Margaret Ekpo

Margaret Ekpo (27 July 1914 – 21 September 2006) was a Nigerian women's rights activist and social mobilizer who was a pioneering female politician in the country's First Republic and a leading member of a class of traditional Nigerian women activists, many of whom rallied women beyond notions of ethnic solidarity. She played major roles as a grassroots and nationalist politician in the Eastern Nigerian city of Aba, in the era of a hierarchical and male-dominated movement towards independence.

Quotes

• Ekpo wrote to Ransome-Kuti to express her appreciation for the older woman’s guidance. “I cannot explain to you what new spirit you have poured into me. I feel 100 percent stronger.”
  • Margaret Ekpo's words
• In her inaugural speech to the Eastern House of Chiefs, Ekpo showed her brand of political savvy by opening on a note of conciliation.

“If you look round the Northern House Chiefs and the Western House of Chiefs, you will see that these two Houses have no women representation,” she said.

• • Margaret Ekpo's words