The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has backed ongoing moves to create additional legislative seats for women in the national and state assemblies.
It maintained that affirmative action, backed by law, is the surest way to address gender imbalance in the country’s political space.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, gave his support yesterday in Abuja when he received members of the Women’s Collective Forum, led by Ambassador Nkoyo Toyo, on an advocacy visit.
Yakubu explained that while the electoral umpire had taken internal steps to promote inclusivity, including appointing women to head 55 per cent of its departments and directorates, legislative reforms remained key to boosting female representation at national and state levels.
He noted that the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2022 provides an opportunity to entrench such reforms.
Yakubu recalled that INEC had earlier backed proposals before the National Assembly to guarantee more legislative seats for women.
He said: “For elective representation, the Commission believes that the most effective way of ensuring greater representation for women and other marginalised groups in the legislative assemblies is affirmative action supported by clear legal provision, as was the case in many jurisdictions.”
