(Fragments of a poem written in twenty-syllabic tristichs) poem by Simpa Omoluabi

 By Simpa Omoluabi 

In the great light of truth
Fowls of power failure night birds
Owls sunglass their myopic minds

Out of gloom they loom
Unsloughed offshoots of dark minds
Bokoharam come for Moremis

Masquerades of our gloom
Weighing down in forests
Captive hearts with millstones of hardship

Oduduwa means our gloom
Babel is Babylon
And Bokoharam the masked ones

Bokoharam masquerades
Of oduduwa of our beloved
Babel Nigeria

See them Bokoharam
Uncircumcised manifestations
Of the shadows of death

O, we see the king coronated
With sunglasses masking
The eyes symbols of light

Oduduwa means our black heritage
Bokoharam vi’lates
Our black heritage

Bokoharam like all monsters
Thrive at night but are false mornstars
They are false starlights.

Bats need sunglass
For the eyes of the mind
My king take off them sunglasses for daylight

Yemoja, Eve, was worn the mask of death
By which sunlight was eclipsed
In Paradise

If thou king art a bat
Then you’re head of the masked chorus
In this gloom of our hardship

Best man Adam horseman of the engagement
Come unveil the mask
And cuckold your lord

Revelation horseman
I smell the apocalyptic scents
Of the engagement wound

Adam centaur of truth
Riding away with beauty
Wave your trophy the mask of death

In still silence
Hearts of Fatimas ache
Come lift this yashmak of my Eveline purdah

That others wish you in disguise
Is the true evil;
Let’s dispossess all masks of Eve . © Omoluabi S Simpa

The Patient Dog (A flash sonnet) poem by Simpa Omoluabi

The Patient Dog (A flash sonnet) by Simpa Omoluabi
Fourteen year Mumbi, her elder siblings and father
arrived the new refugee camp, Katakuta, last night.
They were apportioned a tent,
each given an aluminum bowl, and were told
whenever they hear the bell ringing it is for feeding,
so the bell rang this morning
and they joined the food rush.

Afterwards Mumbi returned tearful.
Her father asked, ‘What’s the problem?’
She responded, ‘I got almost nothing.
I was being patient for the rush to die.’
The father replied,
‘What else does the patient dog ends with
after others had licked the meat?
It ends with nothing but the bone.’

© Omoluabi S. Simpa

OEDIPUS-OLOKUN is ARISEN (for my militants on the rise) poem by Simpa Omoluabi

...in forty... Muhammad... must get the fuck
...in forty... Mohammadu's heart must run out of bloody luck
...in forty... Mohammhed... must absorb the shock
...in forty... you must be born again Satan ticktock
Oedipus is coming home in revolutionary movement on the clock
Oluokun is arisen and in the heart LORD Satan must feel the stroke
Oedipus speechless must leave ...Thebes in the heart struck
Oluokun must give the LORD Satan the heart attack
...in forty... Satan pray and wish for goodluck

Sons & daughters it is Oluokun-Orumila of the ...Suns:
The snake kingdom is at hand
The heavenly kingdom is at hand
Godly kingdom is at hand so steadfast stand
The serpent kingdom has taken their stand
Christ is born again Olokun is born again in the land
Repent says the eye-opening Serpent
Repent says the Serpent in the wilderness

© Omoluabi S, Simpa

Oedipus (the Prodigal redefined) poem by Simpa Omoluabi

By Omoluabi S. Simpa

OEDIPUS (The PRODIGAL redefined)

Oedipus is the revolutionary movement

‘gainst kings

and greedy lawmakers

Oedipus the gods are to blame

they cast you out

that imperialism shall not end

I telltale bird of the garden

it is I star-witness

of the original sin.

