SARDAUNA

AHMED YERIMA
Author’s Note.
Between March 2021 and Januanry 2022, I wrote the most controvacial plays of
my writing career. First, was Aremu on an enigmatic most
misunderstood Nigerian, General Olusegun Obasanjo. Then Sanusi on the
dignified but most critical persona and deposed Emir of kano, Lamido Sanusi
Lamido. And now, Sardauna on the first and only energetic and beloved Premier
of northern Nigeria, Sir. Ahmadu Bello. He was most controvacial, and yet, most
revered. The plays are yet to be historical, even though they are entrenched and
emerge from the history of Nigeria. The plays are not tragic, even though tragic
circumstances pervade all three. But for, the plays are to make us learn more
from the deeds of the immediate presence in order to be more comfortable with
the constant dynamic changes in contemporary Nigerian society.
I must thank Joseph Edgar, the Executive Producer of the Duke of Shomolu
Productions for all the three plays. Most of all for he allowed me to conceptualize
and interprete my creative illusions into the framed reality of his numerous
audience. The emotive effect of the play Aremu on President Obasanjo made me
more resolute and take myself even more excited to find interpretative emotions
in the hearts of my own people, where celebrative emotions had been dead to it.
I constantly was forced to scate the tender edge of fire and water. Now that it is
all done, I am at peace. The summation of the effects of the plays now remain the
the critical thoughts of would be scholars.
I thank the most High God and my familyfor these scribbles.

Ahmed Yerima
Dramatis Personae.
AHMADU
HAFSATU
SHEIK GURMI
2 SOLDIERS
CHORUS OF
DANCERS,
SHANTU PERFORMERS
MUSICIANS.
 SARDAUNA

DARK STAGE.
Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar
Allahu Akbar
Ash-hadu an la ilahaillalah
Ash-hadu an la ilahaillalah
Ash-hadu ama
Muhammadan rasulullah
Ash-hadu ama
Muhammadan rasulullah
Hayya ‘alas-salah
Hayya ‘alas-salah
Hayya ‘ala ‘l-falah
Hayya ‘ala ‘l-falah
Allahu akbar
Allahu akbar
 La ilaha illallah

SOUNDS OF GUNSHOTS, A BOMB AND SOUND OF BLOWING

SHATERRING ROOF IS HEARD, SOUND OF BOOTS OF SOLDIERS
RUNNING AND MARCHING, WAILING AND CRIES OF WOMEN
PLEADING, TWO SHOTS ARE HEARD, SILENCE.
VIDEO OF THE SHATTERED HOUSE IS SHOWN. SPOTLIGHT ON THE
STAIRCASE. SLOWLY, AHMADU WALKS DOWN TO THE FRONT OF THE
STAGE. HE SPEAKS DIRECTLY TO THE AUDIENCE.

AHMADU: Is this all that is left? A well thought out life arranged by Allah himself,
turned into heaps of rubbles of blown up roofs, shattered glasses and broken
blocks in a twinkle of an eye. Who gave man such powers to dare the work of
Allah? Hm? See me quiver. I, Ahmadu Bello…the son of Ibrahim Rabah, grandson
of Atiku Rabah, great grandson of Sultan Muhammed Bello, son of Uthman Dan
Fodio, the light of Islam, draped in a bloody shroud of death. Me! For the first
time my soul is not in sync with my body, for this, I worry. There is a fear of an
impending tear away within me…a yank…a pull…to the other side…confused, I
float. PAUSE. But to which side do I float now? In one moment, there was light,
then came this rumbling turbulence and on the other side, are these flashes of
darkness…through a narrow path of thorns. Oh, Allah what is this? Moments ago,
in my now roofless abode, I was trying to tend the hirshuts of growing plants on
the poor willing Rawani wrapped heads of my people. I was deep in thought of
how l could begin to chop the shrubs that surrounded my untended baby trees, so
that my people, will grow. Then came the noises, flashes of piercing pinches. How,
can I find a lasting peace to the turbulence of my worried heart now? How?
Where will this dimming flutter take me now? Where?
ENTER HAFSATU WITH A KETTLE OF WATER. HER FACE COVERED. SHE SAYS
NOTHING. Hmmm…a shadowy wimppering image of a familiar spirit stands so
close to me…who? A malaikah? Is it time then? Is my work here finished then?
Alhamdullilah! Hm? WITHOUT TURNING. What sobbing figure stands behind me?
Answer.
HAFSATU: Me Maigida. . It is time for your ablution. The morning prayers are due.
It was a worrisome night. I could not sleep. Even the children too. For two nights
now the soldiers continue to match and sing, as if preparing for a war. I wonder
who they are going to fight. Stamping and stumping their feet as if they own the
groud.
AHMADU: You heard it too? Exercises they call it. Soldiers’ play. The head of the
Brigade said in a belated memo to me that it is called Operation Damisa. It will
end tonight. There is nothing to worry about.
HAFSATU: Yes. I don’t also understand why the Harmattan morning which should
normally come with a chill is so smoky and hot tonight. Walahi, I could smell the
taste of blood in the air. May Allah spare our lives. Hurry, the others wait for you
in the prayer room.
AHMADU: I shall join them soon. SHE LEAVES THE KETTLE BY HIS SIDE. Oh Allah,
the merciful, let all this cloudy mist clear and let everything be returned back to
normal. In the end, let it all appear well. Let it only be a bad dream. HAFSATU
HURRIES IN.
HAFSATU: Baba, they have all gone.
AHMADU: Gone? Who?
HAFSATU: The women and the children, all hauled into cars, rushed off.
AHMADU: The children? Why did you not try to stop them.
HAFSATU: I did. I called after them, but no one heard me. Then I ran after them,
until my feet lifted off the ground, and I started to float towards them. That was
when their fast cars ran through me. What is happening Rankadede? Everything
seems so strange.
