Thursday, December 28, 2006

This Madness.....

May the souls of all those who perished in the pipeline fire disaster that occured in Lagos rest in peace.Once upon a time it happened in my Local Government Area and it's depressing the number of people i know that perished in the madness.What won't poverty turn the Nigerian into...if it has already created suicidal humans out of a once sane society.God save us!

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

The Constant Remains!

See? the Constant remains.

The constitution of Nigeria`s ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been amended to pave the way for a possible emergence of President Olusegun Obasanjo as Chairman of the party`s Board of Trustees (BOT) after leaving office next year.

The enormous powers of the new BOT Chairman fortifies this Constant...so much for political dexterity!

Too much!

Some of my guys complain i blog about politics most of the time( perhaps a little too much), but can i really be blamed when about 70% of all news items are about politics? So today, i decided to drift off to Godknowswhere Street and just as i was about to share some story on an event that happened here over the weekend, i stumbled upon this quote and seems to steel my resolve to go on doing what i do.Its from Orwell.See.

"When there is a gap between one's real and one's
declared
aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted
idioms, like a cuttlefish spurting out ink. In our age there is no such
thing as "keeping out of politics". All issues are political issues,
and
politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred, and
schizophrenia. When the general atmosphere is bad, language must
suffer".
-George Orwell, writer (1903-1950)

This other quote i love too...

"To find a person who will love you for no reason, and to shower that
person
with reasons, that is the ultimate happiness"
. -Robert Brault, software
developer, writer (1938- )

And this too...

"Dreams are mostly what they are..dreams!Wisdom is knowing when to stop dreaming"
-Endi
Dreamer,Wannabee writer,philospher,banker, astronaut, geneticist, nuclear scientist..(1890- )

Merry Xmas folks!

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Big Black Overfed Baby Elephant

The rules of elimination states that only a constant remains at the end of the day...Question; but what if there is already a constant before the elimination starts....? The constant remains...at worst by proxy...Big Black Overfed Baby Elephant is eliminating its aspirants.So what's going to be the ultimate outcome...a constant.Dont you ask me who the constant is.I no fit shout, abeg.
Before i forget...

The Gunners victory..sorry..draw was an elixir to folks here.Serious! Ahh..without Igwe and Toure? It was just sweet, though it would have been sweetest had it been a full win.

Friday, December 08, 2006

Back!

Hi folks,
I 've been off for a while.Thanks for still visiting even when there are no fresh posts.When to somewhere where the air is still clean, the birds still chirp, and butterflies still play games with you.I will give us the gist next week!

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Atiku's Respite

Now that the courts have granted Atiku respite
from the corruption indictment(??),is the PDP going to lift the suspension placed on him.Though i like the guy's arrogance or is it doggedness( not that i like him oh), i believe he should have just declared the party platform he's going to run on instead of playing wait-and-see with Baba's party.They ain't gonna call him back.The handwritten on the wall is even getting faint, he ought to have seen it since.The earlier he draws the battle line, the better for him.Speculations are rife that he refused to declare the party he will running on, because he wouldnt want to be impeached for carpet-crossing,but i dont think impeachment is possible with the sentiments already harboured by the Northern Caucus in the National Assembly.Its a risk worth taking, where are is no pain, there are no gains....


Gunners

What is happening to Arsene's Arsenal.Yesterday it was Fulham 2 Arsenal 1. [Aside] Wenger,please sell Seyi Adebayor next transfer window.The guy is good for nothing..

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

See what they did to Gaddafi...

I've never liked the man.Though one of my elder brothers had always hailed him for standing up to the Uncle Sam since my days in Elementary school, i still disliked him.That was when i had no reason to.Now, his sponsoring of a handful of rebel groups across the continent and his treatment of "black" Africans only added to my arsenal of disgust. Why is this guy always "showing" himself? Why? Each time he comes to Jolly Good Country, he brings a multitude of gun-totting thugs with him, all in the name of security.Kano, Abuja, Kaduna, Everywhere.Does it mean that we cannot take care of him? Well, i guess we just rediscovered the meaning of the word "National Pride".He tried doing it this time... needless to say his ego was bruised.This is a BBC report on what the did to him.He even treatened to walk from the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport to Abuja city....cant you beat that?Now, Gaddafi, go home and sulk.....



Gaddafi in Nigeria airport drama
By Alex Last
BBC News, Lagos



Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has been involved in a diplomatic incident as he arrived in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, for a summit.
Nigerian officials say Col Gaddafi was accompanied by more than 200 heavily armed Libyan bodyguards.
When security officers refused to allow them to keep their weapons, an argument ensued and Col Gaddafi stormed off.
Only when Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo intervened did the bodyguards agree to hand in their weapons.
Foreign ministers from Africa and Latin America have been preparing for the summit which gets under way on Thursday.
The size of Libya's delegation was not a problem, it seems, just the sheer amount of weapons and ammunition they carried.

So Nigerian security refused to let them proceed to the capital.
As arguments raged, the Libyan leader angrily set off on foot, intending to walk some 40km (25 miles) to the capital, before he was persuaded to return to the airport lounge.

Intervention

By sheer coincidence, President Obasanjo was passing through the airport at the same time.
He intervened in person and proposed that the weapons could be allowed through if they were registered first.
But the Nigerians say that was rejected and the Libyan delegation threatened to fly home.
Incensed, the Nigerians said that was fine with them and told the delegation that instead of the original compromise, they could now only carry eight pistols if they wanted to enter Nigeria, like any other diplomatic security detail.
They ordered that the rest of the weaponry had to be put back on the Libyan official jet.
After a stand-off lasting several hours, the Libyans backed down and finally made their way to Nigeria's capital.



Maybe, his female bodyguards couldn't just overpower the Nigerians this time...maybe..

Friday, November 24, 2006

Bush's Daughter, Mountain Race, Seal and Kanu

US agents 'fail Bush's daughter'.Wetin you talk?


One of the twin daughters of President George W Bush has had her handbag stolen in Argentina despite protection by US Secret Service agents.
Barbara Bush, 24, lost her mobile phone and credit cards in the incident in a restaurant in the capital, Buenos Aires - but she was not hurt.

She was dining with her twin sister Jenna at the time.

ABC News in the US says the theft went unnoticed by the heavy secret service force protecting the family. Now who says its only in Nigeria that such things are possible.I even wonder if our thieves can pull this one off.These Argentines must be too good....Bush's Dughters, CIA, hmmmm...i weak sha!

