AFRICA ( commonwealth Union ) _ As the first elected female governor in the biggest democracy in Africa, Aishatu Dahiru hopes to make history. Dahiru was declared the victor of the governorship primary in the northeastern state of Adamawa by Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Party (APC), making her the only female candidate for any major party in the governorship and state legislature elections.
At a time when just 24 of the 416 candidates running for office are women, the 51-year-old politician may also make history on Saturday by being the first female governor to be elected in Africa’s largest democracy. If Dahiru can defeat 13 other candidates, including the incumbent Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, who is running for reelection on the ticket of the opposition People’s Democratic Party, she might be named governor-elect as soon as Sunday afternoon (PDP).
Dahiru defeated male political veterans in the primaries, including Jibrilla Bindow, the state’s most recent governor, and Nuhu Ribadu, a former anti-corruption chief and former presidential candidate. After the primary, a state court invalidated the outcome because of irregularities, and a higher court eventually overturned the decision.
Dahiru, a senator since 2019 and former member of the House of Representatives for one term, faces a unique struggle in the actual election. Nonetheless, analysts claim it might bring about change in the still-conservative society.
According to Fakhrriyyah Hashim, founder of the Arewa MeToo movement and previous member of the Africa Leadership Centre, she stated that being from an ultraconservative region, many assume that a woman has no place running for the office she is. Instead, they adapt her inability to lead men in prayer to her alleged incapacity to administer a society.
Her candidacy has been openly condemned by religious scholars. A horrific 13-year insurgency by Boko Haram that forbids Western education and kidnaps women and children is still going on throughout the region.
Yet, her supporters—particularly rural women and the working class—remain unconcerned. According to locals, she has long been actively involved in charitable causes supporting low-income homes around the state.
We shouldn’t undervalue the influence that seeing a woman in a position of leadership fosters because, as role models, they can assist increase the number of women who can envision themselves in similar leadership roles.
