Archive for the ‘Contributors’ Category

Desist Breaking Your Head & FIKS AFRIKA

Tuesday, January 17th, 2012

Dear Friends, I’ve got a new EP out, a SICK new music video, an ART/TREK NYC single, a remix contest with Akwaaba Music, was just on a TV show; am planning an EP release party, new artistic collaborations and works in visual art and dance… Amen! But something pressing on my mind at the moment is Nigeria’s oil-subsidy and Boko Haram wahala, the Arab Spring movements liberating the globe, our escalating misunderstanding with Iran and the Occupy movement. If you’ve ever shared one plate of eba and okro soup with Mama, bros, some visiting ogas and the area pikins, you know the short-limbed or thoughtful will leave the table hungry. It’s time to DO SOMETHING. I want to ask you a question: is the status quo sustainable and if not, what must change? Must we forever break our heads over history’s unequal partitioning of power? I present an article from a website whose listserve I’m on- Otedo.com. It forwards me scholarly writings by Africans (mostly Edo-oid). Consider this surprising proposition about how to FIKS AFRIKA:

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Give Africa back to its traditional rulers!

The post colonial leaders in Africa have been a disgusting assortment of military coconut-heads, Swiss bank socialists, quack revolutionaries, crocodile liberators, briefcase bandits, kamikaze looters, vampire elites, and crackpot democrats. They only know how to do 3 things very well:

1. Loot the treasury.
2. Brutalize and squelch all dissent and opposition to their misrule,
3. Perpetuate themselves in office.

Ask them to develop their countries and they will develop their pockets. Ask them to seek “foreign investment” and they will invest their loot in a foreign country.

Name me just 10 African leaders who do not fit this bill.

Give Africa back to its traditional rulers. In traditional Africa, chiefs and kings are chosen; they do not choose and impose themselves or stupid alien ideologies on their people. Further, chiefs and kings are held accountable at all times for their actions and are removed if they do not govern according to will of the people.

Go back and re-read the history of the Oyo Kingdom, Benin Empire and the Ashanti Empire, which was governed with an elaborate system of checks and balances in the 17th Century — well before the U.S. became a nation. The modern leadership is a despicable disgrace to black Africa. They are a far cry from the traditional leadership Africa has known for centuries.

And get this, Lil Joe. Africa has not just a traditional political culture and heritage based upon consensus but also an economic heritage of free village markets, free enterprise and free trade. Challenge this. Marxism was never part of indigenous African economic heritage. Get that straight.

I am fed up with quack revolutionaries and crackpot intellectuals who seek to impose alien ideologies and systems on the African people. There is nothing wrong with Africa’s own indigenous institutions; nor does Africa have to reject them in order to develop. The Japanese, Koreans and other Asians did not have to reject their culture in order to develop. Only educated zombies think Africa has to. The continent is littered with the putrid carcasses of failed imported systems. Now we are being told to go Chinese! Such stupidity.

Africa’s salvation lies in returning to and building upon its own indigenous institutions. Africa’s salvation does NOT lie in the corridors of the World Bank, the inner sanctum of the Chinese politburo. Nor does Africa’s salvation lie in the steamy sex antics of cockroaches on Jupiter!

George Ayittey,
Washington, DC

(Culled from yahoo internet conversation)

Direct Link: http://ihuanedo.ning.com/group/owaafrica/forum/topics/give-africa-back-to-its-traditional-rulers?xg_source=msg_mes_network

During the Toffee Past Times by Aloysius-Gonzaga O. Nwikwu

Saturday, May 15th, 2010

A—Gonzaga (Oluchukwu Aloysius–Gonzaga Nwikwu) is a Nigerian–born, Scandinavian–educated essayist, poet and songwriter. Read one of his poems, below.

During the Toffee Past Times

“The trees were squirrels’ land
The fathers were able men
Women were then adored
And the kids were raised at home.

“We launched no space missions
But humanity-glorifying visions
We also drove no fast cars
But created fast solutions to our problems.”

I said “I would wish to live in those days, teacher.”
He said “But we can’t go back, son…
It was nice to share with you though
But those were thoughts of toffee-past times.”

Find Aloysius on Facebook

January: poetry by Nwilo Bura-Bari Vincent

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

January

Lone pacer –the vertical leader
With eleven followers – dust calm
Boots from December dusted
Whirlwind of celebrations calm and quiet
Day one in one stroked cage
Better spelt and wide but concise – January

Alibi flame’s flick flake fake rims of dreams
Hope is born and horned to nations of the world
January – mother to resolutions unbidden
Carryover of yester year’s plans and pains
Job uproar and tender pay packets ranched
Merriments subsides – upsides the devotion

Painting green on green-grass and green flags
Tender hearts hopes for a pope’s sprinkle
Hallelujah! – Bad luck aborted – new luck conceived
January, the plenary house of venial creatures


Nwilo Bura-Bari V (Nwilo Bura-Bari Vincent) is a poet. His literary magazine, Words Not Swords, calls for entries. One poem per entrant and a short story of about 3,000 words. 2,500 max of non fiction – essays and reviews – mail with a brief data about you to wordsnotswords@yahoo.com

Find Words Not Swords on Facebook here.

The Amanama Photojournal: Dance Drama

Thursday, October 15th, 2009

“Dance Drama”

photos from Patrick Amanama

How do you want to spend your eternity? In Life, heaven is real and hell is real.

This dance drama by kids of Standard Foundation Nursery/Primary School (Ikorodu, Lagos, Nigeria) started with the deaths of two young men. After death comes Jugdement [the bible]. The stories of their lives while on earth was played out for them. The good man goes to HEAVEN while the bad man goes to HELL. What a feeling to be in the bossom of our lord almighty! Our kids learn to DO by DOING. Let’s make our ways straight. …..Patrick Ebi Amanama


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