A READING OF ZAYNAB ALKALI’S THE VIRTUOUS WOMAN

BY

NGINBEE DOROTHY KENEN

Abstract

This article is a critical analysis of Zaynab Alkali’s The Virtuous Woman. Zaynab Alkali reflects the
education, family and social life of the girl-child in the Northern Nigerian society. Zaynab Alkali exposes
the different challenges that the girl-child faces in and outside her home. This paper employs the
feminist theoretical framework to examine education, marriage, polygamy and corruption as reflected in
The Virtuous Woman by Zaynab Alkali.

Key Words: Ferminism, marginalisation, oppression, polygamy, corruption, education.

Introduction
Listen! Wisdom is calling out.
Reason is making herself heard.
On the hilltops near the road
and the crossroads
she stands.
At the entrance to the city,
beside the gates, she calls:
“I appeal to all of you;
I call to everyone on earth
Listen to my excellent words;
all I tell you is right.
What I say is the truth;
choose knowledge rather than

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 the finest gold
(Proverbs 8:1-10).
The quest for knowledge, the will to survive and the zeal for leadership is ingrained in

humanity. Women have come to the realisation that it is difficult to live in a society that is

dominated by man. Those who have awoken to this reality, create awareness for conscientisation.

Feminist writers through their philosophies rouse women to break free from patriarchal systems.

Zaynab Alkali’s philosophy that education answers all questions to the problems that women face

is not an exception. She knows that education is the key to wisdom, knowledge and

understanding. So, she beckons to women to get an education, acquire knowledge that is richer

than the finest gold, then, only then can the women have the power to stand side by side with

man. This call also opens the eyes of many women to become feminists.

Feminism is a range of political movements, ideologies and social movements that share

a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve political, economic, personal, and social

equality of sexes. This includes seeking to establish social, educational and professional

opportunities for women that are equal to those of men. All feminists agree to fight violence

against women. Violence against women is practiced in different ways, in different cultures with

different patriarchal connotations to them. They are expressed in domestic violence, child

marriage, female genital mutilation, rape, forced marriage etc.

History has shown that the world is ruled by men hence the saying it is a man ’s world.

Key positions in human life like politics, religion, military were ruled by men while women were

kept in subordination. To this effect, women were deprived of education, property and legal

status. Women were the sole responsibility of their fathers when unmarried and of their husbands

when married or their male relations in the absence of father and husband. To this effect, few

women who had become newly literate began to agitate for improvements for the conditions of

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life in Europe. This cause was championed by Christine de Pizan (Italy), Balaram Das (India),

Joan of Arc (France), Jane Anger (UK), Abigail (America). In the 21 st century we have women

like Naomi Wolf, Alice Walker, Maya Angelou, Hilary Clinton and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

fighting the same course.

Feminism can be split within three waves: the first period was between the 19 th and early

20th centuries which focused on overturning legal inequalities, particularly women ’s suffrage.

The second period of feminism was between 1960s and 1980s. Its concerns were on cultural

inequalities, gender norms and the role of women in society. The third period, 1990s – 2000s

refers to diverse strains of feminist activity seen as both a continuation of the second period and

a response to its perceived failures. Being the craze of the moment, it spread to Africa as well.

According to Ama Ata Aidoo:

I should go on to insist that every man and woman should be a feminist – especially if

they believe that Africans should take charge of African land, African wealth, African

lives and the burden of African development. It is not possible to advocate

independence of African development without also believing that African women

must have the best that the environment can offer. For some of us this is the crucial

element of feminism (qtd. in Goredema).

The term feminism is an English word; however the concept of opposing patriarchy is not

foreign to Africa. It took off in the 20th century with women like Ade Laide Casely – Hayford,

(Sierra Leone), Charlotte Maxeke (South Africa), Huda Sharawi (Egypt), Margaret Ekpo and

Fumilayo Akinkulapo – Kuti (Nigeria) championing the cause. Modern African Feminism was

solidified during UN de cade for women which yielded to feminist activism and the scholarship

spreading widely across the continent and Diaspora. Since then the African Feminist Movement

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has spread tentacles to policy, legislation, scholarship and the cultural realm. It has to do with

grassroots activism, issues such as poverty reduction, violence prevention and reproductive

rights as well as with lifestyle, popular culture, media, art and culture (web).