Congrats Seal...

Heidi Klum and Seal are parents once again. Klum gave birth Wednesday to Johan Riley Fyodor Taiwo Samuel, who weighed 8 pounds, 11 ounces, according to Seal's Web site, which did not say where the baby was born.


"He is healthy, beautiful and looks just like his mother," the posting read.

The couple, who were married last May, have a 1-year-old son, Henry Guenther Ademola Dashtu Samuel.

At least you are giving them Nigerian names, though its still a one-in-four thing!

Obudu Ranch Mountain Race and The Abuja Carnival

US$227,000 prize purse (enough kudis) awaits at Obudu Ranch Mountain Race

The second edition of the Obudu Ranch International Mountain Race in Cross River State, Nigeria, will take place on Saturday 25 November, when Jonathan Wyatt’s theory* that "African runners’ long flowing style is not naturally suited to running up and down hills” will be put to the test.

This weekend’s race, the richest in this multi-terrain discipline’s annual calendar, will see the world’s top mountain runners clash with several fast Africans for the valuable winner’s prize of US$50,000, a runner’s up prize of US$20,000, with third place taking $10,000. Prize values then drop in US$1000 intervals down to 8th place. There is the same prize structure for both men and women.


The race is the brainchild of the governor of Cross River State (Nigeria), His Excellency Donald Duke who is underwriting the cost of the event.The Obudu Ranch Resort Race is one of his flagship projects to attract tourists to this remote yet beautiful region of Nigeria close to the border with Cameroon. The Obudu Ranch sits on a mountain plateau at an altitude of 1600m where extensive new tourist accommodation has been built. Although there is a road from the base to the plateau which serves as the route of the mountain race, others not so keen on such exercise can travel from bottom to top by cable car - a state of the art Austrian construction completed last year - which provides spectacular views. A new swimming complex has been installed at the venue which, situated as it is in rural Nigeria, has to be seen to be believed.These two events aptly illustrates what progressive and dynamic thinking means.Kudos to the Donald Duke and El Rufai.Nigeria shall be well again.Na small small

Kanu and CAF player of the year nomination

My guy just score your goal this year.Maybe it will be yours next year, but this year i dont agree that you deserve it, patriotism aside.Let them give it to the Al Ahly guy...he's the best for the award.

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Hamburgers et al

Hamburgers taste good

I have had quite a fair share of heartbreaks, but this one was encroaching on my sanity.Thank God i got back from the edge of the cliff after having a bite of those Hamburgers.The Gunners were really shooting from all noozles (??)all night!Never knew they tasted so goood.Welldone van Persie, Eboue and Baptista after that disappointing show against Newcastle, this was needed.More santana to your stomachs.

Between Culture and and Child Abuse

Prof. Oguhebe was yesterday sentenced to 5 years (3 years suspended) in prison for showing his children Pepper (literally).Where do we draw the line between culture and child abuse?Is he a victim of the American way of life or just an abusive father who got what he asked for? Got run now...somethings up...i will write more on this next time.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Heart o' Africa

The Vanguard Newspapers and Rhythm 93.7 Fm announced the results of their nationwide popularity poll today.A shortlist of six out of ten candidates from the previous polls, it was done primaryly to guage the pulse of the nation as regards who is gonna the most votes come Election day..I tell you, i was a bit suprised by the results.Who would have expected Mr Dictionary (sorry, sir) Pastor Chris Okotie to come first,followed by Mr Demolition (Nasir El Rufai), then Governors Orji Uzor Kalu, Sam Egwu, Peter Odili and Donald Duke. I was pleased that at least none of them was a retired military officer.We need a breather from the era of Jackboots and kai for Life's Sake.Not that these ones are perfect, but at least.....We can expect a new approach to curing this heart of arrhythmia before it goes down to stroke.All forbid !, as my little cousin would say.

Hint Of the Day

My guy dey there among the shortlisted, i think he's correct enough.Now dont you go asking me who he is!
My Quote of The Day

One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man.
Elbert Hubbard (1856 - 1915)

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

The death of Outrage

I just read an article in yesterday's Sun.Its entitled "The Death of Outrage". i dont know if its deliberate,but the news of Dariye's so called impeachment came three stories down when the headlines were being read on NTA.Maybe it was deliberate in order to remove the shock factor, maybe its a symptom of a deeper malaise.."the death of outrage".Most times in the evenings i discuss politics, football, current happenings and other stuff guys talk about with my Uncles and friends.But i noticed a peculiar thing happenning today.Though we all watched the news last night (its a ritual), nobody really cared to talk about what transpired in Plateau State yesterday(6/30 ? = whole number).It was like i was sapped of all strenght myself. What is happennig to Nigerians?Abi we don dey grow thick skin for this one too?.

Its quite like we've grown thick skin to hunger, unemployment, incessant fuel price increases, epileptic education system, unfulfilled promises by our politicians etc.Now, are we now senile even to the rape of our laws.We rather not be, because only our laws can keep us from falling into the abyss of anarchy.Before you get it all wrong, i cant support corruption. Ewoo Tufiakwa!.But this is more like mob action.People shouting "we no go gree".An Igbo proverb says "The hen is not cawing that what is holding her should leave her, she is, because she wants the world to hear her voice before she gets killed".Let us continue to talk, even when we are helpless, its the only tool we have.We have no where to go to.If we let our outrage die and those that has held us hostage get to know this, then we are doomed.
I fear for this land.I fear!

Friday, November 03, 2006

Classical Turncoatism

Saw some funny quotes...See! See!!

Even if you do learn to speak correct English, whom are you going to speak it to?
Clarence Darrow (1857 - 1938)

If at first you don't succeed, find out if the loser gets anything.
Bill Lyon

Rogues are preferable to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
Alexandre Dumas (1802 - 1870

Take everything you like seriously, except yourselves.
Rudyard Kipling (1865 - 1936)

He hoped and prayed that there wasn't an afterlife. Then he realized there was a contradiction involved here and merely hoped that there wasn't an afterlife.
Douglas Adams (1952 - 2001)

An alcoholic is someone you don't like who drinks as much as you do.
Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953), in Constantine Fitzgibbon, Life of Dylan Thomas (1965

Classical Turncoatism

Mrs Virgy Etiaba, erstwhile Deputy Governor of Anambra State was on National TV last night saying "The governor is my boss and he remains my boss," .Please can anybody tell me what happened between dusk yesterday and dawn today.In case you dont know, she's been sworn in as the First Female Governor in the History of the Country.Is it a victory for women liberation?...(thru' the back door) or a case of dog eat dog.Classical Turncoatism! Ignore the grammar...

