The saying, if you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a family and the whole nation, is somehow coming to sense in African countries.
Attributed to a Ghanaian scholar Dr James Emmanuel Kwegyir-Aggrey, the proverb was, and has, been used to convince African parents who were more willing to allow their male children to attend school, at the expense of their daughters.
In Kenya, this has had major effects to the boy child who has now been neglected.
That being the case, Kenyans are likely to be subjected to a new kind of euphoria come the 2017 general election, of electing women, rather than women leaders and not politicians.
Oooh yes, it has happened before. Remember the 2013 euphoria of going for three-piece?
And this elect-women-euphoria, is not going to wait until 2017, it has already started.
The ODM a few weeks ago declared Homa Bay women rep Gladys Wanga as the branch chair.
On Tuesday, Mombasa woman rep Mishi Mboko who is a close ally to Governor Hassan Joho, was awarded with a powerful House Business Committee of Parliament after Lunga Lunga MP Khatib Mwashetani was sent parking for allegedly being a Jubilee mole and undermining the ODM party.
The former Devolution CS Ann Waiguru, has declared her interest in becoming the next Nairobi Governor.
Right from the Jubilee’s Cabinet, to the National Assembly, county governments, government agencies and NGOs, we have seen women leaders in those areas demonstrate good leadership values.
But while Kenyans think that women leaders might be their only solution to better roads, improved health facilities, better education and employment, they must not be driven by this kind of euphoria.
While we are advocating the implementation of the two-thirds gender rule, what Kenya needs is women leaders, not women politicians, who are ready to take Kenya to another level, drive her people out of poverty and advocate the changes Kenyans want.