Today African Feminist scholars, activists, artists and politicians such as Leymah

Gibowee, Joyce Banda, Flora Nwapa, Buchi Emecheta, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Zainab

Alkali as well as feminist organizations like African Feminist Forum and the African Gender

Institute are at the forefront of using activism, knowledge, and creativity to change situations that

affect women negatively (web). In as much as the conditions of women in Africa have improved

considerably in areas like higher level of education for women, more chances for participation in

politics, reduction of violence at home, certain aspects of patriarchal culture that were

detrimental to women still prevail.

This work particularly, concerns itself with representation of women ’s socio-cultural

experiences in literature, for literature is one of the vehicles that transport feminist concerns.

Ogunyemi Chikwenye in Regina Achie defines feminism as:

a form of protest literature directed to both men and women, protesting against

sexism and patriarchal power structure. It is unapologetically propagandist or

strident or both. It demands that its readers be aware of ideological issues in

order that it may change their attitude about patriarchy. For a novel to be

considered as feminist, it must not just deal with women issues but should also

posit some aspects of a female ideology (qtd. Regina Achie, p. 46)

Zainab Alkali shows a lot of protest against patriarchy in her novels. She is also an

advocate for girl child education. Her novel The Virtuous Woman meets the criteria of the

feminist novel. African feminism, therefore, will be employed in the reading of the novel.

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A synopsis of The Virtuous Woman

The Virtuous Woman is a love story about the eath and dogmatic life of a young beautiful

woman, Nana Ai.

The village of Zuma has just welcomed the news that two of their daughters, Laila and

Hajjo have been offered admission into the Prestigious Her Majesty ’s College at Birnin Dala.

Even though the two girls are not the first to enjoy this freelage (for Nana Ai is already there as a

student), the whole village takes the pride that one of their own are in the popular school. This is

because Her Majesty’s College is the kind of school majorly attended by children born with a

silver spoon in their mouths. As the village jubilates, the girls also have got different reasons

they are enthusiastic about attending the new school. For Hajjo, a sixteen year old girl, who lives

with her grandmother, the admission is an escape route from a life she believes she does not

deserve – she is not only maltreated by the other members of the family but also poorly fed and

clothed. She feels like an outcast. For these reasons, she looks forward to the journey. Laila on

the other hand, (who is Hajjo’s cousin) is a spoilt brat and a bold girl. She is garrulous and crude.

She longs for the journey to the new school so she could be free to do as she pleases. On the day

of the journey, the girls are accompanied to the park by Nana ’s father, Baba Sani, who never

stops reminding Nana never to relent in demonstrating all the good virtuous he has taught her.

At the bus station, a car stops by but Nana will not allow them to take it because the men in the

car look irresponsible.

When the girls arrive the secretariat, where they are to acquire the transport fare and an

escort, the secretary is not found but they meet the clerk receptionist who is hostile to them.

Nevertheless, Laila enjoys the company of two boys Abubakar and Bello. These two are

students at Kings College. When the girls go back to check the secretary the next day, they are

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shocked to know that he is the man whose free ride they had rudely rejected the other day. As a

way of punishing the girls, especially Nana for her rudeness, the secretary gives them Mallam

Jauro, a seventy years old man as escort.

As the journey progresses, the passengers begin to know one another. The driver is a

careful one unlike those of the other two vehicles speeding in front of them – Allah Kiyaye and

Allah Seriki. There is a sudden rain and the two vehicles with the reckless drivers get stuck in

the mud, making it impossible for other vehicles including the one the girls are traveling in to

pass. Passengers of the three vehicles are all stuck in the middle of the forest without food and

shelter. They must look for a way to get out of their predicament. First and foremost, they need

something to eat. Initially, nobody is willing to go to the neighbouring village to get food.

However, Bello and Abubakar volunteer, each passenger contributes his/her money and the boys

go with the teacher’s bicycle to buy food. After eating the food, Musa Doggo treats them to nice

music and entertains them with his jest. Doggo becomes a jester to hide his unfortunate situation

which Nana is exposed to by the mother of the twins.

