By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

Minister of Women Affairs and Social Welfare Hajia Imaan Suleiman has lamented the sexual harassment allegations in the Senate, calling it “unfortunate” and stressing that such incidents should never occur in the National Assembly.

Consequently, the Minister has pledged to engage with the Senate immediately to broker peace and work toward an amicable resolution of the issue.

Suleiman, who said it would not be good for women to lose any of her members in the Senate, also emphasized the need to sensitize women in politics, encouraging greater collaboration with their male counterparts.
She stressed that Nigeria must accelerate efforts to increase women’s representation in governance and ensure they have a seat at the table.

Her reaction follows the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for alleged rules violations.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, who had accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment, was sanctioned by the upper chamber, reducing the number of female senators to just three out of 109 members.

Speaking during a press briefing on Friday, the eve of International Women’s Day (IWD), at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Suleiman expressed concern over the dwindling female representation in the legislature.
She said, “It’s an unfortunate incident that should not happen. In the last assembly, we had nine senators, all women; in this assembly, we have four (Senators). We don’t want to lose any members in the Senate or House of Assembly.”

Continuing, the Minister said: “We want to increase the numbers. It is unfortunate; we’re going to be brokering peace. We will engage all the stakeholders to ensure that they temper justice with mercy.

“I was at the National Assembly yesterday (Thursday) at the Senate, where they marked International Women’s Day, and the last thing the President of the senate said was that ‘we’re open to broker peace.’

“So, we are going to be intermediaries between the two parties to see that we broker peace to rain, and we will continue to sensitize so that we will like to work better together as women and men.

“It is not a good thing to lose more women in the National Assembly at a time when we are already grossly underrepresented,” she said.

She also highlighted the importance of sensitizing women in politics to foster better collaboration.

Suleiman reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to increasing women’s representation in governance, stating that efforts must be made to ensure women have a stronger voice in decision-making.