Every country in the world celebrates the annual Mother’s Day on their day of choice. A day women are celebrated as mothers, wives, sisters, children, colleagues and business partners including surrogates and men in the role of women.
8th of March is a global international Women’s Day (IWD), celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political contributions and achievements of women. We see significant activities worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women’s or rally for women’s equality.
It is a day to call everyone to action NOW for accelerating women’s equality, if we are to achieve global sustainability goals for our cities, communities and nations. It is no longer sufficient to celebrate the ‘Sweet Mother’- the matriarch, who sacrificed everything for her family, the anchor and heartbeat of her family, yet the one who died in the process. What are the Women’s Liberation and Feminists Movement about, if the women are not supported by their families and loved ones? They will merely be adding to their workload and probably will never have any voice or control over their earnings or well-being amongst other things.
Women are human beings too. Women have visions, aspirations and dreams besides wanting their children and husbands to succeed and supporting them in doing it. Why is it then that girls are the least educated number wise, or the least in priority for education in our country? Why are women seen as threats by most men or slapped down even after ‘fulfilling all righteousness’ in their homes and it’s time to finally do something for themselves (for those who want to)? Is it insecurity, poverty of the spirit or mentality, blindness, lack of insight, vision, foresight or willpower?
If we seek balance of both sexes in our homes, why not in our nation? What’s the saying about people ‘perishing for lack of vision or knowledge’? Why is the country with some of the most brilliant minds in the world choosing not to see, understand, learn from history or even from other African nations with less resources getting it right?
It’s difficult to believe that in Nigeria, in the 21st century, that all the Gender Bills failed last week Monday in the Nigerian Parliament. A sad day for the country because the parliament agreed that we have no democracy and killed the Nigerian women. What retrogression, because men are not free until women are free! Indeed no one is free until everyone is free.
“There’ll be no more forgotten women.” Sleep no more Nigeria. The parliament has murdered sleep. Therefore, the parliament shall sleep no more, politics shall sleep no more (paraphrasing William Shakespeare’s Macbeth). Women across Nigerian Parties, sleep no more. You are the grassroots campaigners, the greatest voters and vote Marshalls. Stand firm, together. What victory can there be without you, the women? Why should the men you work so hard for and campaign to put in power get in and deny you a place? “God forbids”!
The men and the parliament have drawn the first blood and ‘enough is enough’. History has it (even in Nigeria) that great things happen when women create and build an alliance, irrespective of their political parties, tribe/tongue, faith/religion, class and socio-economic status. Women reach out to each other. You are more than meets the eyes. There is a purpose for your life and reason you were put here.
Get Up. Stand up and be counted. Let this International Women’s Day be the Marker in the annals of time when Women started to become the Powerful Change Makers that they are even as William Shakespeare recognised in his writing in 1602, “hands that rock the cradle rules the world.”
Agree that change must come NOW, in your lifetime for you, your children and a better Nigeria!! – “Let There be no more forgotten women.”
***By Angela Morah
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