A women right group, ‘The Women Advocates’ (TWA) has petitioned the First Lady, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu over male domination of elective and appointive positions in Oshodi/Isolo Federal Constituency II ahead of the forthcoming primaries of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Lagos State.
In a petition addressed to the wife of the president, the group sought the intervention of the First Lady over what it described as total neglect of the women folks in aspiring for the House of Representatives seat from the constituency.
The group in the petition which was jointly signed by its coordinator, Adejoke Olaogun and Secretary Helen Nwachukwu respectively noted with dismay that since the advent of the second republic in 1999, no female politician has been given the opportunity to represent the constituency at the House of Representatives.
The group listed six male politicians who have represented the constituency to include Gbolahan Okuneye, Jaiyeola Ajatta, Hakeem Muniru, Tony Nwulu, Ganiu Johnson and now currently Okey Joe Onuakalusi.
The Women Advocates said the total domination of elective and appointive positions by male politicians in the constituency negates the gender equality and all-inclusive principle of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who recently supported constitutional amendment initiated by the National Assembly for increased women’s participation in governance by advocating for at least 35% affirmative action in elective and appointive positions.
The initiative of the National Assembly also gained the affirmation of the ruling party, All Progressive Congress APC (APC) which officially pushed for reduced political hostility, greater inclusion in leadership and also introduced initiatives like ‘774 Explore’ for grassroot mobilization, aiming to boost female representation ahead of the 2027 elections.
“For this obvious gender imbalance, we are constrained to seek your intervention in addressing this anomaly. Being gender-friendly and a strong advocate of women’s inclusion in governance, we are convinced your timely intervention would restore hope of leadership opportunities for the women folks who are expectedly to mobilize extensively for the re-election bid of the president in 2027,” the petition read in part.
It continued: “To this end, we earnestly solicit consideration of female aspirants as APC candidates in a fair and equitable manner ahead of the forthcoming party primaries across the 25 LGAs and 37 LCDAs in Lagos particularly in Oshodi/Isolo Federal Constituency II where we lost the last House of Representatives election to the Labour Party (LP).”
The group specifically appealed for support for Angela Yinka Akintunde as a candidate for the House of Representatives seat in Oshodi-Isolo Federal Constituency II, describing her candidacy as a step toward bridging the gender gap in elective offices.
Women Advocates further urged party leaders and stakeholders to embrace inclusivity and fairness in the forthcoming primaries, emphasizing that equitable representation would enhance political development and social progress in the state
