...soothing spring for all who thirst UITES WRITE. An Anthology of Poems by UITES. Volume One

Transcription

1 ...soothing spring for all who thirst UITES WRITE An Anthology of Poems by UITES Volume One The journey took me like in a swirl through curves and crevices, and streets broad and narrow and left me richer than when the journey began. Dr Olayinka Egbokhare

2 UITES WRITE Soothing spring for those who thirst Produced by UITES CREATE what starts here changes our world Subscribe to now

3 WHAT STARTS HERE CHANGES. OUR WORLD UITES WRITE UITES MEET UITES SPEAK UITES CREATE

4 to Ibadan, of course

5 FOREW0RD Writing the foreword to some books can be a daunting undertaking, as one would have to grope for words that present a good fore to the readers. My task was made easy because the journey through this maiden edition of UITES WRITE was smooth sailing for me. It was as if I got an opportunity to meet some imaginary friends and have a vacation in their minds. The journey took me like in a swirl through curves and crevices, and streets broad and narrow and left me richer than when the journey began. It feels like a breath of fresh air to have an initiative like this coming from a generation that some critics fear are too loud to appreciate quiet. In fact, when I saw the opening montage with the pictures of some of the writers, and I saw the partially raised but unseen arm characteristic of the 'selfie', I thought to myself 'uhm, there we go again, the selfie generation I have however been cured of my doubts by the array of topics covered in this anthology. Maybe more inspiring and humbling is seeing that most of the contributors are not in University of Ibadan to learn Poetry and may never have taken any writing classes or gone through any literary appreciation course. I saw the diversity in the kaleidoscope of themes; from death to life, religion or faith, politics to poverty, place to yet another place: be it Nigeria, Lagos or our own Belly of the earth Ibadan. Of course, the anthology would have been incomplete without the plethora of love poems and there were quite a few of them. Some of the love poems were light, some heavy, some bright, some clouded, some celebrating love but many speaking of the loss of love and leaving me wondering if really the writers' hearts were broken or these are just poets in love with love. There were no taboo topics here, even suicide made a cursory appearance within the pages and so did waste disposal among other things. It is refreshing to see intending Pharmacists, Doctors, Engineers and other scientists become word -smiths who succeeded in breathing fresh air into this favourite pastime of many sages. We are introduced to words like cellules and expressions such as brain cells on full time, one of the poem had the appearance of a typical computer programming sheet All these are clear indications that boundaries are disappearing between artistic artistes and scientific artistes, art is simply just arts. I

6 FOREW0RD One other interesting aspect of the diversity in this anthology is the names of the contributors. It is like a roll call of the tribes in Nigeria and this is a delightful experience, which affirms that ours is truly a Federal University. This is a reassurance that 'though tribes and tongues may differ, in brotherhood we stand. Here, everyone speaks the same language: poetry. This is simply refreshing. I must not forget to mention the inspiring titles of the poems, the fever of imageries unleashed in poem after poem, the unique charm of the different contributors, dialogues that still read like monologues all the stylistic devices. We even got a little taste of pidgin poetry. One or two of the poets took licence to employ more words and long lines. This made their contribution resemble the prose form but they still succeeded in passing the message across. Reading through this anthology invoked in me a deep respect for our students for their literary prowess and interest or what the UITES WRITE team called Literary Verve. It opened to me the realities in the lives of our students and made me to take them more seriously than I had done hitherto. This laudable project again is further proof that University of Ibadan is the fountainhead and a true trail- blazer. I expect to see me- too projects springing up everywhere after the release of this anthology. But, that is not a problem, we got here first, so we cannot help but lead the way. When I got close to the last set of entries in the collection, I started feeling nostalgic, as if I was about to leave my friends. Then I saw the poem titled 'Life is a poem' and I relaxed a bit. But the real salvo came when I read another entry which said 'this end, know all, is but the beginning of no end'. I smiled then knowing I would miss my new friends for only a while as this is but a bus stop and not the end of the road. This is just volume one and there is more coming from this creative potpourri. I commend this anthology to you wholeheartedly, and I tell you with all sincerity that you should expect a refreshing drink as this is indeed- like a line of our University anthem quoted by the team in the introduction of this work a soothing spring for all who thirst Enjoy! Olayinka. A. Egbokhare. University of Ibadan. ii

