Josephine Okwuekeleke Tolefe

Captain Josephine Okwuekeleke Tolefe (born December 15, 1931 in Aniocha, Delta State, Nigeria) was the first female commissioned officer in the Nigerian Army. She was the first female military officer and the first female to attain the rank of an Army Captain in Nigeria.

Quotes

 * Television has not done us any good.It is okay to say that you learn from it but as far as I am concerned there are lots of things that should not be on that box.


 * People who know moral education know that we lost a lot by not educating our children morally.


 * Helping other people and taking care as much as you can means that you are doing something good.


 * ...this is the time we do this,I must be there at that time.


 * Being in the army,we should pray more that they should stop the war because it was not going to help us and it did not help us.


 * If you were fighting against Nigeria and you are Nigerian,it did not speak so well of you. You didn’t feel happy about the fight no matter who was winning.

Quotes about person/work

 * Josephine was celebrated, but she and her female colleagues faced many challenges as regards to their gender. She retired voluntarily from service on 5 February 1967 and passed on in 2014.