Reflections Without Mirror–Niyi Aborisade
Hunger & Anger
A hungry man is an angry man;
I know no barriers or differences between man and woman;
I hit them anyhow,
Do you know what I am like?
In vain is your incantation against me; in vain is your prayers against me for;
I am indifferent to religions;
I know no regions;
I am a force beyond borders of religions or regions;
I transcend tribes and faith;
Do you know what I am like?
Publicly, you loot because you are dying of me and bear no shame;
For I have destroyed the thickest fabric of your shame;
I have forced you to forget your name
I have hit you hard, but to them, blame
Better are you than your leaders who loot in secret and me create; yes, me they have created and silent, you remain too much;
Your silence can’t drive me away
Do you know what I am like?
Opulence lives your leaders, which leads you in darkness where foods are kept in abundance away from you;
You move from darkness to darkness.
I hit you everywhere,
Your silence is too much;
Do you know what I am like?
Asorted cars drive they that you voted for or rigged themselves into power and stay inside harmattan;
But you work and walk under the heat, tired, and in dilemma,
You feel me everywhere;
Verily, you know what I am like
Oohhh, you have power if the veil can be removed from your eyes;
Should you realise that you are powerful and open your eyes for i will leave you in peace;
If only you could fight back
You know what i’m like
Illuminations of your power will force your leaders to flee and leave their loots behind;
Perhaps they may know what you feel in me
Clothes are luxury when I am biting you,
sleep flee away when I am operating;
laughter dissappear and sermons means nothing whenever I strike you
I bite the majority in the land, but few are bellyfull;
Created me are the unjust leaders; privately, they loot the treasury;
Dying are their people, but they care less.
Resist the oppressors;
You incurred no wrath for resisting the oppressors;
For you must free yourself of me in resisting your oppressors.
I am hunger, and I fear no one, white or black;
I respect only those who fight back.
Niyi Aborisade is a lawyer, a Human Rights Activist and a historian