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

The Rail Project : Issues Arising

Nigeria yesterday signed an $8 billion contract with CCECC, a Chinese firm to " design, construct and maintain " a new rail system in the country.I have some questions though.Is this not the same company that was contracted to do the same job(maybe under the name "revitalise") under Abacha( ???Abdulsalami???).Was this company contracted because their country granted Nigeria a $2.5 billion loan most of which will go into the rail project anyway?. Is this not going to be another white elephant project? Why did the current administration wait this long (till its about leaving power) to embark on such a huge project..just like the National Integrated Power Project! I hope this is not just another avenue to siphon money out of the nation's purse, especially now that the elections are drawing nearer and funds are needed to prosecute a successful campaign.Honestly, i look forward to a realisation of the ideals of the project...because now that airplanes are dropping out of the sky like pigeon poops, there is a real chance that a fast and efficient rail system can be a refreshing alternative to air travel.Forgive my pessimism if you feel am a pessimist.Am not.Am a realist!

Monday, October 30, 2006

Another Sad Day!

Its another sad day for the country.I oftentimes wonder whether these sad times will ever end.Will we have to live with preventable calamities till Christ comes?If its not a sad day for democracy, it will be a sad day for journalism, or for free speech, or for our sports( this is usually after our team loses due to haphazard preparations),or for the judiciary (this is becoming frequent these days)or for our aviation industry.I could go on.... A close look at all the sad days shows that they are simply avoidable. If only those that are meant to do their jobs simply do just that...their jobs.Airbus and the European avaition industry had to phase out the Concorde just because of one crash.The American immigration system had to undergo strident changes just because of one terrorist attack.Prime Ministers and Presidents had had to resign just because of a slight mistake that many a Nigerian would gleefully shout at his rooftop "its not my fault".If an airline keeps on killing people via crashes, i say let it be grounded until it puts its acts right.If we have to kill the indigenious aviation industry because its a demand that they will run on new planes, then i say let us kill it.

How many places in the world do planes crash because they were struck by lightening? How many? Na our weather bad pass? What about the English, Chinese and South Asia weather patterns? Do we have tornadoes, hurricanes, cyclones and what have you here? Sometimes i just kneel down and thank God that we dont because had it been we had these system, virtually all our tragedies would be ascribed to them.Sometime ago,grieving mothers were bruatlly molested on the streets of Lagos for protesting about the incessant crashes.Its just as if they were Prophets...Prophets of Doom.This is one crash too many.I am tired in the heart and my heart really goes out to the families of the victims.I cant even think of the fact that the late Sultan was coming from an Education parley called by Baba.He died for our good!Sunday’s crash came barely 42 days after a military aircraft on its way to Obudu, Cross River State had crashed in Benue State, killing 13 military topshots, including 10 Army generals. It is Nigeria’s fourth fatal crash in barely 12 months since Bellview crash of October 22, 2005 in which 117 passengers and crew lost their lives. On December, 10 last year, a Sosoliso flight from Abuja to Port Harcourt crashed, killing 108 persons.

Let those that have the responsibility to act, act.And fast too!Enough of these excuses! Enough of these cutting corners! Enough of these sad days!

Friday, October 27, 2006

People Impeachin' People!

Another case of people impeaching people in Anambra's House of Assembly.Its now 10 impeaching 14.Wow.Nigerian democrazy na wa!Abeg i no get their time again.These politicians and their ways sef!

Monday, October 23, 2006

Politicians are having the stres of their lives in Good Ol' Country.Well, i got some panacea...

Friday, October 20, 2006

The Quest and The Question!

I had wanted to continue from where i stopped as regards the happenings in Ekiti and other states in Nigeria, but my senses have been benumbed by the pace of events in the past week.Somehow, my opinions seems to have been overtaken too..so i will just sit back, post a poem i wrote on a day i was thinking about the futility of all these....and visit blogs! But before i leave, i would want to ask this question!
Should we accept the foisting of illegalities as typified by the blatant disregard for the constitution each time a governor is impeached just because we are fed of with the corruption of our public officials?Think about it and tell me what your opinion is.
Its a pity those Chelseans won....Sad,Sad day for Barcelona! But i believe they would get their pound of flesh from Chelsea at the Nou Camp...Think about this piece of poetry..


RIGHTEOUSNESS


What gains our righteousness?
If the sound of death's toll
Confirm not the redemption of our soul
But rather our life's uselessness

If we pretend to be
Then confess not our dark deeds
And sow not good seeds
Then our filthiness we do not see

'Tis the liason in the dark alley
Or that silent little deceit
That calls for retribution's visit
And exposes our life's folly

What gains our righteousness?
If we tarry for the Coming
On a bright celestial morning
And then be found wanting for holiness?


Endi
Port Harcourt
July 2006

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Mr Ban and other Tales!

Why? why?? why??? was the question that kept on invading my mind two mornings ago just after i heard the news.This is a blog i had wanted to keep for more personal purposes,..u know the usual "girl-boy-jilt-breakup-makeup-bus-incident-story-rest o' the-shit" stuff. But here i am again dabbling into politics once again.Even after swearing to myself i wasnt gonna visit this turf again! And this is what roped me into the show once more...

Just a few days ago, the Ekiti State House Of Assembly impeached the Governor on mostly corruption charges....Oops, i have to run for the Chelsea vs Barca match...Mission? Enjoy a fine match and watch the Chelseans cry! That would make my night....I'll continue with my take on the Ekiti and Plateau saga when i come online again.


Just an offline to Mr Ban Ki Moon, the new UN Sec Gen...Please Mr Moon, as you go about trying fighting HIV/AIDS, wars, famine,diseases, nuke-totting-dictators, spur-of-the-moment-invaders of territories,religious i-no-greeisms, etc....Please we in Africa see, and cherish our Moon.Its light comes to us via a smog free sky.Pleaseee Mr Ban Ki-Moon, dont Ban the Moon!

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

The Man "Sunday Adelaja"!

I heard it in the news, i read it in the blogs, he's everywhere, he's in Ukraine,he's changing the way they think,worship, live and the way they see God.Some call him rabble-rousing, demon-possessed,charlatan and derogatetrily call his young and dynamic female worshippers "boobs shakers".But i tell you, he is one hell of a Nigerian.And i am proud of him...even if (God forbid) he is using the Revd. King style (which i dont think he is)..i am still proud of him.Sunday Adelaja made my week. For being the real Nigerian who conquers against all the odds, who is never inhibited by prejudice and stereotypes.But they are here again..the hawks and this is what they are saying about him.Read about him...


