By AJU Elumelu
My fellow countrymen, respected members of the National Assembly, leaders of political parties, members of IPAC, civil society organisations, international partners, mothers of this nation, daughters of courage, and every Nigerian who still believes in justice and democracy…
Today, May 22nd, is not just an anniversary.
It is a reminder.
A reminder that one year ago, women from every corner of Nigeria gathered with one voice, one dream, and one burning conviction that Nigerian women deserve not pity, not tokenism, but power, participation, and representation.
One year ago, the AJU Morgan Elumelu Foundation Initiative Women for 35% was born.
It was born out of frustration.
It was born out of courage.
And above all, it was born out of hope.
On that historic launch day, women organisations stood shoulder to shoulder because we shared a common cause. Government officials came. National Assembly members came. IPAC members came. Women leaders came.
Women from different professions, different tribes, different religions, different political affiliations came together not for themselves alone, but for generations unborn.
We gathered not to beg.
We gathered to demand what is rightfully ours 35% affirmative action and beyond.
And after that launch, we did not sleep.
We went to work.
Today, our coordinators, mobilisers, ambassadors, and advocates are spread across local governments in Nigeria. Women with intellect. Women with competence. Women with capacity. Women with experience. Women with fire in their hearts and purpose in their spirits.
Professional women.
Women in government.
Women executives.
Grassroots women.
Young women.
Women in the diaspora.
International women allies.
All lending their voices to one mission:
To ensure that the Nigerian woman is seen, heard, counted, and represented.
Because democracy without women is not democracy at all.
And in our determination to bring our plight closer to the corridors of power, the Foundation appointed Senator Seriake Dickson, leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, as our Patron to help amplify the voices of women at the National Assembly and stand as an advocate for policy reform.
But today, one year later, we must speak honestly.
Our journey has not only been difficult.
It has been heartbreaking.
As political parties begin their alignments ahead of the 2027 elections, many women who once carried hope in their hearts are now returning to us in tears.
Not because they lack competence.
Not because they lack vision.
Not because they lack integrity.
But because they lack money.
The same old barriers remain standing like ancient walls against Nigerian women.
Exorbitant nomination fees.
Unfair party structures.
Closed-door negotiations.
Political intimidation.
Financial exclusion disguised as process.
And now, draconian political party policies are once again quietly easing women out of the democratic space.
This is not democracy.
This is exclusion wearing the clothing of politics.
And the painful truth is this:
When women are absent from leadership, over 100 million Nigerian women become invisible.
When women are not represented, the needs of mothers are ignored.
The cries of widows are unheard.
The future of the girl child is weakened.
Healthcare suffers.
Education suffers.
Families suffer.
Communities suffer.
Because women do not only lead offices.
Women sustain society.
The programs women champion, healthcare, education, food security, child welfare, social protection, peacebuilding are the very bedrock of every stable nation.
So when women are pushed aside politically, the entire nation pays the price.
And to the men who hold power in political parties..
To the gatekeepers of our democracy…
To those who decide who gets a form and who gets a future…
We are not your enemies.
We are your mothers.
Your wives.
Your sisters.
Your daughters.
The same women who carried this nation through hardship.
The same women who hold homes together while the economy bites harder every day.
The same women who nurture communities when systems fail.
So we ask you today:
Have a change of heart.
History is watching.
The future is listening.
And posterity will remember whether you opened the door for women… or locked it against them.
We are not asking for charity.
We are asking for fairness.
If democracy truly belongs to the people, then women must not be priced out of participation.
At this critical moment, we call on the international community, civil society organisations, members of the National Assembly, and most importantly, the chairmen of all political parties:
Allow women to participate meaningfully in the 2027 elections.
Give women free nomination forms.
Create waivers.
Create support structures.
Create opportunities.
Because women and children have borne the deepest wounds of this economy.
And to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we make this heartfelt appeal:
Mr. President, the subsidy savings were meant to ease the pain of Nigerians.
Extend that support to women seeking elective office in 2027.
Help empower women who are ready to serve this nation with competence, dignity, and patriotism.
Because investing in women is not a favour to women.
It is an investment in Nigeria.
Today, as we mark one year of this movement, we refuse to surrender to disappointment.
We refuse to abandon the dream.
We refuse to let another generation of girls believe leadership was never meant for them.
No.
We will continue to organize.
We will continue to mobilize.
We will continue to advocate.
We will continue to fight peacefully, courageously, and relentlessly.
Until Nigerian women are no longer spectators in democracy…
But equal stakeholders in the destiny of this nation.
And one day, history will remember that when doors were shut against women, brave women still stood up and knocked until those doors opened.
Happy One-Year Anniversary to the AJU Morgan Elumelu Foundation Initiative Women for 35%.
The struggle continues.
And victory, by the grace of God, will come.
Thank you.
God bless Nigerian women.
And God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
