By Godwin Otang
As the struggle for 35 percent affirmative action for women continues, the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) and the Gender and Development Action (GADA) are rallying women leaders from the 19 political parties in the State, to raise public awareness of the importance of women’s participation in decision-making.
In a joint IPAC-GADA meeting held in Calabar, the group made up of IPAC, GADA and the 19 political parties believes equitable participation of women in decision-making and leadership is essential for the sustainable development of any society.
The meeting resolved in the presentation of a ten-point resolution to project the names of significant female candidates for appointments; support actions that advance through legal reforms the inclusion of more women; enforce measures, such as gender electoral quotas to enhance women’s future representation and take steps to increase the number of women in leadership structures.
The ten-point resolutions presented include “Women need to stop fighting themselves and fight for themselves.”
Also, “Let the women have one voice irrespective of the political party they belong to. Women should be able to collaborate with men to join their bandwagon and work together to achieve equal participation in political positions and bypass political caucuses and the question of where you belong.
“Women should appeal to their husbands to be more supportive of their political aspirations so they can thrive in politics.
“Women should pay attention to grooming themselves to become more enlightened so that they can be able to represent themselves and the women effectively.
“There is a need to advance women’s inclusion in global activities. This is to give women more shots at leadership and more opportunities. There is a need to establish women’s equality in the eyes of the law as well as ensure that women are included in decision-making.”