AHMADU: No, all is well. You know today is Saturday, there is no school today,
maybe the children went out to buy things with their mothers.
HAFSATU: All of them? Even the relatives in the Boys Quarters are gone. No soul
around except for two soldiers they left behind, and the normal Police Guards.
AHMADU: Woman, calm down. I say there is nothing.
HAFSATU: Alright, if you say so. STILL CONFUSED. If it is alright then, I shall put
water on the fire to boil. EXITS.
AHMADU: Then it is true. The flames of turbulence is lit. All the warnings, the
premonitions…the bad dream, my fears… were all real. With all the clusters of
work, I did not stoop to think. CHUCKLES. Let Allah take control. I must let
Hafsatu know what has happened. I must break the grit of the transition to her
gently. . HAFSATU ENTERS, STILL APPREHENSIVE.
HAFSATU: What do we do now? Do I call your Secretary?
AHMADU: No. Today is Saturday. Let the poor man rest. I say all is well.
HAFSATU: Then the Ministers.
AHMADU: I say no.
HAFSATU: Then let me make breakfast. When the children return, they will be
hungry. How about you? What would you like to eat for breakfast.
AHMADU: I am not hungry. It is too early to eat. All is well. Er…how do you feel?
HAFSATU: PAUSE. I think so. If you are not hungry, then why should I bother?
They will find something to eat when they return. But what I do not understand is
why I floated as I ran. No one heard my screaming voice. And my voice was at its
loudest. Ba kowa! No one.
AHMADU: Stop worrying yourself woman. All is well. Go to your room and rest.
They will soon be back. PAUSE. HAFSATU TURNS TO GO. AHMADU, IN A
WHISPER. That is if they ever return here. This now, is a living crypt.
HAFSATU: Hmm? What did you say?
AHMADU; Nothing. Go and rest for a while. A harmattan storm is coming.
HAFSATU: Harmattan …storm at this time of the year? CONFUSED, HAFSATU
EXITS.
AHMADU: PAUSE. So how did I go wrong? What went wrong? What could have
happened, and, why did it? I had my region in control. And so did Balewa have a
tight grip on Lagos. The Army boys were happy. Even Azikiwe went on leave.
CHUCKLES. It is easy to stand here and ask questions…but for now, everything is a
wrongly muddled jigsaw. Nothing is that easy to unknot or find answers for now.
PAUSE. In my confused state, I should still my spirits, and hopefully it will all work
out. Allah is in control. HE GOES TO THE PHONE, AND FINDS THE HEAD IS CUT
FROM THE BODY OF THE PHONE. Then it is true, they were here. A sand storm
indeed, is here already. This time, instead of heavy pellets of rain, there will be
lava…red hot lava flowing…washing away…melting down all once caked fragile
bonds into a shattering illusion of baseless dreams. Oh Allah, a mighty storm is
upon us. LOUD SOUND OF A STORM IS HEARD. SLOWLY A CHORUS OF FIVE
MUSICIANS ENTER. TUCKED AWAY BY THE SIDE OR THE SHATTERED SET. SITTED
ON THE FLOOR. MUSIC ON THE “TRANSITIONS OF LIFE TO DEATH AND
UNFULFILLED DREAMS IS PLAYED.
HAFSATU: Rankadede, you look so worried. I adviced you about bringing your
work home. See how tired you are. Even when you came to my room, you looked
so distant. You said very little, and when the children surrounded you and tried to
play, you pushed them away gently. You looked tense then, as if you were
expecting a visitor. Even now at the break of dawn, when all is well, you still
appear very tense….sitting here all alone.
AHMADU: PAUSE. Is well? I had a dream…a very bad one.
HAFSATU: A dream? I had one too.
AHMADU: What kind of dream did you have?
HAFSATU: No weird story. Just a blood flowing from everywhere. Riddle clothes
and screaming voices. I woke up and said a short prayer. What about your dream?
AHMADU: I went on a journey, and forgot to pack my things. I took nothing along.
I left this house empty…except for a white wrapper as if l was in Mecca again. I
was naked as a new born child. Not even my prayer rosary. So l just kept saying
Lahilahilalah! Then suddenly, I woke up. CHUCKLES. How stupid dreams are…they
nothing but childish relatives of a wondering mind. I hope nothing ontowards
happen to us.
HAFSATU: May Allah forbid!
AHMADU: Ameen. PAUSE. Walahi, I cannot seem to take my mind of it. Can you
believe it? It was a big official trip, and I travelled alone. Not even my Police
escort was there, Just me. Not even a Minister. By the time I arrived, there was
this very strong wind blowing up everything, as if Allah was keeping the real story
of the bad dream to himself. Like a whirlwind.
HASATU: It shall blow your enemies to smittherings. No matter how hard and fast
this whirlwind blows, it can never move a mountain. Ahmadu Bello Rabah, son of
Ibrahim, your path to greatness has always been known to have no boundaries.
You are a rock to your people. And when I met you and married you in 1932, I
found a goodness in you that only Allah plants in men meant for greatness. I say
nothing can ever happen to you.
AHMADU: Haa…Hafsatu…already…your voice calms my spirit.
HAFSATU: It does?
AHMADU: I say it does.
HAFSATU: If it does, then why does the great grandson of Uthman dan Fodio still
worry? Why does the warrior of Sokoto worry? Why is the General of the people,
the Sarduana of Sokoto, worry?
AHMADU: FORCED EXCITEMENT. See, I am fine now. I think l am becoming a bad
influence on you. I think we should find you an office in the office of the Prime
Minister as the Sugar coated tongue of the government. Um, I say it is beginning
to move me.
HAFSATU: CHUCKLES. I am ready for the job. As long as I will go where you go to
protect you. I am ready. Like you, I shall pledge my life to the cause of Gamji!
AHMADU: Gamji! LAUGHS. Haba Hafsatu, you even know about Gamji.
