Parliament Spotlight: Adewunmi Onanuga; Reps Deputy Chief Whip

This week, our Parliament Spotlight is focused on the lawmaker representing Ikenne/Sagamu/Remo North Federal Constituency of Ogun State in the House of Representatives. She doubles as the only female Principal Officer among nineteen men in both chambers of Nigeria’s federal parliament.

When the results of the 2023 National Assembly elections were fully unveiled to Nigerians, it was clear to many that women’s representation in the apex lawmaking institution in the country had hit another ebb.

For the Senate, where eight female Senators occupied seats in the last Assembly for four years, the number had dropped to an abysmal three who were incidentally all newbies to the Red Chamber. In the House of Representatives, however, female representation, which was 3.9% (14) of the total Membership in the Green Chamber, slightly improved to 4.2% (15).

In the race for Presiding Officers of both Chambers, only one female Member of the House of Representatives amongst nine fierce contenders for the seat indicated an interest in the Speakership; thus dimming the hopes of women occupying a key role in the country’s legislative leadership.

That feeling of haplessness with regard to the plight of women’s representation in the Tenth National Assembly, however received a charge on Tuesday, 4th July 2023 when the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, announced a female lawmaker as the Deputy Chief Whip of the Green Chamber.

Fifty-eight-year-old Adewunmi Oriyomi Onanuga, who is a member of the majority All Progressives Congress (APC), is a second-term lawmaker and the only female federal lawmaker from Ogun State in both the Ninth and Tenth National Assembly. Interestingly, among nineteen other men, she is also the only female Principal Officer in Nigeria’s bicameral federal legislature.

Who is ‘Ijaya,’ as she is popularly called? Find out in the profile below:

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

First School Leaving Certificate (1977)
Yewande Memorial Nursery and Primary School, Surulere, Lagos

Senior Secondary School Certificate (1982)
Remo Divisional High School, Sagamu, Ogun State
A’ Levels (1984)
Ahmadiyya College, Lagos
Ordinary National Diploma (OND), Mass Communication (1986)
Ogun State Polytechnic (now Moshood Abiola Polytechnic)

Higher National Certificate, Business and Finance

Post Graduate Diploma, Public Relations and Advertising
Nigeria Institute of Journalism, Lagos
Master of Business Administration (MBA) – 2013
Business School of Netherlands

Other Professional Qualifications

Certified Novell Administrator (CAN)
Microsoft Systems Engineer (MCSE)

LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

Systems Administrator
Quaker Oats Plc, England

Head of Systems and Engineering
Southgate Technologies, Nigeria
Pageant Manager
Daily Times of Nigeria Plc
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Events Management and Environmental Advocacy Companies

Yeye Oba of Makun (2020)
Matriarch of the Kingdom, Sagamu, Ogun State

PUBLIC OFFICE EXPERIENCE

Senior Special Assistant, Environment, Ogun State (2016-2018)
Special Adviser, First Residence, Lagos State (2007-2011)

MAJOR POLITICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

In a keen contest for the Ikenne Federal Constituency Seat in 2023, Onanuga defeated her closest rival, Bola Oluwole of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), by 8,028 votes.

Rep. Adewunmi Onanuga is the only female federal lawmaker from Ogun State since 2019.
Onanuga is also the only female Principal Officer in the Tenth National Assembly.

LEGISLATIVE EXPERIENCE

Member, House of Representatives (2019 – 2023)
Ikenne/Sagamu/Remo North Federal Constituency, Ogun State
All Progressives Congress (APC)
Member, House Ad-hoc Committee on Welfare – Ninth National Assembly
Chairperson, House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development – Ninth National Assembly
Member, House of Representatives (2023 till date)
Ikenne/Sagamu/Remo North Federal Constituency, Ogun State
All Progressives Congress (APC)
Deputy Chief Whip, House of Representatives
10th National Assembly