There has been a rise in the number of women holding leadership positions within party structures in Ekiti and Osun states thereby giving them a stronger voice in determining the choice of candidates. In Ekiti state, the number of women grew 407 representing 4.9 percent to 949 or 11.2 percent out of a total of
There has been a rise in the number of women holding leadership positions within party structures in Ekiti and Osun states thereby giving them a stronger voice in determining the choice of candidates.
In Ekiti state, the number of women grew 407 representing 4.9 percent to 949 or 11.2 percent out of a total of 8,409 positions between 2013 and 2015. In Osun state, the number of women rose 533 or just 2 percent to 2,173 or 8.3 percent of 25,985 such positions from the wards to the Local Governments and state executive councils. The survey covers three major political parties—All Progressive Congress (APC), Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP).
In fact, there was a general increase in the number of women contestants for party positions in all the parties showing greater awareness and more willingness by women to participate in party politics.
Data sourced from the women political leaders showed that a total of 1,244 women delegates participated in party congresses for the 2015 Elections in Ekiti state. In some of the parties, it is constitutional that one out three delegates elected at the ward level must be a woman. In fact, at the local government level, a woman contested and won a chairmanship position in Ekiti state.
Before the 2015 general elections, Ekiti had 28 women in political offices out of 168 elected and appointed public officers. This number jumped to 49 women in 2015. Previously, Ekiti had no women representatives at the Senate level but can now boast of 2 women senators out of 3 senators in the state. Osun also has a female deputy governor and several women holding appointments but has none elected into House of Assembly, one elected in the House of Representatives but none in the Senate. Before now, Osun had produced the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the person of Mrs Patricia Etteh.
During the 2015 Elections, 36 women from both states contested for National Legislative offices: 11 women out of 42 candidates ran for the Senate while 25 women out of 92 candidates ran for the Federal House of Representatives. A total of 109 women also contested for the State Houses of Assembly Elections in Ekiti and Osun States.
Women politicians drawn from the three dominant parties in Ekiti and Osun states have also called for greater intra party democracy to facilitate more participation of women. Rising from a one-day gathering in Ado Ekiti under the aegis of Community Life Project (CLP) and geared towards increasing women’s representation in political offices, they demanded for more representation both at the level of government and the party structure.
Although they noted that there has been more women representation since they started their push in 2013 and that “party leaders have become less hostile” to their angling, the politicians drawn from the All Progressive Congress (APC), People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP), say women need to “persevere and push harder in order to increase their reach”.
The gathering also called for more collaboration and advocacy by women to ensure the passage of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill initiated by Senator Biodun Olujimi, a former deputy governor, Ekiti state. The Bill which had earlier been rejected at the Senate, we gathered may soon be represented. The Bill, aims at eliminating all forms of discrimination against women and provides the girl-child access to education, right to freedom and right against sexual abuse.
It will also promote freedom for women to participate in any economic activity as well as guarantee equal opportunity for all Nigerian citizens irrespective of gender
Mrs Cecilia Ebiesowa, PDP woman leader in Ekiti state says, “When we started, it was like some child’s play. In 2011, the political terrain was dirty, rough and nasty but today, we bless God, we’ve been fortunate and lucky. “In our state, we now have many female councillors, one woman local government chairman and two women senators. We’ve never had it so good. We are grateful to the Almighty God for what we’ve done. That affirmative action of 35 percent representation is our target, we’ll soon get there”, she says.
Speaking in the same vein, Alhaja Bola Olayiwola, Labour Party woman leader, Ekiti state says, “To God be the glory, we now have women everywhere, we’ll continue to push for more”. This view is shared by Mrs Mary Anjorin former PDP woman leader, Osun state, who said that in the past, “we had only woman leader but today we have women everywhere”. According to her, “We hope we’ll have more representation by this year. By the time we start our congresses, things will be better”.
Mrs Omowunmi Otunla, current Osun state PDP woman leader, says, “We need your prayers in Osun state. Women in politics have been interacting and we’ll definitely make significant mark”. Their minds now seem to focus on Osun State House of Assembly, where there’s currently no woman member. “How can we not be represented in a vital organ that make laws that govern our lives?”, she queries.
Alhaja Agbeke Kudirat Nofiu, deputy chairman LP in Osun state says, “We just have to keep pushing if we want results. We cannot give up our struggle”. Mrs Anrike Samuel, one of the special assistants appointed by the APC government of Governor Rauf Aregbesola in Osun state says, “I’m a living witness as SA, we thank God for the life of the organisers of this programme”.
While appraising the achievements in Ekiti, Dr Romoke Edu Ogunlana, Labour Party deputy chairman, (west), Osun state says, “I’m so happy for the testimonies in Ekiti. We ask for the grace of God also in Osun. We’ll persevere and keep pushing”. Ogunlana also want women to be economically empowered for them to make significant impact in politics.
Alluding to the calibre of women who were elected senators in Ekiti, she says, “The calibre of women senators in Ekiti are not people anyone can push around. Economic force is therefore very important. We have to get women economically empowered”. She also called for legal support for women who are harassed and molested in the cause of electioneering.
Narrating her awry ordeal when she ran for Senate in 2015, Ogunlana says, “When I contested in 2015, I was molested and harassed, my car was burnt. I took the matter to court but when it was time to give judgment, a nolle prosequi was entered by the Attorney General and that was the end of the matter”.
But Mrs Folashade Faparusi Akinrinmola, chairman, Gbonyin LG in Ekiti state does not believe the strides achieved in Ekiti is as a result of “women supporting women or that we have done the needful” but more because “we have a woman friendly governor”.
“We really need to go and educate women at the grassroots if we are serious about increasing women representation. Let’s go to the grassroots, it’s not going to be easy with those men”, she says
Ahead of the 2015 elections, Community Life Project (CLP) started a two-year project in 2013 that was aimed at increasing the participation of women in party politics in Ekiti and Osun States.
The objective was also to build a coalition and pressure group of women politicians across party lines and to advocate for affirmative action for women to be better represented in party leadership positions, party congresses and elections
The review of the project at the end shows a tremendous achievement and improvement in women participation in politics in both states. Feedback gathered from the State women leaders of three of the major political parties (All Progressive Congress (APC), Labour Party (LP) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP)) indicate that more space was created for women.
