Women shouldn’t take positions they have no capacity to manage —Ladi Bala

Mrs Ladi Bala, an ace broadcaster, is the National President of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) and the Assistant Manager News at the NTA headquarters, Abuja. She started work at the age of 18 and has created a niche for herself as an accomplished media practitioner and dogged unionist with passion for women empowerment, development and fighting for women rights. She tells YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE, about the need for women to prepare themselves for leadership roles, 35 per cent affirmative action and girl-child education.

Are there really glass ceilings for professional women in Nigeria and if yes, how can they be shattered?

Yes, there are. However, women in the corporate world are doing greatly, they are doing exceptionally great jobs and that has been one of the encouragements and impetus that women are relying on and is pushing them to do their best. I think basically, women also need to be steadfast and be ready to take on responsibilities. Education remains the bedrock of any form of development and that is why we keep talking of the need for girls to go to school and the need for women to have access to education and acquire more knowledge and skills for them to become experts in their different fields of endeavours because this is what cannot be taken away from you. When somebody gives you appointment just because you are a woman, that appointment  can be taken away from you but when you are schooled and you have the skills and expertise, you become a valuable tool and agent no one will be able to push aside.

So, there are women today that are excelling not because they want them to excel but because they have got to that point that you cannot deny what they have and since you cannot deny what they have and what they have is needed, naturally they have to be patronised. So, for me, I think for women to get it right, I sincerely think that women need to be ready, women need to be prepared. When preparation meets with  opportunity, success is inevitable. So I think that is the mentality women need to embrace; build your capacity, distinguish yourself, be a woman of integrity and you will be reckoned with. Those militating factors are there, they are not going to disappear overnight. The truth is women need to work extra hard to break that barrier and the strongholds around them but I am happy that we are moving gradually and we are departing from the past though the hindrances are still there yet I think the women are the ones to make themselves relevant in the Nigerian state

 

What are your thoughts on 35 per cent affirmative action?

We have been struggling that the issue of 35 per cent affirmative action on appointment positions for women should be considered. In the past, we have got to  a level, now we are not there but we are trusting God that come 2023, women are going to enjoy this affirmative action and that is the work that NAWOJ and other women groups have started working on with all political parties and all presidential aspirants we need to ensure they buy into this project. Remember the gender bills that were thrown out, one of the issues involved is the 35 per cent appointive position for women in Nigeria and I’m telling you that this will still come to bear, I’m so optimistic about it come 2023 because we are not going to sit back and allow appointments to be done across board without women getting the 35 per cent of all the appointments that will be made in 2023. I think we are getting there but I basically will suggest that women should rise to the occasion, women should show commitment and determination that truly they are ready, let women prepare, let the girl-child go to school because she’s the future leader, these are parts of the things that women need to do at our own level and in the homes as mothers; build the confidence of the girl child, ensure that she has something to add to the Nigerian society and also begin to teach the male-child that the girl beside him is there to complement whatever efforts that he makes, that culture needs to be inculcated into the lives of male children and the younger generation, some of us who are there should strive so that we serve as reference points and role models to the younger generation. This is what we need to do; stand strong, be committed to your cause and never lower your standards so that you don’t be a reference point for the negative aspects of life but be that reference point as women of integrity. We have women today that are excellent mothers, good wives and still make impacts because they challenge the status quo about women being relegated to the background and not being seen as people that have something to offer. Ngozi Okonjo- Iweala is an example, she did that and she stands out. So I think it is all about developing ourselves, knowing who we are and standing for what we believe in and work towards it and nobody will be able to cheat you or push you aside but when you come with beggarly attitude and they see that you have nothing to offer other than to be pitied, you can be tested right. You do not take any position because you are a woman but take positions that you know you are qualified to take. Any position given to you to fulfill righteousness and you know you don’t have the capacity, don’t take it because you will not be able to deliver on that responsibility and they will use it as a reference point against women. Take responsibilities that you can carry out well so that at the end of the day, people will judge you well

 

It seems you believe strongly that women can make a difference?

Anything a woman lays her hand on, she does it well, a woman is more productive, just give her the privilege, give her the platform, you will be amazed at what she can achieve. Women are right thinkers, they think for everybody, they do things for themselves so when you give a woman responsibility, they will astound you.

For example, in any group or association, when it is time to fill the position of financial secretary or treasurer, they automatically think of women because people believe that women are more accountable, more prudent, more transparent and less corrupt. Why is it that when it comes to issues like that, women are considered for accountability? If you can trust a woman to do all these and you know she’s more accountable, why not give her leadership positions and forget all those cultural, religious and societal values that say women should not be the head and the woman should be under the man. But a woman should not be in competition with men, the role we play is a complementary role. With the policies that we have in Nigeria today, I think the laws are the strongest weapon that women have.

 

How can women thrive in our society?

It’s still the same process that I just explained. Women should not just give up, women should not allow the prevailing circumstances in the society where they are often seen as people that have little or nothing to offer to cow them out of what they can do. So, women should be more focused, more goal oriented and more determined to move out there and not allow anything dampen their morale, people will say all manner of things to them but they should not allow this affect them because that is just cheap blackmail to women from the society; they will tell you that any woman that is vocal and speaks her mind is stubborn and cannot submit to authority, the society has a way of tagging such women as being loose and not behaving like a lady. It is assumed that as a lady, you should not speak where men are even when you have something valuable to add to conversations, you are not allowed to speak. Those are retrogressive standards that scare women from being their best in the society. I want to appeal to women to please not allow anyone to dampen their morale if you have something you want to pursue in life, go out there and pursue it, not minding what anybody thinks, as long as you know that you are working within the confines of the law and you know that you are not doing anything that will tarnish the image of women, I think such women should just go ahead to pursue their dreams and not allow anyone to pull them down. Anything revolves around the women and what they want, though the militating factors are there but are you really ready to push through, are you really willing not to give up even in the face of insults and abuses particularly for those in politics, because there is no name you will not be called; they will call you a prostitute, a woman of cheap virtue, one that cannot live under a husband and cannot be submissive, they say all manner of things against women but a man that doesn’t have a woman in his life or any laudable ideas does not face such challenges because of the society we are in. It takes a woman to tell herself what she wants or who she wants to be and pursue her dreams, it’s all around her, she can break the barrier, she can insist that this is who she is and the way she wants to be. Improve on yourself, know who you are, increase your capacity and begin to work towards your dreams and you will get there. Women should not give up or allow themselves to be discouraged because there’s much for women to do to add value.

 

QUOTE

There are women today that are excelling not because they want them to excel but because they have gotten to that point that you cannot deny what they have and since you cannot deny what they have and what they have is needed, naturally they have to be patronised.

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