A law to provide women special legislative seats is being worked on.

 

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives approved a bill for second reading that aims to amend the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 (as amended) to reserve seats for women in both the National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly.

The proposed law, sponsored by Hon. Benjamin Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House, and eleven other sponsors, is titled "A Bill for an Act to alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 to provide for Seat Reservation for Women in the National and State Houses of Assembly; and for Related Matters."


Hon. Joshua Gana (PDP, Niger State), a co-sponsor of the bill, stated during a lead debate on its general principles that if passed if passed into law, it will allow women to make their share of contributions to the growth of the country.

Speaking to the House today, he stated: "I am here to spearhead the discussion of a crucial constitutional amendment bill that seeks to rectify a serious imbalance in our legislative houses: the underrepresentation of women in legislative houses at the national and subnational levels.

The purpose of this bill is to amend the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 Constitution, particularly to allow women to reserve seats in the National and State Houses of Assembly. Its foundation is the fundamental idea of equal representation, and its goal is to empower women by making sure their views are not only heard but also actively involved in influencing legislation and society at large of our country.

The core of our constitutional democracy is the question of gender equality and representation. Even with equal rights guaranteed by the constitution, women's representation in our legislative houses has been worrisomely low. Women made up just 6.4%, 6.1%, and 2.7% of the Senate and 6.4%, 3.05%, and 4.7% of the House of Representatives in the 7th, 8th, and 9th Assemblies, respectively. These figures highlight the critical need for aggressive steps at the national and local levels to guarantee fair representation and strengthen the voices of women in our legislative chambers.Fairness and inclusion are the cornerstones of this amendment's reasoning. Nigeria is among the countries with the least amount of female representation in parliament worldwide. nations that have adopted affirmative action, such as Andorra and Rwanda, have witnessed notable advancements in gender equality in government.


"This Bill ensures that women's perspectives and priorities are fully integrated into our national and sub-national decision-making processes by proposing a temporary measure of seat reservation for women to catalyze similar progress in Nigeria."


LEADERSHIP remembers that in 2022, during the vote process for the proposed modification to the Constitution, the Bill was defeated in the 9th National Assembly.