I bird Holy Spirit possessed

in free speech mentions

the must-not-mention name of God

Oedipus you born for revolution;

making you an outcast

are the kings’ solution

Oedipus is you and I

those of us financially handicapped

by government

Oedipus the prince of sovereign

parentage must  come to review

the  past in outrage

Oedipus is you and I

denied our right by thrones of power

for their selfish end

all financial handicaps

of the nations you’re

Oedipus of your generation

Through oracular binoculars

they saw the prince

in sympathy with the enslaved

all kings and queens

of imperialism are Jocasta

and Laius of modernism

The priests and kings and queens

who call themselves gods

said Oedipus must be subjected to death

All capitalist presidents and monarchs

are the Jocasta and Laius

of the world

you and I fiscal handicaps

are Oedipus outcast from

the commonwealth by thrones

Oedipus was made handicapped

and cast out and denied

his right as heir to the throne

Olusegun Obasanjo a great Laius

and Laius was killed

by Oedipus

You and I made financial

misfits by politicians

are Oedipus of the land

Atiku Abubakar is a great Laius

and Laius was killed

by Oedipus

You, I, are Oedipus

we outcast from our rights

by the mighty political kings

Badamasi Babangida a great Laius

Oedipus killed Laius

so the story goes

Oedipus remembered his right

in revolution sought for it

killing the king

Orji and rev’rend King are great Laius

Oedipus killed Laius

so the story goes

Oedipus is you and I

that’s been made financial

handicaps by lords of the land

Oedipus struck down the

political authority that

made him a handicap

Queen Lizzy is Jocasta

to Oedipus the fiscal

clubfoot, Jocasta hung.

Jocasta and Laius made Oedipus

outcast that their throne

should live forevermore

Oedipus is that handicapped fiscally

by financial and

political powers

Empresses of imperialist worlds

are Jocasta who hung

by Oedipus’ actions

Oedipus is that handicapped fiscally

by financial and

political powers

Jocasta and Laius made Oedipus

outcast that their throne

should live forevermore

Oedipus envenomed and struck

the authorities that made him

a social misfit

Oedipus is  you and I

made social misfits

by political and financial powers

O you and I are Oedipus

made financial outcasts

by capitalist magnates

Capitalist tycoons are Jocasta

and Laius that’s made us

financial clubfoots 

Political profiteers are Jocasta

and Laius that’s made us

fiscal clubfoots

Profiteering ministers and reverends

are the priests giving oracles

at Delphi

you must pay your tax

they say, pay your tithe

it is your duty to the Almighty LORD

to hell with the Almighty LORD

the Almighty LORD who I

have declared is Satan

The priests of Delphi

today are the capitalist intensive

reverends and bishops

bishop Oyedipo David et al

are the contemporary  priesthood

at Delphi

the priesthood together with

the rulers made Oedipus

a handicap and outcast

the priests and rulers

have made you and I

Oedipus of the day outcasts of the land

They have made you and I

outcasts from our entitlement

outcasts from the commonwealth

Oedipus heir to the throne

was made outcast

that imperialism lives forever

you and I are Oedipus

handicapped

that imperialism may live forever

you and I are Oedipus

made outcast

that capitalism may live forever

Oedipus are they financially club footed

fiscally handicapped

by the government

And are forced to

Take up swords and guns

To do violently against the kingly ones

Oedipus is the revolutionary

movement ‘gainst avaricious

law makers

rulers earning millions

that Oedipus of the nations

be outcast from the good life

Oedipus is you made

a societal misfit

by your presidents and senators

that you may never be competent

or be graceful

like the children of the affluent

Mr president you and your senators

governors by your pay

in the millions

you cast me out from my right

you are king Laius in my life

clubbed my foot right from birth

the naira million baby wrist watch

of your queen makes her

Jocasta of Oedipus

Oedipus is you whose financial

standing is made broke from

birth by the government

Oedipus is you doomed

from the start from birth

not to be upright by your government

who having fiscally handicapped you

from birth that as you grow

you will be unfit

to challenge their rule.

Oedipus says whether I’m righteous

or not upright in standing

as from this day I begin

on the path of revolution

revolutionary

to unseat the political

and financial powers that

has made me a handicap

Oedipus is the people

that those on the seat of power

have denied their birthrights

treated as aliens

prodigals the outcast from the heavenly life

in their homeland.