After much rest, the lorries finally hit the road and the journey continues. As if the

incidence in the mud is not enough warning, the two recklessly speeding lorries are later found in

a ghastly accident. Majority of the passengers in the two lorries as well as Abubakar died. Bello

and many other people sustain serious injuries and all the injured ones are taken to the hospital.

The girls now board a train to continue their journey to Birnin Dala. On the train, the

girls sit in front of a boy who appears to have sustained some injuries. They can neither

recognize him nor see his face for he has covered his face with a newspaper. An army officer on

the train treats the girls nicely and even invites them to lunch. Hajjo and Laila consent except for

Nana, who is bent on not collecting anything from a stranger. As the girls go with the officer,

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Nana recognizes the sleeping man as Bello. They are very excited and have a sincere

conversation, with each other unable to hide his/her affection for the other, even though non of

them mentions it directly. It clearly shows that Nana is in love with Bello but she is very shy to

express it. Finally, the train arrives Birnin Dala, Nana reads the letter sent to them by the Old

Man, Mallam Jauro, their escort. The letter is accompanied with some money. The girls are

happy to know that the old man is still alive, despite all that he had suffered during the long

journey.

Literary Analysis

Everyone is known for what he/she does. A writer is better appreciated when a

comprehensive study of all his/her works have been undertaken. However, one of such writer ’s

works can mirror the rest. Thus, Zaynab Alkali’s The Virtuous Woman, provides us with a full

knowledge and appreciation of her major thematic concern which is the passion with which she

holds education as a genuine instrument for the emancipation of the girl-child in particular and

women in general. Many scholars have written to appreciate her contributions to women

struggle and below are a few of such contributions.

Alkali cherishes the education of the girl-child and also sees education as the key to the

success that the girl child needs therefore, she breaks all the barriers that hold the girl-child

captive and restricts her from gaining an education. Confirming this assertion, Ojinmah and

Egya state thus:

The point is that girl-child education, as portrayed in this story, is not restricted.

The girls not boys, become pioneers and the first persons to make Zuma proud.

The author seems to say that women can also make the society proud. This

certainly is a breakthrough from a patriarchal society in The Virtuous Woman,

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 the girls are free, unrestricted and seem to possess vision. They receive

encouragement from their society. Nana’s society is this an idealistic one (52 –

53).

Education is a weapon against many ills. It liberates one from slavery, poverty,

oppression and ignorance. One is empowered and determined to make a difference against all

odds. Alkali equips her characters with the power to resist and overcome oppression at any

given situation. To this effect Jatau says:

Nana Ai suffers oppression in the hand of the car owner who happened to be the

Local Government Administrator whose lift she rejects. He punishes her and

her friends, Hajjo and Laila, by attaching an old sickly man to them as an escort

to Birnin Dala. Rather than accept defeat she is undaunted, pursuing academic

excellence with her physical disability, which symbolizes the lameness imposed

by patriarchal limitation on the woman, serving as the inner strength, which

qualifies her as a role-model worthy of emulation. (198)

Equipped with a good education, one has a sound and brave mind that is open to make

choices. Choices that are important, as well as beneficial to ones life. Right from the beginning

of the novel to its end, Nana Ai is focused. She does not allow the frivolities of the world to

thwart her course. Clothed with wisdom and the knowledge of who she is, she knows that she

needs more than just a man for a husband. Besides love, she needs that man that is capable of

standing by her as well as providing the necessities of life. The kind of questions that run

through her mind as she tries to figure out if Bello is the right man, shows that Nana Ai is indeed

well schooled and she is schooled enough to make a better life and a bright future.

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 No one celebrates ignorance and timidity – Bravery is celebrated, scholarly achievements

are also celebrated. Zuma, a small village, from where Nana hails, has produced three

candidates that have been offered admission into the prestigious Her Majesty ’s College in Kudu.