HAFSATU: Am I blind, deaf or dumb? Um? I am a leaf upon which a bar of soap
has been placed for a long time. With time, I too have become a soap. Do I still
please you?
AHAMDU: Yes. Very much.
HAFSATU: GOES BEHIND AHMADU. Standing behind my great husband, I am safe
forever. Do not worry, all your people are behind you too. Walahi, nothing can
touch you, Rankadede. Nothing! PAUSE WATCHES HIM FOR A WHILE.Now I must
correct your dream. I shall go up to pack you a bag for travel at any time. The
good thing, is that some of your newly laundered clothes are in my room. Should I
bring you a glass of warm water? AHMADU SHAKES HIS HEAD IN THE NEGATIVE.
Oh I wish Sarkin Muri, Alhaji Musa Dankwairo were here to sing your favourite
song.
THE SONG BEGINS TO PLAY. AHMADU RISES, ENJOYS IT.
AHMADU: Stop! It is enough.
HAFSATU: Do you know who you are now Sardauna? Do you know that when you
stand tall, covered in your rich Alkeba, other men cower? So, you must never
worry? Even Allah shields you all the time. Two malaicah at each side, so when
you walk and swing your huge Rawani, even the strongest of men dread the
thought of your firmness.
AHMADU: Hafsatu, you flatter me.
HAFSATU: Who will if not me? I am your first wife Rankadede.
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. You are a good wife Hafsatu and do not stop being one. You
do not have the heart for this dangerous game called politics, where conspiracy
resides. It will detract you from being what Allah destined you to be…a great wife.
Please leave me for a while. EXIT HAFSATU. PAUSE. she does not suspect a thing.
How do I tell her? How do I describe how visious the Tigers were? And also the
real dream I had. PAUSE. Alone in my dream, stripped, and alone… bloodshot
eyes with watery fangs…chased me. Like Bulls they searched…thrashing
everything in their way. I say with what mouth can I say this to her? PAUSE. And
then she came and covered me with her body…How do I tell her? PAUSE. How can
I tell her that no one will be spared in the bloodbath which would line the road to
hell now. Even innocent women, some pregnant, who know nothing of the angst
of bitter hardened souls rising from cleft broken bonds, will join the journey of
forced goodbyes. Who can I tell of the coming of the volley of hot lead which will
pierce and crush bones, yanking souls like mine from life in a twinkle? If I tell
Hafsatu of this real nightmare, will she be able to understand the horrid imageries
of doom? Or the pangs of pain in my now stiff heart?
A SLOW DIRGE WHICH TALKS OF PERSEVERANCE OF THE TRIBULATIONS OF LIFE
BEGINS. AS IT PLAYS, AHMADU STANDS MUTTERING PRAYERS. AS THE SONG
ENDS, HAFSATU ENTERS. LOOKS AT HIM WITH PITY.
HAFSATU: How do I tell him that now embraced by its cold hands, Death rules?
How?
AHMADU: STANDS. DOES NOT TURN TO HER Um? You spoke?
HAFSATU: TRIES TO BE CHEERFUL. I brought you tea…and hot kunu too. Pick one.
AHMADU DOES NOT MOVE. SHE GOES ROUND HIM AND PLACES THE TRAY ON A
STOOL. SHE POURS OUT A CUP AND GIVES HIM. No Sugar…no milk. It will warm
you stomach for now, and make you come alive again.
AHMADU: IN A WHISPER. I wish.
HAFSATU: Um…what did you say?
AHMADU: Nothing. AHMADU SITS. SHE STRETCHES HER HAND TO GIVE HIM THE
CUP OF TEA. HE SHAKES HIS HEAD IN THE NEGATIVE. Hafsatu, sit. I want to ask
you a question.
HAFSATU: That voice again…I am getting worried. What do you want Baba?
AHMADU: Do you believe in the after life?
HAFSATU: I don’t know about the after life. I believe in Allah, and I know and do
the two things Allah said we must do before we go to Jena. I think that is the
reason why Allah allowed us to be born, live and die one day very far from today.
AHMADU: Allihamdillulah! What are the two things we must do to prepare us to
meet Allah?
HAFSATU: What is this? You take me back to the Koranic School? In Siratulikaf, we
are taught to do good deeds as Allah desires. And the second, is to follow and
teach our children how to worship.
AHMADU: Do you believe in destiny?
HAFSATU: Rankadede.
AHMADU: Answer.
HAFSATU: When I was a child in the palace of the Waziri, I used to fear storms,
and loud noices of guns and drums. But as I grew, I realized that ones destiny is
not fears, storms and dreams determine the life we live, and that remains in the
hands of Allah alone.
AHMADU: Answer!
HAFSATU: Yes. This is why I am here with you. And I shall remain with you as a
dutiful wife during rain or sunshine. Rankadede, my destiny is tied to yours. I will
never leave you. Walahi! It is the truth.
AHMADU: Thank you good wife. This is the Ummah…the truth…which you speak
so well about. May Allah recognize us in the shining rays of the washed and
cleansed places of Hudul. And may He accept our blessings through our actions
on earth as we constantly reinvigorate our spirituality. That is all that matters
now. It is good for man to be ready for any change in life. Do you understand my
dear wife?
HAFSATU: Yes, but you scare me. Now I am more worried. What are you trying to
tell me?
AHMADU: Nothing. CHUCKLES. Woman each time I see you worried this way, I
wish I could invite Barmani Choge to entertain you. I know you like her. Especially
when she comfirms that women are the strength of the house. When she says
that when the wind is blown in a house, they must ask the Worigida. HAFSATU
EXCITED , LETS OUT A LAUGH. AS THE SHANTU TROUPE PERFORM. LIGHTS DIM
ON AHMADU AND HAFSATU.
LIGHTS COME ON THE SHANTU TROUPE. HAFSATU STEPS INTO THE LIGHT, SHE
BRIGHTENS UP AS SHE WATCHES THE PERFORMANCE.
