For The Sake Of Eve

It is a laudable step managed badly. Last week the New Patriotic Party (NPP) sought to take the Beijing Declaration to another notch but ended up attracting the opprobrium of many of its supporters across the country understandably and ironically.

Change is difficult to effect. When not managed properly and with the necessary consultation and the necessary finesse, it can backfire badly.

The reaction of the party people who kicked against the directive that male parliamentary aspirants should not contest the NPP incumbent female parliamentarians notwithstanding, the need to take another look at the proposal so it can be implemented someday is highly advised.

That is not to ignore the concerns of those who stood against the move. In a democracy a big stomach to contain all shades of likes and dislikes should be available.

We want to believe that those opposed to the proposal are not doing so out of a hatred for women. The timing and approach as pointed out earlier could be the reason informing their action.

For a political party which considers the interest of women to the level of fashioning out an arrangement that would ensure that they remain in the equation of decision-making and policy formulation and implementation, the action of the NPP is commendable.

The diminishing role of women in the scheme of things across especially Africa, is worrying especially when viewed against the fact that dozens of forums have been held to deliberate on how to ensure that they do not suffer discrimination because of their sex through chauvinistic inclinations of men.

Unfortunately, these forums turned out to be some of the many talk-shops which yielded nothing in the end – with women largely hewing wood and drawing water.

The role of women in the management of homes even as they withstand the stress associated with this function, sets them apart from their male counterparts. For them to be regarded as irrelevant is to be exhibiting primitiveness.

No scientific evidence exists to give credence to the largely crude stance that what men can do their counterparts in the opposite sex cannot do. There is no terrain that women have not ventured and excelled in today's world.

Society and political groupings stand to gain by appreciating their importance and according them their rightful place. This way those sterling qualities inherent in them can be harnessed for a better society.

Cultural, traditional and sometimes misinterpretation of the tenets of the various faiths in some cases, have led to the warped positions held about women.

We are by this editorial asking the NPP – which appears to have been cowed by the agitations which greeted the announcement of their deal for women – to rethink their decision by engaging with those opposed to it.

It might not come to fruition now but in the near future affirmative action could ensure that women are accorded their rightful places in politics and other fields.