7 The University of Ibadan (UI) is no doubt the greatest university in Nigeria. Since 1948, UI has churned out graduates- some of whom turned out to be the greatest and highest-achieving Nigerians and Africans till date. In the literary scene, Soyinka, Achebe and Okigbo are some names that certainly cross the mind in this regard. Literature has however lost the spotlight it once enjoyed, especially in the University. This is not for a dearth of artists or artistry, but that there has been little or no platform to support literary writing. After we came to this conclusion, the onus then fell on us to do our best to provide such a platform for UITES, which would include undergraduates, post-graduate students and alumni. Thus we created UITES WRITE which will be a platform to promote art especially Poetry, Prose and Photography. We decided to start with poetry, as it is the most widespread form of written art in the University of Ibadan. The idea was to collect the best poems by UITES and publish as an e-book to be shared among people who admire poetry. It seemed very ambitious at the beginning, as we were faced with a number of conundrums. We however reignited our determination by thinking, if anyone could do this, it was us. We sent out calls for entries and waited. Entries trickled in slowly at first, so slowly we thought receiving 100 poems was a Holy Grail. But, we were surprised when entries exceeded three hundred. We were elated, and on the other hand, we felt the burden of responsibility upon us- hundreds of UITES had entrusted us with their artistic creations and we could not afford to disappoint. To go through selection and other decisions, we each suggested three individuals we knew were capable, making a team of 8 that cut across different faculties- from Technology to Law to Arts to Pharmacy. Selection of poems was done with each panellist being oblivious to the identity of the poets. To show the diversity in Poetry written by UITES, we wanted the anthology to embody different styles, lengths, themes, and other variations, and so we did not define the theme for the entries. The selected two hundred and thirty eight (238) poems cut across themes such as love, Nigeria, politics, religion, computer programming, social criticism, Science and so on. They were again read by all panellists and edited for punctuation errors mostly, avoiding disruption to the poetic structure and style as much as possible. The next item on our checklist was design, and we spent quite a while deliberating on the title, structure, graphics and other related decisions. We eventually decided to break the anthology into two separate volumes, to ease the handling of the e-book. We also decided to leave the title as "UITES Write: A Collection of Poems by UITES", as well as borrow a line from the UI anthem, "Soothing spring for all who thirst." It was a challenging journey, as we had to optimise our time and very limited resources, but at last, we are here, home and dry. We feel highly privileged to be the torchbearers of history. We intend that this anthology be the first of many, and we have even bigger plans to promote Arts, Science, Technology as well as business in the University of Ibadan. On behalf of the UITES Write team, we'd like to heartily wish good tidings on every one of our readers. May the soothing spring never dry. PREFACE Dolapo Amusat. Habeeb Kolade iii

8 ABOUT UITES WRITE UITES WRITE is a platform for the showcase of arts by University of Ibadan students, founded by Habeeb Kolade and Dolapo Amusat. We aim to create a culture around arts, promote artistry, and reinitiate it as the widely appreciated form of expression. Our core categories are Poetry, Prose, and Photography and then other related works of art. Thus, our goal is create a community of past and present University of Ibadan students who are exploring their creativity in art and to offer art loving people and the general public a spectacle to behold at each of our post. We would publish new collections periodically, ranging from poetry, prose, paintings, photography which people can download and share. Follow our social media pages for more exciting arts you can enjoy and share Facebook: UITES WRITE Website: We are willing to share arts submitted to us in any of this categories on our digital platforms which cuts across our social media pages and blog. You can reach us via poemsbyuites@gmail.com. UITES WRITE is a part of UITES CREATE which aims to inspire creativity, community and innovation. DISCLAIMER The owners of the poems herein published retain copyrights to their poems and poems may only be used if permission is granted by them. UITES WRITE and UITES CREATE were given permission to use these poems for the anthology when contributors sent in their poems for the anthology. iv

