Paramount Chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a chief-based system. This term is used occasionally in anthropological and ar ...

Ella Koblo Gulama OBE, GCOR (26 January 1921 – 9 September 2006)The life and Times of Honourable PC Ella Koblo Gulama of Sierra Leone
''Awareness Times'', 26 September 2006 was a Sierra Leonean

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a chief-based system. This term is used occasionally in anthropological and arch ...

and politician. In 1957, she became the first elected female Member of Parliament in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

. She was re-elected in 1962. During the government of

Milton Margai Sir Milton Augustus Strieby Margai (7 December 1895 – 28 April 1964) was a Sierra Leonean medical doctor and politician who served as the country's head of government from 1954 until his death in 1964. He was titled chief minister from 1954 ...

, Gulama became Sierra Leone and

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...

's first female Cabinet Minister. Gulama represented Sierra Leone abroad and her travels took her all over Africa, Europe, North America and the Middle East. In 1957 as a guest of the

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

, she toured the United States for 4 months during which she met with Vice-President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Biography

Early life and education

On 21 January 1921, Gulama was born into one of Sierra Leone's most powerful families in the town of

Moyamba Moyamba is the capital and largest city of Moyamba District, in the Southern Province of Sierra Leone. There has been a recorded population of 11,485 in the 2004 census. The city is ethnically diverse, although the Mende people make up the major ...

Moyamba District Moyamba District is a district in the Southern Province of Sierra Leone, with a population of 318,064 in the 2015 census. Its capital and largest city is Moyamba. The other major towns include Njala, Rotifunk and Shenge. The district is the la ...

in the Southern Province of

British Sierra Leone The Colony and Protectorate of Sierra Leone (informally British Sierra Leone) was the British colonial administration in Sierra Leone from 1808 to 1961, part of the British Empire from the abolitionism era until the decolonisation era. The Crow ...

. Her mother was

Lucy Gulama Madam Lucy Gulama (born 26 September 1896 - 1966) was the wife of Sierra Leonean Paramount Chief Julius Gulama. Madam Lucy was the matriarch of one of Sierra Leone's most powerful noble families. She is the mother of Paramount Chief Madam Ella K ...

and her father Paramount Chief Julius Gulama were both ethnic Mendes. Like his father, Paramount Chief Momoh Gulama, Julius was Paramount Chief of Kaiyamba Chiefdom. Ella was educated at the

Harford School for Girls Harford Secondary School for Girls is a secondary school for girls in Moyamba, Sierra Leone. History The roots of the school lie in the Mary Sowers School for Girls, founded by Church of the United Brethren in Christ, United Brethren in Christ (U ...

in Moyamba, and the Women Teacher's College, then at

Fourah Bay College Fourah Bay College is a public university in the neighbourhood of Mount Aureol in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Founded on 18 February 1827, it is the first western-style university built in Sub-Saharan Africa and, furthermore, the first university-le ...

Freetown Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and p ...

Marriage

In 1944 Gulama married the powerful Paramount Chief Bai Koblo Pathbana II of Marampa, Masimera Chiefdom, an ethnic Temne. Their cross-tribal union was a shining example of national cohesion. From 1944 to 1952 Gulama resided at

Lunsar Lunsar is a town in Marampa Chiefdom, Port Loko District in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. It is the largest town in Port Loko District by population. The Britannica estimate of the population of Lunsar is 36,1 The town is one of the main ...

where she was chief Consort. The couple had seven children, including Frances, Francis Obai, Jubilee, Alex Soccoh, June, Julius Maada, and Jilo. Koblo was multilingual and spoke fluent English, Mende, Temne, and Sherbro.

Political career

Gulama had a distinguished career in politics and was a pioneering female leader. Her life was defined by service. She was a member of the

Sierra Leone People's Party The Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, along with its main political rival the All People's Congress (APC). It has been the ruling party in Sierra Leone since April 4, 2018. The SLPP do ...

(SLPP), which her father helped establish. In 1957 Gulama embarked on a political career and became a Member of the Moyamba District Council. She was the first woman to be elected to Sierra Leone's House of Representatives as Paramount Chief Member for Moyamba District. In 1962 she was re-elected and Prime Minister Milton Margai made her a Cabinet Minister. She was the first woman to hold a ministerial post in sub-Saharan Africa. From 1960 to 1967 Gulama was President of the Federation of Women's Organisations in Sierra Leone. During her chieftaincy, she had the streets of

paved and hired a British construction company to install clean tap water. In the 1967 general elections Gulama regained her seat and was serving in the government of Sir

Albert Margai Sir Albert Michael Margai (10 October 1910 – 18 December 1980) was the second prime minister of Sierra Leone and the half-brother of Milton Margai, Sir Milton Margai, the country's first Prime Minister. He was also the father of Sierra Leone ...

