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*Kemi Ayelabola Sustains Tempo On Gender Equality For Women, Salutes Efforts Of Hon. Ogbara, House Leadership*
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Chairperson and Convener of Asiwaju Renewed Hope (ARH’23), Kemi Olokode-Ayelabola has added her voice to the call for gender equality for women, describing it as a moral imperative, as well as a key driver of sustainable development and social progress.
Kemi, a behavioral, developmental and child/young persons care professional currently based in the Republic of Ireland also commended the leadership of the House of Representatives, especially the Speaker, Rt Hon. Tajudeen Abbas (CFR) and the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu (CON) for their deliberate efforts to involve more women in critical decision-making, particularly in elective offices across the various tiers of government.
She further applauded the House leadership for the genuine commitment they exhibited at the international legislative dialogue on women and the constitutional amendment process in Nigeria, recently organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review.
Similarly, Kemi equally gave kudos to the Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, Hon. Kafilat Ogbara for her immense contributions in making a case for the women folks towards societal cohesion, gender parity, political participation/leadership so as to engender national development.
Olokode-Ayelabola stated this in a statement she made available to the media on Tuesday, October 29, 2024 noting that there was urgent need for collaboration and collective action by all stakeholders in tackling legal, social, religious and cultural vices and other societal challenges, that serve as impediments to women’s participation and empowerment in every strata of life.
“I must commend Hon. Kafilat Ogbara, the Chairman House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, for revisiting all the gender-based legislations of the 9th Assembly on women’s participation in politics and other sectorial matters and this is essentially crucial to building a stable and peaceful society and developing policies that respond to the specific needs of women while also creating a place of pride and dignity for them in the society through right legal and legislative frameworks.
“There is, therefore, an urgent need for the women to be adequately represented in political and economic decision-making at every level,” she said.
Continuing, “As Nigeria strives for gender equality, women’s participation in political leadership remains a critical focal point. Sadly women face pitiable challenges in the political arena, therefore necessitating tailored approaches to enhance their opportunities and ensure protection from discrimination must never be compromised.
“I once appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in March this year to step up the full implementation of 35% affirmative action of women in public governance and leadership; I have not backed out from this laudable advocacy and thankfully we have a compassionate and listening President who is already taking meaningful decisions in that direction and we must applaud His Excellency for that.
“We must however redouble our efforts to support women in decision-making roles, enabling them to effectively advocate for legislation and policies that advance the interests of women and girls. In alignment with these efforts, there should be legislative and constitutional reforms to ensure women’s equitable access to political spheres as voters, candidates, elected officials, political appointees and civil service executives as the case may be,” Olokode-Ayelabola stated.
News
18 States Move To Block Trump’s Order Ending Birthright Citizenship For Immigrant Children In US
A coalition of Democratic state attorneys general filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday to block President Trump’s executive order aimed at eliminating birthright citizenship.
Shortly after taking office on Monday, Trump used presidential powers to initiate his long-promised immigration crackdown. His executive actions included an order directing the federal government to stop issuing passports, citizenship certificates, and other documents to many children born in the U.S. whose mothers are in the country illegally or whose parents are not legal permanent residents.
According to CBS News, the lawsuit, filed by 18 states in federal court in Massachusetts, argues that Mr. Trump’s initiative violates the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which has long been interpreted by the federal government to grant citizenship to those born on American soil.
The cities of San Francisco and Washington, D.C., have also joined the suit.
The 14th Amendment says: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
“The great promise of our nation is that everyone born here is a citizen of the United States, able to achieve the American dream,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement to CBS News.
“This fundamental right to birthright citizenship, rooted in the 14th Amendment and born from the ashes of slavery, is a cornerstone of our nation’s commitment to justice.”
The lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction to stop the enforcement of the executive order and ultimately aims to have it invalidated.
The states participating in the suit include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
“The President’s executive order attempting to rescind birthright citizenship is blatantly unconstitutional and quite frankly, un-American,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement.
The states are asking the court to immediately block the order from taking effect.
Mr. Trump directed that his order should be enforced in 30 days.
In a historic attempt to decolonise the country’s judiciary, President Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso has formally banned judges from wearing wigs from the British and French colonial eras.
President Traoré emphasised in his announcement the importance of eschewing colonial-era traditions and implementing customs that respect Burkina Faso’s cultural identity.
The action is in line with his larger plan to fortify national identity and declare the nation’s autonomy from outside influences. The colonial wigs, which have traditionally stood for outside authority in African legal systems, are gradually being abandoned.
Covenant University (CU) has again been listed as Nigeria’s overall best university in Times Higher Education (THE) 2025 Rankings.
In the 2025 rankings, the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria came second, displacing the University of Ibadan which occupied the position for the 2024 ccrankings.
The Times Higher Education World Rankings is a comprehensive global ranking of universities published annually.
The 2025 rankings THE said it ranked more than 2,000 institutions from 115 countries and territories.
Globally, Oxford holds on to the top spot for the ninth consecutive year, bolstered by significant improvements in industry engagement and teaching. MIT rises to second place, overtaking Stanford, which drops to sixth.
The ratings were done based on 18 carefully calibrated performance indicators that measure an institution’s performance across five areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry, and international outlook.
University of Oxford
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Harvard University
Princeton University
University of Cambridge
Stanford University
California Institute of Technology
University of California, Berkeley
Imperial College London
Yale University
Top ranked Nigerian universities
1. Covenant University
2. Ahmadu Bello University
3. Landmark University
4. University of Ibadan
5. University of Lagos
6. Bayero University
7. Federal University of Technology Akure
8. Federal University of Technology, Minna
9. University of Benin
10. University of Ilorin
11. University of Nigeria Nsukka
12. Ekiti State University
13. Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta
14. Federal University of Technology, Owerri
15. Federal University Oye-Ekiti
16. Ladoke Akintola University of Technology
17. Lagos State University
18. Nnamdi Azikiwe University
19. Obafemi Awolowo University
20. University of Port Harcourt
21. Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto
22. Abia State University
23. Akwa Ibom State University
24. Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike
25. Ambrose Alli University
26. Baze University
27. Bells University of Technology
28. Benson Idahosa University
29. Bowen University
30. Delta State University, Abraka
31. Evangel University, Akaeze
32. Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun
33. Godfrey Okoye University
34. Lagos State University of Education
35. Lagos State University of Science and Technology
36. Nasarawa State University, Keffi
37. Niger Delta University
38. Nile University of Nigeria
39. Osun State University
40. Rivers State University
41. Thomas Adewumi University
42. University of Cross River State
43. University of Maiduguri
44. Veritas University, Abuja
18 States Move To Block Trump’s Order Ending Birthright Citizenship For Immigrant Children In US
Burkina Faso outlaws colonial-era judicial wigs to embrace cultural identity
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