NILOWV, NAWOJ Launch Advocacy Campaign On Special Seats Bill For Women In NASS

By Edidiong Obot 
UYO
Ahead of next month’s Public Hearing on the Special Seats Bill, which is currently before the National Assembly, the League of Women Voters of Nigeria (NILOWV), in partnership with the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), has commenced a  nationwide advocacy campaign tagged: Her Seat In Parliament And Governance Campaign to raise awareness among Nigerian women and other stakeholders. 
In Akwa Ibom, the delegation, led by NILOWV National President, Irene Awunah-Ikyegh, held strategic meetings on “Advancing Women’s Inclusion and Representation in leadership and Political Processes in Nigeria (AWIRLP), with Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, Fathers of Faith, and other women groups in partnership with the State Chapter of the NAWOJ.
Awunah-Ikyegh said the meeting was aimed at bringing together stakeholders to plan and strategise on promoting women’s representation and leadership in Nigeria’s political landscape, with focus on the Special Seats Bill.
At an advocacy visit to the State Chapter of the National Council of Women’s Societies (NCWS), during its monthly meeting as well as during a meeting with representatives of Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, which took place, Wednesday, at the Women Development Centre, IBB Way, Uyo, the NILOWV President said it became necessary to create awareness on the importance of the Special Seats Bill, which seeks to increase female representation in Nigeria’s legislative chambers through constitutional amendment, to ensure meaning contributions during the public hearing on the Bill.
  According to her, the Special Seats Bill, sponsored by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Benjamin Kalu, proposes the creation of one additional Senate seat and one House of Representatives seat per state – a total of 74 new seats – for four electoral cycles (16 years). These seats will be exclusively contested by women candidates from all the political parties and will not affect existing constituencies or statutory zones.
While explaining further the motivation behind the initiative, Awunah-Ikyegh said, “At the National Assembly, we currently have only 14 women out of 367 members in the House of Representatives and just 3 women out of 109 senators. This glaring gender imbalance affects the formulation of policies, especially those concerning women and children. This bill is designed to correct that.”
She emphasized that the bill is a temporary affirmative action to empower Nigerian women politically and promote inclusive governance, pointing out that after four election cycles, the special seats will be dissolved, reverting the National Assembly to its original composition.
  Furthermore, she hinted that Public hearings on the bill are scheduled to begin in July across the six geopolitical zones, with Akwa Ibom State as venue for the South-South public hearing, and NILOWV is mobilizing women across the country to participate in these hearings, beginning with a town hall meeting in collaboration with the State Ministry of Women Affairs and the Office of the First Lady.
The campaign is supported by the United Nations and executed in partnership with organizations like the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).
Awunah-Ikyegh, therefore, called on women to mobilise, endorse the bill by signing petitions, and engaging in one-on-one advocacy with their state legislators.
“This is a golden opportunity for Nigerian women. If we must change the future of our daughters, the time is now,” she urged.
She highlighted that Nigeria currently ranks 178th globally in terms of women’s representation in parliament, a ranking she said was barely ahead of five countries affected by war or prolonged political instability.
As part of the campaign strategy, NILOWV and partners will conduct State-level town halls and sensitisation events, advocacy meetings with State Houses of Assembly among others.
  Earlier in the day, there was a strategic meeting with Fathers of Faith and the representative of Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN), among others.
The advocacy campaign received the commitment of the stakeholders.
Present at the Akwa Ibom event included NILOWV national secretary, Osuhor-Ngozi Veronica (Esq), and national treasurer, Mrs Obi Nkechi as well as the State chairperson of NAWOJ, Nsikak Okon, her predecessor, Uduak Ekong, vice chairperson, Udeme Hosea and immediate past national secretary, Helen Udofa.