A human rights organisation under the aegis of Nigerian League of Women Voters, on Wednesday, protested against the marginalisation of women in the political space for the 2023 elections, describing it as antithetical to global best practices.
The NILOWV also called on the Independent National Electoral Commission to “resist pressure from politicians who are opposed to the deployment of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System for the 2023 elections.”
While demanding that political parties should end disregarding women in the political arena, the organisation said they should create space for women in the 2023 election.
The President of NILOWV, Esther Uduehi, raised the concern in Abuja saying, “our voices are equal at the ballot box.”
According to her, Nigeria’s political space has been male-dominated, despite the fact that the women constitute a large chunk of the voting population.
She said, “As Nigeria prepares for the 2023 general election, we are aware that in line with INEC timetable, campaigns have started in full gear, and the atmosphere is charged.
“It is no news that Nigeria’s political space has been male-dominated despite the fact that women constitute a large chunk of the voting population. As of the last official release by INEC, women constituted over 40 per cent of the about 84 million voters on the register.
“However, women remained severely under-represented in key fields, especially in politics and this has manifested in the form of institutionalised discrimination, disenfranchisement and outright marginalisation within the Nigerian polity.
“The League of Women Voters of Nigeria frowns on the marginalisation of women in the political space and is, therefore, imploring political parties to deliberately create space for women in their parties as well as on the political parties’ campaign councils.
“We strongly condemn the present practice of the ‘handout system’ employed by almost all the political parties and political office holders, and so, we demand that women are given all the support they need to participate and win elections. We equally demand affirmative action; that is how we define ‘gender equity’.
“The NILOWV calls on political parties, political office holders, and candidates for the 2023 general election to include women as agents of change to actualise the 35 per cent affirmative action in critical roles in the campaigns, in policy document preparation, strategy sessions, and other critical aspects of the electoral process. We demand a fair space for our women.”
Uduehi enjoined actors in the political space to respect the agreement signed at the peace accord and maintain violence-free campaigns.
“As the campaign progresses, we expect a violence-free campaign, devoid of hate speech, and call on the actors to respect the letters of the peace accord signed a few weeks ago,” she said.
She said the NILOWV was looking forward to candidates addressing issues such as gender and inclusiveness, thereby making a clear path for women to be included in their government if elected.
Uduehi emphasised that candidates should make clear commitment to revisit and pass into law the Gender Responsive Bills, which has suffered several setbacks in the National Assembly.
While stressing the need for women empowerment, the President of the NILOWV said there should be well-thought out programmes to empower women to play their role in the overall development of the country.
