Female defence minister will bring positive change to security, says rep

Taiwo Oluga, chairperson of the house committee on women in parliament, says a woman should be appointed the defence minister to effectively address security challenges.

According to NAN, Oluga spoke on Monday at a media briefing organised by the European Union in collaboration with the Nigerian Women Trust Fund, in Abuja.

She said female participation in politics remains low in Nigeria despite advocacies conducted by various groups in the country.

Oluga expressed concern over the low number of females who participated in the presidential primary, adding that the development will prevent women from achieving 35 percent affirmative action in elective and appointive positions.

“For the first time in history, let a woman be appointed as minister of defence and you will see the action; you will see a positive change in our security architecture,” she said.

“Going by the number of women, who are currently nominated by various political parties and are vying for elective offices in the forthcoming 2023 general election, there are serious issues of concern as it seems that the figure in the current assembly might worsen if drastic steps are not taken immediately.

“Before the last primary elections, Nigeria ranked amongst the lowest number of women participation in governance in Africa, with about 6.2 percent of national parliamentarians being women.

“The question is, of the less than eight percent of women nominated for elective offices in 2023, how many women would emerge victorious at the general election?

“The point is that even if all these women win their elections, the figure remains very low and a cause for serious concern and action.

“Another question is, is there a taboo barring women from vying for the highest decision-making position in Nigeria, that is, the position of the president of the federal republic of Nigeria?

“This is because, out of all the 18 political parties in Nigeria, only the APM (Allied Peoples Movement) fielded a female presidential candidate.”

Oluga added that no woman was nominated as national assembly candidate in Zamfara, Kano, Taraba, Sokoto, and Yobe states.

“The implication of this is that, even before next year’s elections in Nigeria, it is crystal clear that 13.5 percent of states will not have women in elective offices in their national assembly seats,” she added.

She, however, said the committee, with other development partners, will initiate activities to discourage religious beliefs and cultural practices that hinder women from participating in politics.