…WOSUWO, HEWOF Commend President Tinubu for Women Inclusion
Women made up 25 per cent of President Bola Tinubu’s ministerial list, which was unveiled by the Senate on Thursday, July 27.
The list, sent to the Senate for screening and confirmation as ministers, include 21 men and seven women, making a total of 28 nominees.
The female ministers include former deputy spokesperson for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Hannatu Musawa.
Musawa was recently appointed by Tinubu as Special Adviser on Culture and Entertainment Economy.
Other female nominees include former Imo State Commissioner for Finance and Coordinating Economy, Doris Uzoka-Anite, and an ex-member of the House of Representatives, Nkiru Onyejiocha.
Others are APC National Women Leader and former Cross River Commissioner for Health Betta Edu; ex-Executive Director (Business Development), Nigeria Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank Stella Okotete; former Commissioner of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) Imaan Suleman Ibrahim, and the only female presidential aspirant of the APC in the 2023 general elections, Uju Kennedy Ohanenye.
Tinubu, however, noted that the list was not exhaustive, suggesting that names of more nominees would be sent to the Senate.
“While noting that the above list is not exhaustive and that additional nominations will be sent in due course, I hope that the aforementioned nominees will receive the expeditious consideration and confirmation of the Senate,” Tinubu said in the letter.
To enhance women’s representation in governance, Nigeria introduced the National Gender Policy (NGP) in 2006, which recommends that women fill up 35 per cent of appointive positions in the country for more inclusion.
However, Nigeria ranked 123rd out of the 146 countries rated in the 2022 Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum.
Tinubu promised that women and young people will feature prominently in his government during his inaugural speech on May 29.
Although the list does not meet the 35 per cent mark recommended by the NGP, it is an improvement upon the 16 per cent recorded in the previous administration.
…WOSUWO, HEWOF Commend President Tinubu for Women Inclusion
Two non-governmental organisations, Women Support Women (WOSUWO) and Heroine Women Foundation (HEWOF), have praised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for including six women in the ministerial list.
They described the inclusion of seven women in the list as unprecedented, which is in line with President Tinubu’s campaign promises to carry women along in his administration.
The Executive Director of the organisations, Amb. Onyinye Mamah, who gave this commendation in a statement released on Thursday night in Enugu, said women have not had it so good since the return of democracy in 1999.
Mamah noted that the appointment was an indication that the Tinubu-led federal government is interested towards ensuring women inclusion in the governance and the decision-making process.
While noting that the ministerial nominees are eminently qualified for the task, she asked President Tinubu to make them senior ministers, not ministers of State (Junior Ministers), as witnessed in the pervious administrations.
The Executive Director also appealed to the President to fulfil his promise of including more women in the next ministerial list and other appointments.
Mamah enjoined the female ministerial nominees to justify their appointments by being dedicated and committed to their responsibilities, adding that doing so would open more doors for women appointments into political positions.
She urged state governors, particularly Enugu State governor, to emulate the example set by the president by appointing more women in their Executive Cabinets instead of having the all-men-cabinet members.
ICIR/Pacesetter