HAFSATU: LIGHTS DIM ON THE DANCERS. AND COMES ON HAFSATU WHO IS
HAPPY. Where are the children? They always enjoy Shantu performers. I should
have called them. CALLS OUT. Ahmad, Inno, Muhammad, Aisha, Lubabatu and
even the wives; Amina and Jubbo. They have have missed a lot this morning.
AHMADU: Have they?
HAFSATU: Tell me Rankadede, why did you not remain a teacher? When I was
told about you, I was told that I was to be married to an educated teacher.
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. When a young man takes a decision about the profession
he desires at a tender age, he is excited and full of dreams, but when he finds his
destined job in life, he realizes how childishly stupid he was, this is because
darkness cannot bring light into a dark room, only light does.. Besides, only Allah
the light knows what kind of light a man will be the very second a man is born.
Only He also knows the moment, that light will quench forever.
HAFSATU: I don’t understand again. Today you speak like a man at the beginning
of a long journey. Are you travelling Baba?
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. PAUSE. Far…very far. But still, l will be near enough. You
asked a question.
HAFSATU: Yes. Why did you not remain a teacher?
AHMADU: Indeed, I wanted to be a teacher. I liked the power of the teacher. He
speaks and the children listen. I also liked the figure of discipline he represented.
After the Koranic education, l found that there was more to learn in the schools of
the colonial people, in order to prepare us for the administrative skills needed to
run Nigeria after the impending departure of the colonial administrators. More
and more, I realized that education was the key to my achieving this dream. So I
went to Katsina College after first completing my studies at the Sokoto Provincial
School. And the thirst to know more, grew. I then went to England to learn about
administration, and I became obsessed to know more and more about using
people to make things grow.
HAFSATU: I know all that one, I was the one who waited for you.I counted each
day you spent in the cold country. I was afraid for your life. AHMADU LETS OUT A
LOUD LAUGH. SERIOUS. When did you become a politician?
AHMADU: When I returned. My ambition to be a teacher was fulfilled, but I was
not satisfied. Always, I felt a sense of needing more to do for my people. In
England, I saw how far back we were. Talks of the white men leaving was
beginning to fill the air, and I wanted to be part of the process.
HAFSATU: Yes, when did the politician emerge? Because the transition was fast.
One day I woke up, and my teacher husband was exchanged for the politician.
Often I would ask Allah to just watch your steps.
AHMADU: And so he did. When my cousin the District head of Rabah died. I was
asked to replace him. I left Sokoto for Rabah and that was when I started my
journey into politics. You remember how things happened so fast?
HAFSATU: Yes. One moment I packed a bag of clothes. They would not even let
me come to the train station with you.
AHMADU: Exactly. When Sultan Hassan died in Sokoto, as a full blooded Prince of
the palace, I wanted to be the Sultan.
HAFSATU: I prayed to Allah to make you the Sultan. As daughter of the Wazirin
Sokoto, my dream would have been more complete. But that was all it was to be .
…a dream.
AHMADU: I too wanted to be Sultan. PAUSE. In Rabah, I had seen the changing
roles needed from the traditional rulers in order to meet the impending vacuum
that would be created when the white men left. I wanted to prepare first, the
people of Sokoto, and then later, the whole of the north, when I became the
Sultan. But that was not to happen. My cousin Abubakar became Sultan, and he
gave me the title of Sardauna which was made vacant due to his ascension to the
highest position. That was when I turned my attention totally to politics.
HAFSATU: Yes. Now I remember.
AHMADU: I left Sokoto for Gusau the commercial capital of Sokoto Province as
Councillor. At that point, I became a full politician, I was going to be able to help
not only, the Sokoto people, or the northerners, but Nigeria. Those years, I learnt
that no matter how much a father cries, his eyes will never run dry. Even in death,
a father continues to cry, laugh and clap for the joy of his children. Several times I
would dream. My father who never spoke much, would just be clapping…urging
me on.
HAFSATU: How did you intend to attain that?
AHMADU: When I was leaving for school, my mother called me into her room,
and told me to learn well, listen more and never believe in what you cannot
doubt. So for each information I learnt in school,even up till today, for every new
information, I would ask myself for the possible outcome of looking at the matter
from another side.
HAFSATU: And what did you often find on the otherside?
AHMADU: Haa…Hafsatu…are you now a journalist from the BBC? THEY BOTH
CHUCKLE.
HAFSATU: Today is my day. Maybe that is why Allah took the children out, so that
I can have you to myself to ask things I did not understand. Answer Sir Ahmadu
Bello. THEY BOTH CHUCKLE AGAIN.
AHMADU: It appeared as if the white men had brought us up to become helpless
little calfs, unsure of which foot to put forward first after their departure.
Especially in terms of education, skills, and their new system of governance which
was going to encourage dishonesty. We were so unprepared.
HAFSATU: Unprepared? For what?
AHMADU: For the new country. There so much obstacles to overcome before we
could be really independent.
HAFSATU: Obstacles?
AHMADU: Yes. The irony was that we were not ready when independence came.
The white men had left us in a false cocoon of security. We too believed that once
we had Islam, our Emirs, and our culture untouched, we were ready for anything.
But how false that belief was.
HAFSATU: But we were truly independent. In Ocotber first 1960, you took me to
Lagos with all the funfare, the parties, the cultural displays. I met the wives both
white and balck of many politicians. I liked it when the white men’s flag came
down as the clock struck twelve midnight, and ours green white green, went up.
We clapped until our hands hurt. We were a happy and one country Rankadede.
Was all that false too?
AHMADU: No.
HAFSATU: We even sang our own anthem. I sang it from the beautiful gold plated
programme. Nigeria, we hail thee, our own dear native land, though tribe and
tongues may defer, in brother hood we stand. Was that too a lie? Did we not
attain independence? Were we not free?
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. We were? What the whitemen left was bigger than that, it
was a big sore with a false seal cover of flesh while the big wound underneath,
festered.
