“Politics was a language I longed to speak,” reads a line in a poem titled ‘Political Language’ by Fatma Adam Hussein.
A Kenyan born Somali from Wajir County in North Eastern part of Kenya and an aspiring Member of Parliament for Langata constituency in Nairobi. She lived in the United States until her teenage years.
Dubbed ‘Fatma the feminist’, she describes herself as an ‘agent of change’ who is passionate about women’s rights, politics, leadership and development. “For a long time, I have worked with non-governmental policy making departments dealing with constitutionalism, democracy, gender equity and refugee rights,” she said. Currently, Fatma is an entrepreneur and founder of her own company; other positions include being a writer and editor.
Fatma received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in International Relations with a concentration in Diplomacy and Foreign Policy and a minor in Journalism from the United States International University (USIU-Africa).
Speaking to iwomantoday magazine, Fatma expressed her passion for politics and development began back in her days at USIU-Africa, where she formed the first Gender Committee under the International Relations Club. “I used to teach my fellow students at the university about their rights on gender equity and leadership,” she emphasized.
Working with the slogan, ‘Yes To Development’, Fatma explained “as a resident, I call Langata Constituency home. I am not only affected by the problems faced in the area but I also want to bring solutions to these problems”. She plans to tackle lack of access to water, youth unemployment, poor human rights including lack of gender equity, corruption, insecurity, eroding educational systems, deplorable drainage systems, inefficient infrastructure, lack of police reform including many more.
“Channeling the society towards developmental goals is the reason I am interested in running as an MP for Langata Constituency. This can only be achieved through having proper policies that touch on areas of health, education, youth unemployment, gender equity among others,” Fatma stated.
She advised Kenyan citizens to focus on issue driven-politics that are geared towards social and economic development and not one led by patriarchy or ethnic affiliations.
Referring to a poem titled, ‘Political Language’ contained in her authored book titled ‘The Africa I want’ Poems by Fatma Adam, she highlighted challenges faced by women in political leadership including her own personal journey.
“Politics was a language I longed to speak, even though it was not familiar with my dialect. Full of grammatical errors, a language that did not come with a manual to fit my womanly hands,” reads a stanza in the poem, Political Language.
She narrated that once in her life, she was politically discriminated against based on her gender as a woman.
“Back in 2009, I attempted to share my political interest in Wajir County but was not given a chance because community male elders choose a candidate of their choice usually of the male gender or convince a community to vote a certain way. Negotiated democracy locks out many great potential leaders, especially women, youths and the disabled,” Fatma reiterated. However, this experience pushed her to purposely inspire and support more women to participate in all forms of leadership.
Recognizing the increased number of women’s participation in political leadership as a result of the 2010 Constitution, Fatma highlighted that the two-thirds gender rule is yet to be enacted by Parliament and that globally, women have not gained an equal footing in leadership especially in politics.
She expressed that in order to develop as a nation, women need to be involved in all forms of leadership. Fatma advised her fellow women interested in politics to stop relying on nominated seats and start vying for elective positions in order to change the stereotype that political leadership is reserved for men.
Fatma further expressed that she has been practicing poetry for over ten years and has used it as a tool for social advocacy.
“The sixty captivating poems contained in The Africa I want published and launched in 2016 gives readers space to reflect on issues that directly affect everyone in the society. These include gender rights, media, corruption, politics, HIV/AIDS, beauty and love. The language used is vibrant and can deeply be understood by all, hence it easily sparks a conversation that gears towards change,” Fatma explained.
To endorse her campaign, Fatma urges her supporters to buy her book The Africa I want Poems by Fatma Adam from Nuria Kenya online Store at https://nuriakenya.com/product/the-africa-i-want-poems/ and Prestige Bookshop on Mama Ngina Street and Lavington in Nairobi, Kenya.
A voracious reader, Fatma loves to read journals that touch on women, Africa and International relations. She also appreciates books authored by African writers such as Ngugi Wa Thiong’o, Chimamanda Adichie and Chinua Achebe
“We African authors often speak in one voice, so when I read what others have written I understand how I can contribute towards a united Africa that thrives politically, socially and economically,” she narrated.
Fatma Adam Hussein happens to be the next politician to watch as her political interest is driven by policy towards developmental goals.
By: Moffin Opilio