9 ACKNOWELDGEMENT What is an anthology without poems? We are grateful to all the writers who contributed to this publication. We appreciate that we were trusted with their poems and the patience they had while all these went on. We wish we could fit in all the poems. However, we hope our efforts create a resounding trust that we could also be trusted in the future. We express our unreserved gratitude to the editors who offered their time and expertise to go through our over 400 submissions. They ensured we have these thrilling poems to read from. We thank Dr Olayinka Egbokhare for her generous remarks and her acceptance to write us a foreword. When we started this, we couldn't have imagined that a respected author whose book is not only read widely but was made into a blockbuster movie by one of Nigeria's foremost filmmakers, Tunde Kelani. We also thank Mark Zuckerberg for making our online office space affordable. From the conception of the idea, to the execution and the publication, our team did not meet physically until three days to launch when we decided to have a get together. We hope to continue to have solutions to enable seamless collaboration amongst dedicated minds and we would love that some of these solutions come from Nigerians. We would like to acknowledge the supports of all those who supported us during the project. Those who shared our posts, liked our posts and commented on them. Their actions motivated us into working harder. We would also like to thank you for downloading this copy. We believe that this will not be your last as we would continue to surprise you with more exciting anthologies from the brilliants minds of University of Ibadan students. We would also like that you continue to visit our website to enjoy more contributions from UITES. Thank you. v

10 MEET THE TEAM KUNLE ADEBAJO MELLANBY HALL LAW Kunle Adebajo is a student of the legal trade in his fourth year. He hails from the Gateway State, precisely Ijebu-Ode local government. He enjoys speechifying, essaying and composing works of poesy. He currently occupies the office of the Editor-in-Chief, Mellanby Hall Press Organisation and was the Editor-in-Chief of Adh- Dhikr Press in the previous session. He is a two-time finalist in the Christopher Okigbo Poetry Contest and a finalist as well in the 1st Professor Remi Raji Poetry Contest. He had the privilege of winning a number of essay competitions in the past. He definitely hopes to win more too. Kunle is a grey supremacist and when he is not busy writing or sleeping with a book in hand, he watches movies that make him feel smarter. DARAFUNMI OLANREWAJU OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL LAW Darafunmi Olanrewaju is an Arts enthusiast. When she's not writng, she's either reading or listening to some heart-felt music. She is a final year student of Law who has basked in the artistic scene of the university since her early days, by being the co-founder of TheStellarEnsemble- an Art platform for talented young Nigerians, which started in She's also passionate about clean and sustainable energy. Only things she loves more than Arts are God and her Neshama. MOYOSORE ORIMOLOYE INDEPENDENCE HALL PHARMACY Moyosore Orimoloye was born in Akure. While at the Premier University, he started a fortnightly meet of artists which he dubbed Arts n Chill where writers and other artists share their work over palm-wine. He has few of his poems on The Stellar Ensemble blog and has been published by Kalahari Review and The Rising Phoenix Review. He was shortlisted for the Isele! Spoken Word Poetry Prize in In 2014, he was part of the 80 poets that performed in honour of Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka at his 80th birthday. He is currently working on his first chapbook. OGUEJI KELECHI JOSEPH SULTAN BELLO HALL IND. AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING Ogueji Kelechi Joseph is a penultimate-year student of the University of Ibadan. He studies Industrial and Production Engineering. Kelechi began writing in 2013 after some persuasion from his friends. He loves to write poems and short stories, albeit, he thinks he is better with poems. He also has a Medium page on which he shares his many thoughts, ramblings and frailties. His other penchants include Coding and Rock music. When he is not writing, Kelechi is probably binging on a TV show. IG vi

