The wife of the President, Mrs Aisha Buhari, has called for the establishment of more radio stations in the country, with a focus on the promotion of women and children’s welfare.
Mrs Buhari, who was represented by a former House of Representatives member, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, made the call while launching Nigeria’s first radio station totally dedicated to airing women and children’s programmes named WFM 91.7 on Friday in Lagos.
“I am aware that the idea was to spearhead the advocacy for women development in every ramification.
“This is in the areas of addressing domestic violence, economic justice, women’s rights and enhancement of healthcare for women.
“Let me use this medium to stress that several efforts are being made by my humble self, targeted at the six geo-political zones in the area of improving maternal and child health.
“As well as interventions to help the Internally Displaced Persons.
“I want to appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to put in their best in this direction for the good of the Nigerian women and children.
“As you know, 80 per cent of those in IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) camps are women and children.
“The owners of this radio station must sustain the tempo for social change to achieve social justice.
“A radio station for women is not just for women, it’s for the whole family, for the men, for the children and all lovers of women.
“I want to advise that more of this type of station be established in every part of the country as a platform to advocate for improved welfare for women and children.”
In her remarks, the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Mrs Idiat Adebule, assured that the state government will initiate policies and programmes that will help women to break the cycle of poverty.
Represented by Mrs Olabowale Ademola, the Lagos State Head of Service, the deputy governor expressed the belief that the new radio station will do everything to champion the cause of women and the girl-child to ensure adequate representation of women in all sectors of the economy.
Earlier, Mrs Toun Okewale-Sonaiya, the Managing Director of the WFM station 91.7, said the station would serve as the platform for the mobilisation and sensitisation to their rights and roles in national development.
She said: “The station aims to empower and inspire the woman and her family in all spheres of endeavour.’’
According to her, the station is intended to bridge the wide gap between women and their male counterparts in terms of programming and other media contents.
She noted that the programmes on most radio stations have bias towards men by as much as 73 per cent.
The Guest Speaker, Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, urged women to strive toward self- development and self-reliance so as to contribute meaningfully to the growth of the nation’s economy.
In her keynote address titled `Women Development in the 21st Century’, she further urged the women to shun all tendencies that portray them as the weaker sex as that is the only way they will earn the respect of their male counterparts in their chosen fields.
She, however, flayed the apparent marginalization of women in the political and decision-making processes in the society in spite of the persistent call for 35 per cent Affirmative Action.
The guest speaker lauded the contributions of women in all spheres of life, saying “the world cannot ignore the contributions of women to the advancement of society in the 21st century.”
The Publisher of Ovation Magazine, Bashorun Dele Momodu, as well as veteran actresses such as Joke Silva and Gloria Young, were among the guests at the event.