. However the opposition

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Apr ...

(APC) had narrowly won a parliamentary majority. A power struggle between the candidates, Margai of the SLPP and

Siaka Stevens Siaka Probyn Stevens (24 August 1905 – 29 May 1988) was the leader of Sierra Leone from 1967 to 1985, serving as Prime Minister of Sierra Leone, Prime Minister from 1967 to 1971 and as President from 1971 to 1985. Stevens' leadership was ofte ...

of the APC ensued, destabilising the country and resulting in a rapid succession of military coups. When Steven's APC party eventually ascended to power and began their 30-year grip on Sierra Leone. Gulama was accused of collaborating with her brother-in-law

David Lansana Brigadier David Lansana (22 March 1922 – 19 July 1975) was the first indigenous armed force commander of the Sierra Leone Military during the colonial era. After Sierra Leone gained independence, he served as Military Attaché to the United St ...

in his coup d'état against Stevens.Sierra Leone Powers Lost
Worldview Magazine, Fall 1999 She placed under arrest and held at Pademba Road prison for over a year. She was later exonerated and released. While she was in prison Stevens appointed her husband Paramount Chief Bai Koblo Pathbana II to his cabinet. Her estranged husband's acceptance of the position strengthened the innuendo that Gulama's relationship with Sir Albert Margai was mouch more than a professional one. Gulama was briefly forced into political exile after Sir Albert Margai lost power. In the early 1970s, Gulama revamped her political career and became the leader of the APC Women's Organisation of Moyamba District. From 1985 to 1991 Gulama served as the president of the National Organization for Women (Sierra Leone). In 1992, she was unanimously re-elected Paramount Chief of Kaiyamba Chiefdom. Gulama collaborated with several NGOs to develop the infrastructural and agriculture of her Chiefdom and district.

Sierra Leone Civil War

The mercenary

Revolutionary United Front The Revolutionary United Front (RUF) was a rebel group that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, beginning in 1991 and ending in 2002. It later transformed into a political party, which still exists today. The three most senior surv ...

(RUF) ravaged Sierra Leone and devastated Moyamba District, killing tens of thousands of people and destroying everything Gulama had spent her life building up. When the rebels began a campaign to assassinate every paramount chief in the country. Chief Bunduka of Kailahun District and Paramount Chief Bonai Fei of Bo were brutally executed by the rebels. When Gulama's chiefdom was attacked and the rebels set fire to her compound and burned it to the ground. Gulama was forced to refugee to the nation's capital

. She returned to

and began the re-construction of her Chiefdom and Moyamba District but Gulama's health began to fail her. Nevertheless, she was able to continue her service to her country with the Sierra Leone Export Development and Investment Corporation (SLEDIC) (1994–1996) as one of the directors of The Sierra Leone Commercial Bank Limited.

Feminism

One of Gulama's passions was the promotion of education for girls and the improvement of the female condition in Sierra Leone. She served at her alma mater, Harford School for Girls as a member of the Board of Governors. Gulama was also a member of the Sierra Leone government Scholarship Advisory Board and the Bursary Committee of Fourah Bay College.

United Methodist Church

Gulama was a Christian and very active at the United Methodist Church. She was vice-president of the church's Conference on Finance and Administration from 1985 to 1991.

Awards and honours

She was the recipient of several awards including the

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

in 1959, the OBE in

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth for "public services as Minister without Portfolio", and a Grand Commander of the Order of the Rokel from President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah.

Death

Gulama died on 10 September 2006. On 24 September 2006 thousands of mourners gathered to attend her memorial service in at Trinity United Methodist Church in

. At the service she was described as "a woman of substance", by President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah who added:

Madam Ella Koblo-Gulama has lived an exemplary life, as a mother, wife and stateswoman whose fortitude has earned her high respect.

Honours

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

1965 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1965 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate t ...

- Officer of the Order of the British Empire. *

: Grand Commander of the

Order of the Rokel The Order of the Rokel is the second order of Sierra Leone, after the Order of the Republic (Sierra Leone), Order of the Republic. (Access date 28 June 2021) It may be awarded to recognize Sierra Leoneans who have distinguished themselves by makin ...

References

External links

Women Leaders In AfricaKabbah pays tribute to P.C. Madam Ella Koblo Gulama
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gulama, Ella Koblo 1921 births 2006 deaths 20th-century Australian politicians 21st-century Sierra Leonean women politicians 21st-century Sierra Leonean politicians African royalty Fourah Bay College alumni Mende people Officers of the Order of the British Empire Sierra Leonean royalty 20th-century Sierra Leonean women politicians 20th-century Sierra Leonean politicians Sierra Leone People's Party politicians Sierra Leonean United Methodists People from Moyamba District 20th-century Methodists