POEM
Give Her a Chance
Give her a chance to speak
Give her a chance to gather her thoughts
How long will she be tied to the kitchen?
How long will African women be hidden in shells?
How long will the culture make her different?
How long will this discrimination continue?
How long will she be forced to keep silent even though there are a thousand thoughts in her mind?
This cannot go on forever
This indifference must stop
She will no longer be silent
Oh! All she wants is a chance
To make decisions about her body, career, and future.
Oh! African women must rise up
Remember that we are life-givers, magic mentors, and mothers of nations.
The world is waiting for her
Waiting for her ideas on how it can become a better place
She is important
She can contribute to nations to progress
The president sit is empty
The governor sit is empty
The business sector needs a new leadership
Oh! Give her a chance
She is loaded with power
She is gifted with amazing intellect
She has the key to succeed
SHE CAN DO IT
Just give her a chance.
-ALABI MOJISOLA, SS3
ESSAY
Women in Leadership Positions
The world is in desperate need of great leaders, whether in business or in politics. Yet, many leadership opportunities are withheld from half of the workforce. We are talking about women in leadership positions, even with all the progress we have made for equality in many important ways, women are still severely underrepresented in business and leadership positions.
This inequality could be in part because not everyone is on the same page when it comes to understanding the importance of women in leadership positions. Some believe that women should be capable of reaching leadership positions on their own, while others do not understand what makes women suited for the job.
Many businesses and industries are waking up to the reality that women in leadership positions do not only bring important benefits, but that they are an absolutely valuable and irreplaceable resource in the office, in the boardroom, at the senate floor, at the podium, and at the head of the table.
The helpful ways we can have more women in leadership positions are;
- acknowledge the leadership strength and contributions of women
- provide women with the educational and training resource
- give women opportunities to excel within the organization and their careers
Ultimately, the problems we are facing are not technological, but human. The human system is broken. More still needs to be done to give all women the best possible chance of rising to the top, if that happens, then I will be the first to say who is in charge does not matter a jot.
-CHRISTIANA IBIAM, SS1
POEM
A Woman of Substance
I wouldn’t have come to this world
If not for a woman beyond words
I wouldn’t have become who I am today
If not for a woman who did it yesterday
Oh! women are great treatures
so valuable that I cannot measure
People said her office was in the kitchen
But never knew to her it was a prison
If there was war with so much violence
She would intervene with silence
Humanity was created eqaully
So she asks herself why are we differentiated?
A skinny black girl can dream of being a president
Only to find herself living in the residence
We can only reach the peak togerther
Because what a man can do a woman can do too
We will be strong and fight for our rights
And we shall achieve this with all our might
You are a true woman of substance
And a big salute to you
Happy Women’s day
Thank you for being pure and true.
-ELOY DANIEL, SS2
POEM
Oh woman
Oh female
Oh sister
Oh girls
Oh giver of life, women of hard labour
Oh mother, cares for you more than anyone does
Oh mother, cares for you for nine months with an unbearable pain
Oh mother the precious gift you ever had
Women of willingness, women to defend
Giver of life
Women of power, women of loyalty
Oh mother she is like a friend
Oh mother the woman who brought you to earth
Oh mother even dies for her children
Women of heritage
Oh women the love you truly have
-Muyideen Joshua, basic 5.