Political Participation and Socialization of Women in Nigeria: A Case of the Fourth Republic

Abstract

In the contemporary world today, democracy has become the template upon which nation states achieve sustainable development and politics remain a core part of democracy whose etymology and tradition conceptualizes it as male dominated, specific to the public sphere and consequently, not women friendly. This study examined the political participation and socialization of women in Nigeria. It focuses on women in politics especially during the Fourth Republic. The study employed the theory of mirror representation to recognize the significance of women’s involvement in politics and promoting women in politics. The research methodology is termed qualitative and with the use of secondary data gathered from university libraries, news print and journals, articles, published and unpublished materials, the use of internet sources relevant to the study. It examined the theoretical status of women in the area of socialization and identified the problems women face in political participation in Nigeria. It was established that even though there was an increase in women participation in politics in the Fourth Republic, it is still below what is expected. It asserted that, there is a link between the nature of socialization the female gender acquires and the lack luster attitude towards political participation; it was also established that the low level of participation of women in politics was as a function of the environment. As a way of increasing the number of women in active politics, the study recommended that women should be enlightened about their political rights as this will put them at par with their male counterparts in active politics. The electoral system and procedures as well as the political system should be put in such a way that women will not feel restricted from getting involved or participating in the politics and governance of the country.