11 MEET THE TEAM RASAQ MALIK NNAMDI AZIKIWE HALL ENGLISH Rasaq Malik is a graduate of the University of Ibadan. His poems have appeared in Heart Online Journal, Connotation Press, One, and Grey Sparrow. He is awaiting the publication of his debut poetry collection. Facebook: Rasaq Malik Gbolahan DOLAPO AMUSAT INDEPENDENCE HALL ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING Dolapo Amusat is a jack of many trades, and he's on his way to mastering some. He's an Engineering student who loves Math and Physics but views life from behind artistic lens. He started seriously writing Poetry in 2011, and founded The Stellar Ensemble, an online Art gang, with his bestfriend in TSE has over a hundred poems online, and has garnered several thousands of views. Dolapo was voted Most Versatile Student in his department in 2014, and when's he's not writing, he's probably listening to, or recording some rap music. Or, maybe just loving his neshama. OREDOLA IBRAHIM MELLANBY HALL LAW Oredola Ibrahim is a final year student of the Premier fount, Nigeria. Away from the torture of the legal studies, he found comfort in the warmth embrace of poetry. He is an award winning poet who thinks poetry can serve as a tool in tapping to some hidden knowledge. A self-acclaimed occultist, he engages in thinking about life when he s tired of living it. He s a believer in binary complementarity and an advocate for the gods. Facebook: Oredola Ibrahim HABEEB KOLADE INDEPENDENCE HALL MECHANICAL ENGINEERING Habeeb Kolade is a writer, digital marketing strategist, entrepreneur and a Mechanical Engineering graduate of University of Ibadan. He served as the Editor-in-Chief of Indypress Organisation at the University of Ibadan, Chief Executive Officer of StrictlyUI (A campus social website), and Digital Content Creator for AMVCA 2015 and Nigerian Idol 2015 amidst several other positions. He hopes to create and execute moonshot ideas. He is passionate about leading Africans through a generation of development using an entrepreneurial approach. Later in life, he hopes to be the head coach of Manchester United FC. Facebook: Habeeb Professorr X Kolade vii

12 1. OMOTOSHO MARIAM Nameless (1) 2. OLAMIDE OLADIPUPO Tears of A Rainbow (2) 3. PAUL VICTORIA AMARACHI Sometimes I'm Ablaze (3) 4. ADEJUMO ADELEYE Cloud 9 (4) 5. ALUFA TEMIJUOPELO JAMES Rebel (5) A True Nigerian (6) Dream Father (7) 6. CHUKWUNIKE OBI For The Love Of Africa (8) Hungry Little Boy (9) Beauty Of Solitude (11) Was I Really Born To Die? (12) 7. SANUSI DOLAPO ASISAT I Still Love You (13) 8. OLAPEJU ABIGAEL OLATUNBODE In the Eyes Off (14) 9. DADA AYODELE Ritual (15) ROLL CALL 14. OLUFUNMILAYO EDWARD O. Sanity (28) Rods (29) Who Will Rescue You? (30) 15. ALABI BIDEMI Sun lower's Last Laugh (31) Runaway (32) Untitled (33) 16. OMOYA YINKA SIMULT Tongue and Tooth (34) How Do I Deal With This Gaping Hole (36) I Remain Calm (38) Once Upon A Time (39) 17. HAMZA FETUGA Race of Hearts (40) 18. OJUTIKU SHOLA GABRIEL The Story Of Time And Change (41) 19. FARAYOLA PRAISE OLOLADE God's Word (43) All Is Well (44) He Quits (45) Tainted (46) 20. SHODIPO AMINAH You're Such A Potato (47) 10. OLANREWAJU ANJOLA OREOLUWA Always and Forever (16) I See You (17) 11. ADEYEMI BABASANMI Sweet Little Girl (18) A Promise of Love (19) 12. FADUGBABGE OLUWANIFEMI A. A Home Without You (20) All We Shared (21) The Land Is All Stone Now (22) Not Unforgettable (23) Regrets (24) 13. OLATIDOYE KEHINDE MUYIWA An Ode to Persistency (25) Friends of a Season (26) Withering Flower (27) 21. OLANIYAN NATHANIEL A. The Darkness of Love (48) 22. TEJUOSO OLAMIDE Who Shall Aid Us (49) Singing Hearts (50) On The Road To Ibadan (52) Dark Quiet Night (53) A Message In The Cloud (54) 23. JEGEDE OLUWAKAYODE Dying With The King (55) My Baby's Gone (56) 24. OGUEJI KELECHI JOSEPH Mystery (57) My Muse (58) Utopia (59) Our Thing (60) Heaven (61) ix