"KIEV, Ukraine -- Pastor Sunday Adelaja, a Nigerian preacher, understands why some in Ukraine are suspicious of him.

He's black in a nation where racism is blatant, Pentecostal in a country considered the cradle of Russian Orthodoxy, and a foreigner whose lively, conversational preaching style -- punctuated by pompom girls and electric keyboards -- stands out from the subdued, centuries-old practices of Ukraine's traditional faiths.

But the 39-year-old preacher laughs at critics who suspect black magic, hypnotism, brainwashing and even hallucinogenic drugs explain the hundreds of bopping, clapping white worshippers who fill his converted sports hall every Sunday.

By delivering a you-can-do-it message of hope and redemption -- along with such direct help as free meals and addiction counseling -- The Embassy of The Blessed Kingdom of God for All Nations church has ballooned from a ministry for society's troubled into this ex-Soviet republic's first true megachurch, claiming a membership of 25,000 people.

The church, informally called God's Embassy, boasts a TV ministry and plans for a $15 million church stadium, and aims to reach 5 million people -- 10 percent of Ukraine's population -- with its message of salvation.

Adelja's church has dispatched missionaries to Western Europe and the United States, and is eying China. Kiev's new mayor, Leonid Chernovetsky, is a member. Many analysts credit the church's get-out-the-vote efforts with his surprise win in March over a two-term incumbent and former heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko.

"I knew it would grow, I just never knew it would grow to this extent . . . in a way it is unexplainable," said Adelaja, who came to the then-Soviet Union to study journalism but was inspired by a dream to establish a church.

Adelaja's church is part of a Pentecostal movement that has flourished in Ukraine, which has been more politically and culturally open to new faiths than some of its other ex-Soviet neighbors, even as the dominant Orthodox faith has looked on warily.

Ukraine has long been an important religious center. Legend says the Apostle Andrew traveled the Kiev hills overlooking the Dnieper River, planting a cross and prophesying that someday, churches would be sprinkled over the landscape. Some 900 years later, a Slavic prince marched the population into the water to baptize them into the Christian faith.

While the Russian Orthodox Church made its base in Moscow, more than half of its registered churches were in Ukraine, including its most sacred monastery. But after the Soviet Union's breakup, the Orthodox church in Ukraine splintered, weakening its influence.

"I don't think there is the assumption that because you live in Ukraine, you must go to a particular Orthodox church . . . that makes it very different from Russia," said Felix Corley, editor of Forum 18, a group that promotes religious freedom. "Orthodoxy is very pluralistic in Ukraine. There is not one dominant church overshadowing everybody else."

That has given other faiths more confidence, and Ukrainians more choice.

The non-governmental Religious Information Service of Ukraine estimated that some 60 percent of Ukrainians still identify with one of the Orthodox churches, and Protestant churches account for less than 1 million believers.

But the Pentecostals' increased visibility has the traditional faiths nervous. Patriarch Filaret, who heads the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Kiev Patriarchate, said he had written a letter to the new mayor "expressing fear that this sect will only become stronger with his election."

At Adelaja's church, the mainly young congregants come early for the three-hour service to mill around tables set up in the back that offer everything from specialized training programs to legal counsel.

Men whose knuckles are stamped with prison tattoos brush shoulders with young Ukrainians such as Anna Chizhebska who came with her husband and two children looking for an anchor amid the increasing materialism of Ukrainian society.

"I think a lot of people are searching right now," she said. Her husband, Serhiy, added: "Everyone is seeking peace, a sense of how to live." Both pledged to return.

The gregarious Adelaja, who addresses the congregants in accented Russian, pushes the audience to interact with him, trying to break through their customary wariness about revealing too much of themselves. Adelaja said he is trying to teach the congregants that religion "can be used to solve problems in their daily lives."

"In many ways, it is simple common sense," said Konstantyn Permylenko, as he quietly read a Bible in a corner of the sports hall while other members huddled in small groups, their hands laid on one another in prayer.

Despite his popularity, skeptics continue to question Adelaja.

He's been accused of using the church as a moneymaking venture and investigated by a medical commission to ensure that he wasn't claiming to be performing medical miracles on stage.

So when Kiev's Mayor Chernovetsky recently invited the Orthodox patriarch -- rather than Adelaja -- to bless the city government buildings, the Nigerian pastor shrugged off the snub.

"Kiev is the motherland of the Orthodox church, it is a cultural thing to be Orthodox and people feel it is a disgrace and insult to have a Protestant mayor who goes to a black man's church," he said. "If you are a white politician, you have to cool that down . . . but let me tell you, he'll be here on Sundays."

Chernovetsky was.


Now tell me what you think of him!
  • CLICK HERE

  • to read more about him

    Monday, October 09, 2006

    Uncle Sam's Korea

    Let them all have it!The powerful nations of the world are getting more reckless by the second..Little Bush's attack on Saddam's Country clearly illustrates that".I say his country because of the politico-cultural peculiarities of the Arab World..(strong dictatorial leadership or even monarchy).China,(hitherto subtle) is threatening the Zambians with hell just because an oppostion leader said he will curb Chinese excesses in the corruption ridden country.France destroyed the Air Force of Cote d'Ivoire just because a couple of their soldiers were killed in the Ivorien conflict.Russian is busy flexing its muscles in the Caucuses and threatening to spit fire at its neigbours (Georgia,Ukraine etc) if the stray too far from it line....the list goes on and on.If Nuclear capability is the deterent, then let them have it!.Honestly, i believe the acquiring of the Nuke by other formerly not-too-important-countries has made the World "Big Leaders" much tolerant...Had Nigeria had a Nuke or even a ballistic missile, Uncle Sam's warships wont be right there at our backyard.. just in case we misbehave (they say because we are of "strategic interest" to them.As a deterent, let us have them...they give meaning to the word "Diplomacy" because when these weapons are not there, its moreless "Bullycracy".If Uncle Sam is afraid of death, why manufacture death in the first place? As a toy to use in scare errant youths into obeisance? Or as a device for use in taming mankind...Whatever the aim was..it backfired, North Korea has it now and others will have it,its just a mtter of time...I will be back...Got to go now.

    Do it, do it well!

