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
“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.
 * 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.
 * Margaret Ekpo's words