13 25. ADENIRAN RIDWAN OLALEKAN Heartless Heart (62) Broken Hearts (63) Plea to Asake (64) Lagos (65) 26. OGUNFOLU ABDUL QUDDUS O. Us (66) The Realm (135) Scared (136) Today Is Passing Slowly (137) Black (138) 27. CEPHAS AFOLABI King Of The Street (67) 28. ETOOLUWA ATERE Agan (69) Government Pikin (70) My World (71) Friday Night and Young (72) 29. ADEWUMI MICHAEL OLUWASEUN The Madness of A Woman (73) 30. KANYINSOLA OLORUNNISOLA My Modern Society (74) I Search for You (76) These Words Will Protect Us (77) Black or Black-Ish (78) An African Bird Sings Its Last (80) 31. DAUD SHITTU Religion (82) 32. OLUTAYO JOY OWOJUYIGBE The Tyranny Of Mama Dero (83) The Creatures Of Eledumare (84) 33. AJIBIKE OYINDAMOLA Programming And Academics (86) Being An Undergraduate (87) 34. AKOREDE OYINDAMOLA BARAKAT Life (88) Tell Me Your Story (89) De iled (90) Pretty Woman (91) 35. OLO EGBOKHARE A Song: For Those We Lost To The Fires (92) ROLL CALL 36. DELE ALIMI TEMILOLUWA Times (93) It Hurts (94) Barriers (95) Supernova (96) 37. ODUWOLE SIMILOLUWA Pen Again ( 97) The Heart (98) Dawn (99) 38. RACHEL IGE Everyday Is A Poem (100) 39. KADRI BABATUNDE KADRI Voice of Hope (101) 40. OLANIYAN ISRAEL O. A Battle Of Terror (103) The Gods Care Really? (105) Ibadan Chorus (106) Lagos Dawn Traf ic (107) Literary Decadence (108) 41. AYENI SOLOMON The Nigeria of My Dream (109) 42. OBODE ELIZABETH Hands (110) Diamond Tears and An Empty Tomb (112) 43. OLA OGUN I Saw You In My Dreams (114) Solitude (115) Innocent Souls (116) Angels Of Tomorrow (117) 44. ABAYOMI AHMED TOSIN A Dance Of Divergence (118) The Lone Tract (119) My Far- Theme: Her (120) 45. AMOS OLUWATOBI ADEJIMI Lagos (121) Words (122) A Slave In My Country (123) A Free Man (124) 46. ORIMOLOYE MOYOSORE OLUSEYI Friday Routine (125) An Ode to Encryption (126) x

14 The Things We lose by Losing (204) First Law (205) Okiki (206) 47. TOBI IDOWU The Fate Of Our Faiths (127) Life (128) My Ears Are The Blue Sea (129) The End Of A Beginning (130) 48. TANITOLUWA ADEDOTUN Deal Of A Lifetime (131) 49. TOLULOPE OKE A Lump Of Light (132) Vanity (133) 50. OLAMIDE OLADIPUPO Will You Walk With Me (134) 51. KUNLE ADEBAJO An Ode To Abefele (139) Our Problem Their Problem (141) The Last Dose (144) 52. ABDUL KAREEM HAMID AYINDE Sea Of Crisis (146) Switching Allegiance (147) 53. BELLO SHAKIRAT The State Of My Country (148) My Food Affair (150) To Mum (151) A Rat On A Conquest (152) 54. ODUNAIYA LILY Affecting Shadows (154) Speak (155) 55. OJO DAMILARE GIDEON The Word (156) Patience (157) Tale Of A Giant (158) Shall We? (159) 56. ARUKWE SANDRA Lyric Of The Obscure (160) Those Eyes (161) 57. OBI-IBEH UCHENNA J. Lost (162) From Dew to Dust (163) ROLL CALL Oblivion (164) 58. MOF'OLUWAWO MOJOLAOLUWA Ubuntu (165) 59. FAKIYA VICTORIA My Heart Surgery (166) Love (167) Forever (168) 60. LAWAL ABDUL MUIZZ OLALEKAN The Little I Knew (169) Statue (170) Solar System (171) 61. OSENI ODUNOLA Seeking For A Lost Love (172) Love Starvation (173) 62. ADULOJU OLUWASEYI PHILEMON Cyclopes (174) The Travails Of The Travelling Martians (175) So Special (177) 63. OREDOLA IBRAHIM Imisi (178) Menumo (182) Ija N Gbara (183) Ireti (184) Akanda (185) 64. OKE EMMANUEL AYOMIDE Eclipse Of My Mind (186) My Friends (188) Pun (189) The Unfortunately Unlucky Tribe (190) 65. GIFT DAVID UZOR Things Fall Apart (193) Buried in the Slum (194) Go Away (195) 66. PEJU SOFELA The Pain (196) Love Insists (197) 67. BONA SOLOMON A Letter To Mum (198) Fade (199) On Your Own (200) Nigeria (201) xi

