.. Women Groups Say Legal Reform Is Non-Negotiable
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
A coalition of women-led movements and civil society organisations has called for urgent action to reverse the decline in women’s political representation following 2026 party primaries across 22 political parties.
The demand was made at a national press conference and roundtable dialogue convened to assess exclusionary practices and push for policy, institutional and legislative reforms ahead of the 2027 General Elections.
Audit Results: Disparities and Decline
In a release jointly signed by Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation (VOWEF) , Women in Politics Forum (WIPF) , EneObi Centre for Development (ECD) , and Gender Strategy Advancement International (GSAI) , it was stated that an audit of primaries across all 22 parties revealed persistent barriers including forced withdrawals, opaque “consensus” arrangements and last-minute candidate substitutions.
Presenting the findings, Bukky Shonibare, Executive Director of Invictus Africa, said female aspirant participation remains critically low with only 3 of the 22 parties recorded female participation above 20%. PDP had 28.2% female aspirants, YPP 22.2% and YP 20%.
The bottom three includes NRM 11.8%, APC 10.4% and NNPPP 0.0%. Only 3 women won the primaries for Senate. At which rate, Shonibare warned, that women may occupy just 2.7% of Senate seats after the 2027 elections.
2027 Will Be Worse Than 2023
Speaking for the coalition, Toun Okewale Sonaiya, Co-founder & Executive Director of Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation described the primaries process as “gatekeeping institutionalised” and if unchecked, 2027 will deliver worse representation for women than 2023 Okewale Sonaiya warned.
The coalition asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR to influence the passage of the bill and demanded that for every male gubernatorial candidate, all political parties nominate female deputy governorship candidates to increase women’s representation in 2027.
Legal Reform is Non-Negotiable
Austin Aigbe called the Special Seats Bill the most practical pathway to close the gap: “Progress requires legal reform, not just training or advocacy.” He urged parties to use the substitution window to correct gender imbalances.
Cynthia Mbamalu of Yiaga Africa called on INEC to publish comprehensive, gender-disaggregated audit reports to expose exclusion and strengthen accountability.
Adaora Sydney Jack of Gender Strategy Advancement International said exclusion of women as shown in the primaries across political parties is a structural, institutional and political challenge. “If countries with fewer economic resources can achieve significantly greater levels of inclusion, then Nigeria’s challenge cannot be explained by capacity. It cannot be explained by talent or a lack of qualified women but structural and political”.
Ebere Ifendu, National President of Women In Politics Forum, urged parties to uphold their constitutions and ensure accountability for violence, intimidation and discrimination against women aspirants.
Ene Obi of EneObi Centre for Development demanded stronger investment in women’s agency and implementation of existing affirmative action commitments and judicial rulings.
Abosede George Ogan of WILAN challenged stakeholders to build women’s political, economic, institutional and narrative power through technology, leadership development, sustainable funding and grassroots mobilisation.
Co-founder/ED, VOWEF, Toun Okewale Sonaiya.
Coalition Charter of Demands
A. To 36 State Governors & National Chairmen of All Political Parties:
1. Publish Gender-Disaggregated Data – Data on women who bought forms, were screened, pressured to withdraw, denied tickets via “consensus,” and emerged as candidates.
2. Publish Inclusion Data – Women’s participation and candidacy data for all elective positions.
3. Stop Backdoor Exclusions – Guarantee fairness in final lists and substitutions.
4. Adopt Female Deputy Governors – Every male gubernatorial candidate must present a female running mate.
5. Enforce Party Democracy – End “consensus” as a tool to sideline women. Make inclusion policies binding.
B. To INEC:
6. Be Accountable – Strengthen oversight to ensure constitutional fairness and non-discrimination.
C. To President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR:
7. Influence Passage of the Special Seats Bill – A temporary democratic correction, not charity.
The coalition reaffirmed that women’s inclusion is not charity but a democratic imperative and pledged to continue monitoring the 2027 electoral process, documenting exclusion, publishing findings and holding political actors accountable.