Chapter 13-A Worthy Cause

Ebun Clark was a one-woman workforce! She was always on her feet doing one thing or the other. With her two women workers she went round the town preaching about the need to educate all girls. Sometimes Tolani and the other girls followed them out to town to preach to the parents of girls on the need for education for all girls. She also set up a girls’ academy, a subsidiary of the Liberating Women Academy, which provided vocational training for girls of different ages. Tolani and the other four girls were also members of the academy. They learnt new crafts every week including clothes making, baking and cooking. Ebun Clark personally trained girls in the academy on the value of the girl child. Tolani learnt so much from her. Some of Ebun’s quotes included:

Ø As girls, you are in no way inferior to boys.

Ø It’s your life, what you make of it should be about what you want to be, not what society expects you to be.

Ø It’s not your duty to wait on your brothers, you are just as important as they are.

Ø Don’t let anyone deceive you that your life is about being a wife and mother, those are just some of the options. You may decide not to be a wife or a mother, it’s your life and therefore your decision is the most important.

Ø Your mothers birthed you, they do the house chores, some even still manage running the home with going out to work; don’t let anyone call them the weaker sex ever.

Ø There is no job for men or a job for women, women can be and do any thing they want to do.

On Wednesday, a week after joining the academy, the three girls and two women were sitting at their desks writing letters when Ebun ran into the office like someone pursued.

“Hurry up all of you, follow me. Bimbola, get the wrapper.”

Bimbola ran to Ebun’s office to get the wrapper while all of them ran after Ebun including the two security men guarding the office downstairs. A short distance from the office, they saw a crowd. Ebun collected the wrapper from Bimbola, and ran into the crowd. They all ran in with her. Tolani still had no idea what was going on but Bimbola and Toyin seemed to know. Since there was no opportunity to ask them, the five volunteers followed them without hesitation. At the center of the crowd a short stark nude woman was in the middle. Ebun ran to her, grabbed her hands, covered her up and faced the crowd, her eyes glaring. Some of the people following the woman tried to grab her from Ebun’s hands but she shouted at them. By now the security men and the ladies from the office including Tolani had surrounded Ebun and the woman.

“Don’t you dare come close to her or I’ll fish each of you out, wield all the influence I have locally and internationally and ensure you rot in jail.” Ebun said.

“This rebellious woman again, what is your problem? What has this got to do with you? We are just following our culture” One of the elders following the woman said.

“Well this particular culture is barbaric and against the international human rights provision and if you don’t want to be jailed please just step back.”

They moved back and allowed them to pass. Everyone knew Ebun Clark and her academy had the backings of the international community.

“We’ll leave you for now but we won’t rest till you leave our town for us. You have ruined your own life, become an outcast and now you want to ruin the lives of our women and young girls. We will surely report you to the town leaders and have them kick you out of our land.” The same man who had spoken earlier said to Ebun while others with him grumbled in acquiescence.

“I am no more an outcast than either of you because neither of you holds the rights to declare another person an outcast. This is not the Ebun you bullied out of town some years ago, this is a woman who knows her rights now. I was once a victim of your barbaric, inhumanity which you used the excuse of culture to perpetrate but I’ll not let another woman be victimized by you people again, not on my watch. If you ever dare to make another woman walk naked again, I will have you all arrested and that is a promise!”

As soon as they all got to the academy, Ebun took the woman whom they later identified as Bidemi to a room in the academy. It had a bed and a bathroom. Tolani hadn’t even been aware of the existence of the room till that day. After Bidemi had showered, Ebun went to her home to get some of her clothes for Bidemi to wear. On her way back she also bought underwear from the market for her. Later that evening Ebun asked Bidemi if she wanted to leave town and she said she did. Tolani overheard Ebun making arrangements on phone to move Bidemi to Oyo. Tolani hadn’t even known that the academy had a branch office in Oyo. Three days after rescuing her, Bidemi was taken by Ebun’s driver to Oyo where she was met by Mr. Bolutife, an agent of Liberating Women Academy.

“I didn’t even now the academy has an office in Oyo.” Tolani asked Ms. Toyin.

“It’s deliberately kept a secret because of situations like Bidemi’s.” She told her.

Before Bidemi was sent to Oyo, Tolani watched her give Ebun a hug and say,

“Thank you. You are the best person I have ever met.”

Bidemi stayed at the Oyo branch of the academy for the next few weeks until Ebun arranged for a job and accommodation for her.

To the world Ebun Clark was a divorcee, an outcast, a rebel, but to Tolani the woman was an enigma and a force and one of the most selfless people in the world. Her passion for helping other women was non-pretentious; she was genuine and passionate about her cause. To Tolani she represented exposure and liberation and she was one of the most enlightened minds Tolani had ever met.