HAFSATU: CONFUSED. I don’t understand.
AHMADU: The whitemen did not really care about us. They just wanted to leave
the country. They tied us permanently to their apron strings for business, but they
did not really care for our souls and happiness. They wanted us to continue to
have problems, so that they could always come to resolve our problems. The flag
and anthem were false emblems of deceit. We now had to work to understand
what they really meant. So we apparently were only free in name alone. People
who knew nothing about each other lumped together as one country. Our
problem started the day, the flag was raised. CHUCKLES. New country my
foot.CHUCKLES AGAIN. It was like naming a small little dog…a helpless poppy
dog… a Tiger. Only a fool would let himself be so fooled.Not me.
HAFSATU: But we were a new country. Alhaji Tafawa Balewa was head of the new
country. And as today, the fifteenth day of Jannuary, 1966, we are six years old as
a free country.
AHMADU: Yes. But the well wrapped up Emirs, and District heads were just Paper
Tigers in their self concieted flowing Babbar Riga. We were like a thachted house
built on swampy ground, with watery clay for the walls, and dry palm leaves for
the roof. How far could our obstacles be over come? Die hard cultural traditions
which had become set backs in the new world, disunity amongst the various
tribes, and ignorance about what to do, where to go and how to do it. My people
were the most hit.
HAFSATU: So what did you do?
AHMADU: lf we wanted to become a really free nation, my job then was to plant a
sampling that will grow into a full grown plant of northern people set for the
struggles ahead for equal space.. It was a difficult task, because some tribal minds
were already set.CHUCKLES. But the problem is that a sampling will also only
grow if it is looked after…watered and nurtured. That was my awesome task.
ASIDE. See now how at dawn, they pushed me, not even a gentle nudge, but
shoved me into a shallow catacomb, where a recess of graves hurridly dug with
still foaming blood holes.
HAFSATU: I don’t understand.
AHMADU: I found that the Igbo people were ready to lead. Christianity had
opened them to the white man’s ways. From among them the colonial
Administrators had introduced them to their system of governance, and from
among them they had recruited them into the central arms of government. This
was agreat advantage over we people of the north. The Yorubas also were at a
great advantage like the Igbos. But we trailed woefully behind. I resolved not to
stop these steps of advnatages totally but to try and bridge the gap. I wanted and
needed men who could bestow their lives for their people, were those who could
defend it…articulate the knots of intrigues and greed, and yet not stain their
delicate hands.
HAFSATU: I still do not understand.
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. We were all simply cattle hearders in the open fields in the
eyes of all. But in one of my trips for a national event in lagos, where each major
tribe was represented, I saw that through the cultural performances of each
ethnic tribe was the essence and instinct of survival. I started to see the dances,
the steps, the grutural sounds, the gestures as codes of our resoning and the
secret of our interpretation of life. Watch woman. LIGHTS BECOME DIM. AND A
VIDEO OF THE VARIOUS DANCES OF NIGERIA ARE DISPLAYED. I saw a common
factor…culture as a tool for unity in our vast diversity…I saw our strong beliefs of
our cultural background, which could give us a sense of togetherness as a growing
nation…but ironically fueled with misgivings, they were also to form the basis for
Nigeria’s disunity.
HAFSATU: Disunity? I thought…
AHMADU: Yes, disunity. We needed time…concrete and genuine efforts that
could bring us together. Appreciate each other better. I was in a hurry. I wanted
my people to catch up with the others. But so were the other regional
leaders….great men…heroes of their people too. In the South West was Obafemi
Awolowo and Akintola, ,and the East led by Nnamdi Azikiwe, Okpalla and so
many , more. PAUSE.Yes, I stood tall…a lonesome hero…and often cold. Was I in
the wrong? HAFSATU DOES NOT ANSWER. Um? Was I?
HAFSATU: No Baba. But I wanted us to go to Lagos. I loved the roads of Lagos, the
houses with well manicured gardens, the big ships at the Port. The white men had
given them so much, and gave us little or nothing.
AHMADU: The very reasons why I chose to stay in the north. If I went to Lagos as
Prime Minister, I would forget home, and think that everything was well with the
false reality of these images of pleasure and splendour. PAUSE. There was
ignorance feasting amongst my people. They needed good education for the boys
and girls.
HAFSATU: I liked that especially the schools for the girls. From twoschools; Queen
Amina and Alhuda, they have become so many now. They even address the
secondary school girls as daughters of the Sardauna. THEY BOTH LAUGH.
AHMADU: You know encouraged me to do that?
HAFSATU: No.
AHMADU: The Queen herself.
HAFSATU: The queen?
AHMADU: In one of her visits, she said, I am struck by the evident determination
of the people to educate their children. Without this, economic development
cannot be achieved. The education of women is very important.
HAFSATU: The Queen said this?
AHMADU: That encouraged me a lot. The statement like her trip was very
memorable.
HASFATU: I now understand why the girls secondary school in Ilorin was named
after Queen Elizabeth.
AHMADU: Yes. And besides her statement was very true. It reminded me of the
saying of my father that, Princeses and Princesses have to be grounded before
they can become Kings.
HAFSATU: How true. The future belongs them.
AHMADU: And good doctors and nurses to implement the health care scheme
too, and a very competent civil service of course. For Nigeria to grow in the world,
there had to be first, a regional tribal growth. A modernization and unification of
the diverse people of Northern Nigeria was also most needed. This was the only
way we could bring equality amongst the three major tribes and only then could
high moral and intellectual virtues be achieved. But ironically there was so much
misreadings and hopeless fatalism around.The white men also introduced words
that could intoxicate our young minds, capitalism, radicalism, maxism, and
coup’detat. PAUSE. Lapped up, see what has happened to our once peaceful
dream…convoluted…conjoined triplets.
HAFSATU: What has happened Maigida?
AHMADU: Impatience.
HAFSATU: Impatience?
