The Citizen Grumbles

Yeye, everything yeye.

I work, I die, ehen? Wetin touch mai hand? NCNC and Action Group come, NPN and UPN go, followed by soja man wey come and return with change of clothes. Dey come dey go but the Earth remains. Sun go up, beat us well then go down, just laik dat. Harmattan come dey blow and e return go im papa haus. Niger drink Benue and Atlantic drink Niger, but Atlantic no belleful.  Atlantic no overflow. E taya persin to dey look.   Just laik pendulum of clock, right, left, dey swing dey go. Yeye.

I look, hear, mai head full. Wetin reign bifor dey come back. Wetin dem do bifor, dem go do again. No new thing for dis place, for dis land wey sun wan roast mai head finis.

E get di dance wey yu fit say, ‘look o! new dance?’

Na today? E don tey wey e dey; bifor dem born us. Pipo wey die don go, no bodi remember dem. Di ones wey dey Naira note, no bodi dey read dia name. Na to just pay moni and make sure say change complete. Who dey read moni?

Old people plus pickins dem, as well as those wey dia mama carry for belle; all go dey forgotten.

As a sharp Naija man wey dey run things, I re-shine mai eyes. I look am and think am well. I come scope everything wey dey happun under dis Naija skies. Chai! I see say na sack of garri papa God don put for pipo head to dey carry everywhere. But dem no go ever chop di garri. One big man dey store di garri wey e tief from dia head. Im sef no go chop di garri. He go build big haus with big gates to hide di garri inside but he no go fit chop am.  Na to dey sweat and suffer dey look di garri be im work. Poor man neck na to carry di carry wey he no go taste.  I see di suffer under sun; all na yeye and bad belle. All na attempt to pursue wetin persin no fit catch. To dey pursue breeze with fishing net.

A bended tree cannot be straightened. If yu try straighten am, e go welenga. Osteotomy no dey inside dis one. Di number of things wey bad, plus di moni wey loss dey too many for di accountant to count.

I do conference with maisef laik persin wey craze. I dey discuss with mai shadow come conclude dis matter. I get sense well well. I hammer from birth. I study all di craze men for street and for government haus, I study all di born fools for prison yard and for universities. I come see say me sef no get work. I see say I wan catch oxygen molecules with trap wey I dey tek catch bush meat. I wan catch breeze with chains. All di study na yeye. Too much know know sake of say mek knowledge plenti dey run belle. Sabi sabi , na only tears e dey bring. Dats all

 

(Loosely Based on Ecclesiastes 1)

Babawilly

Dr Wilson Orhiunu

9-4-2014