Pastor packed his anointing in a Ghana-Must-Go!He stamped his passport with holy oil,And flew to Toronto,To plant revivalAmong the snow and silence. But in Canada,Nobody fell down when he shouted “Fire!”They just checked the smoke alarm.And went back to sipping coffee. In Norway,He tried to declare “Receive your car!”But they already had busesThat came every ten minutesWith heaters,With soft…
— For the goat beneath the kola tree — Come, NomaEat well.This cassava peel is sweeter than yesterday’s.Yes, I see the way your ears flick.You understand more than you let on. I remember when you were small,legs like broomsticks,chasing shadows across the compound.Now look your beard carries the wisdom of old drums. You’ve heard enough stories,sitting by my feet…
— for my dear Etop Precious Iniobong — Monsieur le Paka-paka-paka, twenty boys,barefoot,chased a ballthrough dust and dusk. They shared breath,shared salt,shared spit,shared bruises,shared breadshared the suninside their laughter. But time…time grew teeth. One found war.One found work.One found wealth.One joined the army.One boarded a bus.One forgot his name.One buried another.One wandered offnever returned.Others?Forgotten! Now the ball lies stillin…
I was seven…seven…just seven A seed…not yet called sapling. She,a cousintwice ripenedbreasts like twin orangesstraining thin cloth,hips like two drumsbeating beneath her wrapper. She said:“Let me show youhow fire sleepsin a woman’s belly.” I was a lambtethered to her whisper.I was a drumshe beatbehind shut doors.She said the bloodtrapped,mapping my buttocks,pulsed her budawake,called the wet godfrombetween her thighs. I…
(In celebration of Workers’ Day, I wrote this poem, inspired by Barr. Femi Falana’s (SAN) speech at the 70th birthday of Comrade Dr. Osagie Obayuwana). They said:“Relax, Baba, your sweat is safe!”They took our blood,bottled it in bonds,then drank itin Senate meetings. They said:“Retire with pride!”and handed usempty envelopes,tea without sugar,life without teeth. Wewho built the bridges,welded the rails,typed…
They all look alike now—women carved from the same cartoon,hips like overstretched commas,backsides inflated like National Assembly’s budgets. BBL, they chant.Brazilian Body Lottery.A ritual, not for the faint-hearted—or the flat-bottomed. In this temple of silicone saints,the entry fee is your natural self.You trade it for a gourd-shaped gospel,where “natural” is a slur,and “authentic” is a sin. They line up…
I used to laugh when movies said love can make a woman lose her mind.I called it fiction, flowers, and foolish scripts.But I watched it unfold, real and raw, on my guy’s streetLike a slow-burning drama shot with no director, no pause button. It began with long walks that had no destination.She’d leave her house in the evening—no bag,…
Drum it low, drummer!Gently! Gently o!For the spirit of Chief Iṣẹ́ l’ówóis pacing again! Call the town crier!Tell the elders!Chief Kanmi the Rich is not resting!His grave is rumbling!His ghost is sweating!The ancestors say he has refused to sit! Ah-ah! Chief!You built five mansions in Lekki,And one in London for “just in case.”Now your son has turned them into…
(For Chief Barrister Feni Keni KoyundeSleep with anyone and get pregnant) Oh Great Ones!Call your children to the square!Let the drums speakTum! Tum! Tum!I have a story to sing!A tale of a man with wings of wax,who flies wherever the aroma of stew rises! Wait—Have you not seen him?The man of many tongues!Today, he is the crocodile of justice!Tomorrow,…
Look! They walk the streetsIn wigs of wisdom,In sneakers of sorrow,Clutch bags of calamity,And lips red with rage! They smile sweet—Yes, sweet like honey on a spearhead!But inside?Inside is fire!A furnace of fractured thoughts—Cute but psycho,Fine face, fractured soul! You see her on TikTok,Twisting waist, tweeting wild,Sipping gin like salvation.Ask her what’s the craziest thingshe’s ever done—She laughs like…
What happens when you challenge the establishment?…
The Great Delusion invites you into a…
—for Professor Alofoje Unuigboje— by Majekodunmi Oseriemen…
By Majekodunmi Oseriemen Ebhohon They say the…