Oedipus is the people

made subjects of hardship by their rulers

and to make it

to heaven

Oedipus the common man denied his right

makes a recourse to vi’lence

Oedipus is you, I, Prodigal

made outcast from the heavenly life

by rulers

‘The Kingdom of heaven suffers vi’lence’

écause Oedipus the Prodigal

has remembered

heaven is his motherland

heaven is his fatherland and the

rulers denied him

the heavenly life.

Oedipus the Prodigal is you and I

denied our birthright

made outcast and denied our rights

to express our birthright to love

whom we chose to love

denied the right to dress as I like

because I am not

a heavenly candidate

Prodigal financially handicapped

Heaven’s outcast misfit

unfit for good clothes

And if the lord be merciful

he would hand me down

from on high the rags of heaven

Oedipus the Prodigal driven

from the heavenly life

into hardship returns

in revolution hard hearted

for motherland the heavenly place

for his birthright

and the rich ones living the heavenly life

said to the Prodigal:

O Oedipus

it is forbiddenyou to have mama

you will make of yourself

a motherfucker

Oedipus is you, I,

outlawed from heavenly life

before we committed a crime

prodigals denied heaven’s

common wealth of sunshine and rainfall

with a twisted law

Oedipus the prodigal

says so be it I’ll be a motherfucker

for what’s mine

I shall break the rules

abuse the queenly

and those whose houses, places are palaces.

Since the rule does not apply

to those in heavenly places

it means to be in heaven

I won’t apply by the rules

Or I make the lord those in heaven

apply by the rules

to hell with the rules

by the matchbook

lucifer may the rulebooks burn in hellfire

You and I are Oedipus Prodigal

outcast made handicapped

with unemployment

You and I are prodigals Oedipus

outcast handicapped with

under-employment

They who make

children of mother earth

alien to their right are Jocasta and Laius

The fiscally and politically

devious ones

are the Jocasta and Laius

The Prodigal working underemployed

in pigpen, remembered

his heavenly rights

I Oedipus prodigal outcast

from my heavenly rights

will in revolution

approach the powerful politicians

bishops and financiers

for my heavenly rights

The Prodigal working underemployed

in pigpen, remembered

his heavenly rights

We need the Oedipus

and not misdirected insurgents

whom are half-baked Oedipus

Oedipus prodigal

outcast from heavenly rights

disheartened the monarchial ones

and not these misdirected insurgents

striking ‘gainst maids

purdah handicapped women

women clubfooted by religions

Oedipus handicapped

by theocratic Laius

Oedipus makes revolution

Prodigals set to demand for

Their right from the thrones

and save like the tale of Jesus

the throne accords the prodigals

their heavenly rights

and there will be peace.

There can be no peace

when the Prodigal who work underemployed

in a pigpen

remembers her heavenly rights

and in revolution sets for it

O king Laius Mr. Buhari

Oedipus may soon come

for your heart and Jocasta’s

hard hearted king and president

I know you are

But how tough hearted is Jocasta?

Oedipus recognize not

the despotic king or queen

gave them no recognition

Why should Oedipus

recognize the rulers who made him

a financial handicap?

‘Those whom the gods

will destroy they first make go mad’

the gods have made me Simpa go mad

Smoking mirror shall you have my heart

It’s I flying backwards

feeding of  the nectar

it’s I

I who have mentioned the must-not-

mention name of God motherfucker Oedipus

I  Holy Ghost possessed by God

speaking in tongues the freedom of speech

the speech of God

The blindness of Oedipus

is the final blackout

of the visionary. In sleep

inviolable

shall he get hung-over

from the intoxicated revelations

but not before envisioning

the beastly asterisk;

My sweet and toughened heart goes

straight

to that clubfooted albino at Ede

may the morning star recompense you.

All rights reserved.

© Omoluabi S. Simpa