NIGERIA: Women Want 35 Percent Affirmative Action Realised

Women stakeholders have called for at least 30 per cent representation of women in power and decision making in the country.

Their position is that, despite the persistent call for the affirmative action to remedy the gender gaps in politics especially in the aftermath of the Beijing world women's conference of 1995, which popularised the recommendation, Nigeria's present political arrangement has significantly excluded female legitimacy.

The submission was made in Lagos by the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children and the Founder of Women Aid Collectives, Barrister (Mrs.) Joy Ezeilo, who delivered the Special Guest Lecture on Women and Politics: Towards 2011 General Elections as part of activities earmarked to mark the recent birthday lecture of Barrister Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi (Women Advocate Research & Documentation Centre) on Pan African Women's Day in Lagos.

She drew the attention of Nigerian women to the fact that the increasing rate of abandonment of political projects of women aspirants and the high outright-failure rate of political campaign projects of women are now a recurrent feature of politics in Nigeria.

She said "the challenge therefore remains, not merely in the absence of normative framework for inclusion of women in power sharing arrangement, which is a factor, but rather in the main, due to lack of political will and institutional mechanisms to operationalise and mainstream gender," according to information provided by Mr. Kunle Idowu of the Nigerian Network of NGOs.

Highlighting the importance of having constitutional and legal framework for political rights of women particularly affirmative action that will be backed up by a legally binding legislation that can be evoked and enforced by women, the UN Rapporteur said, "In the first tenure of Obasanjo administration (1999-2003) women held less than 5 per cent of elective positions at national and state levels."

Examining women's prospects in the 2011 general elections, Mrs. Ezeilo said women's performance in the upcoming general election will depend on a number of variables, some of which are the challenges facing the polity in organising a credible election.

"Women in Nigeria are part and parcel of the political system and whatever happens in that arena, positive or negative, will equally affect them. In fact right now the Electoral Act for the organisation of the election is still before the National Assembly for possible amendment while the voters' registration exercise may be patch-work again instead of compilation of a brand new voters register given the current time constraints.

"What this portends for women is that if the election is rushed it will be fight for the fittest and the better positioned and there will be no time for late entrants, political disadvantaged or for advocates of 35 per cent affirmative action to perfect its operationalisation across party lines."

"Although the forecast is not very bright for significant increase in women's representation and realisation of 35 per cent affirmative action, the opportunities are there nevertheless to be tapped for at least 100 to 200 per cent increase in the current status of elected females. I am looking already beyond 2011 to 2015 which I think will be the dawn for women in politics," she added.