Rejected Bills: You Voted Against Your Wives, Mothers, Daughters, Women Groups Tell NASS Members

Women from various groups on Wednesday occupied the gate of the National Assembly to protest against the rejection of women-related bills at plenary.

The lawmakers had on Tuesday rejected all women-related bills including the one seeking to give at least ten slots to them as ministers and commissioners in the federal and state governments.

In protest against this, the women gathered on Wednesday at the three-arm zone and marched to the National Assembly gate chanting songs of solidarity against the move by the lawmakers.

They said that the decision of the male lawmakers to reject the bill was against the wishes of their daughters, sisters, mothers and wives.

Recall that wife of the Vice President, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, had on Tuesday addressed the women, and expressed optimism that they will get more inclusion in governance.

“Women are going to get what they want,” she had said,

But speaking during the protest on Wednesday, one of the Women Coordinators Mrs Ebere Ifendu said, “We saw clearly that a certain percentage of men that we have at the national assembly didn’t go to school, we saw illiteracy play out.

“The truth is that, for the Speaker (of the House of Representatives) to introduce every bill and explain the bill as if he was talking to nursery school children, and we saw most of them don’t even know how to vote.

“So, what happened yesterday, we are not complaining anymore but what we are saying today is that they will be payback time. I’m saying it again, history will not be fair to all the people that voted against us yesterday.

“They didn’t vote against the women group, but their wives, they voted against their mothers, they voted against their daughter, and shamelessly they will go home to try to be the head of the family when you do not have their interest at heart.

“It’s an embarrassment and should be more embarrassing to them for what they did yesterday. On our part, we are waiting for the Senate President, the Deputy Senate President we are waiting for the Speaker and we are waiting for the Deputy Speaker.

“They must come here and tell us how they are going to reverse the wrongs of yesterday, otherwise, we asked for a special seat yesterday, we are taking their seats from them. We will tell them that we can do something with numerical strength.”