One of my childhood impressions of Chikaji, a community in Sabon Gari Local Government area of Kaduna State, was that late Alhaji Isa Chikaji, a second republic politician and stalwart of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) was the richest man in the world.
This impression was not unfounded because he was one man who had lots of building and construction equipments, tractors and a stable of assorted caterpillars that I first saw in my life as a child.
To me, he had the highest number of posh apartments not just in Chikaji, but across the entire Sabon Gari Local Government at that time. It took years for this childhood impressions of mine to change.
At a point, I was so close to many of his sons that I quickly transformed into a family friend. My chummy relationship with his family was strengthened by my closeness to his wife, my mother’s namesake – Hajiya Aishat Isa Chikaji – who we fondly called “Hajiya Takwari”.
Till date, I don’t know why she was called Takwari or the actual meaning of the word, but she had been my heroine for years.
Two weeks ago, I learnt she was battling with some complications arising from liver Cirrhosis. But when I went to greet her after being discharged from hospital, she looked radiant and seemed to be recuperating. As I sat in her beautiful parlour, I saw a seemingly tired but very strong woman, braving the odds of recuperation from a prolonged illness.
She managed to beam smiles and her usual kind nature was unmistakable as we talked about the rate at which the cold hands of death was snatching Nigerians on daily basis. We talked about her new pet Islamic project of imparting religious knowledge by training young women and girls with potentials of becoming teachers themselves – for the good of community.
The news of her death when it came, was devastating to thousands of the people in the community because she was quietly helping the poor, who thronged her house once in a while with tons of worries, including challenges of feeding their families. I heard testimonies about how she was given to spending a lot on free feeding each Ramadan fasting season.
I got testimonies as to how much effort she personally invested in reducing the risk of matrimonial break-ups in her community by quietly interceding in moments of crisis between spouses that she knew.
One other striking thing about Hajiya Takwari was that many in the community would run to her when they needed quickcash loans to solve emergency problems and payback later. She never missed the opportunity to help people whenever it was convenient to spread her milk of human kindness, which was frequent.
Significantly, Hajiya Takwari’s major strength is her humble character. She mixed freely with all classes of people, rich or poor and it didn’t matter who you were. For her, respect was reciprocal. Her humility would be the first thing people would easily recall about the life and times of this humble, yet hardworking mother.
Another strength of the late Hajiya Takwari was her ability to train the child, which shows glaringly in the way her children relate with members of the community and even beyond. The children seem to have taken a lot from her humble lifestyle and human relations.
My close contact with all her children has taught me that there are people whose successes in life could not change the way they relate with the poor in our midst. Hajiya Takwari will therefore, forever be remembered as a mother whose parenthood was quite exemplary.
With the pains of loss, I pen this tribute to such an extraordinarily tolerant woman that I never saw quarrelling with anyone; not that I can recall despite my closeness to the family. In truth, she simply mastered the gentle art of handling those courting her trouble. It’s possible she was an incredibly patient woman.
At any rate, those closer to her than myself would have a more revealing explanation as to why she was such a harmless, caring woman with awesome record of sacrifice for the good of others.
Already, I can sense how her children and members of the community would be feeling deep down at the loss of this mother with a beautiful heart, in a world where most people bother less about spreading Devine message and feeding the poor and guiding confused young minds. She was said to have doubled up as guardian to many women and girls in her community in most challenging moments.
I learnt that plans were in top gear for her to be flown to Egypt for a comparatively more sophisticated medical attention. I remember hearing someone talking about her International Passport and travel plan two weeks earlier, or so; can’t recall precisely when. It still torments my heart to remember that Hajiya Takwari’s trip to Egypt never happened, but Allah knows best.
May Allah in His infinite mercy, bless her soul and grant her the best of all places in paradise. May He bless us with many of the likes of Hajiya Takwari at all levels in the society, so we learn the virtues of humility, kindness and generosity. Ameen.