AHMADU: Yes. A fuller knowledge of an issue. My late father Ibrahim, used to say
that to beat time, a man must run, not crawl. But most of all I needed young
minds that would share in my vision. Those who could believe in what they could
doubt, those who were ready to beat time, consentrate on the race ahead, not
crawl because of the bigger competion outside the northern region.
HAFSATU: Did you find them?
AHMADU: Yes. Men of integrity.Kassim Ibrahim, MakamanBida, Isa Kaita, Musa
Yardua, Yusuff Maitama Sule, Maman Nasir, Abdulrahman Okene, Achimugu, Isa
kaita, Shettima Kashim, Abba Habib, Yahaya Ilorin, Ali Atiku, Yayah Gusau,
Abdulrahman Mora, Pastor Lot, and Tank Yusuff. Men who could not pretend a
fasade for the sake of self gain. BREAKS INTO A GENTLE LAUGH.
HAFSATU: Baba what now?
AHMADU: CONTINUES TO CHUCKLE. Shehu Shagari.
HAFSATU: What about him?
AHMADU: I must have shaken him a bit.
HAFSATU: When? He is gentle man from Shagari. Small stature, a teacher like you.
Why frighten him Rankadede?
AHMADU: One of the gifts I asked Allah to give me in the task for the
northernization, was the ability to recognize good men. The task before me was
not a task for one man alone. I needed men of integrity. And when met I Shehu
Shagari and recognized him, I watched him closely. We travelled to Mecca with
another good friend of mine, Sheik Abubakar Gunmi. So I called both of them and
asked Gunmi to take Shehu to the tomb of Anabi Muhammad. And he Shagari
should pledge to Allah that he would be upright, just devoid of greed, and forgive
those who offend him. CHUCKLES. This must have disturbed the young Shagari.
But He did it anyway. SERIOUS. That man will go far in the state of Affairs of this
new country. CHUCKLES AGAIN.
HAFSATU: What now Rankadede?
AHMADU: Power.
HAFSATU: What power?
AHMADU: Hafsatu, politics is a quagmire. Political power is like a soft, wet and
slimy road. Very sweet and cool on the feet to step on…but the politician had to
step gently, because one could easily slip and fall. The attraction for a poor and
honest man going into politics was much. The long flashy cars of power, the well
starched Police officers saluting all the time, making one feel that after God, you
were. The numerous tea breaks and photocalls at events, the fans blowing cool
air in your offices, with one million people milling around you, while shame was
always lurking. BEGINS TO CHUCKLE.
HAFSATU: So what did you do?
AHMADU: I warned my people gently. You can only run a race well and win,if one
concentrated on the race alone. Each race of life had its own rules. It demanded
its own discipline. That was why my favorite saying was you could only run a race
with both hands swinging, pushing you forward. It is is difficult to run a race with
one hand scratching the buttocks, and win. THEY BOTH BREAK INTO A LAUGH. But
they knew what I meant. Each man concentrated on his task.
HAFSATU: I was afraid for you when you mentioned the northernization policy. It
did not go down well with the other regions.
AHMADU: How did you know?
HAFSATU: In Lagos, at the small tea parties of the first ladies as we called
ourselves. From their banter and chatterings, I could take a peep into the hearts
and utterings of their husbands at home, and the whispers of the people they
represented.
AHMADU: Hmm Hafsatu Ahmadu Bello. First Lady of Northern Region of Nigeria.
Mother of the Dan Arewa Daughter of Mallam Abbas, Wazirin Sokoto. First wife
of the the President General of the Northern People Congress. Matar Sardauna
Sakkwato. Great grand daughter of Nana Asma’u, the daughter of Uthman Dan
Fodio. So your Excellency the first Lady, this is what you go to do at meetings with
other first ladies in Lagos?
HAFSATU: LAUGHS. Yes Rankadede. You think we only go to look preety and drink
tea? Quietly, I watch and listen. I may not say a word or two like my towering
husband. I may not have your sweet voice like that of Mallam tafawa Balewa or
good command of English like both of you, but I listen to what they say all the
same. And I measure the strength and love they have for my husband by the
warmth I got from them at the last meeting, and the one I receive at this new
meeting. Did I do well Baba?
AHMADU: Hafsatu Gwaggon Kurya. Woman like a man. CLAPPING. You did one
hundred percent well. I wish I had a voice to sing your praise. A SONG BEGINS IN
PRAISE OF HAFSATU. HAFSATU ENJOYS THE MUSIC.
HAFSATU: Northanization policy Rankadede.
AHMADU: One north! One People, one destiny! That was our slogan. It was just a
policy for equality in taking part in the race for independence by my people of the
north. It is a basic agenda for development. Nothing more. The truth is that we
are someone’s enemy, no matter how positive we say or think. And besides,
greed and fear can turn even a saint into an animal.
HAFSATU: But the words hurt them.
AHMADU: Even good words hurt. I want to live and die for the people.
HAFSATU: Such words hurt Rankadede. You were too frank. Sometimes, it is
easier to misunderstand you than to understand you. Your enemies found it very
convenient to misunderstand you Baba.
AHMADU: Maybe I have been too frank with what I say. But in that frankness, I
guided myself. I wanted to understand my goals, my aims before I proceeded to
the road of my destination. I do not mean to frighten any group or tribe.
HAFSATU: But words like eggs had dropped. They all fear you. But in’ sha Allah, if
they do not understand today…they will…tomorrow. But I pray it wont be too
late.
AHAMDAU: Not too late? Have you heard something?
HAFSATU: No. What can I possibly hear from my room in the palace of the
Premier? PAUSE. All I know is that your words, sewed seeds of anger, and where
there is anger, there is always hatred. And hatred knows no boundaries.
AHMADU: Very true. All I realized was that the northern region had two nemies:
ignorance and fear. Ignorance procudes fear l often told them. Therefore if we kill
ignorance, we kill fear.