Nana is the first to break the record and following in her footstep are Laila and Hajjo. The

college is one of the best in the federation and entry into it is certainly by merit. The girls, not

the boys are the first to be celebrated. The whole village did not hide their joy as it is stated

below:

Zuma was proud. It wasn’t easy getting a place in Her Majesty ’s College, a

famous Girls Boarding School, one of the best in the Federation. In order to

reflect the federal nature of the school, selection to Her Majesty ’s College was

done on quota basis (51)

A Feminist Reading of Zaynab Alkali’s The Virtuous Woman

The Virtuous Woman is a feminist novel which was published in 1986. Zaynab Alkali

unveils the activities of the 20 th century Nigeria through the eyes of Nana Ai, a young cripple.

Through her, Alkali presents what constitutes female virtue in society and also shows that

physical disability can be an inner moral strength when it does not bother the individual. She

paints her heroine as a role model worthy of emulation by young female readers. Nana Ai is

beautiful, quiet and good natured; more composed than many an adolescent woman (10). Nana

is said to be very patient, and obedient to her grandfather’s teachings – refusing to accept lifts or

gifts from strangers (24). She is lovable and loving, nevertheless, does not hesitate to fight to

defend her grandfather’s integrity (17).

Zaynab Alkali employs the journey motif to expose what life is in the rural areas of

northern Nigeria. She unveils the deplorable government services resulting to untarred roads,

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which are full of pot-holes, which become death traps during the raining season thereby resulting

to serious accidents that claim innocent lives (62-63). She condemns corruption in Nigeria – as

she depicts the abuse of power at many levels: a male secretary victimizing the young girls for

refusing a ride from him (24) and later, a police man collecting bribe from a lorry driver after

accusing him of over loading the vehicle.

Alkali launches an attack on the various aspects of the Nigerian patriarchal culture that

choke the women - issues such as polygamy, education, male child syndrome, assault and battery

among others. Apart from exposing these injustices that her female characters suffer, she also

provides ways in which women can wrestle free from these barbaric patriarchal systems and

challenges the society to get rid of weapons that enforce the oppression of women in the African

society. Some of the areas that Zaynab Alkali protests against are discussed below in the next

sections.

Education as a tool for emancipation of women in The Virtuous Woman

Education is the primary concern of Zaynab Alkali. She is mostly concerned with girl

child education. The heroines of her novels, at whatever stage in their lives, no matter the

circumstances they find themselves, rise above such challenges. They attend schools and attain

enviable positions in society. In The Virtuous Woman, the novel opens with the admission of two

young girls into the prestigious Her Majesty College at Birni Dala. This proves the points that

Alkali values education. She also gives her characters the liberty to exercise their intelligence

and will power: parents of the newly admitted girls entrust their daughters to Nana Ai ‘They

requested that you take good care of the girls’ (20) her grandfather said. So for the first time three

young girls from Zuma, embark on the journey to their school. Through this journey, Alkali

introduces her characters to the ills in the country-government ’s lack of attention to rural

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communities, corruption of government staff (policeman receiving bribe at the checkpoint) and

the effect of such actions on the citizenry – a ghastly motor accident that claimed the lives of

loves ones.

Education is achieved both in and outside the institution and Alkali makes sure that her

heroine Nana Ai acquires both. She is portrayed as one who had a maturity that was

conspicuously absent in her age-mates. She had learnt early in life never to contradict her

grandfather. She keeps to all he says:

Take good care of yourself, and rest too.

I will, she answered
what did I say about accepting favours from strangers? he asked rather sternly.
Not ever, grandfather; was the solemn reply.
That includes free car rides monetary gifts and clothes.
Yes.
And you? The ancient one pursued.
Not to offer favours, except help where it is needed .
Shun whatever action makes you feel ashamed.
Remember what our people say, ‘to die is better than to commit a disgraceful act ’.
Avoid anything you know I will not approve of.
Whatever you do child, be strong and honest.
Whenever you are in trouble go to the nearest school and ask for the school
master.
I understand.
Thank you grandfather, ‘she replied’. (14-15)
As the journey progresses, Nana Ai makes the readers understand that she has taken the

rules given to her by her father. When she encounters a challenge, she is quick to apply what she

is taught. To the man, who offers them a lift, Nana says, ‘No, thank you. We will wait for

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commercial transport’. (24) In the lorry, she meets a woman. From their discussion, Nana Ai

proves that she understands and can keep valuable advice when she comes in contact with one:

The more she talked with the woman, the more she liked her. She felt the woman

possessed wisdom and could impact to her a number of things she did not know

about human behavior. Not having been fortunate enough to grow up with a

mother, Nana felt this woman was an epitome of motherhood and if she had one

she would not have wished for a better mother. (45)

By the end of the novel, it can be deduced that Nana Ai has indeed acquired knowledge.

