PDP: Funke Akindele promises more inclusion of women come 2023

Popular actress, Ms. Funke Akindele, and Deputy governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State, promised on Friday,October 21st, that the party would ensure 35 percent affirmative action for women if elected.

She also promised that part of the plans of the party would be to feed school pupils with one free meal daily.

She made the promises when she took the party’s campaigns to some markets in the Alimosho area of the state including Ipaja, Katan Kowa, and Ile-Epo Markets. 

She visited these markers after the party’s governorship candidate,Dr. Abdul-Azeez Adediran and Akindele herself  began a three-day campaign on Wednesday,October 19, for Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos. 

The campaign was flagged off with the purpose of touring various wards.

While Adediran held meetings with critical community stakeholders and groups in the area, Akindele had been touring various markets to seek support ahead of the general elections.

Akindele sought traders’ support for all PDP candidates, saying that  she was passionate about children and women and had done a lot privately for them.

“Our children are very important and for them to grow up to become responsible youths and great leaders of tomorrow, they must get a proper education.

“We are not comfortable with the more than two million out-of-school children in Lagos State. This should not be so.

“We need to encourage parents to let their children go to school by making education free and compulsory, and by providing learning and teaching aids, free uniforms and at least one free meal daily for the children.

“We shall make sure that women are in all the economic sectors and provide different opportunities for them,’’ she said.

She said the administration would also take care of market women and those in the informal sector by giving them soft loans, skills acquisition and empowerment tools.

“We shall teach them, nurture them and supervise whatever trade they are into to ensure that they do it right.

“We have a lot of things in stock for women and for children. I am very passionate about children. They really touch my soul so much, she stressed.

Akindele received a rousing welcome in all the markets visited where she maintained that it was time for the people of the state to enjoy the real dividends of democracy.

The PDP candidate for Lagos West Senatorial District, Otunba Segun Adewale, who accompanied her to the markets also spoke,promising to facilitate bills that would cater to the needs of youths in the state. 

He promised to facilitate a bill that would make it compulsory to have at least a vocational centre in each local government area.

Adewale noted that one of the biggest challenges of the nation was the youths and said: “most of them are into drugs and touting.’’

He stressed that it was not compulsory that everybody must have university education.

“Let us have vocational centres where people can go and learn a trade,’’ he admonished.