Why Nigeria's women get a 50% election discount

[Nergal]

 

If you are a man and mulling over the idea of running for president in 2019 for one of Nigeria's main parties then deep pockets are required.

Campaigning, of course, is going to cost money, but both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People's Democratic Party (PDP) charge presidential hopefuls who want to run in the party primaries tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege.

The APC, the party of President Muhammadu Buhari, wants $125,000 (£97,000) for a nomination form. An opposition PDP presidential nomination is cheap by comparison - just $33,000.

Women, on the other hand, get a discount - half price for the APC or totally free if you want to try your luck with PDP. But neither party has ever nominated a woman since the return of democracy in 1999 and only one woman, Sarah Jibril, has run in the primaries.

She gained just one vote in the 2011 contest.

But for male aspirants the price tag has triggered fears that the opportunity to run for the country's highest office is only open to the rich.

Only candidates from the PDP and APC have won Nigeria's presidency since the end of military rule.