Get bored of breathing.
I will remind you of how the pellets
only grazed on their melanin
The bullets served as chewing sticks
Will show you how soaked
my brothers’ skins were with prayers
and blazing powers
yet those hunters
slice them like some wild meats.
Do you often sight
the fear and despair
mixed with wave of screams
scavenging our family’s fate
So they seek the taste of humanity
—In nearby scenes.
Have you heard of the gigantic trees
who took a long nap at a forest
where the owls too flee for safety?
Do you also wonder,
how amidst fuel scarcity
those marauders rummage
through the forest 24/7
their engines never cease
to rub our brothers’ feet with grease
till it becomes numb and
afraid to walk on another street?
Do you not see those obituaries
flagged on every screen
the living art —our heroes
who sworn to protect the nations’ dignity
just a year later
wore the camouflage with pride
their faces contoured with smiles
“Mama, we will see when we see”
they travelled with death on their sleeves
Have you not seen?
how my brothers’ bodies
were carted in truck, lifelessly
like some porks ready for delivery
while the families
souvenired grief
mourned in disbelief
cried to brim
for the labor of their sons
wandered in vain.
Now tell me, when will the charm of justice rest on this treaty?
When will these stings stop pricking innocent feelings?
The Story
This poem was inspired by the level of insurgency in Niger State. I had a cousin who volunteered for a vigilante group in my hometown, Mai-ido, of Niger State. A giant young man with a selfless yet fruitful future. During the period when banditry and kidnappings surged and became rampant, he fought and protected my hometown until his last breath.
There is always this hangover of grief and disbelief, for an iroko to plunge in a bright daylight and nobody dares shroud his body until the monsters disappear.
Niger State, which was once a safe haven, has turned into a home for insurgency, especially in local government areas like Wushishi, Rijau, Lavun, Mashegu, and Rafi.
May peace return to troubled lands, amin.
The Poet
By Ola Ifatimehin
Jamila Musa is a Northern Nigerian budding poet, studying at Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State.
Jamila discovered her talent through Poetic Wednesdays. She’s a certified Anti-corruptional Accountability Ambassador, a member of Hill Top Creative Art Foundation, Minna Literary Forum, Lapai Book Club and also an Alumni of the Alhanislam Spoken Word Class.
She was the prize winner of Reform Almajiranci competition organised by Poetic Wednesdays. Her poems are published on Poemify Publishing Inc and Susa Africa.
Jamila is passionate about phone photography, broadcasting and spoken words poetry.
She writes from Minna, Niger State. When Jamila is not writing, you can find her selling footwears and scarves.
Reach Jamila via @[email protected]
Facebook: @Musa Jemilah
Twitter: @ Excitable_girly
Instagram: @gem__jemilah.