HAFSATU: Yes. We kill ignorance, we kill fear. Such words were often
misinterpreted Rankadede.
AHMADU: Haba Hafsatu what was difficult those simple words? What I meant
was that let us together press forward with our Yaki de Jahici. War against
Ignorance. We had to tell the people the truth about themselves.
HAFSATU: That too sounds scary.
AHMADU: What is scary? The word truth?
HAFSATU: War. The fear also genenated everywhere. Each with its interpretation.
And then rumours from people about impending trouble.
AHMADU: Yes, fear and various interpretations. Down south it was worse. Chief
Akintola the Premier and Chief Akinloye the Federal Minister of Agriculture came
to tell me about some roumour they heard about some restless spirits. But I
waved it off. I don’t work or believe in rumours. Afterall Tafawa Balewa is on top
of things in Lagos. And the north was firmly under my grip, or so l thought. That is
politics, l told myself. It is like a hungry Python who in its hungry state forgets that
what it swallows, would take time to digest. It will be alright, I kept saying to
myself.
HAFSATU: And what if it is not alright. What if blood flows like….STOPS HERSELF. I
told you of my dream and as usual you waved it off. Everything will be alright you
kept saying. But the soldiers suddenly play games in the early hours of the
morning, and now I float as I run. Is there something, you want to tell me?
AHMADU: Is there something you want to know. Any policy I have to explain? I
am an open book. Again, that is politics. A leader must explain.
HAFSATU: Your huge Rawani frightens them too.
AHMADU: Their sleek tongues frighten my people too. But Allah will judge. I am
often reminded that my actions and utterances may have dare conseuqences.
HAFSATU: And what do you say…when people say that?
AHMADU: Alihamudulilah!
HAFSATU: Is that all? Alihamdullilah?
AHMADU: Yes,.I would have served the purpose for which Allah sent me. PAUSE. I
want to be remembered for the work I have done for my people, not by the
money that I have but by the lives I have touched. That is when Allah will take pity
on my soul. PAUSE. And you? What will you do if they come for me?
HAFSATU: Tapde! May Allah forbid! Who will come? Who can come? The
Policemen and a thousand Malaikah who keep watch over you will not let the
fiercest predator of them all, pull a strand of your hair.
AHMADU: But there are those angered by my huge Rawani. Those angered by my
height, my broad shoulders…gait… and confidence…all natural gifts of Allah.
Again what will you do when they come for me?
HAFSATU: May Allah forbid. And if anything untowards should happen, I will stop
time, and rewind back the hand of the clock. HURRIES TO HIM. SHE KNEELS
BEFORE HIM. Rankadede, walahitalahi…if they come for you, they shall meet a
Lioness in my cloak. I shall use the intelligence of Nana Asmau, the strength of
Muhammad Bello, and the skill of Queen Amina to fight them..
AHMADU: BEGINS TO LAUGH.Woman!
HAFSATU: No Maigida. I shall face them from the front. Two swords in hand,
smouldered in the concortion of love. I shall grab your clothes and wrap myself
around you. And in my loudest voice, I shall say, “ you cannot take my Iroko tree”,
and if they insist, I shall say, “No Rankadede, you cannot die, you will not die”.
Then I will lie with you sharing the bloody shroud.
AHMADU: BREAKS INTO A BIG LAUGH. LOVE MUSIC PLAYS. Hafsatu Gwaggon
Kurya. Junior sister of Queen Amina. Nagode!
HAFSATU: I am serious Sardauna. I am the first warrior in your palace.
AHMADU: CHNAGES TO A SERIOUS TONE. You were there Hafsatu.
HAFSATU: Where?
AHMADU: Here…with me as wife. People will ask you one day. What kind of a
man I was ? As my first wife since 1932, only you will understand me more than
all. At least you were there to see my once dark hair turn slightly grey. I ask again
what kind of a man was I?
HAFSATU: Are you, not was. You are still here…in my humble presense and you
breath before me. And you shall live for a hundred years more. PUASE.
CHUCKLES. I asked a Mallam before I agreed to marry you what kind of marriage
we will have? You know what he said?
AHMADU: No. I was not there, so tell me.
HAFSATU: He said we will be together…happy, till death.
AHMADU: LAUGHS. Did he lie? I asked what kind of man am l?
HAFSATU: Maigida…what kind of question is this? Your question raises fear in
me.
AHMADU: Woman, just answer me!
HAFSATU: SLOWLY GOES ON HER KNEES. Have I offended you then? These are
matters of destiny…they are beyond man. They belong only to Allah.
AHMADU: I know but if destiny is made of glass, you cannot keep it from
breaking. ASIDE. And this dainty glass is already sharted.
HAFSATU: What did you say?
AHMADU: No! Just answer the question woman.!
HAFSATU: Then why do you speak of people asking questions about your work?
You are a great man, a good father, I know that after work, we come second, but
we the wives…Amina, Jobbo, and I, and even the children, have learnt to accept
that as the task given to us by Almighty Allah…to enjoy the priviledge which most
people don’t have.
AHMADU: Don’t speak like a dutiful woman. I know who you are…but like my
closest person…my first observer and adviser, speak to me. CHUCKLES. Each time I
dress to go to work or for a journey, do you think I do not watch you? l look up
to your face for a gentle flip of your eyelids for approval.
HAFSATU: Me? A nod for the great Sarduana? Ni?
AHMADU: I watch you. Tell me what and who you think I am. Only Allah knows
the time and place. What if Allah says today is the day, and the place is here!
Now? What will you say?
HAFSATU: IN A WHISPER. I will not be there, I swear by AAllah!.
AHMADU: BECOMING INPATIENT. What did you say?
HAFSATU: My prayer to Allah always is to die before you or die with you. I will not
let you go alone. You are too great to die alone. And if Satan wills it, I swear, I
shall shield you from any harm. AHMADU BEGINS TO CHUCKLE. Whatever type of
death comes to take you, must take me too. KNEELS. I pledge my life to you dear
husband. If it is a sword, let the pointed edge touch me first. And if it is a ray of
bullets then my share must hit me first. And if it is a dagger, I will fall on it first.
