Withered Seasons
By Clement Odia
SIXTY-FOUR moons shrouded in vultures’ shadows,
Golden seasons wither, like autumn leaves.
Amingolo birds mock our hollow celebrations,
Their shrill cries echoing through deserted streets.
Rodents scavenge the barren bush for scraps,
Yawns and sighs sweep through the marketplaces.
The children of our motherland found solace
In distant lands, where resillience is forged.
Through harried hope, they braved icy winds,
Seeking golden fleece, a brighter dawn.
But we, remaining, face the putrid mesh
Of a country sunk, its future miraged.
Independence is not a jingle bell,
But hope nourished in resilience’s rich soil.
It’s the inflourescence of our aspirations,
Celebrating achievements,no longer foil.
One day, we’ll find our place in the world,
Our homes flourishing, wasteland blooming.
We shall embrace dawn after this twilight.
Agidi Elections
IN the year agidi replaced jollof’s warmth,
Hunger perforated intestinal walls
Like the burrowing scratch of rodents,
Long preserved virginity became an item in barter trade.
In the year MKO Abiola’s vision dawned,
June 12’s promise blossomed, then withered at dawn.
Reason fled, chased by chaos’s raging might,
Blood lost its sanctity, life’s value
diminished in sight.
Today, we dance in futile cycles,
A lunar gyre of recycled lies.
Is this democracy’s true face?
Elections tainted by deceitful might.
Results concocted by corrupt hands,
Impunity cascades, justice stands
Frozen, like a spectator, unable
To halt the charade, the fraudulent play.
The people’s voice, drowned by wads of cash,
Their choices mocked, their hopes dashed.
Democracy’s promise, now but a tale,
A distant dream, forever frail.
Hunger will hinge its manacles on our necks;
Roads to true democracy now blocked forever.
Who bells the cat?
Where comes our respite and redemption?
In ourselves, the offspring of warriors,
Let us unleash the fiery spirit of
Ovonramwen Nogbaisi,
Let us release the combustive power of Jaja of Opobo,
Let us unchain the formidable spirit of Nana of Itsekiri,
Let us shield ourselves in the unvanquishable spirit of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti,
Till chains holding back dawn break and fall to the ground.
* Dr. Odia teaches English at the University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria
