As Nigerians prepare to elect new federal and state leaders in 2023, female governorship candidates of various political parties have assured Nigerians that, if elected, they will perform better than their male counterparts.
On Monday in Abuja, Women Radio, with the help of the United Nations (UN) Women and the Canadian Government, hosted a consultative media conference at which they made the pledge.
The female politicians spoke as the UN Women Country Representative for Nigeria, Beatrice Eyong, noted that while the proportion of women in parliament has doubled globally to 26,4% since 1995, this has not been the case for Nigeria, where women’s political representation has been on a downward trajectory from 1999 to the present.
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According to the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Abia State, Gladys Johnson-Ogbuneke, the residents of her state have suffered for the past 31 years, and she would prioritize education and security if elected.
She explained that poor administration was the cause of the ENDSARS protest that swept the nation in 2020, stating, “I watched with much sadness about the protests and movements in 2020. And I heard the stories about what goes on about police brutality in Nigeria. But I was very proud of the Nigerian youths. I was very encouraged that they’ve come of age, and that they could now boldly ask questions, so that got me into organizing Zoom meetings with a group of them. And I found myself getting into civil talks and getting into civil political matters.
She explained that poor administration was the cause of the ENDSARS protest that swept the nation in 2020, stating, “I watched with much sadness about the protests and movements in 2020. And I heard the stories about what goes on about police brutality in Nigeria. But I was very proud of the Nigerian youths. I was very encouraged that they’d come of age, and that they could now boldly ask questions, so that got me into organizing Zoom meetings with a group of them. And I found myself getting into civil talks and getting into civil political matters. “Then I was also encouraged by them to come in and do something. We know in Nigeria, even though there is a democracy, we don’t have any government that looks at homelessness, education, and any other social needs of the people. I plan to transform Abia State into a modern state. For 31 years, the best done by the people there is enough.
“I am going to make sure that our schools are digitized. Abia State actually looks like a glorified village. When you go to Umuhai, there is nothing that anybody can copy. I promise to develop the state and do my best.”
In a similar vein, khadijat Abdullahi, the governorship candidate for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the state of Niger, stated that despite the fact that the state in the country’s north-central region has the most land area, the administration has failed to use its potential.
“I will engage in the industrial revolution. Niger State has generated a total of about seven trillion Internally Generated revenue and that even goes to payment of workers. I am worried that there has to be a state of emergency on water. We have four hydro electric power systems and at a time, we have powered the whole country before and we can still do that”, she said urging women to leave the comfort zone so as to change the current situation..
Also speaking, the governorship candidate of Action People’s Party, Delta, Anabel Cosmos, stressed the need for women to change the narrative.
She said, “Women are suffering, our educational sector is suffering. With the little appointment that was given to me in Delta after I contested the governorship election in 2019, I was able to carry out some empowerment programmes in all senatorial districts. But I have decided to change. What we need is money. Let us support ourselves. Women don’t support one another. Enough of letting ourselves down in the public. We are managers in our home so we can manage our different States. I am here to challenge the men that I am going to do it better”, Cosmos said.
Evang. Dr. Ebiti Ndok-Jegede, the presidential candidate of the Allied People Movement, believes that her party will reconstruct the nation if elected.
While acknowledging the need to revitalize dormant businesses, she asserted that Nigeria could only advance if its populace adopted a new perspective on government.
She stated, “Every local government can’t be industrialised in isolation, thereby creating jobs. We can reconstruct Nigeria in very many ways by one restructuring the economy of this nation. Inflation is high presently. Nigeria is a rich nation but see where we are today. What I want to tell you today is that Nigeria actually does need more than another has arrived in this nation to restore all the rights of the people in this country.
She stated, “Every local government can’t be industrialised in isolation, thereby creating jobs. We can reconstruct Nigeria in very many ways by one restructuring the economy of this nation. Inflation is high presently. Nigeria is a rich nation but see where we are today. What I want to tell you today is that Nigeria actually does need more than another has arrived in this nation to restore all the rights of the people in this country. “So I’ve mentioned to you restoration, reviving, reconstructing, restructuring, we need to revolutionise the mentality of Nigerians. You need to begin to think positively that only the best is good for you as a Nigerian and we all have to work today.
In her remarks, the UN Women Country Representative for Nigeria, Beatrice Eyong, stated that women hold only 3.8% of legislative seats at the national and state levels and that no woman has ever been elected as governor in the history of Nigerian elections.
She stated, “Everyone suffers from the under-representation of women and their organizations. Participation of women and girls in decision-making is needed for policies and budgets to effectively meet everyone’s needs and achieve crisis prevention, response, and recovery. When more women participate in public life and policymaking, greater emphasis and resource allocations point to social policies, environmental priorities and issues like health, education, childcare, infrastructure, ending violence against women and overall quality of life concerns.
“Several factors have militated against women’s effective participation and representation in politics, which you’re all aware of, having lived and experienced these challenges. These include limited funding to run political campaigns Economic disparities between men and women often mean that women cannot compete at the same level as men. For example, the cost of running an election campaign in Nigeria is astronomical and yet women in Nigeria earn 36 per cent less than men according to the World Economic Forum. Women are set back even before they begin.
“Women candidates have unequal access to media platforms to run their campaigns and create visibility for themselves. Candidates use mass media for political advertising and expend vast human and financial resources on planning and executing mass media campaigns, unfortunately most women cannot afford this compared to their male counterparts. In situations where the media covers political activities voluntarily, women candidates are often not considered newsworthy, consequently they are overlooked. In some cases, the media is used to reinforce gender stereotypes, weakening chances of women candidates to be elected.
She expressed the UN’s commitment to “strengthening our partnerships with government actors, the private sector, the media development partners and civil society to advance women’s political leadership in the 2023 elections and beyond.”
