18th October, 2011
Mr Miliki Abdul, Executive Director of a Lokoja-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Centre for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution (CHRCR), has decried the low number of women in appointive positions in Kogi government.
The Human Rights activist who disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Lokoja, called on the state government to consider more women for positions.
Abdul recalled that in the immediate past assembly with 25 members, none was a woman while the current assembly has only one female, Hajia Habibat Mohammed-Deen.
Of the 16 commissioners in the state, he further observed, only two were women, adding that all the immediate past 21 local governments chairmen and their deputies were men.
“All elected National Assembly members representing Kogi State are men and of the immediate past councillors, not up to five per cent are women,†he added.
He wondered what women of Kogi, whom he said, constituted the largest number of voters had done to deserve “such marginalisation and injustice,†saying that their efforts ought to be compensated through appointments.
Abdul said it was against the backdrop of marginalisation that the centre sponsored a bill on Gender and Equal Opportunity, to the state assembly in 2009, adding that the bill had not gone beyond first and second reading.
Speaking on the 100 days in office of the present legislature, he commended the assembly so far for its achievements and appealed to it to pass the Gender bill in the interest of justice, fairness and overall development of humanity.
He also called on the assembly to always conduct public hearings before passing appropriation bills to encourage public participation and inputs, especially in the area of budgetary defence by ministries, departments and agencies.
Abdul also called for constant training and capacity building in various areas of legislative activities for the members, to keep them abreast of current trends on legislative issues.