By Hassan Zaggi
The former Imo State First Lady, Mrs Zinaria Nneoma Rochas Okorocha, has called on political leaders at all levels to open the space for more women involvement in decision-making.
She made the appeal while responding to questions from journalists at the inauguration of a 10-member Summit Advisory Committee (SAC) that will organised a two-day WODDI Inspiring Women Summit with the theme: ‘Inspired to be complete woman’, in Abuja.
While stressing that women are key to the development of any society, Mrs Okorocha said that a woman is a nurturer and that what a woman did not nurture dies.
“I want use this opportunity to urge these people that God has given the opportunity to be elected in various positions, starting from local government to state houses of Assembly and the federal to understand that the woman is key.
“We need her involvement. We need her to be part of the system and decision making.
“A woman is a nurturer. Whatever a woman does not nurture dies. Please give the woman a chance to be part of what we are doing.”
The target participants of the Summit, according to her, include the girl-child, ladies and women from all works of life.
She further explained that: “I believe that the woman is very key in the life of the nation. There is the need to reawaken the woman, because if we must get it right from the family, to the community and the society in general, the woman must be inspired to understand why she is call a woman and her purpose.
“This conference is aimed at ensuring the woman knows and understands her place and her purpose.
“For a long time, the woman has just been laid back that is probably why we are where we are because when you look at what is happening everywhere in the world, things are not moving well because the woman who is the nurturer has not been given her rightful place.
“When we talk about the woman being given her rightful place, we are also talking about a woman that is purpose-driven who will understand her place why she is a woman.”
The Summit, Mrs Okorocha noted, is going to be the first of its kind, “very wholistic in nature, very practical, very focus and its clear what result we want to see and from time to time we are going to sit back to assess what we have achieved and what is the next line of action.”
At the end of the Summit, she further said: “Moving forward, I want to see a woman that is reawaken, a woman that understands her value and what she carries.”
Speaking earlier, the Chairman of the 10-member SAC, Moses Okpara, expressed concern that the challenges bedeviling the Nigerian woman have not been fully addressed by the relevant authorities.
“The Nigerian woman is recognized on paper, but I don’t think it is the same in reality. It is far from reality. There are a lot of issues that have affected the Nigerian woman that we should have taken more seriously than we have taken it in this country. Issues around rape, gender based violence and many others,” he said.
He insisted that the Summit will make the needed impact on the life of any woman and man that will be fortunate to attend.
“Our expectation is that anybody that comes to this Summit will come out a champion. When they come, they will be equipped to go back and transform their world.
“If we have 1000 participants, at the end of the day, we are releasing addition change agents whether they are men or women that attend the summit.
“This is a Summit where the fire of transformation is going to be lit in the heart of the participants and I can assure you, things will change.
“It is about changing the mindset, it is about changing the family values in the right essence, it is about talking about the right things that should be done.
“It is about talking about social contemporary issues that affect the women. It is also about the man understanding that he has a role to play in things that will happen.”
Speaking on the objectives of the Summit, Mr Okpara said that it is aimed at empowering women to become more confident and self-assured individuals who can make informed decisions about their lives; empowering women to recognize and manage their emotions in a healthy way, including coping with stress and building resilience. While prioritizing the home front and the family ensuring effective parenting and encourage women to pursue their passions and interests, enabling them to develop their talents fully.
Other objectives of the Summit, he explained, include promoting gender equality by challenging stereotypes and cultural norms that limit women’s potential and provide a supportive network for women to share their experiences, learn from each other and build strong relationships and to raise awareness about the importance of mental health and providing resources for women to access support and care.
