Gender bill: Let Justice roll down like waters, by Adeola Alabi Adeleke
The National Assembly has rejected five gender bill seeking to reserve special seats for women at the National and State Houses of Assembly. The recent bill “for an Act to Alter the Provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to Provide for Special Seats for Women at the National and State Houses of Assembly”, and other women-related bills failed to sail through constitutional amendment. This action of the lawmakers is a major setback to the country’s democratic advancement. This is inspite of women advocacy and campaign.
In a country comprising of 50.6 per cent male and 49.4 per cent female, women representation in both chambers is incredibly low. There are only 29 women (about six percent of the total) in both upper and lower house. But why are there few women on the table? Is it because of lack of qualified women or lack of interest in political representation? Why has it been such a struggle for women to be given a rightful position in political representation.An adage states, ‘It is he who wears the shoes that knows where it hurts’. Historically, similar gender equality bill was rejected in 2006 inspite of lobbying and advocacy by women and other civil organisations. The argument raised for the rejection of this bill was cultural and religious. Sixteen years after, another rejection of gender related bill came.
When I reflect on the issue of gender equality and the impact of patriarchy, culture and religion on sustainable development of women in Nigeria, I see the urgent need for our men to rise and fight for the future of their wives and daughters. Also, it is high time women rose and mobilised for women. Women must leave behind petty jealousy and the feeling that it is only us there and no other person should rise. It is time for women to rise and unite. It is time for Nigerian women to say enough is enough. It is time for women to speak with one voice. It is time for women to lift this banner of gender equality together and not be sold out to cheap and short lived aggradisement. And when our calls and yearnings are finally heard, we are ready to hold each other to accountability. This fight is from bottom up. Let women educate themselves from the grassroot why the gender bill has to be approved to the extent that almost every woman becomes a convert.
Why should women in Nigeria be considered for the thirty-five per cent representation that was recommended at the Beijing conference in 1995 and the 2006, 2015 National Policy on Women. May be women need to make a case for themselves again as they have always done, since we have to proof to the men folks why we deserve more seats .
Former head of state, General Ibrahim Babangida said in Abuja in 1989 during the fourth regional conference on integration of women in development and implementation of the Arusha’s strategies for advancing women in Africa, that there are compelling reasons why African women must be integrated in the development process. First is their numerical strength. Secondly, they are the principal primary socialization agents in the society. Consequently, they are heavily involved in the transmission of societal values, culture, norms and beliefs from one generation to another. Thirdly, they are very industrious and enterprising. They are the ‘hewers of wood and fetchers of water; they are the farmhands and astute traders. Fourthly, they are wonderful managers. They care for their children, husbands, relations and still have the time to do house chores and carry out their professional duties. It is very clear that no national development will be meaningful and thorough if women are not fully involved. The development of a nation should be carried out in partnership with the women, and no one gender should be seen as either the senior or junior partner in the relationship.
That being said by a statesman, why should women be offered a seat at the table at both the elective and appointive levels? In a democracy, according to Africa Human Development Report, it is important that every part of the population is equally represented. Having both men and women involved in decision-making broadens the perspectives, increases creativity and innovation, diversifies the pool of talents and competences, reduces conflicts, and improves the process of decision-making. There is greater gain in ensuring that more women are given seats on the political and decision making tables. It is evident women are better able to deal with difficult relationships, inclined towards the prevention and solution of conflicts, readily share views with other people and easily make efforts to reach agreements.
Ensuring women are well represented in decision making has both economic and social social benefits in achieving sustainable goals. Nigeria is endowed with qualified women who are able to take up the mantle when given the opportunity.
Women participation in governance and decision-making in Nigeria will be a thorough channel to recognise people’s diverse needs and consequently influence public policy. Women will understand better the strain and cost of child care, of family care, their needs as farmers and small scale business partners. Equal representation will aid the voice of other women in decision making. Legislative action can help bring more women into decision-making positions.
The rejection of the bill to Provide for Special Seats for Women at the National and State Houses of Assembly is a slap on half the population in the country. For how long will women have to explain why they should be part of the decision- making and political representation in the country. Bringing more women into decision-making positions would enable Nigeria to use all the resources at its disposal and help ensure everybody, regardless of gender, is able to help shape society.
In most African countries, women constitute a greater percentage of the population. In Nigeria women are 49.4 per cent of the population. Women are one of the highest voting population, women in Nigeria are the backbone of voting. However, women are no longer interested in being praise singers and uniform wearers.
In 1961, during the first annual conference of the Western Region Council of Women’s Societies, the Premier, Chief S. L. Akintola, in his opening speech, told women ‘‘to make even as our mothers did in supporting their frightened warriors to succeed in wars by encouraging praise songs for the men’’. In response to the premier’s encouragement of women continuing as praise singers in the region’s politics, the chairman of the organisation demanded that women be allowed to contribute positively to development efforts. Further, she demanded that women should be appointed as education officers, judges, and House of Assemblywomen, not as singers, as only men were appointed at the time to public office, and not as praise singers.
In 2015, writing his foreword to the 2015 Gender policy, President Muhammadu Buhari states: “Twenty years after the Beijing Plan of Action, women in Nigeria are yet to start feeling the impact of promises made by governments at the conference. There is still discrimination against women and girls in public institutions and the private sphere alike. This should not be so. Women and men, girls and boys, should be fully represented in governance and in every sphere of endeavour to enable them to actualise their potentials.” The policy concluded that, despite women constituting about half of the population and accounting for 60 per cent voting population in Nigeria, there were glaring gender gaps in representation in decision-making, accessing and controlling resources, and socio-economic opportunities.
The statistics of women’s representation in decision making and political participation in Africa is revealing. Nigeria is not among the first ten African countries with women representation.The most populous nation in Africa is lagging behind gender equality in political representation. Statistical report shows that the male gender occupied 94.3 per cent of the seats in the national parliament. Moreover, there are only 8.3 per cent of women at the upper house of the assembly; 7.2 per cent at the lower house of assembly, 26.2 per cent representation as judges; 5.6 per cent at the local government level, and 9.8 per cent women councillors. At the state level, only 5 women are deputy governors, and Nigeria is yet to have a female governor in any of the 36 states. It is time for women to rise and unite. It is time for Nigeria women to say enough is enough.
The lack of equal gender representation is a clear indication that women still have a long way to go in the political landscape especially in representation and decision-making. In recent times, advocacy for gender equality has focused on the importance of increasing and improving women’s representation in national and local level elections. Why are there no women on the table of decision making in Nigeria? Affirmative action or the allocation of a quota of elective and appointive positions to women is part of the suggestions in the Beijing conference, hoping that affirmative action would help redress systemic inequities and promote equity and balance. Affirmative action had been introduced in Nigeria much earlier for a different reason. The Federal Government introduced the first formal quota system in 1983, which mandated the Executive Council of all states to ensure that at least one of its members was a woman. All states complied with this directive, and some had more than one female member.
Why will women have to lobby to have what belongs to them. Women have lobbied men for too long to end up accepting crumbs. Let women unite. #womenunite. Let the few women representatives remember to sponsor bills in support of women and the issues they encounter. Let women ensure that when they are in power, they speak for their type not minding the drowning voices. We need more women in power backed by law. Let women believe in themselves. Let women arise to their rights and fight for what they should occupy. Let justice roll down like waters, let the bill be revisited soon.
Let us demand #35 per cent women representation. Nigerian women demand that the gender bills be rescinded.
Adeleke, a retired nurse and educator has a PhD in History and International Studies and passionate about gender issues.
