Kaduna: We will not be bought with ‘salt, maggi’ – Women group tells politicians

From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna

Ahead of the 2019 elections, a group of women activists in Kaduna State yesterday vowed to mobilize women in the area to resist attempts by politicians to induce them with cash and food condiments.
One of the women, Mrs. Rhoda Giwa, made this known in an interview with the media during a three-day training for women on civic rights and how to actively participate in decision-making and politics.
The training was organised in Kaduna by an NGO, Empowering Women for Excellence Initiative (EWEI).
Giwa, from Malali community in Kaduna North Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, added that women were no longer interested in selling their future to politicians in exchange for pittance.
According to her, the group will mobilise women to demand for projects that will better their lives and that of the entire community.
She said that women had become fed up with a situation where politicians would use cheap items to buy their votes during elections only to fail them afterwards.
“We will mobilise all women not to accept salt and maggi or peanuts from any politician again.
“What we want are concrete projects that will better the lot of women and children in our communities and not insignificant things that will finish in a matter of days.
“This time around, all agreements will be documented and we will drag any politician to court if he or she fails to honour it.
“We will no longer allow ourselves to be used and dumped when elections are over,” she added
Giwa thanked EWEI for the training, saying that it would help improve women’s capacity to participating more actively and decisively in demanding their rights, particularly on issues with significant bearing on the living conditions of women and children.
Also speaking with NAN, Mrs. Theresa Biniyat, from Tum Community in Kaura LGA, warned that deceitful politicians would no longer get votes from women in the state.
According to her, women will only vote for politicians with the genuine interest of the generality of the Nigerian people at heart.
“We are not after political parties or politicians, who will only buy our votes with petty things.
“We will look out for candidates with the will to make a difference in the lives of women and children as well as the entirety of Nigeria,” she said.
Earlier, Grace Attah, EWEI’s Organisational Development and Learning Officer, had explained that the training was under its Civic Education and Participation for Women Project (CEPWOP).
According to her, the the training is aimed at mobilising women to be active participants in the country’s political process so that they are not schemed out of critical decision-making processes that affect directly them in their various communities.