First Gong Vol. 8: Thrust FIRST GONG 8 THRUST | Page 129

THE NEW DECALOGUE - Lolade Oye
It is true that fresh air is good for the body,
And so in this season of air scarcity
we are especially grateful Mr. Minister
for the monthly AIDS allocated to us
in order to breathe freely.
Some do not take this for a luxury
So I beg these of you sir;
Terminate the oxygen you use
In nursing our ancestral potholes
They’ve birthed living death traps
who are old enough to swallow even degrees,
gotten from the school of life.
In the new constitution,
call your religion its true name Sir,
the one whose fragrance fanatically reeked on you
even as you swore by the holy book
on your revolutionary honor
push inky thoughts out of our penciled mouths
brew a pot of mutiny in our hungry minds
so when it’s another thanksgiving without a turkey
we remember not the sixth commandment
only the need for fresher air.
Lolade Oye
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