Heroines are a central feature in African moonlight tales. Irrespective of the genre, any story that features a brave, proactive and resourceful woman will successfully capture the attention of the audience. And as far as Nigeria is concerned, from one state to the other, there are no shortage of heroines in both cultural and contemporary folklores.
It is in this thought that Nigerians, today two years after her demise, are reminded of the selfless acts of Dr Ameyo Adadevoh, whose bravery had successfully catapulted her from near medical obscurity to international fame. Hers is a story worth repeating; a quick thinking doctor averted a national health crisis and paid with her life.
However, as painful as this trajectory was, it was not without its bright spot. Sometimes, folklores end on a sad note, in anti-climax where hopes are dashed. But beneath the cascades of tears, there are layers of lessons to be learnt. Like an onion, each layer reveals another deeper truth. With Dr Adadevoh, the lessons learnt are worth a diamond.
Through her actions, feminism took more meaning; staying strong and showing leadership skills when it truly mattered. Dr Adadevoh never waited for an applause to do her task. She was not concerned with the finnese of her profession. It wasn’t about demonstrating her superiority. She simply had a job to do and she did it with all she had-with her life, and that made her one of Nigeria’s contemporary heroines.
Dr Adadevoh belonged to a generation of selfless women and she participated side by side with her male counterparts to achieve victory for the entire nation in the face of the Ebola virus holocaust that threatened to sabotage the nation. Not much was known of her political affiliations yet her support or otherwise for the ruling party did not render her incapacitated or complacent in discharging her duties.
Like Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, Hajiya Gambo Sawaba, Margaret Ekpo and a host of others, Dr Ameyo Adadevoh had carved her name in gold in the Nigerian heroines narrative and the nations remains grateful.
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