The Ignorance of Fools: A Poem for All Nigerians and Others

The Ignorance of Fools


Lukumon,
Is it not baffling to see how fools tell their false fables?
Their false fables that is even more baffling than our folktales.

The most baffling of these liars is that shameless one on our street
The one that looks almost like an albino and claims he is half-white.
The one who walks like he has unequal legs
He shamelessly lies as a drunk drinks to the dregs.
He lies and lies until he has no more lies left?.
And his lies have made him the laughing stock of the market.

Lukumon,
Please, this is not a laughing matter, because this is our palaver
Divide and rule tactics of politics have left Nigerians in hysteria
What we need most in Nigeria is not democracy
Heaven knows that honesty is still the best policy
So, what we need most is not democracy, but equity
For where there is no equity, there will be no unity
Imagine lawmakers who rigged their way to the National Assembly
Are now sitting pretty and making laws for electoral reforms in hypocrisy.
They are like a gang of rogues who are now claiming to be lawyers
After they have stolen the wigs and gowns of the judges?

Lukumon,
Yesterday, I went for the Role Models Day at junior’s school
And guess who I saw among the invited role models?
Olorimango, who was caught cheating in our GCE decades ago
And who cheated all the way to the University of Alawiyeloniasiko
Until he got his dream job in the biggest bank in town.
Are you saying he is now a born again Christian?
Whoever believes most of these born again Nigerians is a fool.

Lukumon,
You will never know the true colours of your so called friends
Until you make them your business partners
Then you will know the sheep from the goats
And you can tell the wise ones from the idiots.

Lukumon,
Finally, do not join the rat race
Because you are not a rat.
Both the wise and the fool have a price
But the fool often ends up with a fat lawsuit.

Never do anything to impress your neighbours
It is a waste of time doing things to impress mere mortals
Whose applause will not echo beyond the walls?
Just do your best for the common good and go to bed with smiles.


~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima, aka Orikinla Osinachi, Thursday March 15, 2012, from the collection of my poems to be released before October. Previous books include Scarlet Tears of London, In the House of Dogs, Bye, Bye Mugabe, and Children of Heaven.

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