By John Alechenu

The factional National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure, has pledged that the party under his leadership will provide more opportunities for women to contest in the 2027 general elections.

Abure made this promise on Thursday while speaking at an event organized by the Aju Morgan Elumelu Foundation (AMEF) in Abuja.

He emphasized that poor leadership remains a major challenge facing Nigeria and urged women to collaborate and take up leadership roles across all sectors.

“I want to assure you that by 2027, God sparing our lives, under our leadership, we will provide more opportunities for women. We recognize that culturally, economically, and financially, there are several barriers to women’s participation,” Abure said.

“The Labour Party is ready and determined to break those barriers and encourage more women to participate in politics and governance.”

In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of AMEF, Amb. Aju Elumelu, expressed concern over the low representation of women in leadership roles and called on President Bola Tinubu and other stakeholders to uphold the 35% affirmative action for women’s participation and empowerment.

“The goal is to have women in leadership—whether elective or appointed—across all sectors, not just in politics. We’re not here to agitate but to appeal: President Bola Tinubu, help us. We don’t have gloves to fight; we’re simply asking for inclusion,” she said.

Also speaking at the event, the National Women Leader of the Labour Party, Dudu Manuga, noted that the political space for women has continued to shrink over the years. She advocated for the passage of bills for special seats for women in the legislature to ensure adequate representation.

“This is the most coordinated effort I’ve seen to increase women’s participation in the legislature. If we can pass the special seats bill, and combine that with aggressive advocacy and mobilization, we will make progress.”

She urged women across the country to actively engage their state legislators in lobbying for the passage of the bill.

“Women must meet with their legislators and push for this cause. We need to get everyone on the same page. For now, political parties still have a long way to go in promoting gender inclusion,” she added.