Betta Edu Emerges Youngest National Women Leader

The All  Progressives Congress (APC) has made history again as a youth-friendly political party as its convention produced the youngest National Women Leader, Dr. Betta Edu from Cross River State, who is 36 years old.

In a keenly contested election, Edu  scored 2,662 votes to defeat her closest rival, Helen Boco who scored 117.

Ahead the general election,  Edu has the big mandate of leading from the front and rallying women to get more involved in party politics.

And her quote prior to her election is an indication that she is not unaware of the tasks ahead. “We need women at all levels, including the top, to change the dynamic, reshape the conversation, to make sure women’s voices are heard and heeded, not overlooked and ignored. The Interest of Nigeria Women remains my major interest and priority,” she had said.

Reacting to her victory, Edu thanked delegates from all the states, party leaders from Cross River and thanked specially Governor Ben Ayade for the support and confidence in her.

She also thanked all the party leaders from the South-south and APC women young and old for the support. She promised to bring women together and ensure their unity as they trudge on to the next level.

According to a statement, the  new women leader is a goal-getter who is driven by her strong belief in excellence, integrity, hard work, resilience, diligence and effective execution.

“She is an excellent manager whose competence and ingenuity have laid credence to the capacity of the Nigerian woman to achieve success when given the necessary education and challenged with the developmental assignments.

 Edu was born on 27th of  October 1986. She hails from Ibalebo village in Abi Local Government Area, Cross River State. Betta completed her secondary education at Federal Government Girls College, Calabar, she is a graduate of medicine and surgery from the University of Calabar.

She is a Harvard certified, Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health, United Kingdom, and until recently, the Cross River State Commissioner for Health and National Chairman of Nigeria Health Commissioners’ Forum.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that  the immediate past APC Women Leader, Hon.Stella Okotete, worked very hard to ensure a successful convention  that will favour women.

According to a statement, the activities of women in the APC became so prominent in the last 10 months since the Caretaker Committee was inaugurated because of the vibrance and the dynamism initiated by Okotete, who represented women on the committee.

“From series of online lectures, philanthropy, visits to markets across the nation and the regular empowerment through programmes like the Young Progressives Women Forum(YWPF), Digital Academy for representatives of young women from the 36 states of the federation and FCT among others,  Okotete has set a benchmark and a milestone that may not be easily reached by the incumbent.

To cap her efforts, a night before the convention, this fiery and brilliant woman, often referred to as Lioness of the Niger Delta, congregated women and young girls of the APC as they converged on Ladi Kwali Hall at Sheraton Hotel for prep talks on what she had done so far and her final words for the women who trusted and supported her all along,” the statement said.

She  was quoted to quoted to have emphasized that what women want is to be heard clearly and to be free from the biases that limit their potential. 

Okotete said: “We want to change the narrative. We want to give governance the feminine touch that Nigeria needs right now. The only thing that would keep our country prosperous is when we have more women making, driving and implementing policies. That can only be done if the party gives the women a seat on the table.“We as women leaders should create policies and platforms that would give more women that needed voice and visibility in the party. Women should stop using their tongues to pull down fellow sisters,” she said.”Reviewing the Progressive Women Trust Fund, she said it is meant to start campaigning and lobbying to get more women in active politics and to get more women elected into various elective offices. 

She hoped to support the first female governor in next year’s election from northern Nigeria with the fund.

She also said the Lobby Group, which was set up last year, has achieved a lot still has to do more.

She said through the group’s effort, they were able to elect women into positions beyond the seat of Woman Leader in the party.

As a woman who sees beyond the obvious, the former women leader, said:  “In 2023, we are hoping that we can still get the 108 seats from our party at the National Assembly. We are just asking for three per state. But it requires all of us working towards that. If women have our support, more women would come out for such positions.”She promised that the lobby group would be expanded so they can reach every part of the country.

On her part, the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Dame Pauline Tallen, called for more participation of women in politics.

She expressed appreciation to Okotete, and stated that, within her short stay, she did remarkably well for the women.

