Reserved Seats Bill Pursuit For Inclusive Governance, Not Tokenism — Kalu

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has said that the Bill seeking to make reserved seats for women successful the National and State Houses of Assembly was not an enactment of tokenism but a pursuit to summation women’s governmental practice for a much inclusive governance and equitable society.

Kalu, who besides chairs the House Committee connected Constitution Review, stated this portion delivering his remarks astatine a peculiar dialog bid connected the reserved seats bill, hosted by Emerge Women Development Initiative, tagged ‘SheThePeople’.

Represented by his Chief of Staff, Sam Hart, the Deputy Speaker noted that the measure was a impervious to a corporate committedness to promote women inclusion successful governance.

He said that the lawsuit themed “Deepening the Conversation, Accelerating Women’s Representation successful Governance,” called for reflection connected the travel embarked upon, and determination to guarantee that women’s voices are not lone heard but amplified successful the halls of governance.

To accelerate progress, the Deputy Speaker called for candid conversations, much advocacy to dismantle systemic barriers that hinder women’s afloat participation.

He commended women who person breached barriers and impacted the society, reaffirming the committedness of the parliament to proceed the enactment they started, to advocator vigorously for policies that volition spot women not arsenic tokens, but arsenic partners successful governance.

Kalu said, “I bring you lukewarm compliments from the People’s House; the House of Representatives, and the Committee connected the Review of the 1999 Constitution. This lawsuit is not conscionable a infinitesimal successful time, but a question toward justice, equality, and empowerment. The taxable compels america to bespeak connected the travel we person embarked upon, a travel marked by courage, resilience, and determination to guarantee that women’s voices are not lone heard but amplified successful the halls of power. The Reserved Seats Bill, HB 1349, sponsored by myself and cosponsored by immoderate members of the House is simply a legislative effort that seeks to carve retired a dedicated abstraction for women successful our governance structures.

“As Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, I judge it is indispensable to analyse the provisions of our Constitution and guarantee that they beforehand sex equality and women’s empowerment. Hence, we person considered this measure that would make reserved seats for women successful the National and State Houses of Assembly, beforehand inclusive Governance, heighten women’s governmental practice and code sex disparities successful our governance framework. This measure is not conscionable a portion of authorities neither an enactment of tokenism; it is simply a impervious to our corporate committedness to alteration the communicative and to disrupt the presumption quo that has agelong sidelined women from decision-making tables.

“We indispensable analyse the electoral laws, enactment politics, and societal norms that hinder women’s representation. We truthful indispensable enactment towards creating a much inclusive and equitable governmental situation that encourages women to enactment and thrive. As we heavy dive into these discussions today, fto america retrieve that the conflict for women’s practice is not simply a combat for sex equilibrium but a pursuit of a much inclusive and equitable society. It is simply a telephone to harness the untapped imaginable of fractional of our colonisation who person the insight, compassion, and position to pb with empathy and vision. Thank you for your dedication, your passion, and your unflinching content successful the powerfulness of women to alteration our world. Together, fto america proceed to deepen the conversation, accelerate representation, and make a bequest of equality and empowerment for generations to come.”

Earlier, successful her opening remarks, the Founding Director of Emerge Women Development Initiative and Convener of SheThePeople Dialogue, Dr. Mary Ikoku, noted that the dialog aims to foster high-level conversations astir women’s governmental information and empowerment successful Nigeria.

Ikoku commending the Deputy Speaker, Kalu for sponsoring the bill, said the Reserved Seats Bill is not lone a substance of sex equality but besides a important measurement towards achieving Nigeria’s improvement goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

“Let america beryllium clear: the clip for talking is over. This dialog indispensable construe into action—through advocacy, stakeholder engagement, and governmental pressure. We indispensable backmost the Deputy Speaker and each reform-minded lawmakers. This infinitesimal calls for unity of intent due to the fact that existent alteration lone happens erstwhile we request it—and prolong that demand,” she added