By Haruna Salami
A Bill to empower women and put them on the same pedestal failed to scale second reading Wednesday due to stiff opposition from many senators.
It was titled, “A Bill for an Act to make provisions for the empowerment of women and gender equality to establish legislative framework for the empowerment of women; to align all aspects of laws and implement: laws relating to women empowerment, and the appointment and representation of women in decision making positions and structures; and to provide for matters connected therewith, 2021 (SB. 208).
The Bill was sponsored by Senator Olujimi, Biodun (Ekiti South).
In his contribution, Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege said “I will like to begin by lending my voice in support of the passage of this bill for second reading. This is not the first time this bill is coming before us.
He recalled vividly that it came before the 8th Senate, but was killed.
“Genuine issues and concerns were raised by some our colleagues based on cultural and religious sensibilities, and it died last time.
He expressed happiness that Senator Olujimi has taken the pains to carry out detailed consultations with some of the leaders in the Senate to try and address some of the concerns.
“From the feelers I’m getting today in this chamber, it just appears that maybe that has not gone far enough.
Omo-Agege acknowledged that it is a “very important bill”, but said “to the extent that we still have a residue of these fears, I want to plead that this should not be killed yet. It should be allowed to go for public hearing so that whatever concerns senator Olujimi and others could not address will be addressed at that public hearing.
He said the 9th Senate has gone on record as the most friendly to the opposite gender and recalled that the Senate President was recently giving an award of a “he or she” by the female gender presented by the Minister of Women Affairs.
“The Nigerian women folks are looking up to us. Our wives, our daughters are looking up to us that this bill should not die a second death. On record, I’m in support.
This fell on deaf ears.
Then Lawan advised Olujimi to consider withdrawing the bill for further consultation
Therefore,Senator Olujimi after listening to Lawan said she believed there was no problem with the bill in its present form.
She said the only problem that has been addressed by the two senators is the title of the bill.
According to her, the Sultanate arranged an outreach to all the Muslim clerics, including the MURIC chairman and they gave a clean bill of health.
“We have also done that with the Christian clerics and they have also given a clean bill of health.
“However, if the problem is the title “gender equality” that they do not want, then we can change the title to “gender equity bill”.
Senator Yusuf Abubakar Yusuf, the main opponent to the bill said “we have not seen the body of the draft bill. Ordinarily, we should have it. However, we don’t want the title to be different from what is inside.
He said “probably, the best thing to do is to step it down the bill and the draft copy be circulated to us. Before every bill goes for public hearing, we will have the draft, but we have this.
Senator Oluremi Tinubu said they were ready to dialogue “because this is the time and age that this bill has to come to light”.
The Senate Leader, Yahaya Abubakar did not hide his feeling when he said “it is not the Islamic scholar out there or renting of NGOs, as Senator Abdullahi Adamu has said, that make the law for this country. The laws of this country are made here.
“Whatever anybody is saying out there, if we don’t have our colleagues buy into it , we are going on slippery ground”.
Lawan, in his final comments then said in the 8th Senate, the debate did not go this far and the bill was killed.
He said “in this Senate it is obvious we want to pass a bill of this nature, but there are concerns. It means we have moved forward.
“I will advise that we don’t kick the can down the road. We will be stressing our luck if we say let us go for public hearing.
“Like the Leader said it starts and ends here, not any other person outside. When we go for public hearing, we just want to listen.
“If our colleagues here are against something because they don’t understand it, we will be stressing our luck by saying, if we say go for public hearing because the public hearing is supposed to enhance what we do here, not to replace it”.
