Emeka Ibemere
Roll
out the drums and celebrate! Nigeria’s First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan recently
celebrated 100 years of Nigerian Women in Lagos. She hosted dignitaries at the Convention Centre, Eko
Hotel & Suites in Lagos, which was chaired by Justice
Mariam Aloma Muktar, Chief Justice of Nigeria. Other dignitaries at the event
include the Secretary to the Federal Government, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; the
Minister of Tourism, Chief Edem Duke; and the Minister of Lands and Housing,
Ms. Ama Pepple.
Others were Prof Funke Adebayo, Chief Mrs Toyin
Olakunri, Mrs Priscilla Kuye, Prof. Aigbemi Spiff, Prof. Olabisi Aina and Mrs
Josephine Anenih.
Also present were Princess Ngozi Onu, Onyeka
Onwenu, Hon. Nike Sobanjo, Oluchi Orlandi, Folorunsho Alakija, Rita Dominic and Bola Shagaya.
The conference was
held on Thursday, April 18, 2013 to celebrate the achievements of Nigerian
women. It also served as an avenue to produce the framework of the Nigerian
Country Report on Women. The First Lady charged the National Assembly to pass
into law legislations on affirmative action to empower the Nigerian woman with
30 per cent political participation in the leadership of the country.
The objective of
the celebrations was to reinforce the role of women in nation-building,
reiterate pre-existing calls for action in gender equality and women’s rights,
display through exhibitions, documentaries and presentations on the
contributions of women in arts, sciences, corporate Nigeria, small business,
leadership and development. It also aimed at saluting outstanding women and a
window in the Nigerian centenary calendar for actualising activities dedicated
to women and women activities, and advocate for legislation to support girl-child
education.
Senator Anyim Pius
Anyim, informed participants that one of the objectives of the conference was
to evolve a country report and recommendations on issues concerning women. He
said that the report, which was to be co-ordinated by the Minister of Women
Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Zainab Maina, would be formally presented
to President Goodluck Jonathan at the Centenary grand finale on January 1,
2014.
Dame Patience
Jonathan called on Nigerian women to take advantage of the opportunities
provided by the Government of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to further
improve the lives of Nigerian women for effective national development. While
recalling the accomplishments of some of Nigeria’s illustrious amazons, she
maintained that the emergence of modern Nigeria has taken as much of the sweat
and sacrifices of the Nigerian woman as that of the man.
According to the
First Lady, the sacrifices of Nigerian heroines imposed a duty on women to
uphold the letter and spirit of the national anthem, “which says the labours of
our heroes past shall never be in vain.”
She noted that the
conference had provided a platform for robust deliberations on gender-centric
issues and affirmed that the lesson to take away from the discussions is that
the Nigerian woman is sufficiently patriotic and has both the capacity and the
will to make a difference in the life of the nation.
Meanwhile, irked by the manner the just concluded
Nigerian Women Centenary celebration was organized by the Minister for Women
Affairs and Social Development, a non- governmental organization that seeks the
protection and rights of women in Nigeria has berated the Minister for Women
Affairs over her sloppy selection of women that participated in the fiesta.
Rising from their
annual general conference on Sunday, May 12, 2013 in Lagos, the women under the
aegis of All-States Women Association of Nigeria (ASWAON) took a swipe at Hajia
Zainab Maina, for being selective by excluding grassroots women in the
exercise.
The group frowned
at the wanton neglect of grassroots women in the centenary celebration
organized by the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
According to the
organization, the choice of women in government by the minister negates the
avowed cardinal objectives and desire of the President’s wife in carrying women
along in all her projects.
Barrister Temple
Nnedum, president of ASWAON, accused Hajia Maina of being class conscious in
her duties as a minister as she has neglected rural women in all her policies
and programmes, and that the minister doesn’t regard women’s civil society
organizations in Nigeria.
“We are asking
whether this celebration was for selected women in government only or for all
Nigerian women?”
She stated that the
ASWAON was aware of the fact that the First Lady of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, Patience Jonathan’s desire for every Nigerian woman was to have a
sense of belonging in the Nigerian project and that was why in all her
programmes she never worked without other women in Nigeria, even when she is
surrounded by women in government, she still carry along grassroots women in
the society.
“We are now asking
the Minister for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Hajia Zainab Maina,
to tell Nigerian women whether our First Lady only desired women in government
during the Centenary celebration and not grassroots women and their
representatives,” she said.
Barrister Nnedum
alleged that Hajia Maina marginalized grassroots women in the just concluded
event that was supposed to include grassroots women adding that several
celebrations in Nigeria have included grassroots women and wondered why the
Centenary should be an all women in government affair.
“All States’ Women
Association of Nigeria worldwide, feels that the style the Minister of Women Affairs
and Social Development used in selecting the women that were invited for the
Nigerian Women Centenary celebration was wrong and unfair to rural and
grassroots women and their representatives and called on the First Lady to
caution the Minister in her attempt to marginalize grassroots women on national
issues and anything less than that is injustice against the widows, less
privileged women in the society and the poor.
“We advise that
the minister should look inwards and make the Ministry of Women Affairs and
Social Development a women participatory ministry and not for selected
bourgeois women in government and privileged few. We are all Nigerian women not
foreigners and we owe each other a duty to care for one another. Nigerian women
need caring and not neglect and intimidation. We must work together to bring
that desired change for national unity, peace and love for a strong nation. The
onus lies on every woman not on selected few”, Nnedum advised.
(Ends)
No comments:
Post a Comment