WOUNDS OF THE WAGALLA

I am a fair thinker with fresh mind,
I am a fictionist and film-maker,
The first film-maker from Northeastern province;
I am a deep-rooted novelist from a deprived province;

It is so long that I suffered at the hands of a dictator,
The dictator that maimed me for life,
The wounds of Wagalla are unhealed,
Unhealed, unforgettable and uncured;

Oh my fellows! Ah the forgotten North-easterners!
Let us all cry at once for the lost innocent lives!
Cry at once at the top of our voice,
Let us say farewell to the ages violation;

Are we real Kenyans?
I double-doubt my dears!
Geographically claimed,
Economically marginalised;

No reliable roads!
No rational rules!
Sense with me what I have said,
Then, oppose me with an evidence;

Bear in mind that I am the voice,
The voice for the unheard voices,
The solid sense for the senseless,
The clincher for the collapsed siblings;

I am the epitome of the speechless;
My words are the epees,
The epees at the neck of the corrupt con-men,
Let us dream please, dream and dream of development;

I am a free-will-founder,
A freedom-fighter;
I fight with wit-words,
Not with weapons;

Who am I fighting for?
I am fighting for the coming generation,
Calling for NEP-wide cooperation,
And cohesion with income-generation;

Hi patriots of Northeastern province!
Hi the patrons of Northeastern province!
Let us wake up please for stability,
Wake up, wake up and wake up for solidarity;

Let us say NO!
Say NO to tribalism!
Say NO to plagiarism!
Say NO to nepotism!

Gone are the errors of Moi government!
Gone are the steps of our right-theft arrangement!
Let us clap aloud with keen emotion,
Clap aloud with united hands for promotion;

Let us yearn for justice and human rights respect,
Let us fight corruption with zero patience,
Let us hear the yippee of our heroes and heroines,
Let us put not the cart before the horse;

Be it my foe or my friend,
I fear of the Fearless alone,
I am a born hero,
A born hero for my people;

I was born to die one day,
And born to die with dignity,
I am an abysmal Ocean,
An abysmal Ocean with human skin;

Call me a criminal,
Or a crass,
But I am the gallant,
The gallant for the nation;

I am a Pan-Africanist,
A Pan-Africanist with an affluent sight,
I am proud of my colour,
And proud of my culture;

I am a diplomat by mission;
Democrat by ideology;
Director by development;
And durable by say and solution;

Sense not a polemical script!
But a poetic powerful spirit,
Depict it as you wish,
Digress not from the theme.

Mohamed Abdikadir Daud (Stanza)
Copyright © 2010
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Stanza is a Somali poet, journalist, translator, cameraman, political pundit, book-reviewer and author based in Africa. His new novel, The Beaming Blood, is waiting for publication. He can be reached at: ayaandhalad5@hotmail.com