Nigeria Ripe for Female President if We Want to Grow – Obasanjo

The event which featured a debate session with the theme: “Nigeria is ripe for a female president”, was organised by the Pro-Chancellor of University of Lagos, Dr. Lanre Tejuoso.

Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, on Thursday advocated for the election of a female president for Nigeria.
Obasanjo made the remark at the 5th edition of the Egba Dialect Debate and Choral Competition for Secondary Schools in Ogun Central Senatorial District in Abeokuta .
The event which featured a debate session with the theme: “Nigeria is ripe for a female president” was organised by the Pro-Chancellor of University of Lagos, Dr. Lanre Tejuoso.
According to Daily Trust, Obasanjo, in his remarks, said he supported the motion, saying the female folks should be given a trial.
According to him, it’s only when power is being passed and shared equally among both genders, will the country stand strong again and develop.
Obasanjo said: “From my own view, if we want the country to grow, we should consider both genders because a hand can’t carry a load to the head alone.
“You can do it as you want, but it should be done as it is supposed to be, we can gain experience from both genders; what’s the difference between the genders? Only that the female can get pregnant for nine months and a male can’t. That’s the only difference in us.
“As for me, there’s nothing preventing the female gender to be the president of our country.”
Corroborating Obasanjo’s stand, the Deputy Dovernor of Ogun State, Naimot Salako-Oyedele, also called for the need to bring in more females into politics.
According to her, only few females are in power in the country, adding that same is applicable to Ogun State.
She said: “We can’t give someone power, it has to be fought for, and we have to start bringing more females into politics, even if it’s from the grassroots level, so that they can gain enough experience to lead the country.
“If she can start from being a councillor and we see that she’s capable, then, she can move to the next level.
“In Ogun state, we have 236 councillors, but only 18 are females; we have 20 Chairmen, only two are females among them; we have 26 seats in the House of Assembly, only two are females; House of Representatives, we have nine, one is female and we have three senators, no female. We have the deputy governor who is also a female.”
Salako-Oyedele who represented the governor, applauded the promotion of the indigenous language, adding that the state is also doing everything to promote the Yoruba culture.
She added that the state government is supporting the Yoruba cultural centre that is being proposed in the University of Ibadan to boost the indigenous language.