Senate President, Bukola
Saraki, has said that the gender equality bill, which was thrown out by the
Senate on Tuesday will be reintroduced to the Senate after being redrafted. The
bill was sponsored by the Senate Minority Whip, Biodun Olujimi (PDP, Ekiti
South), the bill seeks to empower women politically and economically, as well
as grant them, equal opportunities with men in diverse human endeavours.
But it
was rejected after Senators argued that most of its provisions were in conflict
with the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the same reason given by lawmakers in
the Seventh Senate, when similar bill was also rejected. However, Saraki, who said he
met with Olujimi in the morning today to discuss the bill, noted that the bill
could still be passed after modifications.
“I have
it on good authority that Senator Biodun Olujimi who introduced this bill will
reintroduce it after re-drafting it to address some of the reservations that
were expressed on the floor of the Senate,” Saraki was quoted as saying in a
statement by his Special Adviser on Gender, Ms. Fatima Kakuri.
In the
statement, which was posted on his Facebook page, Saraki said some parts of the
bill that were crucial to the development of the nation.
He,
however, explained that the bill was rejected because of some provisions.
He
said, “As I said during the International Womens Day last week, I am of the
opinion that there are substantial parts of the bill that are crucial to the
development of our nation such as the equal access to education, strengthening
of the laws on violence against women, ending abduction of girls, sustenance
and promotion of entrepreneurship opportunities, gender mainstreaming and
gender equality, female participation in governance, among others.
“Unfortunately,
the bill suffered a slight set back because there were some parts of the Bill
that some Senators disagreed with along the lines of religion and tradition.
The beauty of democracy is that it gives us the opportunity to consider
different opinions and this bill can still be represented and reconsidered on
the floor of the Senate.”
The
bill was entitled, “A bill for an Act to Incorporate and enforce certain
provisions of the United Nations Convention on the elimination of all forms of
discrimination against women, the Protocol of the African Charter on Human and
People’s Rights on the rights of women in Africa, and other matters connected
therewith, 2016 (SB. 116).”
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