The past two decades witnessed heightened activities by women’s organizations to promote women’s rights by redressing a range of discriminatory practices against women and unequal sexual relations in public and domestic life, which work to prevent women from exercising their full rights as citizens. Several nations signed and ratified international conventions and treaties, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) of 1979 or the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights; these have not been incorporated into Domestic Law. The protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa was ratified by the required fifteen member-states and came into force on 26th November 2005. Since the Convention on eliminating all forms of Discrimination against women was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1979, considerable progress has been made.
There is mainstreaming sexuality into every planned action in policies and programs like Education, Training, Science, and Technology but much still needs to be done. The most significant conflicts in African society today emanate from the political class. Rather than resolve these conflicts amicably or go into dialogue, they fan them like burning coals, exploit the circumstances, and further drive themselves apart. The attitude of politicians has always been winner takes it all, which in itself is bad for the winner controls every aspect of governance and is averse to compromise to the detriments of the society. The study of politics is so different from classroom taught-lessons in political science undertaken in various higher institutions. I analyze politics as being played by stakeholders and possibly contextualize it from various divides, political ideologies, and pragmatism. Throughout Europe and America, democracy is generally accepted as the best form of government.
African countries have embraced democracy, but an attempt at democratic movements has failed in implementation. Despite the study of Politics in many higher institutions, very little attention has been extended to human nature in politics. Despite the transformation of Pedagogy and Criminology through the study of Psychology, politics have remained unchanged. Graham Wallas, a writer on human nature in Politics, remarked that “Political impulses are not mere intellectual inferences from calculations of means and ends, but tendencies before experience of individual human beings.” The effectiveness of our impulses are instincts that are increased if they are pure but rarely can one encounter pure impulse or instinct from political players. Political emotions are sometimes pathologically intensified when large numbers of the same political party experience it. Another dimension alien to democracy but thrives in Nigeria is Political godfathers, most times self-appointed. This class of political stakeholders constitutes a nuisance to the political process.
#I will continue tomorrow#
