Zimbabwean poet says it like it is
One of my favourite web sites is http://www.poetryinternationalweb.org – check out the Zimbabwe section where you’ll find some really beautiful poetry. I note that their poem of the week, The Lord Is My Shepherd, is by Cosmas Mairosi, a budding Zimbabwean poet.
THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD
the lord is my shepherd
I shall not want any other leader besides him
(even from his own party)
I shall have no other political party besides his
I shall not suffer any domination by the British
or the Americans
and my country shall never be a colony againthe lord is my shepherd
even if I walk in the valley of freedom
I am forced to attend his rallies
I shall not say what
I want because the police and the military will descend
on meeven if I walk in the shadow of poverty
I shall continually shout his
name and sing his praises
“long live my leaderâ€the lord is my shepherd
I shall not associate with members of the opposition
I shall not walk with demonstrators
for should I be found out
I shall be beaten or torturedI shall have no other TV stations besides his
I shall see what he wants me to see
I shall hear what he wants me to hear
I shall read what he wants me to readthe lord is indeed my shepherd
I shall not starve
for I shall certainly be given food handouts
to vote for him
and other people’s land for free
squattingbut now the lord is not my shepherd
I have suffered many setbacks
my business operations have been closed my bank accounts frozen
my house has been demolished
my land has been confiscated
and unto me a new law hath been given:
“thou shalt praise the lordship in all his folliesâ€.
Wednesday, October 17th 2007 at 1:59 pm
Struggle is our birthright,
The poem by Cosmos Mairosi clearly typifies the Mugabe character in the world of politics. The clear message is of a population that had been cowed by one man and his cronies. Yet he stood so high like a giant colossus. All the pro-democratic forces can do now is inhouse fighting and squabbling. The struggles within the struggle will not help us so much, especially when we are few months from synchronised elections.
Wondered why the elections were synchronised at this stage. Realised that there was a lot of fighting with the ruling elite, Mugabe realised that his survival was not guaranteed. He was not sure whether the factions would support him and campaign for him. As usual Mugabe emerged the schemer by binding his MPs and his fate together. You campaign for yourself in the name of ZANU-PF, you campaign for Mugabe. But whether we covertly or overtly revere him, we must not at all costs idiolise him because he has been feeding on that since independence. Remember when our mothers woke up so early because the saviour was to address at the local growth point? Why do we forget when we made him into a god? We never used to bother to know about or engage in democratic discourse back then, and yet we were making him immortal.
The question is always on what course of action to do, to rally behind the formidable opposition that is available, not as its supporters but as a way out. Let’s guard against creating cults behind our political leadership, we once did it and let’s be weary. MDC must press for those in the diaspora to vote . Remember that you are negotiating with a devil at the table, and when you are eating with Judahs be carefully you might be poisoned. Alexander, yes, gave some concessions at one point but they were – too little too late.
Saturday, October 20th 2007 at 6:30 pm
[...] Kubatana.net: The Lord is My Sheppard but now the lord is not my shepherd I have suffered many setbacks my business operations have been closed my bank accounts frozen my house has been demolished my land has been confiscated and unto me a new law hath been given: “thou shalt praise the lordship in all his folliesâ€. [...]
Monday, October 22nd 2007 at 3:03 pm
WE CANNOT FAIL, WE HAVE TO SUCCEED.
I read with a lot of enthusiasim the poem by a budding poet who through his artistic talent has managed to mirror the state affairs in our Zimbabwe.The poem represents one of the many voices that continue to be silenced when they dare speak out their minds.We continue to live in a state where political power continues to be gained through the back of the button stick, where to qoute poet shoes lambada “politicians continue to shun majority rule and treat the majority as one fool”.We indeed have moved from the Great Zimbabwe that we loved to Zimbabwe ruins, from the once sun shine now shit of Harare.
Lord be our Sherpherd!