citizens’ attention to corruption and integrity issues in Nigeria.
It runs in partnership with the MacArthur Foundation.
