Those living on partisan politics as their means of livelihood have been cautioned against taking politics as a profession.
Ekiti State Deputy Governor Prof Modupe Adelabu, who gave the piece of advice, said politics should be taken a game of service to humanity by players who, she insisted must have other regular sources of income.
Speaking in a chat with reporters, the deputy governor also said it was wrong to view politics as exclusive preserve of men.
According to her, the political space should be made open to men and women as politics has no gender.
She said: “Women are trying to enter into this terrain (politics) that men have been territorial about. It does not belong to men alone. Politics has no gender. It is unfortunate that we are genderising politics.”
The deputy governor alleged that men had always shut the political door against women because of their phobia for the foray of women into politics.
Her words: “We have seen that women can compete openly with men politically without jeopardizing their integrity, homes and all other social interests. African men are very possessive because they are not secured.”
On professionalization of politics, she urged Nigerians to always strive to have something to fall back upon should they fail to attain their ambition in politics, pointing out that such steps would eliminate politics of hate.
“My advice to whoever is going into politics is that such a person should have achieved something. Nobody should take politics as a do-or-die enterprise and nobody should take politics as a profession.
“A politician must get another address where he/she can always fall back on if politics fail. Whoever is going into politics must ensure he/she has armed and empowered him/herself – especially financially and professionally.”
According to her, the infiltration of the political space by moneybags and the wrong concept of politics as a do-or-die game have not encouraged women to go into competitive politics.
Said the deputy governor: “That is why people often feel that women go into politics for money but this assumption is very wrong. Once a woman armed with education and she has a work to fall back on if politics fails, there is nothing wrong in going into politics.
“Nothing stops a woman from going into politics if she has another address, has empowered herself financially and educationally because either you go into it or not, if you fold your arms and allow men to take decisions that would only support the interests of men at the expense of women.
“So, I think women should not fold their arms, otherwise, they would continue to be enslaved by the men folk.
Last modified: October 3, 2013