At the beginning of the election year, Chichi Ojei of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) was the only female presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections. However, less than 10 days before the presidential elections, her party withdrew support for her.
According to the party, the decision was made after evaluating the democratic credentials of Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The party said it considered it appropriate in the national interest to adopt Atiku for president in the forthcoming election.
Ms Ojei, like many other Nigerian women, had her dream dashed before the competition proper.
Nigeria’s female population amounted to approximately 106 million in 2021 out of 213 million people. Despite this almost equal population with men, women have less representation in governance.
Only one woman has ever occupied any of the top four positions in Nigeria’s governance – a five months stint as Speaker in 2007. As of 2022, only…
