Friday, November 2, 2007

The Catapult Officers

I

A mosaic of institutional failure on a breathtaking level.

To understand this “macro” failure,

It is necessarily to examine the “micro” nature of the catapult officers

Egregious, shameful and with despicable acts

With rubber boots

Coat dirty and frayed

Oblivious of their surroundings

 

They have spent years in “check points”

Soaked in the rain

Got kicked around for “returns” from their superior

It makes them crazy

Crazy, but not stupid  

The money-sucking parasites

That is encouraged from the rank and file of the force

 

“Stop!”

“Where your papers?”

It’s usually more of a challenge than a request

Intimidation

With jaw clinched

Chin dropped and eyes turned red

They quickly manufacture a skeletal framework of any allegation

 

II

They do keep you waiting for long

To them, time is of no importance - part of the game

 “You have to settle us”

Such blatant and unashamed greed

If you don’t understand them

The catapult officers can draw you in

Drive you crazy, and drain you dry.

 

They observe every moment

Know all the criminals around

They hear the sounds of the roads

Sniff through your pocket for the whiff of money

They absorb the odor of the diesel fumes form the city buses

The same bus driver passes twice every hour

And had to “pay his dues”

 

Suddenly,

A gun is fired in a distance

From a “superior armed officers”

And they all disappear

Quickly remove their black tops

And reappear, completely disguised

‘Guns’ gone - The catapult officers

 

 

 

Posted by Churchill Obinna Okonkwo at 19:50:51 | Permalink | No Comments »

Thursday, November 1, 2007

This House of Madness

 I

Their life were noticeably juicier than that of the masses

They slept in mansions with their mistresses

With the romantic odor of fresh perfume

And whiff of money in ‘Ghana Must Go Bags’

We slept in slumps and parks with the pigeons

With the pungent odor of ‘ki-kai’

And cheap tobacco

 

They exhibit qualities that can be both charming and dangerous

They seem to think you exist only for their convenience

A house characterized by moral depravity

Sworn to uphold the law - even when they were not duly elected

Inflating contracts – with complete impunity

Confusing proper legislative work with ‘egunje’

As crime reportedly has superseded unemployment and economic growth

 

II

The masses has been suffering

As the ‘leaders’ are smiling

House of iniquities and distress

Your antisocial behavior

Will be very valuable to the psychiatrist

 

To the occupants of this mad house

Now that Etteh is gone

What we need is food, not phone

What we need is water, not war

What we need is shelter not shame

 

III

We have to start something

We can no longer be slaves

Let the tyrants see

That we are now set

To start an endless siege

 

We have known our rights

We have decided to fight

And fight we will fight

Until victory is in sight

Until we see the light

 

Posted by Churchill Obinna Okonkwo at 19:57:26 | Permalink | No Comments »