The questions she asks herself before choosing Bello as a partner says it all: Could he ever take

the place of her grandfather? Could he ever be to her what her grandfather was, an immovable

building that gave her shelter amidst thunderous storms? Could he, Bello, ever prove such a

strong pillar, to which she could cling for support? These questions prove that Nana Ai has

matured and come to the understanding that a woman needs more than just a handsome man for

a husband. She needs someone who can take care of her and provide shelter for her as well.

In her reverie, she emerges as a virtuous woman, who has kept to her grandfather ’s rules.

She chooses and brings home a man of her choice, to show and receive blessings from her

grandfather. Nana finds herself kneeling before him and beside her is Bello “I waited for you for

a long time, son. I thought you’d never come. Look after her well: you are all she got. And may

the God of your forefather’s brighten your path (86). As Nana and Bello leave the hut, she can

hear the voice of their principal, Miss Rosycheeks. She is reciting the college famous verse:

Who can find the virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of

her husband doth safely trust in her so that he shall have no need for spoil. She will

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 do him good and not evil all the days of her life strength and honour are her

clothing. And she shall rejoice in time to come. (86)

From a young, disabled naïve girl, to a matured, intelligent and sophisticated woman who

has overcome her disability and stands tall in virtue, knowledge and understanding to the

admiration of all. She is a clear picture of an educated person in the words of Yoloye:

Education is the weapon for combating ignorance, poverty and diseases: as a

bridge between confusion and comprehension. As dam for containing man ’s store

of civilization, as a rocket for transporting man from a state of intellectual

subservience to a state of intellectual sovereignty. (Web)

Male Child Syndrome and Polygamy

Many a woman in different African homes have faced the challenges of child bearing.

When a women does not conceive after a period of time in marriage, she is either sent packing or

her husband takes another wife. When neither of these is done, she has her mother in law to

contend with. Uko writing on The Dawn of a New Day in Ker expresses Ebikere’s anger when

Edewede fails to give Ordia children: ‘for seven years now, my son ’s blood only fattens your

buttocks and not your belly (7).

There are even more problems when a woman bears only female children. She is seen as

not just a failure but stopping her husband’s lineage. Musa Dogo in The Virtuous Woman

becomes mentally deranged when his two wives can not give him more male children. His first

wife bears many female children and only one son. The woman in the lorry narrating Dogo ’s

ordeal to Nana Ai states; ‘His only misfortune was that he had only one son’ (46).

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 In the past, female children were only welcomed because their families saw them as a

source of wealth in disguise. They were to be given out in marriage and the money for the bride

price used for the family’s several needs. Chukwuma in Nigerian Female Writers, reacting to this

issue states: “Thus a girl’s worth as a human being is reduced to the economic level and

everything depends on it: her parents, sustenance, payment of her brother ’s fees, rehabilitation of

other members of the extended family (3). Buchi Emecheta in her novels such as The Bride

Price, The Slave Girl and The Second Class Citizen dwell very much on this topic. In as much as

these female children were a source of wealth to their families, they were not worth training in

school. Many fathers saw the training of the female children as wasting of resources. Zainab

Alkali’s The Virtuous Woman in the words of Musa Dogo captures it succinctly:

What is the use of sending a female child to school? If she turns out well, the man

she marries gets the benefit of her education. If she gets spoilt in the school, I get

the blame. It’s my name that gets dragged into the mud. It ’s my house that becomes

her refuge. Whichever way you look at it, the father of a female child is the loser.

