- WOMEN TO SUSPEND OCCUPY NASS PROTEST FOR TWO WEEKS
The National Assembly, NASS, has promised to revisit the rejected Gender Bills, which it threw away in March, in the ongoing amendments to the 1999, constitution.
The assurance followed the sustained protest by different women groups under the aegis of WOMANIFESTO, led by the Co-founder of the group,Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi.
For more than 10 days, WOMANIFESTO, occupied the entrance gate of NASS in protest to register their griviances over the rejection of the bill.
Following the plea by the NASS, the women group on Tuesday, 22, announced the suspension of the protest for two weeks to give the lawmakers time to revisit the bill.
Last week, Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Representatives, Hon Nkiruka, Onyejeocha, appealed to the women groups to rescind their decision so as to allow the business of legislature to go on.
But Co-founder Womanifesto, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, told her that the protest must go on until the lawmakers do the needful adding that it’s a case of “no retreat no surrender.”
However, the leader of the House, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, who addressed the women, promised that the Senate will meet in seven legislative working days to reconsider the gender bills.
Akiyode-Afolabi, while addressing newsmen said: “The women this morning, were able to gain entrance into the National Assembly. And we’re actually moving into the Senate’s building, when the police stopped the movement.
“And we made them to know that today, there is no option, we need to speak with the leadership of the National Assembly, we have been here for 10 days.
“So, the leadership of National Assembly sent messages to us that they would come and meet with us at their own ground.” She said.
According to her, Ado-Doguwa, came in to make promises that they would be able to resolve this issue within seven Legislative days and that all the Gender Bills, put together by women, would be able to address it.
She added that Ado-Doguwa also committed to ensuring that NASS will speak to all the other members and also reach out to the Senate in this regard.
Akiyode-Afolabi said the House members reconfirmed the fact that they have recommitted the four bills and that they would ensure that is passed.
“So, for that reason, we are stopping the occupation of NASS. We would reconvene after the seven legislative days that they have given to us to start again. So in brief that is what we were able to achieve. We are going to have a World Press conference tomorrow to explain for the verification of the source.”