Both Chambers of the National Assembly are planning for 111 legislative seats for female lawmakers from the 10th National Assembly in 2023 .
The proposal which has been ratified by ad – hoc- committees on Constitution review from both the Senate and the House of Representatives, was let out of the bag during plenary sessions on Wednesday.
Specifically in the Senate, the Chairman of the ad – hoc committee , Senator Ovie Omo – Agege while laying the report in the presence of the First Lady, Aisha Buhari and her entourage, said in line with affirmative action and gender inclusivity, 37 seats have been reserved for female lawmakers in the Senate and 74 in the House of Representatives.
Lawan, in a short remark after the report was laid, said the visit by the First Lady was to show support for a bill to have more female parliamentarians at the federal and state legislatures.
He said, “The First Lady’s visit is to show support for a bill for more female parliamentarians in both chambers in the Senate and the House and the State Legislatures.
“This, we believe, will help in nation building as such significant participation by our women will add value to not only legislation but the much desired and needed national development.
“For us as a nation, our motto is Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress. We believe that all hands must be on deck to ensure the participation of each and every segment of our society.”
The Senate President, assured the First Lady that Ninth Assembly, while voting on the amendments to the constitution as contained in the ad-hoc committee’s report, would ensure that women participation in governance is commensurate with their population.
“At the moment, you’ll all agree with me that our women have not been able to get that level of participation commensurate with their population as reflected in our demography.
“Therefore, what we are trying to do (Amendment of the Constitution) will go through voting later to complete the process in the National Assembly”, Lawan said.
The President’s wife was accompanied by the Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, and a delegation of Nigerian women.
