re they would have power over men. "In the police force, the use of arms by women is seriously discouraged because the authorities do not have confidence in womens ability to handle guns in carrying out their duties" ((Oduaran & Okukpon, 1997, p. 6). Between 35 and 44 percent of all women in Nigeria work for wages (Seager, 1997, p. 68). Women do no receive equal for equal work and often find it extrememly difficult to acquire commercial credit or to obtain tax deductions or rebates as heads of household (No author, 1998). While the number of women employed in the business sector increases every year, in the higher prestige sectors of the workforce, women are still significatnly underrepresented. Less than 10 percent of women hold administrative and managerial positions (Seager, 1997, p. 71). The issue of early marriage prevails largely in the northern parts of Nigeria. Parents in this area see marriage as a way to raise their standard of living, particularly if their daughters marry wealthy men. As a result of early marriages, women drop out of school without completing their education and have little time for social activities (No author, 1998). According to Molara Ogundipe-Leslie (no date) a scholar, author, and womens activitst of Lagos, Nigeria, "it is within marriage that the Nigerian woman suffers the most oppression (p. 498). Ogundipe-Leslie further explains that, "the oppression of a married women takes many forms: first, she loses status by being married, because in the traditional system-which is still at the base of the society-the woman as daughter or sister has greater status and more rights within her own lineage. Married, she becomes a possession, vioceless, and often rightless in her husbands family, except for what accrues to her through her children" (Ogundipe-Leslie, no date). Many times the wife has to submit to dominance by her husband or face blame from the total society. There is also peer group pre...
