Professionals extol the virtues and qualities of the Nigerian woman

Every woman is fundamentally beautiful and endowed by the Creator with sterling qualities to improve family and the society to which she belongs.

By taking advantage of this Nature’s gift, the aggregate values of the larger society are inculcated, acquired, and enhanced.

So, womanhood presents itself a positive direction for the wider society. Chief (Mrs) Opral Mason Benson stands out primus inter pares in this regard as the best advertisement for womanhood.

Joke Silva (Actress)

I think it is incorrect to think that the Nigerian woman is more dynamic now than she used to be in the days gone by because my antecedents are women who are dynamic and have always been dynamic.

My mother is one of the early medical practitioners in the skilled medical field in this country. She was a worker and she was a home maker. I had people like Mrs Kofo Olawoye who was also like the woman who raised me as well (late Mrs Oladapo).

Aunty Kofo, for example, was an administrator and she rose up to become a permanent secretary; and these were women who were good home makers and also were successful in what you might call the “market place” as well – and they did it for the love of the family.

One of the things I know about us as a people, especially the Yorubas, is that our women have always been very dynamic. In fact, I won’t even limit this to the Yoruba women alone, the Nigerian woman and, indeed, the African woman has always been dutifully dynamic in all ages.

It was in the advent of colonialism that we began to have women who stayed at home just cooking and running the home whether they wanted to or not.

I know there’re women who just want to stay and take care of their homes, they’re known as home makers and they made a very good job of it; and there are some women who like to be in the market place, and that has always been in our culture.

So I really don’t see our women as being more dynamic now than they’ve always been: our women have always been dynamic.

Dr. Sam Chidiebere
I admire the Nigerian woman for the role she has played in ensuring the stability of the family. She has gone through many challenges, but has only succeeded in retaining the sanctity of the home.

Everywhere I turn to, it is family first, naturally. But even now that we want to drag them into politics, they’re doing it well.

I’ve seen them, I’ve listened to them, and I’ve talked to them. Don’t forget that women are also the mothers of these politicians.

Only a week ago I was talking to a leading politician in this country, a house of reps member and whose mother sat close to me, and we found that the mother was interested in what the young man was doing. Oh, I have utmost respect for the Nigerian woman and the role she’s playing in politics.

Sarah Jubril

(One 1993 Presidential aspirant who got only one vote in her party primaries) Delegates didn’t have the chance to apply the freedom of their conscience. They didn’t have the chance to express their freedom of the fear of God.

The women didn’t bother to vote for me because the same system obtained. They were being teleguided by the governors and some of the party leaders because of their own various interests. That’s part of the politics.

The problem is that this type of politics does not open Nigeria up for democratic sanity. I knew it was my brother, a friend and another family friend and my own vote that was counted.

They had the guts to vote for me, but this time around, some of these my personal family members or friends were not delegates.

I want to take this to account: in 1975, Nigeria went to Mexico as a frontline member of the United Nations’ Women’s Conference. In 1985 we went to Arusha, Tanzania; 1995 we went to Beijing with the largest contingent; 2005 we went to New York.

So, my effort in 1993 to run for the Presidency and for the delegates to vote for me as their presidential candidate to have come to the fourth position and after Atiku stepped down I became number three, it was no good news. Maybe, it was ignorance I wouldn’t know.

You are talking of domestication, they didn’t think that a woman who is well versed in the issues of which Nigeria was signatory to in the UN, the Commonwealth, the African Union, ECOWAS, Better Life Programme, Family Economic Advancement Programme, MAMSER, the various programmes of governors’ wives all over the states for the women is fit and qualified to rule the country.

God bless the Nigerian woman!