By JOSEPHINE IGBINOVIA
Mrs. Saidat Olayinka Oladunjoye is the only woman vying for the House of Representatives in Epe Federal Constituency amidst several men in the forthcoming general election.

A member of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and a professional insurance broker who runs her own private firm in Lagos, Saidat recently revealed to Vista Woman why she is keen on representing her constituency, and why she is not discouraged by the fact that she is contesting against men. She also spoke on other sundry issues.
Her words:

I have been a politician all my life because my parents were politicians.

However, I entered active politics about three to four years ago. I am going fully into politics now because I am passionate about getting things done. It is only when you are in politics that you can really get certain things done. I am at present vying for the House of Representatives seat because I want to represent my people there so as to bring positive changes and development to my community; Epe, Lagos State and Nigeria as a whole.

Development in my constituency has not been as expected, so, I think it is time for something to be done.
This is actually my first time of contesting for any political office, and I believe I can succeed because I have the will-power and the passion; I have issues I want to tackle.  I am looking at education, health, food , etc.

I believe that if more women come out to join politics, we will together be able to make an impact. The women in the House of Representatives are obviously too few to make a remarkable impact when compared to the number of men in the house. That is why we need more women; the larger the number, the better for us. I am not saying that the women there are all not doing well; Abike Dabiri, for instance, is doing well.

Saidat Olayinka Oladunjoye Women's participation in politics has been very low

The fact is that women’s participation in politics has been very low. What we need to boost the number is capacity- building and empowerment. We just have to hope things will get better. Capacity-building here does not only refer to education, it includes finance, exposure, passion, will, etc.

However, this is not to deny the fact that education is one of the factors militating against women in politics, although, some educated women have been refused their right to participate in active politics at the party level. The UN’s 35 per cent affirmative action which Nigeria is a signatory to, should be respected by all the political parties.  More women are coming into politics because some of the factors which were militating against us in the past  do not have to be against us any more.

Reasons for my political ambition
I have males contesting for the same position which I am contesting for, but I am not intimidated at all. I see it as a healthy competition. In fact, I am being encouraged by the number of men also contesting since I am the only woman in the contest. I know why I am in this contest, I am not ready to be discouraged.

I intend promoting education to the core in my constituency. I will also work in the area of health by bringing in health insurance schemes. I will do my best to pay the premium for them, but they will reap the benefits. I will ensure that no pregnant woman dies while having a baby as long as it is preventable. In fact, I am working towards making sure that no pregnant woman pays a dime from ante-natal to childbirth.

I am also looking at food sustenance.  What we have in abundance in our area is cassava and fish. Hence, I want to ensure we harness them to the extent that we will begin to export them outside. I am talking to some groups already who will bring cassava processing plants to Epe because the burden is becoming too much for our women; they carry babies on their back and cassava on their heads at the same time, and they come up with little money at the end of it all. But, I believe that when we have a plant processing the cassava for them, it will be a walk-over for them. There are other issues on  development that I hope to engage in, but these are the major things I am targeting so far.

I did not go into active politics before now because I knew I had to work with time. Life is about timing! I have just left paid employment, and I am now on my own. Hence, I have enough time. Also, my children are grown-up now. I have six children, and the youngest is 20. The oldest is 33. I am a grandmother.

With all these already in place for me, I am not going into politics to make money; I am already established. So, whatever I make in politics goes back to my constituency.

Advice for women in politics
My advice for women in politics is that we should develop the habit of mentoring because if you do not mentor somebody to come behind you, you will never have a successor. You should bear in mind that a leader without a successive plan or a successor is a big failure.

There was a time we held a seminar in Abuja, and to my bewilderment, I found out that I was the only female aspirant from the whole of Epe. To me that was a shame; it should not be . We actually need more women in politics so that we can be each other’s backbone. We have to do away with envy and jealousy.

Let us come out en mass to support one another. Let us also develop ourselves by being voracious readers so that when men talk, we would also have idealistic things to contribute or also talk about. I am not saying politics is a do-or-die affair; it is not. In fact, inas- much as I hope to occupy one of the seats in the House of Representatives, I know I can still contribute my own quota to the development of my society even if I do not win the election. I will continue to be a party loyalist, and will continue to do well for my party because it is indeed, an opportunity to be a party member and to be given a chance to vie for a political office.

Background
I am from Epe in Lagos State. I have a first and a master’s degree in History. I am a professional insurer and a lawyer; I also hold a LL.B. and a B.M. in law. I have worked with the Lagos State Government, and with IGI Insurance Brokers for over 30 years before setting up my own insurance firm three years ago.’