Post by Onyango Oloo on Sept 28, 2005 4:39:56 GMT 3
www.petitiononline.com/wandishi/petition.html
Spontaneous Lines of Verse by Onyango Oloo in Toronto
Remember the days they used to saunter straight
Into a forest called Media Scrum?
Less than three years ago
They greedily grabbed all the six renditions
Of our daily magazeti editions
Hungrily scouring the headlines for the
Sweetest nouns in the entire universe-
their own first and last names
Less than three years ago they bought up dozens and dozens
Of each and every copy which had their picture emblazoned
On the front pages
And ordered each copy preserved in gold plated frames
Less than three years ago they videotaped every news cast
Where they were featured, shaking their fists in those stormy rallies
And made CD copies of every radio broadcast where they insulted their rivals
But that was three years ago, when they were greedy for public office
Hungry for power, angling for ministerial appointments dreaming of marupu rupu
That was three years ago when the entire country shook with chants of
Moi must go,. Moi must go, Moi must go now
That was three years ago when we all sang in unison to the chorus
Yote yawezekana bila Moi, Yote yawezekana bila KANU
Those were the heady days of Unbwogable
Today they fly their flags on gigantic gas guzzlers
Only slightly smaller than their humongous egos
Today they frog march you before raucous crowds
Threatening to lynch you the next time around
Today they send tens of secret police to arrest you
Because you dared to express the very democratic rights
They pretended they were fighting for when they were on
The outside looking in
Today they want you to explain how come you have the same
Controversial opinions that they egged you to publish three years ago
Are these the custodians of our present and future democratic rights?
Whether clutching an orange or peeling a banana
The puffed up politicians of the National Rainbow Coalition
Are no different from Moi and KANU
In their contempt and disdain for Kenyan journalists,
and for that matter justice, democracy and freedom
Let me stand shoulder to shoulder with you as I say:
Shame on anyone who fears the pen of a journalist
And the camera of a photographer
Shame on anyone who is intimidated by a keyboard
And rattled by a microphone
How many more cameramen shall Lucy Kibaki slap?
How many more reporters shall Raila threaten?
How many more columnists shall Mirugi Kariuki arrest?
To the politicians of NAK and LDP I say to you:
Touch the media at your own peril
They are not armed with bazookas and sub-machine guns
They do not own police torture chambers or supervise prison farms
But using their tiny quills and their silly horns
They have brought many a mammoth down….
Onyango Oloo
Toronto