2027: Women urged to reclaim political space in northeast

By Najib Sani, Gombe 

Women in the Northeast have been urged to reclaim their political space and lead the region's renewal. 

The call was made at the North-East Women in Political Parties Summit 2025, organised by LEADTOTS Development Initiative, a non governmental organisation working towards inclusive leadership with support from the National Endowment for Democracy, held in Gombe State, with participants from various political parties and organisations.

Declaring the summit open on Wednesday, the executive director of LEADTOTS Development Initiative, Nicholas Oshojah Afeso, emphasised that women's leadership is essential for the region's progress, stating that they have what it takes to lead.

According to him, the summit had representatives of INEC, members of IPAC, women political leaders from different parties and women peer support network across the Northeast participating. 

He added that the event aimed to empower women to take on leadership roles and challenge patriarchal norms. 

He said over the two-day event, participants would explore key topics, including breaking patriarchy, designing issue-based campaigns, and financing women's political ambitions. 

Afeso encouraged women to engage boldly and commit to the summit's goals, making it a launchpad for a new movement that challenges old structures and builds new alliances.

"This summit is not just another gathering, it is a strategic intervention, a rallying point, and a renewed call for women across our six states in the Northeast to reclaim their rightful place in the political space. 

"Today, we convene 60 exceptional women political leaders, INEC gender desks, and party representatives because we believe deeply in a Northeast where women are not only voters, mobilisers, and supporters, but candidates, decision-makers, negotiators, thought leaders, and power brokers in their own right", he said.

The executive director further stated that the summit would co-create the historic Northeast Women Political Charter (2025–2027). 

Hauwa Gana Ibrahim, the women leader of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in Yobe State, has expressed concern that women are underrepresented as delegates within political parties. 

She opined that this underrepresentation often leads to men being favoured during primary elections. 

The women leader also pointed out that a new law, which requires party executives to contest for delegate positions rather than automatically holding them as delegates, has disproportionately affected women.

According to her, this change has further disadvantaged women, primarily due to the financial constraints they face in contesting for the delegates positions.

"Number one problem women have is all the political parties have to go for primaries and women have minimum of delegates. And this new law that the last assembly have brought, has given more challenge to the women because even those who are in the executives in the parties are no longer delegates," Ibrahim said.

Rifkatu Maxwell, Head of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Voter Education and Publicity, Gombe State, also highlighted that the delegates selection process favours men in primary elections.

"The delegates selection process in political parties favours men, and most of the delegates participating in primary elections are men, which make them often choose men over women," Rifkatu said.

She urged women to rally behind female candidates in 2027 elections, even if they belong to different parties.

This is just as she advised women to form alliances or coalitions in the 2027 elections to secure better representation in governance, citing the example of the opposition merger that led to their victory in the 2023 presidential election. 

"Women should put aside party differences and support female candidates contesting against men, in order to increase their chances of winning.

"In the INEC voters register, there are more women and youth than men, and hence, women can change their dominance in terms of leadership," she said.

The INEC official said there is a bill before the National Assembly to reserve one senate seat for women in each state, advocating also for reservation of at least three seats for women in state assemblies.

Another thing she recommended is for political parties to provide free nomination forms for women to encourage them to contest elections, citing the fact that INEC provides free forms.

Halima Mahdi, a women activist in Gombe State, re-echoed the sentiments saying lack of women delegates make them unable to field parties' tickets and advised the summit to change it in the north east by 2027 through mobilising women.