The Emir of Keffi, HRH Alhaji Shehu Yamusa III, has called on Nigerian women to show interest in the Presidency to succeed President, Muhammadu Buhari, in 2023, saying it would not be impossible.
According to him, Nigerians, regardless of their ethnicity or political affiliations, must separate cultural sentiments from politics for the best leaders to emerge in the country.
The monarch, who is also the Chancellor of Nasarawa State University, made this statement on Thursday when members of the National Democratic Institute International Working Group for Supporting the Advancement of Gender Equality programme, visited him in his palace.
Among the team was the first female President of the Republic of Kosovo and leader of NDI’s SAGE delegation, Ms. Atifete Jahjaga.
Yamusa said, “Most importantly, I will like to draw the attention of the entire nation to the fact that culture and politics are two different things. We often mistake the two for each other, and that is why most women can’t come out to contest for elective positions. But they are part of us, and we must carry them along.
“Going by their performances in our various houses, I think we should give them a chance in the next general elections. If women can manage families, they can manage the country.”
He, therefore, stressed the need for all political actors to respect the role of women in the struggle for power as ‘we all have something of value to offer’.
The traditional ruler further stated that women could provide the kind of leadership that Nigeria needs by supporting each other to win elections in 2023, and ensuring proper management and equitable distribution of the country’s resources.
Jahjaga affirmed the rights of women to political participation and representation in economic resources as well as access to security and justice.
She also called for greater actions to make these principles a reality in Nigeria.
She said, “We have a mission to support the government and people of Nigeria by contributing to the percentage of women in politics, working in the direction of gender empowerment.”