.

By Ezra Ukanwa, ABUJA

AS Nigeria prepares for the 2023 general elections, female political leaders should play the role of mentors to all women aspiring for political offices in Nigeria, the Grand Patron, Association of Nigerian Female Students, ANFS, Sonye Allanah, has said.

Speaking with journalists during the ANFS Leadership Bootcamp, on Thursday, themed: ‘Tailored for Success in Leadership’, held in Abuja, she said for women aspiring to become political leaders in Nigeria, grassroot development and mentorship is key to advancing their aspirations.

She noted further that the place of women in the political space of Nigeria can not be underestimated as they are major stakeholders in the game of politics.

According to her, women in politics should make sure that they empower young women, that they encourage them, motivate them, teach them and that you train them, because no matter no matter what it costs you to get to the top make sure that you make that road easier for somebody to come in behind you.

“The place of women is definitely influential, because women have this special intuition, God given intuition and also the normal attributes such that is common to women which is needed for balance in any society.

“So, yes, definitely, women have a place in politics or a place in leadership, and they should be definitely in the forefront, not just playing a supportive role, not just being in the background or being secretaries or whatever, but actually playing a leading role, and that is why we are equipping this young woman so that tomorrow they can stand and anywhere at all where they find themselves”, she added.

Speaking earlier, the national president, ANFS, Christiana Ezugwu, said that the bootcamp which brought about executives from the 36 states was aimed at training them on the rudiments of leadership.

While stating that women play vital roles in the society, she added that political leaders should see mentorship as an essential tool for which certain leadership qualities could be imbibed into those aspiring to lead.

Her words: “Mentorship is key when it comes to leadership. So, my call is that political leaders should uphold and imbibe mentoring of young people because when you mentor young people you encourage them, and it enables them to have that voice and that moral courage and the courage to actually uphold leadership positions. It also encourages them to take up leadership positions, and be at the tables of decision making.

“So, it’s more like when they watch you tutor them, they are encouraged to want to stand out, they are encouraged to want to speak out, they are encouraged to always want to stand in and stand upright for what they believe, which is to always stand firm and not be shaken by pressures from society or from community but to become agents of change in their society and community.”

On his part, a Business Consultant, Opeyemi Abe, said that: “Youths constitute about 71.5 per cent of registered voters from INEC record right now. So, youths are very critical, very important for the 2023 elections.

“Now we are talking about women if you check from history women have constituted one of the largest number of voters, you know, so women have a major place to play in politics, and youth have a major role to play”, he added.