Which Way My Africa?

By Mairo1:

Which way my people?
Which way my Africa?
What song shall I sing
What dance shall I dance
When I hear the thunder of the African drum?

But the celebration drums have grown silent
The voices of the oracles have diminished
The gods of the savannah have turned to drinking their own
children’s blood!
The children of NeHanda are deserting their homes
And is it easy for them to hunt in an alien jungle
Where they can easily become the hunted?

Which way my people?
Which way my Africa?
What song shall I sing?
What dance shall I dance
When I hear the melody of the traditional mbira hum?

Was colonialism a blessing
Or a curse to Africa?
Decades after the colonial legacy
Has democracy failed Africa
Or is Africa a failed democracy?

Is tribal esteem fuel enough to trigger ethnic dissent?
Are differences in political affiliation a reason enough to
cut a brother’s throat?
Are religious differences a reason enough to draw battle
lines in Africa?

so, which way my people?
Ndoita ripi zano?
Wat moet ek doen?
Ndiya kuvuma eyiphi ingoma?
Ngidanse ini
Nikisikia ngoma za Africa?
ماذا علي أن أفعل؟
madha ealay ‘an ‘afeal?

Awake my people! Awake my Africa!
The Supreme Being loves us all
Each in our own different ways!
This is a time to preach
The Gospel and Hadith
of Sanity
Humanity
Unity
through Diversity!

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Mairo-the-Poet

Born and bred in Zimbabwe. Currently living and working in South Africa. A primary school teacher by profession but a Performance Poet by design. My father was a wood-carver, so I fancy myself a word-carver. To me poetry is life, therefore the purpose of art is to comment on the human condition.

Articles: 15

2 Comments

    • Hi Jessy. Thank you so much for reading my poems. It is very encouraging to know that someone out there loves my work.

      To answer your question, I would like to say, Africa, as a continent, has improved a lot since the end of the colonial era. However, a lot of issues still need to be addressed. For example, most national election events are rife with political violence, which leads to unnecessary loss of lives, property, and resources. As artists, we try to try to interrogate these issues, bring them into conversation in order to bring about or speed up the social change. Kenyan author, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, addressed neo-colonialism in most of his works.

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