POST TO NIGERIAN WOMEN AND MEN!
Looking beyond tonight however, women, I hope you know that many Nigerian men don’t have high regards for women in politics?
When you are on their side canvassing for them, you are good. So long as you’re not ambitious and are satisfied with being the eye candy around them and comfortable with the roles they assign you. And when you refuse to be mediocre and try to bring excellence into that small role of yours they get angry and start looking at you with suspicion, second guessing your every move?
When you’re with them and agree to be mediocre then you’re good even if they find you sleeping with 20 men, you are a great woman.
But when you are intelligent AND KNOW IT, have a voice and OWN IT, refuse to be subjugated and beaten into accepting mediocrity as a way of life, have lofty desires and are ambitious, you become all manner of things. You are tagged a slut, a bitch, and their not so refined minions call you ashewo and someone not to be trusted.
But we will not be silenced. Nigeria belongs to us all. If we are good enough to mobilize for you and canvass support for you, we are qualified to aspire and dream and act to actualise our ambitions so long as we have the requisite capacity.
I am a Nigerian woman in politics and I refuse to allow anyone denigrate me. Nor any qualified woman.