2024 POLLS: ONDO WOMEN GROUPS WANT DEPUTY GOV SLOT IN PARTIES
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In advance of the state’s governorship election on November 16, women’s organizations in Ondo State have canvassed for deputy governor positions in the major political parties.
Since no woman has run for governor of the state, women’s organizations such as the National Council of Women Society, market women groups, and Women in Politics have argued that a woman should be the next deputy governor of the state.
The convener, Mrs. Adebimpe Adeniyi, bemoaned the marginalization of women in political positions in the nation in a communiqué read following the inaugural gathering of women’s groups under the title “Agitation for Gender Balance and Inclusiveness in Governance.”
Adeniyi, expressed regret that despite the immeasurable contributions of women to the restoration of democracy and national growth and development, Nigerian women have been relegated and reduced to the back seats in both elective and appointed positions.
The communique reads “Since 1999, when Nigeria transitioned from military rule to democratic governance, women have yet to occupy up to 15 percent of elective positions in a country where the voting population of women is equal to, if not more than, men.
“Not only has no woman been elected president, none has been elected vice president or governor in Nigeria in the 33 years of democratic rule.
“The only woman who became governor of Anambra state, after the then-governor Peter Obi was impeached, was Etiaba.
“However, her tenure lasted for only three months before she returned to being the deputy governor because the former governor, Obi, was reinstated.”
However, Adeniyi stated that in several Nigerian states, particularly those in the Southwest geopolitical zone, women have been nominated and elected as deputy governors.
She claimed that the only state where there isn’t a chance for a female deputy governor is Ondo, which takes pleasure in being the intellectual hub of the area.
The women group therefore, demanded “A complete and total abandonment of all forms of discrimination – cultural, religious, and traditional – against the girl child in Ondo state.”
“More gender-sensitive and all-inclusive government policies and programmes across all sectors.
Full implementation of all gender balance-related legislation, including the National Gender Policy – Affirmative Action, by allotting 35 percent of appointments in the public sector to women.”
The women group also demanded for a “Free and quality healthcare services for pregnant women and children under age zero to six years and nomination of women as deputy governorship candidates of all the participating political parties in the 2024 Governorship Election of Ondo state.”
They requested that the State Ministry of Women Affairs have a larger budgetary allocation.
According to Adeniyi, the agitation and rightful demand—specifically, the nomination of women as candidates for deputy governorship by all involved political parties—would not stop until all political parties in the state agreed to it and complied with it.
As the state gets ready for the upcoming governorship race, they argue that restricting women to the “other room” is incongruous and unacceptable to them.
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