Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, will ensure the implementation of the court judgment reserving 35 per cent of appointments in the public offices for women, the Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, has assured women groups.
The minister informed the groups of steps being taken to ensure enforcement of the court order at a ‘world press conference on Wednesday.
On April 6, the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the federal government to enforce the National Gender Policy following a suit filed by some women groups for improved gender inclusion in public appointments
“I stand here on behalf of President Muhammadu Buhari who sends his special congratulations to all Nigerian women. He identifies fully with us to ensure the implementation of this judgement. That is a commitment given on behalf of the government”, she said.
She cited the recent appointment of three women by President Buhari as commissioners into the National Population Commission (NPC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) as a positive step.
‘How political parties, executive are being lobbied’
Mrs Tallen indicated that steps were already being taken to ensure the implementation of the gender inclusion judgement.
She met with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, after the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday.
The minister said her meeting with Mr Mustapha was “on all the issues of implementation to make sure that at least we have 35%, if not 50-50 representation in all board appointments”.
She said her assurance of the moves being made is not another “political gimmick”.
On engagement with political parties, she said she held a meeting with the chairman of the constitution amendment committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the matter.
She assured that there were “remarkable improvements” in the party’s last congress with the creation of two new seats for women in the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party. The new positions are the deputy woman leader and deputy treasurer, asides from the position of the woman leader.
Mrs Tallen said she was already reaching out to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the same purpose.
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