Democracy: What Of The People? …. Uko Edet, Poem on FineRadioCO

Transcript

Name: Uko Edet

Democracy: What Of The People?

Democracy was supposed to be a government of the people, for the people and by the people
What we have never stopped to define is, who are the people?
Is it the few people who have found their way to the commonwealth table
-where the National cake is served?
And the highest bidder who pays off everyone on the table gets to lead everyone
-no matter how crazy

Or do we mean the good people who have enriched themselves from eth toll bells of sycophancy?
And for them, the many chants of gallivanting crowds from spheres and squares
-means more money they can embezzle per head from their principal
They have become political war lords, assembling ward thugs to stall the development of
-those who are yet to earn their trust – financially
So, they become stakeholders, holding their own communities to ransome
-so they could play the happy political middleman

Or should democracy be about the people who were mobilized to exercise their vote franchise
-in the hope that their voices will matter
Only for them to realize that before their eyes that saviours lie
-And by some arrangement they will apologize that the court has to adjourn on the matter

Define democracy to the teacher
Whose leave grant has not been granted leave from the treasury
Yet he has to teach civic education to a class size of over 50

Define democracy to the doctor
Who is battling for better working conditions for the benefit patients
– who cannot even afford health insurance
And has to strike to be heard, yet the congress of state deliberates to keep him in chains
-to perform neurosurgery in the dungeon by moonlight.

Define democracy to the engineer
Who has been tackling bureaucracy to get a patent for his innovation.
Yet the same bureau approves a faulty architectural plan
That collapses on a family of 11 after two years
And somehow, the probe panel whitepaper report won’t be ready for another six months
Just because big man talk to big man only in consonant sounds.

Define democracy to the dance choreographer
who has to lead a performance on a dance drama on how Nigeria will be better on an empty stomach, until his lead performer slumps on stage
and the story line has to be changed because somehow, the show must go on.

Let us call the priests and the clergy, the pastors and the prayer man
Who pray and give us prophecies just so we could have hope.
But they won’t understand that the congregants are yet to be paid for months
But they will demand tithes and a destiny seed of faith.
So when they say the lord is good and everyone echoes all the time,
It sounds like a bad joke or an insult or a lie.

Democracy was supposed to be a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
Who are the people?
I am
You are.
We are.

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