(47)

The male child is rated higher and above the female child. When a male child is born into

a family, there is joy and lots of celebration. The woman feels that her space as a wife is secured

and the man knows that his lineage will continue. It does not matter whether the so called male

turns out a criminal. All that matters is the family name and the continuation of that name. To

this Dogo exclaims:

If I had sons now, my name would be carried from generation to generation, my

wealth would multiply tenfold but not so with daughters. They are consumers and

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 they let other people consume your wealth. While your name dies out, the

daughters continue the lifetime of another man in another family (47).

Most of the times polygamy sets in when the woman does not meet the demands of the

husband and his family in regards to child bearing. A second or even a third wife is married into

the family – ‘when Dogo’s wife gives him his sixth daughter, Dogo takes a second wife ’. (47)

The fact that children are a gift from God and they come when they come, it takes the new wife

five years before she bore male twins. Yet fate does not smile on her. She bore them premature

and they lasted for only fifteen days.

Husbands forget that one wife, one trouble, two or more wives plenty troubles. Anyway,

the trouble in most cases is between the women. When Dogo’s second wife could not bear a child

in five years, the whole blame falls on the first wife. They accuse her of witchcraft. Many people

reasoned ‘why else should a young girl with hot blood remain barren for five years? When the

second wife lost her twins, Dogo exclaimed: ‘I have buried children before but this is different.

Someone must be behind this’. (49) Shortly after the bereavement, the young wife is struck with

a bad fever, Dogo lost his cool and drives away the first wife from the house.

Zaynab Alkali makes sure that the pain and shame that motherhood brings the first wife

is not in vain. The first two girls, Adama and Talatu who run to their maternal grandmother,

commenced school. Their father disowns them and builds a wall between his hut and their

mother. Their mother labours on the farm to train them through school. In the end, the female

children are the only ones left as Dogo’s children. Alkali places in her female characters that

consciousness of understanding their predicament and taking measures to conquer their

situations. The rejected daughters after graduation come to take charge of their father ’s house.

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This is said of them: ‘They are the pillars in Dogo ’s household ’. ‘Now the burden of the family

lies on their shoulders’ (51).

Many women across the globe write about the ills that befall women. They also suggest

solutions to put an end to such cases. Some writers have made their characters revolt verbally. As

it is expressed by Edewede herself as she recounts to Ebikere her mother-in-law in The Dawn of

a New Day:

I have played that role (of a kitchen-bound wife) for many years. Then, I was too

afraid to say or do anything. Afraid of what people would say. Afraid of what

people would do. Afraid, so much that I found myself always doing what others

wanted and never what I wanted. One day, I realized that I was merely an object,

used by others. Then I said to myself: Edewade! You are a human being. You

must kill fear in you. Kill it! Mother-in-law, I have killed that fear implanted in

me from childhood. Now, I take my destiny in my hands. I speak on issues that

concern me. And I follow my own advice. Nobody, I repeat, nobody can

intimidate me again, not even you . (Uko p.10)

Women as mothers, wives, and sisters have experienced motherhood, rejection, abuse,

rape, widowhood, exploitation and many other dehumanizing behaviors that the African

patriarchal culture has thrown at them. Only they can tell their stories.

Corruption in The Virtuous Woman

Although Zaynab Alkali is known to be an activist against women subjugation, she also

has an eye on the happenings around her. She is aware that there is a high level of corruption in

her country – The three girls in T he Virtuous Woman suffer oppression (which is one of the tools

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of corruption) in the hands of the car owner who happened to be the local government secretary

whose lift they rejected. The secretary punishes these little girls for turning down his offer of a

lift. Young girls fall victims of elderly men for doing the right thing. Many girls have failed

exams, denied jobs, admissions and many other things because they have refused to succumb to

illicit sex. Corruption, which is a major problem of Nigeria, is practiced at different levels and

places in the country. In The Virtuous Woman, the laxity of workers is noticed as they are seen

resuming work by nine o’clock. Even at that time it was the cleaners and the messengers that

were at work. The secretary whom the people were waiting for had not yet arrived (25-26). The

girls waited the whole day and the secretary did not show up. There are cases of bribery, mal

handling of government property, looting of government treasury, diversion of government funds

to personal gain, elderly men intimidating young girls for sex among others.

