Hajia Gambo Sawaba was a Nigerian politician and activist known for her charity events, including in support of the women’s freedom struggle in the north. The rights and status of women in Northern Nigeria remains a thorny issue to understand or resolve, although progress has been made. Recently, the #MeToo campaign reached the region. The movement, known locally as #AweraMeToo, has sparked much controversy as women reported their abusers when activists were arrested. But before the #MeToo campaign or the courage of northern women to stand up for themselves or go to extremes and be called feminists, only a handful of women risked their lives to be in the spotlight and stand up for to use women. Marriage, education and childbirth, and one of these women is Hajia Gambo Sawaba. As a young girl, Gambo Sawaba, then known by her birth name Hajaratu Gambo, became popular at home and at school due to her fiery nature, which never made her give up or give up in a fight, even if it was a physical fight acted. Battle.
A personality trait that made her a pioneering feminist and activist in Northern Nigeria. She was born on February 15, 1933 as the fifth of six children and was named Gambo, according to tradition this name was given to the child after the twins. Hajia Gambo’s father was a Ghanaian immigrant, originally known as Theophilus Wilcox, but later changed his name to Isa Amartey Amarteifio. In 1910, he moved to Zaria to work for the Nigerian Railway Corporation, where he met his wife Fatima Amarteifio, whom he married after converting to Islam. Up until her father’s death in 1943, Hajia Gambo received an education but had to stop at the age of 10 to support her mother who also died 3 years later when she was just 13 years old. She was quickly married off against her will to Abubakar Garba Bello, a World War II veteran who is said to have left and never returned after she got pregnant. Her early struggles did not make her timid but rather made her more courageous and her experiences feeding into the desire of helping other your girls and women like her who were being oppressed by the society they found themselves in. At the age of 17, Hajia Gambo took the risk of joining one of the strongest opposing political parties the Northern Element Progressive Union (NEPU) that believed that the Northen Peoples Congress (NPC), which was the strongest party at the time with international support was taking advantage of and oppressing the people.
She was one of the few women in the group, but what made her unique was that she was young and less educated. Shortly after joining NEPU, she became head of the Zaria branch of NEPU and launched a vigorous campaign against child marriage and forced labor, advocating for the full spread of Western education in the North and ensuring that girls had access to it. She became very popular and the target of several men and political leaders in power after she took to the podium at a conference full of men in Zaria to boldly confront them and give a speech in support of women and called for their rights. Although she made enemies for this, she was also given the nickname Sawabiya, which means redeemer. Throughout her career, Hajia Gambo Sawaba has been the target of numerous attacks and has dodged many deadly traps to silence them.Several articles about her noted that she had been arrested and imprisoned more than 16 times and was once exiled from Kano. His first arrest was in Kano, where he met with women to educate them about their rights and urge them to join the NEPU. She was arrested and imprisoned along with two hundred other women because she did not have legal permission to hold the meeting. Shortly after her release, she began speaking out about the poor state of prisons and launched a campaign to allow women to enter prisons and speak openly about topics that were not allowed due to the purdah system. At some point the Emir asked them to leave Kano or face punishment for disturbing social peace and progress. Under the great influence of Fela Kuti’s mother, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, the two became good friends and Ms. Kuti became Hajia’s mentor. She then became vice-president of the Grand Nigerian People’s Party and paved the way for several northern women to establish themselves in Nigeria’s political scene. Hajia Gambo remarried Hamidu Gusau, but the two later divorced due to different interests and conflicts. Unable to commit to another marriage or relationship, Hajia died on October 14, 2001 at the age of 71.
