As the 2027 election nears, both national and state assembly members have been urged to fulfil their promises to guarantee reserved seats for women in parliament.

The President Women in Politics Forum (WIPF), Barr. Ebere Ifendu, who spoke on Saturday during the summit organised by the Strengthening Her Aspiration for Political Engagement (SHAPE) project held in Abuja, called on political elites to ensure women’s inclusion in the governance of the country.

Expressing concern over the alarming level of women’s representation in the legislative arms at both the national and state levels, she also urged the electorate to pressure politicians, regardless of their political affiliations, to achieve this goal.

She remarked that it is embarrassing that Nigeria, despite wearing the toga of the “Giant of Africa,” has been left far behind countries like Rwanda, Somalia, and Kenya regarding representation and inclusion of women in governance and the decision-making process of the country.

Speaking on the theme: “Attaining 35 per cent Affirmative Action Towards Strengthening Women’s Agency for political leadership” at the summit, she remarked: “This is the right time to walk the talk. Don’t tell us you are endorsing the special seat bill. And on the day of voting, you will not get the bill passed. So we are going to hold every politician accountable. It’s not just the political party. Individual politicians will be held accountable if they fail to pass this bill. Thank you.”

“So you see, it is better for Nigeria as a country to begin to work towards affirmative action, to work towards supporting and voting for the special seat. I am aware that some of the parties here have their members in parliament. It is an important thing for all of you politicians here to reach out to your members. And if you are young girls, please, you have a strength that you can use. That strength is, reach out to your parliamentarians, their legislators, because we don’t have a parliamentary system. Reach out to your legislator and ask your legislator to support your cause.

“I am assuring you that when the special seat will get passed, the young girls are going to be most of the beneficiaries. Because the older women, I keep telling them, you have the strength to contest. Go and contest the other seats. And let’s use the special seat to push up the older women.”

The National Publicity Secretary of the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC), Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, who recalled the leadership roles played by women in the mould of Queen Amina of Zaria, criticised those who blame the patriarchal nature of Nigerian society for the low level of women’s inclusion in governance.

Referring to patriarchally inclined countries like Senegal and Gambia, where women have fared better in politics than Nigeria, he insists that the problems women face in the country are inherently structural in nature.

Identifying money as a significant barrier to women’s participation in politics, he urged women to persevere and maintain their interest in engaging in the electoral process until they achieve their aims.

“If you understand politics as a highway to gaining power and control over other people, then it is difficult for you to conceive of a woman having that power of control. So, it’s what we use politics for that matters. If you understand politics as something we use for the service of society and for the development of our country, then it is easier for us to look for people who will get the job done.

“But if you focus on the privileges and the benefits and the bias, who gets what in terms of what we are sharing, then why should I allow anybody in? So, if we haven’t gone back to our understanding of politics, and what do we think politics should be useful for? Unless we engage in this fundamental reinterpretation of politics, then we’ll continue to have this kind of conversation till the end of time.”