Prof. Hauwa'u Mainoma Challenges Women to be Resilient and Persistent to achieve Relevance In Decisions Making. By CHINONYEREM IGWE, Abuia

A renowned erudite scholar, Professor Hauwa’u Mainoma, has urged Nigerian women to “take the bull by the horn” in order to remain relevant across all spheres of endeavour in the country. She made the clarion

call yesterday at the Miriam Babangida Women Development Centre, Abuja, where she delivered lectures to mark the week-long programme organised by the Centre to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Answering questions from a team of journalists, Prof. Mainoma stated that the central aim of her paper was to educate women on how to manage organisations wherever they find themselves and to provide exemplary stewardship. She added that nature has endowed women with the traits, character, and charisma required to shoulder any responsibility with competence.

Continuing, she argued that it was the right time for women to step into various positions and prove their worth. Mainoma then queried why women should not be trusted with leadership roles and allowed to lead—particularly within the Nigerian society. She lamented the situation where a woman is denied the opportunity to make decisions, take a firm stand on issues that concern her, or speak out freely; outcomes, she said, do not augur well for women and the society at large. She expressed concern that a man might often take decisions on matters he does not fully understand, insisting that it is fundamentally wrong for decisions that should be handled by women to be monopolised by men.

Explaining further, Prof. Mainoma emphasised that the surest way to enable women to claim their rightful pride—in politics, governance, and every other sphere—is full participation, as well as meaningful dialogue that ensures women are fully integrated into mainstream policy-making in Nigeria.

On why women are not holding enough political positions, she responded that women deserve greater space in governance and decision-making. She maintained that sustained resistance and continuous agitation would, in time, pave the way for equality and justice—not only on issues affecting women, but also for other highly placed offices within the country.

Prof. Hauwa’u Mainoma, who served as the immediate past Director, Gender Studies, and Head of Department, Educational Management, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State.