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Nigerians have, since colonial times, expressed sentiments on the role of a woman. Backed by cultural and religious hammering that the man is the head of any home, a woman coming out for office is seen as upsetting the traditional or preexisting norm.
As President Muhammed Buhari described in 2016, “I don’t know which party my wife belongs to, but she belongs to my kitchen and my living room and the other room”.
Yet, since 2015 when Professor Yeni Sonaiya, the second woman to run for the office of the president, openly came out, Nigerians have gradually warmed up to the notion of a woman playing an important role in guiding and directing the Nigerian ship. With five female candidates vying for this position in 2019, her bold move has been appraised as a ground-breaking step.
Women In Politics. Photo: Voice of Nigeria
However, obstacles still remain.
Some aspirants interviewed in the forthcoming Guardian Life cover have expressed their opinions on why grappling the ship might be met with grand opposition.
Asides this, not all members of the public are fully accepting and seem to be quick to question the activities of women who have been giving the opportunity to head several political offices in the past.
With political parties such as the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) making the presidential ticket free for women and government as well as INEC’s unseriousness to seeing to it that the policies of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) 1979 are adhered to, we question if Nigeria is ready to accept a female president.
Catch up as the Guardian Life magazine address extensively on Sunday, the worth of Nigerian women in politics. You can pick up a copy of the magazine in the Guardian Newspaper this Sunday.
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