The First Lady, Aisha Buhari and Wife of the Vice President, Dolapo Osinbajo, on Thursday, in Abuja called on the National Assembly to review its decision on women-related bills.
During the plenary session on Tuesday, a bill seeking to give at least ten slots to women as ministers and commissioners in the federal and state governments failed at the upper legislative chamber.
Out of the 88 senators who registered to vote, 44 voted yes, 43 voted no, and one abstained. The bill meant to guarantee the inclusivity of women in governance failed, as it could not garner the required 73 votes to pass.
Nigerian Women under various groups stormed the National Assembly gate, on Wednesday, to express their anger over the rejection. They included women from the United Nations Population Fund, Association of Women in the Arts, Federation of Muslim Women Association, Women Organisation for Change in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management, Women In Business, Yiaga Africa, the Islamic Youth League, Action Aid, amongst others.
Their agitation was that the National Assembly declined citizenship to the foreign-born husband of a Nigerian woman, while a Nigerian man’s foreign-born wife gets automatic citizenship; denied Nigerians in the diaspora voting rights; denied women the ability to take indigeneship of their husband’s state after five years of marriage; denied 35 per cent appointed positions for women; denied women 35 per cent affirmative action in party administration and leadership, and rejected specific seats for women in the National Assembly.
Reacting to the development in Abuja, on Thursday, the First Lady said, “The recent decision by the National Assembly to ignore the long-standing clamour for Affirmative Action for Nigerian women was contrary to the very high expectations of forward-looking Nigerian men and women.
“The anger of Nigerians in the circumstance is, therefore, understandable, more so that not a single concession was made to women, contrary to the global practice of give-and-take for which people’s parliaments are noted.
“Notwithstanding this temporary setback, however, I, on behalf of the wife of the Vice President, HE Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, join the multitude of Nigerian men and women to thank relevant UN agencies, local and international Non-governmental organisations, faith-based groups, and all other stakeholders and individuals for their charitable support for fair representation of women in legislative houses, public governance, and management of political parties.”
She called on the Senate and House of Representatives to reverse their conclusions on Tuesday’s vote, saying, “I am of the opinion that our esteemed National Assembly can still review its decision and pray that our compatriots will deeply reflect on this political, but emotive matter.
“I call on both the Senate and the House of Representatives as husbands, fathers, brothers and grandfathers to revise and reconsider reversing their conclusions so that no group, especially mothers, wives, daughters, and partners who women are, would suffer discrimination, or be denied of opportunities to contribute to the process of nation-building.”
Meanwhile, the Senate has stated that there is no going back on the gender bills that members voted on and rejected in the ongoing amendments to the 1999 Constitution.
The Senate spokesman, Senator Ajibola Basiru, said this during an interview with The PUNCH on Wednesday while reacting to the protests embarked on by women groups, which affected activities in some parts of Abuja.
While noting that it was the right of the women to protest, as they did at the main gate of the National Assembly on Wednesday, he stated that it could not reverse itself on the decisions taken on the affected bills.
Basiru said, “They are free to protest; it is part of their democratic right to protest.”
Asked if a gender bill could be revisited, he said, “It cannot! There were 68 bills, 21 of which could not pass, so why should we revisit three. They should continue lobbying and strategise ahead of another round of legislative amendments.
“To protest is a right of everybody. That it was rejected at this time does not mean it has been foreclosed. Then, they need to even come up with practical and implementable propositions.”