    Yesterday i witnessed something that left me dumbfounded and almost hopeless.I was at the venue of a bank Aptitude Test.What i saw was a shame and a disgrace!.To cut a long story short, the number of people invited for the test was way too much and there wasnt sufficient space for them.In the struggle that ensued when the hall was opened, a lot of people fainted....it was just terrible.Abeg, make we try to dey make things proper.Long tale cut short!

    Friday, October 06, 2006

    Night of the Long Knives

    I am a pessimist when it comes to Nigerian politicians and their gimmicks! And somehow i believe the EFCC is an integral part of Baba's government which of course is run by politicians.And somehow, if you accuse me of being pessimistic ( though not incurably ) about the EFCC, then you are on a safe road.But i tell you, its like we are approaching the "Night of the long Knives" or is it "Days of the long Knives"...Days when the serpents will not know their ilk...days when the elephants will quarell and fight and we the grass will not suffer( infact we will be better off for it...And days when the politicians will wash their dirty linen in public with gusto...in a bid to undo and outdo each other...days when "i only ate so-so-and-so billions" instead of "my hands are clean" will be the norm.



    We seem to be appraoching these time due to the activities of the EFCC.Kudos to you.Just like i said in my poem, let them run into the antholes( a supposedly uncomfortable place)..we will pursue them and of course catch them..let them wait and see.The night's just coming...Starting from Bayelsa, Ekiti, Plateau....we are counting.Let the politicians meet..after all they've been meeting... Embattled Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayo Fayose, seems to be sinking deeper into despair as three of his aides were on Wednesday arrested by the police over killings in the state.

    Also, Speaker of the state’s House of Assembly, Chief Friday Aderemi, says that nothing would stop the removal of the governor from office.

    This is coming at a time the national headquarters of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has scheduled a meeting on Thursday to determine the fate of Fayose, who headed for the court to stop his impeachment..
    Let them meet....

    Thursday, October 05, 2006

    Revival

    REVIVAL


    Hearts hugging hearts, we revive
    The still damp essence of our beings
    We cling to each other,together now
    Our joys in copulation, mating, fertile
    Our agonies writhing, dying slowly
    These agonies writhe, dying....

    As if in the stranglehold
    Of the spirited Mbele dance
    We dymystify the now tepid myths
    Of the Ajonkwu spirits, daring them
    To untie the bonding knot, if they can
    Untie these bonding knots....

    Tied in thick emotions we live
    Not in limbs already lost
    In shimmies to break away, free
    Of our sophistries of deception
    Fumes of pleasures ephemeral, all these
    Fumes of pleasures ephemearal....

    Appendages we lost, you still lost
    Ururo, we are coming to claim ours
    From the tormentors that have held them
    With the long withered breast of the witch
    We will take ours, even when you flee
    We will catch you, hide in the anthole and see....


    Endi
    Port Harcourt
    April 2006

    This poem is dedicated to all who sowed and did not reap.Sow again..you will reap!

    Wednesday, October 04, 2006

    This Circle of Ignorance...

    This is a story that just broke out some hours ago....Ordinarily, i ought not to comment on it, but i guess am just "over-pissed" off.Well, read the story first..Some 16 oil workers were released today.The workers were the second group of a total of 25 men to be released after being seized in a raid two days ago.

    All worked for a sub-contractor of Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Shell. A spokesman said no ransom had been paid for their release.


    Oil workers are regularly abducted in Nigeria by gangs saying they want a bigger share of oil revenues.

    In a separate incident on Tuesday evening, five foreign oil workers were seized during a rare raid on a residential compound operated by ExxonMobil.

    Two Nigerian security guards were killed when the gang stormed the compound in Akwa Ibom state in the eastern Delta.

    No ransom

    A spokesman for Shell said that no money had been paid to secure the release of the 25 hostages seized on Monday.

    Industry sources say oil companies frequently strike clandestine ransom deals to free their employees.

    The men were taken when a group of about 70 militants attacked a convoy of boats supplying oil fields operated by Shell in Rivers state.

    At least ten soldiers were killed during the raid.

    The BBC's Alex Last says the line between criminal gangs and political militants in Nigeria is often blurred.

    Last month, President Olusegun Obasanjo promised strong action to curb armed groups in the Niger Delta.

    But our correspondent says the incidents highlights the continued vulnerability of the oil industry, despite government pledges to crackdown on armed groups in the Delta.

    He says oil companies are bracing themselves for further violence in the Delta as competing politicians try to use the armed groups to secure victory in next year's elections.


    Now i was like asking myself...whats the purpose? The point has already been made...the point being that "we can attack u whenever we want to" but then these militants has continued to kidnap those that came to "invest" in the country, those that created the same oil industry we all want to work in, those that are meant to provide the famed transfer of technology...etc.Come to thinkm of it...those guys(expatriates) are not our problem, neither are they the source of our problems.The source of our problem lies in the trajedy that has played itself out in Bayelsa State,in the National Assembly, between Baba Iyabo and his Deputy,...that is currently playing itself out in Ekiti State and that which has been the bane of our existence.Need i tell u the name of the Monster? It starts with a C! ...Ok, you dont know(probably because you've been out of the country for ages)..its CORRUPTION.

    The day thse militants redirect their anger against the Governors that have looted their collective heritage,that has connived with the Lords Of Abuja to rape and pillage the land...thats the days i will take off this facecap for them..(Sorry u cant see it).And until that day comes...Bros, these things wey we dey do no just dey pay...Make we just stop these kidnappings and killing of our fellow Naijas in the military....Please, if we wan fight,quarell, anger,beg,agitate, take it to those selected (elected) to take the blame and do the job..i don talk finish.

    Wednesday, September 27, 2006

    Another Crime...

    The Rivers State Police Command, on Monday, said on Tuesday that it had recovered one of the vehicles snatched from its men by armed robbers who killed two policemen and escaped with a bullion van.
    The Police Public Relations Officer for the state, Mrs. Ireju Barasua, told our correspondent that the command recovered a rifle and a 504 Peugeot station wagon from the fleeing robbers.
    Barasua, a deputy superintendent of police, said that the robbers might have acted on information that some money was being taken to the bank in Yenagoa but missed the actual vehicle that carried the cash.
    She claimed that although the robbers scattered the bullion van, they did not get the money.
    An eyewitness said that the hoodlums, who were clad in red attires, on Monday, fired several shots into the van before killing the policemen who were accompanying it to the Bayelsa State capital.

    Na wao...when are these going to end?My people una get the answer?This is a news item from the punch this morning.

