PARTI Bangsa Malaysia’s candidate for Hulu Selangor Haniza Mohamed Talha has appealed for voters in the upcoming 15th general election (GE15) to give the party a chance, adding that the country needs more women political leaders and PBM “can provide just that”.
“I wish to remind voters that the composition of female MPs in the previous Dewan Rakyat was only around 15% of the total 222 members,” she pointed out.
“This is still a far cry from the target of at least 30% female MPs which many had aspired to see. In this respect, I call on voters to give an opportunity to PBM this general election.”
Stressing that PBM walks the talk when it comes to women empowerment, Haniza noted that of the six parliamentary seats PBM is contesting, four of its candidates are women.
“Besides myself who is contesting the Hulu Selangor seat, others are PBM president-designate Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin who is defending her Ampang seat, Dr Daroyah Alwi (Kapar) and Dayang Rusimah @ Raynie Mohd Din (Labuan),” she remarked.
“Meanwhile, of the two State seats the party is contesting, one of them is a female candidate, namely Nazmahwati Walli who is contesting in Bugaya.”
Haniza said such a huge number of female candidates from a single party is unprecedented in Malaysian history, adding that of the 1,386 candidates taking part in GE15, 87% are male.
“As I have mentioned in the past, women lawmakers have several major advantages over their male counterparts. Studies have shown that males tend to be more aggressive and exclusionary,” she said.
“On the other hand, the fairer sex is known to be more emphatic and consultative, without necessarily being weak or ineffective. In fact, in many instances, women have displayed leadership attributes and effectiveness that surpass that of men.”
She further highlighted that the country needs to recognise that in today’s world which is driven by division and polarity, a political leadership imbued with “maternal instincts” can “make a significant difference in the lives of the people”.
“Once again, I appeal to voters to give PBM a chance. This country needs more women political leaders and PBM can provide just that,” she added. – Nov 14, 2022
