A POEM: South Africa

AS anti-immigrant violence flares up in South Africa, we are reposting this poem of Odimegwu Onwumere, a poet who is a member of Poets for Human Rights and a Resident Poet for Champions For Nigeria, United Kingdom. Odimegwu is a voracious reader, professional and prolific writer, researcher, journalist, poet, thinker, social critic, political analyst, and activist. He has published two books: Piquant: Love Poems To Prince Tonye Princewill (2008) and The Many Wrong Doings of Madam Do-Good (2009), and has many unpublished manuscripts looking for a publisher.

South Africa

By Odimegwu Onwumere

These killings, bestialities, animosities

You show to your visitors

Are for ignorance.

Oh! South Africa,

A land stained with innocent bloods

Generations with all the soaps can’t clean.

You have created ills

With these odious killing competition.

You neglected to learn,

Failed to compete with your visitors,

Failed to acquire knowledge,

Failed to be hospitable.

Why?

Killing your visitors

Can never be a sacrifice

To redeem your ignorance.

Killing your visitors

Can never open paths

Of prosperity for you.

Killing your visitors

Can never generate ideas

For you.

You have caused your bad luck

With these innocent bloods

That would continue

To cry from your soil

Till the end of time.

Oh! South Africa,

Sunshine and moon

Shall henceforth be your enemies

As you enviously take to killing

Your visitors as your foes

Inlure of taking them as your friends.

– Odimegwu Onwumere, Poet/Writer, Rivers State.