15 68. AFOLABI BOLUWATIFE How You Forget To Remember (207) To A Mission Returning From Utopia (208) Pillage (209) Revelations 3: 16 (210) For Anike (211) 69. ADEBOLA ABIMBOLU God's Wonder (212) The Waves (213) Another Cold Night (214) 70. DARAFUNMI OLANREWAJU Escape (215) Soul Connect (216) Are You There (218) Trickle (219) Lover Man (220) 71. DOLAPO AMUSAT (Uncharted) Waters (221) You Would Be God (222) Ibadan (My Heart) (223) Fair in love and war? (225) Hawking's Law (226) 72. MAKINDE DAMILOLA PETER The Miseries Of Those Fellows (227) Oladunni (229) 73. OLALEYE SAMUEL ABIODUN Destiny Abattoir (231) How Long Shall We Tarry (232) Change To Make A Change (233) 74. OSHO SAMUEL I Want Change (234) Where Is Change? (236) 75. SALIHU SALAMAT You (237) Hate (238) Late (239) Lost Soul (240) 76. AKINPELU YUSUF The Harmattan (241) 77. CHIKWADO NWATTAH Ode To A Never Receding Echo (242) Waiting (243) ROLL CALL Bird (244) Conundrum (245) 78. TOYIB BABATUNDE AREMU Where She Goes (246) Last Request To Dignity (247) 79. SOLADOYE-ADEWOLE TIWALADE Changing The World (249) The Loner (250) 80. ADEGOKE AYODEJI SOLOMON Dad's Advice (251) 81. ADEYEMI OLUWADUNSIN Voices of Hope (253) 82. SUNDAY FADIPE Shall We? (254) We Shall Talk (271) One Time Plebs (255) Wailing Wailers (256) 83. ALAO DOLAPO My Shadowy Embers (257) Forget (258) This Is Where I Leave You (259) Monk'o Polo (261) 84. NWABUIKE ONAH I am Tomorrow (262) Aluta (263) 85. JOSEPHINE OHAERI Black Bird (264) 86. HABEEB KOLADE We Can Be Heroes (265) What Do You Think Of Life? (266) Never Give Up (267) Imperfect Me (268) A Song To Sing (269) 87. BALOGUN TOBI ADISA My Present Future Eternal Positivity (270) 88. MOJOLAOLUWA OLAIFA The Right Kind Of Wrong Loving (272) I Know What A Goodbye Looks Like (273) xii

16 VOLUME ONE

17 Nameless One day I met a boy named Chuks No lies, no flaws, Honesty all through. And soon he came around on a Sunday noon, The door was open And his entry smooth... And he came again on Monday noon No lies, no flaws It all seemed so true... The next day, He wanted the veil removed No lies, no flaws I didn't even think it through Then the next day It was the veil and something too No lies, no flaws I just obliged too Until the next time when I met him true All the while it was only a facade far from the truth Feeling blue, I left in ruins; Then again I heard something boom I looked behind to see him in view Love charged at me like a lion fiercely would And then I saw someone who looked like you, Running so fast, I just hoped that it wasn't you Two things really I wanted to do But the truth was this fear wouldn't let me through And before I could say Jack and Jill through I fall flat with all limbs in view Only for me to see you clearly too And then suddenly it dawned on me too That no lies, no flaws, May not always be honestly true. Omotosho Mariam QUEEN ELIZABETH Hall LAW Don't ask questions even if you want to All of this may not be completely be untrue Maybe He is even reading this too... 1

18 Tears and A Rainbow If my tears could be in shades Of different hues and varying lengths. My tears would be red A balance of wine and blood Of love and hurt Trickling down my gaunt cheeks. Or perhaps orange Without patches of variant yellow Nor tarts of unripe green Orange, as mature citrus. My tears, a tincture of blue, Clear as the night sky but milder A bit of open blue sea at noon Soothing and abundant as sea. My tears, the little purple stalk Pouring gently but with truth As pleasant as it is painful For purple is the colour of truth. If my tears could be in shades Of different hues and varying lengths. Olamide Oladipupo 2