    Tuesday, September 26, 2006

    Fragile or Failed?

    Ehem i don come again! The World Bank recently released an index of 26 Countries which they classified as fragile states, 14 of these were in Africa and once again our dear Mama Naija was among them...OK.This is the background.The report is entitled "IEG Review of World Bank Support to Low Income Countries.These Countries aptly christened LICUS(sounds like "licked" to me) were seperated into 2 groups of "Severe" and "Core" LICUS (yea, thats the group we belong to)..Digression here...i wonder what group i would choose if forced to make a choice!
    OK! Back to the story...Naija had as her co-travellers countries like Burundi,Kosovo(Territory),DR Congo,Papua New Guinea, Togo, Guinea Bissau,and even Haiti, Afghanistan, Liberia, Sudan, CAR, Myammar(Burma) and all the rest of the worst.

    OK!Let me expatiate. According to the them (World Bank) fragile means that if a country keeps on having the problems it is currently having, it will end up being a wreck...i.e a failed state.The point now is...is Naija not a failed state already?If we can be listed with Countries such as Afganistan, Lalastan,and the rest of them..its a sig of failure...If you still dont get me..well, logout, stand up and look for the nearest bed.Yea, stay there and weep! Duh.
    I dont know what u think, but that u ran out of this hellhole to school abroad reads like failed to me! That we had to fly our plane crash victims to South Africa reads like failed to me.That we have to spend 1.3 trillion naira to revive NEPA(Never Expect Power Always) to PHCN(Please Hold Candle Nearby) reeks of failed to me! That we have a Presido and a Vice who can easily engage in a boxing duel if left alone for a minute smells failed to me.That am having tp pay out of my nose just to post on my blog is FAILED.That we still top the corruption index( yea, forget that 4th from below thang) and the polio infestation index after so many years is the height of failure!That we have to invite the Met to help us solve our crimes....That somebody who read Chemical Engineering will go and sit for a bank aptitude test, in a country that is the 6th largest exporter of Crude....i could go on and on.I wonder what you think.But if we are not "failed" yet, then we are a stone throw from that...Share your thots with me. See you when i come back from Bloggistan.

    Monday, September 25, 2006

    Well Done






    Well done Guys..it wasnt easy, both at Iroko Camp and in my Home Camp...i had to argue everyday with my siblings whether the show is...a show or real! Well done for giving us something to look forward to in the nights and argue about in the day...Check these guys out at

    What are the intentions?






    Ehem i don come again! But this time it's not with your usual "make-i-say-Hi-to-my-friends" feeling.I just viewed a couple of pictures a friend sent me and am just....seething! I just dont seem to understand what these pictures intend to achieve..i dunno...maybe it's meant to achieve the way am feeling now.Why do we ..uh.."Black Africans" have to be the subject with which The white photo Journalist wins Pullitzers and the rest.Do you think the whiteman really cares.Do they think they can prick the consciences of you and I?What are these meant to achieve? They have a hand in the origin of these..why do they have to ram them down our throats....You dont quite get me...right? OK. I guess am too inflamed to make sense...OK! Tell me how u feel and i will send you and piece that will shock your lashes out of u..I will be back when am saner!

    Tuesday, September 19, 2006

    Celebrating me...

    Ehem, i salute una! Today i decided to give myself a little time and see what my fellow Naijas are doing.Actually i've been reading blogs for a long time now but i've never really tried to seek out blogs by Nigerians.When i got some google alert in my mail from Deolu's blog..i decided to take a ride. And has it been worth it.You bet! i wish i can have more time to blog and get to know wat all of you are saying....But well the game is on...It just feels so nice that we are here...but the only twist in the tale is that i cant find enough blogs by Nigerians in Naija....We no dey try oo!Na im make i say make i get my own too..not just complaining.Lets spread the word and not let the South Africans beat us to this game again.Tell your friends to get a blog and share his thots in a special Nigerian way...Tell them say na the Koko now...All of u flying the flag are simply...no word for it but i will manage "toomuchious".From Mona to Adaure to Dipo to Deolu to Azuka ...infact..i no fit talk again.

    To some triviality...am celebarting me today...no..no..no..not my birthday oo..But am just giving me a breather.Join me...and do same for urself sometime...U can beat the feeling....I dey come!
    ME

    These enemies of me are me, the dozy me
    Foes say, its stupid me they see
    Fingers pointed like pistols at me
    Its you! its you! eveybody says with glee

    I know its me, dont they say its me?
    I feel so horrible, i want to pee
    My own voice --"traitor voice" says "me"
    My friends, they too joined in the melee

    The cowrd me, screamed "why me"?
    I ran away, afraid of what i forsee
    He begged me to change my name, not be me
    i declined, refusing to be in me, a refugee

    In a voice as cool as menthol, said me
    "Lay! dont be nobody's employee"
    My bones became weak, my eyes dopey;Oh lazy me
    I lay and let the wide world fill me with ennui

    If came now, told me if i could be me
    If only i could make "If" flee
    I could be a better me, be all i could be
    Make money and go on a spree

    I have great mind, says the real me
    Use it and you will be free
    I finally got here, overtaking the enemy me
    And said,nothing better than being the real me

    Endi

    Wednesday, September 06, 2006

    Imagine Me.....

    Goodday Guys, I woke up this morning with this song drifting into my ears when i was "oscillating" between those states of wakefulness-dreams-dawn noises-wakefulness...and it has been influencing my day. I helped me kind of let go today of all the excess baggage of yesterday and i just cant imagine its me feeling this way.Its a great song with fine lyrics...Just check it out...Papa is just awesome...Isn't He?

