More Women Participation In Politics Is Neccessary – Yakubu Dogara

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara has called for more women participation in politics to enable them contribute meaningfully to the development of the country.

Dogara made the call on Wednesday in Abuja to mark the 2017 International Women’s Day.

The speaker also pledged to be bold for change, adding that it was in line with the theme for 2017 celebration.

He stressed the importance of women inclusion in all fields of endeavour in the country, saying that anything short of that was unhealthy for nation building.

According to him, a status quo that relegates women to the background is unhealthy for national development.

He said “Women make up approximately half of the Nigerian population, and it is extremely important that an environment that brings out the best in them and enable them reach their full potential is provided.

“We can’t have half of our people unable to attain their goals or contribute meaningfully to the economy, and expect development.

“The House of Representatives have a history of placing women in strategic positions culminating in the election of the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives in Nigeria.

“We have continued this tradition of Gender parity in the 8th House by placing our female colleagues in strategic positions of leadership in the House.’’

The speaker stressed the need to invest on girl-child education to bridge the gap in the school enrolment statistics.

According to him, Nigeria as a country must invest heavily on the girl-child education as a means of bridging the gap in school enrolment statistics between boys and girls and disparity in literacy levels.

“No child should be left behind in our society. We must resolve to do away with all laws and practices that encourage violence against women in our society.

“Gender should not restrict the dreams and aspirations of millions of our daughters, so we all must be bold for change and support the women around us to achieve their goals and maximise their potentias and talents.