The great Ahmadu Rabah…Ahmadu Bello, the Sarduana of Sakoto…of Northern
Nigeria cannot go alone. I, Hafsatu Ahmadu Bello, will follow him to the end of the
world. And on judgement day, when we appear before Allah, I will ask him in all
my wifely boldness, why he allowed anyone to touch you.
AHMADU: CHUCKLES. Woman…now you chatter. Just a few words of inner truth.
That is all I want to hear. Calm down. PAUSE. Now speak Hafsatu. I still want an
answer.
HAFSATU: I am short of words.
AHMADU: Woman. LAUGHS. My late mother used to say that a good daughter-in-
law is like salt in the taste buds of her husband’s family. If she is good like you,
every member of the family enjoys her. Hafsatu, you have been a good wife to
me, I am grateful for your dedication. So simply open your sweet coated mouth
and speak from the heart.
HAFSATU: The question again.
AHMADU: Woman. Describe the Sardauna. Who is he?
HAFSATU: STARTS SLOWLY. Bismiilahi Rahamani Rahim. He is a good husband and
a kind and loving father to my children. He listens to our problems. And he is
happy when we are happy.
AHMADU: Woman stick to the question!
HAFSATU: : He is a leader. A true leader with all the qualities of leadership. A
leader whose leadership was accepted by all the northern people. A leader who
leads us his followers like a true Fulani man with the thought of a cattle reaer. A
leader who wants his heard to run together, graze toghter, and grow together. I
must stop. Your followers like Mallam Dantata and Yusuff Mataima Sule, will be
able to say more. Please ask them.
AHMADU: Yusuff Maitama Sule. Hm what will he say?
LIGHTS DIM. THE VIDEO OF MAITAMA SULE IS PLAYED.
SULE: They are not with us.Today, we are no longer what we were. What is
happening today, is not in our character. The norms and values left by the
Sardauna and our founding fathers are no longer with us. Today, as I have often
described the situation, the institution of family has broken down. Respect for
elders and constituted authority which used to be our cardinal principle in our
society, is now at its lowest ebb. Honesty where it does not pay has become
meaningless. Simpletons of revolt loom large in the horizon. In short, there is
meaninglessness in philosophy, insecurity in polity, chaos in politics, immorality in
society, corruption in economy, frustration in art, and lack of creativity in
literature. This is not what the north used to be or Nigeria as a whole, ours was a
decent country whose leaders respected one another, inspite of their political
differences, ours was a society that was morally sound.
SLOWLY MUSIC PLAYS AS FINAL LIGHTS GO DARK.
SOUND OF MUSIC IS PLAYED.
SOUND OF A CAR DRIVING IN, AND PARKING IS HEARD.
HAFSATU: The children must be back. Let me see. EXITS.
AHMADU: Now the storm gathers. In the name of God the compassionate and
the merciful, let thanks be given to God every where in Nigeria. Oh Allah, when I
was made the Premier of Northern Nigeria, I was beset by many emotions. The
emotion of gratitude to you for choosing me to lead my people, the emotion of
humility, humbly conscious of my own limitations, the emotion of pride to be a
northerner and a Nigerian, and the emotion of joy. But this morning, the
emotions of fear, anger and regret choke this foamy red saliva within. HE BRINGS
HIS MISBAHA OUT. SITS ON THE MAT. AND BIGINS TO PRAY. HAFSATU WATCHES
HIM FOR A WHILE.
HAFSATU: IN AUDIBLE WHISPER.My father used to say the birds who fly too high
hurt themselves when they fall. Maybe my Sardauna flew too high too quickly,
and now see how wounded we are in our fall. SLOW DIRGE -MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS ALONE. Oh Allah, let us find favour in your sight. Let the people
he fought for not forget him, l beg you. As for our children, life will never be the
same without their dearest Baba, but in their sorrow, let them find happiness. Let
them understand that l performed my duty as a wife, not that l loved them less.
TO AHMADU Pray for your country Sardauna. SOUND OF PEOPLE TALKING. SHE
HURRIES OUT AGAIN.
AHMADU: Rabbana Aatina. Fid Dunya. Hasanatawn Wa Fil, Aakheerati.
Hasanatawn. Waqeen. Aazaban Naar. Oh Allah give my country Nigeria goodness
in the Aakhirah and save the peoples of Nigeria from the fire and the punishment
of the day of reckoning, punishment of calamities, punishment of diseases, and
the punishment of strife and ethic divisions which lead to pangs of death.
Waqeena Aazabul Daijal and save Nigeria from the punishment of the trials of
Daijal.Waqueen Aazaban. Ameen.
HAFSATU: HURRIES IN. Rankadede! It is Sheik Abubakar Gumi with some men. I
think you must prepare yourself to meet them. Come I have a new Babbar riga in
my room for you. Hurry. I hope nothing bad has happened to them? Their faces
carry masks of great loss. But why?
AHMADU: Yes. We must hurry to meet them. They must meet us well. THEY BOTH
EXIT INTO HAFSATU’S ROOM. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS CONTINUE TO PLAY.
GURMI AND A GROUP OF MEN COME IN LED BY A SOLDIER. THE ROOM IS LIT AS
LIGHTS REVEAL BOTH AHMADU AND HAFSATU LYING ON THE FLOOR, DEAD.
GURMI: Inna li lahi wa-inna ilayhi raji‘un.Today, two new comets will be seen. And
the omens, whatever shade, will shine through to the gates of Jena. .Oh Allah,
bless the living and the dead. And forgive us our sins, even those sins, yet to be
committed. Ameen.
SLOWLY MUSIC OF “THE GREATNESS OF AHMADU BELLO” IS PLAYED. AS FINAL
LIGHTS SLOWLY FADE.

THE END