    "Imagine Me"

    Imagine me
    Loving what I see when the mirror looks at me cuz I
    I imagine me
    In a place of no insecurities
    And i'm finally happy cuz
    I imagine me

    Letting go of all of the ones who hurt me
    Cuz they never did deserve me
    Can you imagine me
    Saying no to thoughts that try to control me
    Remembering all you told me
    Lord can you imagine me
    Over what ma mama said
    And healed from what my daddy did
    And I wanna live and not read that page again

    [Chorus:]
    Imagine me, being free, trusting you totally finally I can...
    Imagine me
    I admit it was hard to see
    You being in love with someone like me
    But finally I can...
    Imagine me

    Being strong
    And not letting people break me down
    You won't get that joy this time around can you imagine me
    In a world where nobody has t o live afraid
    Because of your love fears gone away
    Can you imagine me

    [Bridge:]
    Letting go of my past
    And glad I have another chance
    And my heart will dance
    'Cause I don't have to read that page again

    [Chorus x2]

    [Vamp:]
    Gone, gone, it's gone, all gone


    Hey, c'mon shed that load, it aint worth it...great song

    Thursday, August 31, 2006

    LOVE: IN MEMORIAM

    LOVE: IN MEMORIAM


    Why do time never "flies"
    When love dies
    When hearts still numb and sore
    Crave for affection no more
    Reticent, arrogant time becomes stagnant
    And life itself repugnant
    Its lofty values and dreams
    Now overbloated burst at its seams

    Rains never cease now in once blue sky
    And thoughts remain shrouded in soliloqy high
    And pallete hole posing as hearts
    Paint pitiless pictures as despicable as warts
    Shards of images eternally shattered in time
    Now live as severed sinew of pain, rhythm and rhyme


    Endi,
    Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    February 2006
    Dedicated to Mimi*

    Tuesday, August 29, 2006

    WESTWARD SHADOWS: DEATH OF A SPIRIT

    WESTWARD SHADOWS: DEATH OF A SPIRIT


    Its just a few days now
    Before I bid thee farewell
    Don’t want to get stuck in traffic
    That I may find a space there
    Weep for me now—weep
    Then after tomorrow let your tears cease
    Your best and your worst do
    ‘cos its just a few days now
    For me don’t lay wreaths
    Or bake bounties of wheat
    These sad sad memories keep
    Memories of a death keep not
    For life’s better than death
    But death; death’s more pungent
    Like the can of urine
    Under late Grandma’s bed

    Its just days now
    Since I came on cue
    Some say acted well too
    You never clapped or did you?
    You only cheered and jeered
    When I put the wrong foot right
    You were right there
    You were the audience
    Never helping me unto solid ground
    No! Don’t keep me in thoughts
    Or in sullen depressing memories
    Memories are also pungent
    Like deaths; like memories

    Its just days now
    Before change comes
    You will let Nkemdinma weep
    But never let Nwoye, never
    In these days they’ll talk
    But I won’t be here anymore
    This demise I foresaw—plotted
    That I will be free to soar
    A driver of his destiny
    And purveyor of this truth
    The truth this spirit concealed

    Its days now—nay seconds
    You will hold you blink and witness
    This moment of transfiguration
    For a spirit gasping for new life
    Seeking to transcend beyond a future uncertain
    You won’t shut your eyes
    To the fading era of tarnishing ills
    Keep your expensive wreaths
    The dew will ruin them
    Keep your songs; your wails
    Sing for me no requiem
    For I prefer the birds’
    Keep them for those to come
    Me, I will come at dawn
    Sparkling and refreshingly new
    Like the birds song and the dew

    Its just seconds now
    Forgive me if I mourn this spirit
    It’s to set afloat an inner man
    That I may gain the assurance
    Of being right there
    That place of the long westward shadows
    Right there at the centre
    Basking in the radiance of the Daystar


    ©Endi
    Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    August 2006

    Thursday, August 24, 2006

    Beautiful World...V


    Beautiful World IV...Can u beat this?

    Beautiful World III...Can u beat this?

    Beautiful World II...Can u beat this?

    Beautiful World...

    Come to think of it this way...There ought to be a song in your mouth.C'mon..there ought to be.Isn't it a beautiful world? And u are oppurtuned to be here.Hey! it isn't yoy right.God is sprucing u up for a ur session on the big stage.Just be prepared.Dont hold back.Shake off that lethargy, u will be called any minute now.

    Yea..i know what u are thinking...Yes, with all your worries..it just doesnt seem beautiful anymore. But u just gat to keep on going "cos you know that you know that tommorrow will be sooo bright you dont wanna miss out on such a lovely sight.Take a look at this beautiful creatures and friends we've got here..call them butterflies if u are heartless..i prefer to call them Angelflies...call these insects are just one of the multitude of things that God put in here (on Earth) to remind us of how beautiful our lives can be..and we can be! Aint they stunning...i just lost my breath! Lose that hope and u will miss out of seeing these beautiful creatures ever...Imagine that now and then choose if u want to give up.

    Beautiful World...

    Come to think of it this way...There ought to be a song in your mouth.C'mon..there ought to be.Isn't it a beautiful world? And u are oppurtuned to be here.Hey! it isn't yoy right.God is sprucing u up for a ur session on the big stage.Just be prepared.Dont hold back.Shake off that lethargy, u will be called any minute now.

    Yea..i know what u are thinking...Yes, with all your worries..it just doesnt seem beautiful anymore. But u just gat to keep on going "cos you know that you know that tommorrow will be sooo bright you dont wanna miss out on such a lovely sight.Take a look at this beautiful creatures and friends we've got here..call them butterflies if u are heartless..i prefer to call them Angelflies...call these insects are just one of the multitude of things that God put in here (on Earth) to remind us of how beautiful our lives can be..and we can be! Aint they stunning...i just lost my breath! Lose that hope and u will miss out of seeing these beautiful creatures ever...Imagine that now and then choose if u want to give up.

    Same 'ol, Same old....

    Its another day and there's life....somebody said life is struggle...and that that is the curse from God.Start here is you want to break free. Ba damu'a http://www.deoluakinyemi.com/categoryjob-blog

    Monday, August 21, 2006

    Mr Gloom

    Well, this is actually the first time am posting without having to think of what i want to share.I guess it's probably because the sun didnt rise in the East today.Today happens to be one of such days when nothing seems to cheer me up...it just seems nothing is working out, career...relationship..finances..well, thank God for Good Old Family..that, seems to be working out.

    Its not midday yet and a lot a interesting news seems to be drifting my way..so plenty, that am supposed to be moved but i still dont understand why the Mr. Gloom still sits on the balcony.The guy beside me was reading an article on "Yahweh (Maybe Jehova, if u choose) is a Pagan Name".Funny how we complicate our lives...Oops, am not supposed to snoop..am quite sorry. But it just helped me figure out how to cast push away Mr Gloom. Do some weird thing?..nah.Read my Bible...(probably an uncommon version). OK, i will.What else now? Practice some Zen Buddhism..Hmm Scram while u can. Then what? Figure out how to Clap with one Hand...The Sound of Silence....Imagining what La-La Land looks like....Hmm,so much job to do.Gotta go now.Go work to do.i dont need these anyway, Mr Gloom just walked away, seems he doesnt like my blogging. End of Tale..nah.So? Advice for you, when u are "down" and nearing "out". Just look for something creative to do and just talk.It helps!

