Saturday, June 15, 2013

#WarOfWords - They were all lies by Titilayo Mabogunje





This babe dey flow o,
and no be small yarn she yarn.
Guess what,
she is just sixteen,
but flows way past her age.
Deep words from a young mind,
words that can give sight to the blind.
She is definitely one for the future.



War Of Words - They were all lies by Titilayo Mabogunje 

Let me tell you a story
Of a girl I once knew
About fifty or sixty years ago,
She was just born and literally brand new.

So men came to take advantage of her
They said "Lean on me,"
They said "Trust me, believe me,
" 'Cause you can be free with me."

Now, indirectly what happened was,
They found another way to say
"Hmm, this girl is beautiful,
"Why don't you give all your money to me?"

Naïve she was, she believed them.
She unfortunately lost control.
And one by one they left her.
And bit by bit she lost what made her renown.

Now if she only opened her eyes
She would realize
She was no bride,
That there was no prize,
'Cause they were all lies,
She had been taken for a ride
So tears filled her eyes
Every day and every night
Like a thorn in her side,
Everything that had been right,
She threw away to the night
But now, she tries to fight.

Now she is thinking "How can I right my wrong?
How can I fill up a cup that is already gone?
How can I think of a melody when there is no song?
Why did I stray from the path I started on?
She closed her eyes
If just for a while.
She thought back into the past
Of the people who were most vile.

It was her own family,
Her very own friends
The ones she held close
Are the ones that held her fate in their hands.

The ones who now mock her, tease her,
They used to treat her, pet her,
But now they are sick, tired and fed up of her.

They'll say nothing good can ever come out of her
Her own people will be the first to shame her.
But when they need oil to fuel their cars,
That's when you'll see them going to her.

However, my story isn't over.
When they eat and are full,
That's when they forget her.

They'll say "She's not my sister,
"I'm not related to her."
They'll say "Why are you asking me?
"It's not as if I know her."

What a wicked family
That throw rubbish all over her bruised body.
Look at the streets around you, they aren't clean.
That shows how wicked we can be.

So to answer the questions
Who is her family? Who are her friends?
You needn't search any further than
Who you see through your glass lens.

Because the culprits here are you and me.
It's the truth, or don't you see?
We are the ones bad mouthing Nigeria.
We are the ones who litter the area.

We are the ones who give her a bad name,
Ruin her fame, Put her to shame.
When someone asks us where we are from,
We don't even want to call her name.

You think you're helping your country
But you're really just setting her up.
When you say all these negative things about her,
How can it bring anything but bad luck?

Honesty stands and knocks at the door,
But bribery enters in.
When there is no noble man,
How won't corruption win?

When tribes keep on fighting;
Igbos against Yorubas against Hausas
We all claim to love one another
But if there were unity, why are we not together?

So if you really want a country
For your children and their children to see,
Let us come together to stop hypocrisy
Start love and charity,
Be proud of our nationality
And endeavor to practice transparency.

So next time you have a problem,
Don't say "Watin Jonathan de do?"
Let's stop looking up there
And start looking at me and at you.

We have been given this fertile land,
A land flowing with milk and honey
And it isn't for one man alone;
It's not for only you or only me
Lets not forget that whether you like it or not,
This is and always will be our country.


Watch the video here

#WarofWords - They were all lies by Titilayo Mabogunje

http://youtu.be/QFZJMV2rcXE

1 comment:

  1. Very powerful poetry. For Nigerias sake, keep telling the story. I was engaged the whole way through. Job well done!

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