President Bio urges SLPP women to settle their differences
President Bio urges SLPP women to settle their differences
President Bio urges SLPP women to settle their differences
By Joseph S. Margai, Strategic Communications Coordinator
President Julius Maada Bio has, on Friday, 3rd February, 2023, urged the women’s wing of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) to settle their differences and bridge existing gaps so as to enhance peace and development in the party.
Since the SLPP Women’s Leader election was held in 2021, there had been differences among the women of the party, a situation that has the tendency to deepen divisions and negatively impact on the June 24, 2023 general elections.
But, President Bio, who was speaking at the first SLPP Women’s Council Conference at Galliness Paradise in Bo city, called for calmness by saying that the women should settle their differences in order to mobilize for the June 24 2023 multitier elections.
“As the leader of the SLPP, I am kindly begging you to forget about your differences and work together for the common goal. There should be no more camps. You should forgive each other,” he told his audience who were mainly women, adding that the SLPP was not only the best political party but the strongest that spreads across all regions of Sierra Leone.
He said he has never shied away from empowering women because he knew the power that was inherent in women, recalling that in the 2012 elections, he chose a female running mate so as to send a message that the women were the most precious assets in Sierra Leone.
“We cannot develop Sierra Leone when the potential of half of her population, which is women, is locked up. As long as I am the president, the women will remain integral part of our country’s development. To show that I am committed to empowering women, three weeks ago, I assented the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act 2022,” he told the women of the SLPP.
He noted that because of his commitment to protecting school going girls, teenage pregnancy, which was so rampant before he came to power, had now decreased by 33% through the ‘Hands off our Girls’ campaign, a statistic that underpinned the importance he attached to women’s empowerment.
“I have heard your requests that you are in need of microcredits and motorbikes. I have heard also that some of you are motorbike riders. Well, I have told the party’s Chairman that 30% of the motorbikes that we will buy would be allocated to women,” he said and the crowd roared in jubilation of that pronouncement.
Sierra Leone’s First Lady, Dr. Fatima Bio, said that for President Bio to attend the first ever women’s council conference, in which she was serving as the public relations officer (PRO), showed that he was committed to promoting the affairs of women.
She urged the women to be always nice to people and that they should not only do so when they are getting closer to elections, adding that as politicians, they should be servants and not queens.
“My position as a First Lady does not mean that I am better than you. So, you should not be ashamed to come closer to me so as to chat the way forward of our party,” she told her membership at the conference.
She admonished the SLPP women to come out in order to contest for elective positions such as members of parliament (MPs), councilors, mayors, and chairpersons of local councils, while urging other women to mobilize and embark on a campaign that will lead to the election of women in the aforementioned positions.
“I know that President Bio has committed to giving 30% quota for women’s representation. However, in the SLPP, we are kindly requesting that it should be 50/50 representation. We have women that are capable of handling any administrative office,” she said and the crowd gave her a resounding rounds of applause, indicating that they were in support of what she said.
Women’s Leader of the SLPP, Hawa Foray, said when she won the election in 2021, she discovered that there were divisions in the party, noting that she immediately embarked on a reconciliation tour across the country.
She said the result of that reconciliation tour was evident in the first women council’s conference, where majority of the SLPP women, from national and foreign countries, were present.
“We, the women of SLPP, are appreciative of President Bio’s initiated and implemented free quality dedication, which has significantly removed the economic burden of paying school fees,” she said.
The SLPP Women’s Leader made several requests that her membership wanted President Bio to support them with but prime amongst those requests were microcredits through the MUNAFA Fund and motorbikes.