    Thursday, August 10, 2006

    THE EPITHAH BENEATH

    THE EPITHAH BENEATH


    Lying beneath, it sought no glory
    But concedes to the tombstones shine
    The glittering glamour of its life
    Of elegant and enchanting poses
    It lay still --- poise awkward
    Unlike in glory days long gone
    When fluttering skirts and shirts
    Machismo and sweet nonsense
    Dine with flailing failing men
    Conquered damsels and tin men
    And dainty damsels falling in lust
    It lay, skin ashen, --- nay ecru
    Like the humid earth
    ‘Tis going to be
    It came home laden then
    With a virus that eats in haste
    And seals man’s locked fate
    Without waiting for answers
    It lay, having shared the spoils
    Of diseases venereal and death
    In a dingy little box
    Beneath the unforgiving tombstone
    A victim of the living and the dead


    © Endi
    Port Harcourt, Rivers State
    July 21st 2006

    Thursday, July 06, 2006

    AKAMMAM’S CUE


    Like a brute set free
    But with a countenance contrite and pleading
    As calm as the dimples on a infants cheek
    It makes an esteemed outing
    Silently gliding down the line
    Greenness glittering with the radiance
    Of the hot noonday sun
    It came still demanding welcome
    Nibbling at the seams of our fragile hearts
    Attempting to tear open its sacs of emotions
    Evoking fear and stirring adherents
    Into a nasty awakening
    What’s the message this time?
    Ignoring our brewing tears and questions

    Aka! Harbinger of a mores of deities
    Heirloom of Mmam
    Still sleek and lithe, innocent
    Moves- sliding beneath curtains
    Peeping into the keyholes of our awe struck minds
    Its messages lashes out
    Reaffirming norms, shredding evil stereotypes
    And leaves in its wake uneaten sacrifices

    Its raises its tiny head
    As if in search of a dissenter
    Demanding obeisance and reverence
    From spittle dripping, gourd -bellied children
    And arthritic old coots
    Everyone stood, transfixed
    Trying to decipher the mystique
    In its glistening cold eyes
    And the slow peristaltic movement
    Of its slender throat
    As it swallows Grandma’s yam balls

    Starting with a rhythmic pulsation
    Its forked tongue flicks in farewell
    In symphony with
    The frantic beats of our own hearts
    As it went the way it came
    Down the paths of the spirits
    Leaving us to ponder
    The message in Akammam’s cue

    ©Endi

    Port Harcourt,

    May, 2004.


    LEADERS LABOUR


    Pandemonium
    Hells breaking loose
    Tensions rising, not sparing the goose
    Mouths agape, feeble feet running
    Children crying, nose runny, pickpockets cunning

    Serenity
    State of Head corpulent, fingers manicured
    Cozy bedroom, insanity yet uncured
    Lights, acrid sweat, camera, hustling people
    Yet another bout of “fellow country people”

    Pandemonium
    Men upon podium, hands in thump
    These generations of leaders we must dump
    Rollicking in the midst of our penury
    At the faintest snicker dragging us to their jury

    Serenity
    Stare pallid, “put off that set “, roared he
    These urchins are getting on my nerves – see
    Crawling under my skin with irritating palaver
    Scream! Get that idiot before I get “madder”

    Words
    Lets do this for the good of us you know
    Rescind or never will I kow tow
    Attack with words inveigh, offers spurn
    This country will I lead, strikes will I churn

    Words still
    Bring him some tea to ease the strain
    Maybe that will do, just in from the rain
    Finnish coffee? Get me some sugar
    Now lets dialogue- “said my terms vulgar?”

    More words
    A scratch to the head, a scrotum tug
    Lets have the envelope he said with a shrug
    Greasy fingers, meaty sweaty palms
    For me, huh? I have no qualms


    Éclat
    Labour leader out, smile factious
    People sold for a gulp by the unctuous
    Insensate politician, façade of concern
    Masses effusive, unable to discern

    © Endi
    Aba,
    Nigeria.
    June, 2004.

    A Boy and an Akara Ball

    A BOY AND AN AKARA BALL

    The rhythm of his heart stops
    Eyes darting in Cartesian fashion
    Settles on man clad in black before him
    The cool evening breeze
    Makes him sweat and carries with it
    An avalanche of smells, some of-
    The pool of amber urine at his feet
    And the inviting boli and akara balls
    His stomach growls with fury
    Reminding him of his mission; inviting
    Wrapping and eating him up
    Eyeball darts again; left-right-right-left
    Like ball drama in a ping pong game
    Tongue in mouth, saliva gone
    Farting fat lady shoves him out of the way
    And cursing chewing stick hawker into it
    Both invoke memories of his father
    And sometimes Mama too
    Flurries of thoughts swell the space
    Inside his head as anger builds
    Choking him and setting the tear free
    The hate, the cynicism, the knocks, his fate
    His stomach churns the pain increasing
    The hunger makes his head swool
    Pushes him across the muddy road
    A chasm between life and death
    Leg in gutter, he made for the balls
    Reality hits; cacophony of shouts
    Woman wielding stiletto; men in black
    Market women all in chase
    The voice in his ears sings
    “Eat before you die”
    He bit off a chunk and ate
    Hit by a bullion van, driver fleeing
    He died food still in throat
    Hands, some akimbo, some wiping tears
    Glared at the spasmic body
    Of a lonely and homeless boy
    None could tell the tale of him
    The tale of a boy we knew
    © Endi
    Port Harcourt,
    Dec. 2005
    FOOTFALLS IN THE DARK



    On feet unsure we wobbled
    To the shrine making progress steady
    Familiar insects sighed; bored
    At the sounds of our hearts palpitation
    Our thoughts reveled in skullduggery
    Pervading in our senses skull and crossbones
    Living ancestors turn away in disgust
    And spit on our would be graves
    As we sought a ritual we know
    Was prompted by the sound
    Of the gong of scheming juju priests
    Beating for the third; three times
    Told will bring reproach untold
    We hurried away, plucking the leaves
    As we went, desecrating covens
    Daring minions speak, our talc speaking
    No one came this way, just we
    The storm brewed, chilly wind blew
    Baba urged us on, the course he knew
    We ignored the sounds of our silence
    Their silence too; hearing only
    Those of our footfalls in the dark
    Thud! Thud! in the dark uncertain night
    On a mission the oracles cursed

    © Endi
    Port Harcourt,Nigeria
    February,2006.