Corruption is said to be the act of changing, or of being changed, for the worse; departure

from what is pure, simple or correct. The changing nature of Nigeria because of the ills that

corruption has caused it is what Alkali is rendering a voice against. The deplorable situations of

the roads. This does not refer only to the roads in the northern part of Nigeria but the whole

country at large. Many Nigerian contractors collect the funds meant for the repair and

maintenance of roads and pocket it. Some of the tar on several roads have been washed away by

the rains, creating pot-holes that are even bigger than the pot. These pot-holes have been death

traps on the roads. Next to pot-holes is the speed of reckless drivers. Many drivers rushing to get

to their destinations on time end up in accidents. Some are so careless that they don ’t observe

traffic rules and road signs. Some passengers also aid drivers to fall victims of accidents. Their

continual grumbling while the vehicle is moving at a slow pace is another contributive factor to

accidents. The conductor shouted at the driver: ‘Man, you crawl like a tortoise ’. And another

passenger retorted ‘Why, by God, we shall spend a week on the road. (62)

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 Bribery is another worm that has eaten deep into Nigeria. It comes with very fanciful

names such as kola, tips-for those collected or given in offices and on the roads while top

government officials collect and give in ‘Ghana must go’ bags. Whatever name it is called,

bribery is the making of illegal payment to persons in official positions as a means of influencing

their decision. This act is practiced at different levels-police collecting bribes on highways,

electricity staff collecting bribes before repairing of transformers, local or state government

clerks collecting bribes before files are moved to offices, children collecting money to run

errands for adults, and so on. One wonders if government staff are paid salaries at all. The

painful thing is that, they collect bribes and turn deaf ears and close eyes to whatever wrong is

done in Nigeria. The conversation below is between a lorry driver and a highway police-man in

The Virtuous Woman: Finally, around eight o’clock in the night, the lorry reached the outskirts of

the next town. It came to a sudden halt as it overreached a police check-point.

Remove the tarpaulin; a police constable’s voice thundered.

I say remove the tarpaulin, he thundered again, ‘what are you hiding there? He

shouted as he sauntered up to the lorry. The driver jumped down and approached

the policeman. They talked briefly. Presently the policeman climbed the lorry and

indiscriminately flashed his powerful torch at everybody.

Oh God, he cried, ‘What is this? You should have taken a policeman with you.

There wasn’t any, ‘was the prompt reply’.

And so sardine-packed too, ‘he said authoritatively. No one answered him.

This is against our road regulations. I must report. what is the screaming all

about, eh? He asked, one would think this is hell’s inn.

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 Two people have just died and another one is about to, someone explained,

directing the beam under their feet God in heaven! Have mercy! He cried. Why

didn’t anyone inform me there are dead men in here? Driver move, he shouted,

gesticulating widely. I say move out of here NOW! I don ’t want any trouble, man.

He quickly jumped down from the lorry and headed back to his cabin without a

backward glance (69).

Many of such scenes abound Nigerian roads. Zainab Alkali in her literature launches

attack on these deteriorating, retrogressive behaviours of the Nigerian government officials. By

so doing she calls out for men of integrity who are well disciplined, responsible and hardworking

to come forward and man such areas like the police force, local and state government offices,

head organizations and do away with the criminals and recruit new staff who will take their

places to maintain peace and order in Nigeria.

Conclusion

Zaynab Alkali exposes the different ills perpetrated against the woman. Some of them

are polygamy, male child syndrome, oppression and so on. However, she encourages women to

focus on education as the key that will open the door to success and an answer to break free from

the African patriarchal society

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Ajima, Maria. “Marriage, Sexuality and the family in Zaynab Alkali ”: The Journal of Family
Development, Vol. 4 no. 1 March, 2010, pp 15 – 23.

Alkali, Zaynab. The Virtuous Woman. Longman Nigeria Plc, 1986

Good News Bible: Today’s English Version, American Bible Society, New York, 1976.

Goredema, Ruvimbo. African Feminism: the African Woman’s Struggle African Yearbook of
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Jatau, Veronica. “Postcoloniality in Zaynab Alkali ’s Works ”. The Novel Tradition in Northern
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Salami, Minna. A brief history of African Feminism-MsAfropolitanhttps:// www. Msafro politan.

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