Sola Ojo
Member representing Sanga Constituency in Kaduna State House of Assembly, Comfort Amwe, is the only elected female lawmaker not only in Kaduna but in all the North-West states’ assemblies. Her election was also challenged in court where she came out victorious. In this interview, the former local government chairman spoke on various issues.
Share with us your experience on how easy it is for female politicians in Nigeria to mobilise resources to contest for elective offices as you did this year?
Mine was a serious one. Let me begin by highlighting that there are a good number of women out there who want to seek one political office or the other. They are always coming out in their numbers but, unfortunately, there are some changes which hinder them from making it to the final.
Resources are part of it. It can be so challenging, at times, to get help from others. We know resources are those things you will need that will support you for your campaigns. Funny enough, our culture doesn’t allow women to amass wealth. In fact, only a few women have been able to carve a niche for themselves.
Now, let me give my own life example since I’ve been there; to the glory of God, I have won and now a lawmaker. We have material resources, we have the media, we have cash, we have human resource and I can tell you that, I used these combinations before I became successful.
For the material resources, some people came up to help me with posters, fliers, some T-shirts. The financial resources were like thug of war this time. This is because I have been contesting but it has not been so difficult financial-wise as it was this time around. Help was not really coming. Support was not really coming either from friends, individuals, allies which I knew was due to economic crunch that is affecting everyone.
But, despite that, with the meagre resources I had, I was able to utilize it so well that it led to my success. Just like I said with regard to human resources, some people are out there for me. Some went to other places to canvas for vote for me. Some gave their vehicles and so many other things like that.
But what I will tell my female politicians is that, it is not just about getting the capacity building; they need more than that. They need resources, yes, they need the funds which are paramount. We need funds for our meetings, we need funds for moving about and even for pleasantries. Women are so down that non-availability of funds is the major issue.
How I wish that those assisting in other programmes can also assist women who want to contest with some reasonable funds so that they can come out for their contest to win their elections.
But, what is your take on the corruption allegations leveled against some female politicians?
We know that when women are in governance, the rate of corruption is minimised. I’m not saying absolutely that women are not corrupt but, it is minimised to the barest minimum. Women are hardworking. They make sure they are down to earth with their duties and responsibilities.
So, if only they can get a little push from political parties, mentors and allies, it will do a great deal to see that we get sizeable number of women into positions of governance whereby we can have reasonable development in our various local governments, states and country at large.
From your explanations, it was obvious you were able to overcome some obstacles before getting here. Was there any lesson learnt personally during your hard times that can be of help to you and other female politicians which can better prepare them ahead of the 2023 round of elections?
I have learnt a lot of lessons and I’m still learning. Don’t forget that I was once an elected chairman. I also won the 2015 election that was declared but I was taken to the Tribunal and my seat was taken under litigation. But I never hesitated.
I came back this 2019 and I made it by the grace of God again. So, from chairmanship where I know I was lagging, I kept correcting and correcting which is really positioning me for better. Of course, man cannot learn all until you leave this earth. We just need to take cognisance of happening around us.
From the look of things, you are the only elected female lawmaker in the whole of the North-West, how do you feel being ‘alone’ in the midst of men in the Assembly?
No, it is not good at all. You see, two good heads are better than one. If we were two, I may want to share either an idea or something with my colleague and don’t forget, there are some things that are better shared with fellow woman than man. The man may just make jest of you.
So, being the only female, each time I turn around and I don’t see a woman with me, it bothers me. It is disheartening but we must do our work. I’m not happy and I can tell you that. So, I pray something better will come up with my fellow women in 2023 if God spares our lives.
Very quickly, we knew you were taken to court in 2015 and that led to your seat being declared vacant by the election petition tribunal. This time too, you were taken to the tribunal. You were so confident as if you knew you would emerge victorious, where was that confidence coming from?
Thank you so much for this. I was very confident that I would win my case. I knew it was part of the trials on my way to success. Everyone is happy that the judgement was in my favour. I thank people for believing in me.
What message do you have for the young aspiring female politicians?
We are ready to mentor them. They should come over. I’m ready and I know some women who have made it are out there to help them out.
For those that want to contest either for the state or national elections in 2023, they should start now. This is the right time to start. If they start earlier, it will be cheaper than gate-crashing when elections are closed. You should know you have a lot of things to approach including time and resources. So, if they start now, it will give them an insight. They will be able to measure their progress towards their target.
How would you rate the overall participation of women in Kaduna State with regards to appointments and all that?
To be candid and honest with you on this, the present governor of Kaduna State, in person of Malam Nasir El-Rufai is gender sensitive and I am so happy with him. This is because, in the history of Kaduna State, we have never had four female commissioners at a stretch. And you will agree with me that, ordinarily, no woman would have thought that she could become a deputy governor in the entire Northern states.
For our governor to chose a woman as his deputy, he has done so much for us. Nobody is talking of party barrier. A woman is a woman whether in APGA, PDP, APC or SDP or any other political party as long as she is a woman and she’s there for all of us. We know that a woman is a mother who has passion for her husband, children, family and everybody.
So, if she’s given a substantial role to play in the affairs of things whether at local, state or national levels, you are building a nation and that is what we are seeing in the state. So, if only the women who have either been elected or appointed into power will be on their toes, Kaduna State will really change because women are there.