Give women chance to lead GLCs call
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) women’s chief Rahimah Majid has urged for women to be given the chance to become leaders in all avenues that are available in order to promote balance in the social structures.
“Women’s voices are still missing from the executive branches of governments and parliaments worldwide, slowing achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said Rahimah.
She added that the advent of the Information Age had created radical changes, with access to knowledge and information equal to both men and women, and that knowledge and information spell power.
“The economic indication for at least the next two decades is that Asia, which includes China, will become the domination region of the world - economically, politically and culturally, and this will include exciting opportunities for women and women’s leadership,” said Rahimah in her speech in a special invitation to speak at the “Women in Law: Challenges and Perspective” talk held recently in Kuala Lumpur by Lee Hishamuddin Allen and Gledhill advocates and solicitors in conjunction with the Women’s Day 2019 celebration.
Rahimah, who is a special officer to the Minister of Housing and Local Authority Hajah Zuraida binti Kamaruddin, also mentioned that the Minister herself had spoken many times on the issue of participation of women not only in the professional fields, but also in decision making positions.
She cited that previously, before the Pakatan Harapan (PH) came into power, Zuraida led the Wanita Keadilan (later as the Chief of Wanita Pakatan Harapan) in pursuit of making all the political parties in Malaysia to have at least 30 percent candidates representation in the general elections.
“In the state of Sabah, we have six women state assemblymen but only three members of parliament, which is a good and steady development in the acceptance of women as leaders in the state government. Our people are matured in voting the candidates based on their potential rather than gender,” said Rahimah in a media interview after delivering her speech.
She added that even though women had won the hearts of the rakyat, it’s still saddening to see that no woman was a nominated representative in Sabah.
In Sabah, there is a provision in the State Constitution for the Chief Minister to nominate any six persons as assemblymen, which will mean his party automatically gets an extra six seats in the assembly.
So far out of six slots for nominated member of the Sabah State Legislative Assemby, only five had been filled up and all of them are men, she pointed out.