Abuja by Tanure Ojaide

Here where all cardinal points meet in a capital

Here where rocks raise homes to the sky

Here where the savannah rolls over the soil

the coven where witches plot the demise of others

this is where chiefs celebrate on the sweat of slaves

this is where range chickens consume and scatter leftovers

this is where the hyena's den is guarded by rings of packs

and swallowed it, leaving no scent for a trace

this is where the boa-constrictor strangles its catch

this is where robbers boast of their callous acts

and laugh at the plight of a hundred million cowards

this is where the national flag covers a cesspool

this is where a god led his worshippers to die

this is where I weep for my entire land

Tanure Ojaide

Tanure Ojaide (born 1948) is a prolific Nigerian poet and writer. He is noted for his unique stylistic vision and for his intense criticism of imperialism, religion,and other issues. He is the author of six books of poetrty, including Labyrinths of the Delta , The Blood of Peace and The Daydream of Ants . He is two-time winner of both the All-Africa Okigbo Prizefor Poetry and the Association of Nigerian Authors' Poetry Prize. A memoir, Great Boys: An African Childhood , was recently published.

Home Song II by Tanure Ojaide

Expecting the arrival of a king, we have
been waiting in sun and rain staring at
the horizon for the stirring of a head.
Days have passed us standing, left
our hope stale despite cool winds
from new directions blowing our way.
Now we can care less about patience
but must reinforce our resolve
with the assurance of experienced messengers.
We while away months and years singing
to keep our spirits awake and active
so as to witness the spectacle many hope
will come with a massive flood of blood.
Several times the rule of succession
has been broken by strong hands
and none of the princes of the patriarch
can claim right of succession without a war.
That's been the bane of the land, sacrificing
so many contestants for the emergence
of one usurper after another - those with
the closest claim suffer imprisonment
or premature death from torture.
Still it's our custom to wait for the arrival
of a king whose dominion we built into a refuge
& with trembling hearts do not know whether
we'll be sacrificed to clear the way he will take
to step over skulls of those who lined
the way to his accession.
We cannot tell what the horizon hides from us
but which we expect anytime, cramped as we are,
standing at attention in sun and rain and with stiff necks.

Tanure Ojaide

Tanure Ojaide (born 1948) is a prolific Nigerian poet and writer. He is noted for his unique stylistic vision and for his intense criticism of imperialism, religion,and other issues. He is the author of six books of poetrty, including Labyrinths of the Delta , The Blood of Peace and The Daydream of Ants . He is two-time winner of both the All-Africa Okigbo Prizefor Poetry and the Association of Nigerian Authors' Poetry Prize. A memoir, Great Boys: An African Childhood , was recently published.