Lucky Obukohwo Reporting From Edo State, Nigeria
Wife of Edo State governor, Mrs. Betsy Obaseki, has threatened to drag Council chairmen in the 18 local government areas of the state to court if they failed to carry their female vice chairpersons along in their day-to-day running of their councils.
She gave the threat at the Alaghodaro Women Summit which takes place at the Ogbe Hard Court of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin.
Mrs. Obaseki said she is going to use the Gender Base Violence law to nail those chairmen who have made it their point of duty to deliberately sideline the women adding that sidelining them amount to emotional torture which the law stands to address.
“Warn men that the gender base violence is what I will use in dragging them to court . Every one of them, if they think that they are succeeding, I will drag them , every local government chairman that is frustrating a vice, be ready for me, I will drag you all to courts and this nonsense will stop.
“A vice is not a spare tires. Our women demand that, all the female office holders are allowed to carry out their duty fully and they are allowed to express themselves properly and contribute to this country and this is what they demand and nobody owns any position.
“You can’t sit on your own and stop others from exercising her own right and enjoy her own position.
“You can’t do that . You think you can do that because you are a man, we will meet in court. Please warn them”, Obaseki said.
Obaseki alleged that the council chairmen are holding meetings and awarding projects without the involvement of their female vice chairpersons adding that such must not be allowed to continue any more.
“The fight has just started. One of the reasons I ask us to gather is to remind all of us women that we started a fight and we have not finished the fight. Lady Uwa spoke well about the fight, how the governor said give women positions.
“The men were fighting and till now, they are still fighting, and refusing women to occupy positions. I want them to remember that election is still coming. It is the women who make it happen.
“And those of you in authorities who allowed this to happen both in government and in the party, you should sit up and wake up .
“You can’t disenfranchised the women and expect to be successful. I want to sound this warning. Another warning I want to sound, I have heard that in this politics , that is one reason I have to call everyone of you to tell you so that everywhere you are, you stay strong.
“The women who managed with fight and by force to enter into positions in politics, I heard that the men are still frustrating and oppressing them.
“And the female vice chairmen, the chairmen are just treating them like dormant. They call them spare tires . They hold meetings and they will not call them to the meetings, they carry out projects, carry out activities and they will not reckon with their female vice chairmen.
“SSG, help me take this message that we are about to start another fight . Because they have be keeping quiet do not mean that they are fools, because they have succeeded in just marginalizing us do not mean we are fools, we are watching, we are waiting and we will deal with the men if they don’t correct themselves”, Obaseki said.