 “She turned the office of the National Woman Leader into a more progressive office and with the outreach we did to the party constitutional amendment committee, under her watch we have been able to get more women into the NEC of the party.

“This is something we must all appreciate because the more women we have on the decision table of the party, the more we will have more women in elective positions. We now have three women in the National Working Committee. We thank her for organizing the round table dinner for us to meet and interact,” Tallen said.

The minister  urged women to always support each other, saying the more women on the decision table of the party, the more they will be in elective positions in the country.She pointed out that the recent development in the National Assembly where women bills were rejected has shown that if they do not go back to the drawing board and talk to themselves, they would continue to suffer as they are now.

Tallen said: “The time has come that we must shed our differences and work together as a team. The men have told us over and over that we have numerical strength and it is true. We talk of women being more than 50 percent of the population. If we are more than 50 what stops us from supporting women that have come out to vie for elective positions?”

She stressed the need for women to be united, saying if this can be achieved, then they can decide their destiny by themselves.

She added that the country has more than enough qualified women for political positions, adding that they are fit to hold even the position of president of this country. 

Tallen said there should be no reason why women should be pulling themselves down.

The Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, in her welcome address, said women constitute about half of the population, hence cannot be ignored.

 She said for Nigeria to move in the right direction, it is proper and necessary for them to sit at the table and contribute to the discourse.

Balarabe also urged women to get involved in politics and always support each other.

 “Every woman is a mother and mothers are known to be the foundation of homes and the first teachers of children. Unfortunately women in Nigeria and many other places are still being relegated to the background.

“Women should get involved and if women got more involved things would get better. We have a real task and responsibility to cause a change and make men accept that women can do much more than they have been credited for.

“Women should play leading roles as mothers and stabilizers of the polity. As many women that present themselves for elective positions, we should act as one and support our own. Women need more opportunities,” she said.

The Ogun State Deputy Governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, said the round table provided the opportunity to assess themselves going forward.

“We all, in our own little ways, have to look at what we can do as individuals in our respective wards and constituencies to start to build a pool of women. Let us try as much as possible to support our women and create an impact in society,” she said.

Also speaking, Senator Dame Nora Daduut, said the issue is not just about gender as the women just want to be treated as human beings.

 “When we talk about women it is not about gender. Women are human beings. Before you are a man or woman, first and foremost, we are human beings and this is what we women are saying. That we want to belong and participate and add value to all that it takes for good governance for the growth and development of our nation.

 “There is no world without a woman and there is no world without a man because God created us to be partners in progress and development. More so the woman has a lot in stock which has not been exploited. And you can only exploit it if you bring her out. How can we contribute when we are relegated to the background?

“Women are more organized and more serious when it comes to contributing to human development. We don’t lack what the men have. We have everything. But it only takes cooperation of our counterparts to be able to put in more. And when we are together, we work together and when we work together there is unity,” she said.

 Also Senator Binta Masi Garba said it is time for women to stand in one voice and one accord to take back their destiny in our hands. 

She said whenever a woman gets into position of authority, she would always represent the interest of women.

“If a woman is given an opportunity and we know she has requite knowledge and antecedents, it is better to rally round that person. Women should not run other women down,” she said.

She also urged against last minute preparations for politics among the women.

“Don’t do the last minute attitude. You don’t wait until six months to an election and say you want to get into an election. The election for you should start when the last election has been concluded,” she said. 

Senator Fatimat Raji-Rasaki, regretted that women hardly support each other in politics.

She stressed that such an attitude has to change.

“When it comes to that election, you don’t see them behind us. They support men. We need to change the narrative and orientation. We need to talk to our women that we need to support ourselves. If we do not support ourselves, we cannot get it on a platter of gold,” she said.

 Senator Grace Bent also stressed that that nothing is given to any woman on a platter of gold but they need to work hard and together to achieve their aim.

She encouraged women not to be intimidated by anyone and urged them to get to the grassroots and be grassroots politicians.

“Whenever women are contesting, queue behind them and vote for the women. It is by ourselves we can pull ourselves out. So, we should support other women,” she said.