19 Sometimes I m Ablaze Sometimes I sleep, sometimes I'm awake; Sometimes I read or spend my time at the lake. Sometimes I sing, sometimes I chat; Sometimes I pray with my spirit on alert. Sometimes I walk, sometimes I dance; Sometimes I hope I would be given a chance. Sometimes I'm amazed, sometimes I'm afraid; Sometimes I'm abound, Sometimes I'm ablaze. Sometimes I eat, Sometimes I drink; Sometimes I'm lost looking for a link. Sometimes I learn, Sometimes I teach; Sometimes my faith seems out of reach. Sometimes I watch, Sometimes I act; Sometimes I talk without getting facts. Sometimes I speak, Sometimes I listen; Sometimes I'm hurt without a reason. Sometimes I cry, Sometimes I laugh; Sometimes I wonder when to sieve the chaff. Paul Victoria Amarachi BOTANY QUEEN IDIA HALL 3

20 Cloud 9 Have been to places higher than the 'Everest' A journey of nine miles for those who never rest My mind is the new Africa gripped with unrest. Mary Jane my treasure I enclose in my chest When it's dark and silent I'd talk to the sun When it's bright and sunny I'd talk to the moon I'd spread your nature under the sun I'd burn your skin and shed your cocoon You fit best in your white garment Mary Jane is a star in the firmament I'd kiss you with the kisses of my lips And hold you close by your hips Her perfume hangs in the air in a wreath Slowly and gently I inhale her breath. Adejumo Adeleye LAW SULTAN BELLO HALL 4

21 Rebel Alufa Temijuopelo James LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Love is curtailed by secret demands Of the elixir of abundance. She groans to her disciple Telling them that abundance Is her prerequisite The key that chains her soul The black man that ravished her red. She was raised by the un-written Yes! I too attest to this. But in the garden She too saw that red was colour. Ignorance is innocence To know is to be damned. The security officer behind me Wants to lick the syrup That pours out of love's bosom Alas! All he tastes is bitterness. Defeated, he crawls back To the hut of abundance... 5

22 A True Nigerian Alufa Temijuopelo James LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Born in a nation knee deep in a mire of shame With political pigs squealing sounds Strangely rooted in the language of debauchery. Every day, I see the horns of the mighty Scattered across the world As I sit at home waiting To suck the remains of their excrement. Hoping to find the odour of hope Submerged in the sweet smell of hypocrisy. Can I still be a true Nigerian? To that, I say a resounding yes! The very demons that plague the soul of our nation Bring out the saints that we are Cowering in the shadows... 6

23 Dream Father To the father of our dreams Whose last words were to tend our flames Here is my flame extending to your fire. Alufa Temijuopelo James LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Dream Father, I saw your fire and thought it insanity For the colours of your fire Showed us that the world like a proud mother Boasted that it had birthed its flame-children Only that their glow was blanch, sapped of every ounce of 'it'. In your fire we watched as the world crucified its muse And my theory of your insanity lies in this fact: That you set out with the colours of your fire Teaching flame-children to resurrect their muse. However, now that I have become a disciple, I glory in the insanity we share. My only reservation is that you left us dream father, You planted the seed and never came back To check if those flames have become fire. You left me, dream father and now that insanity we once shared Moans, slowly waning into sanity... So if my testament arouses your anger, let it be, For you have slept too close at the lair of hypocrisy And I seek to drink deep once more, Of the cup of insanity... 7

24 For The Love Of Africa As I swam through the oceans of inspiration And made it to the shores of expression When I gazed through the eyes of admiration I fell into the trance of motivation Was it the greenness of her vegetation Or the dexterity of her creation? The selflessness of her procreation Or her unyielding zeal for emancipation? I never realized the beauty of the world Nor appreciated the works of the creator Until I found myself in Africa. As I returned to the stream of reality I was in a terrible state of anxiety My heart bled at the rate of mortality For she was a victim of calamity Though she was pregnant with prosperity On her head was the calabash of poverty Suddenly, she was in a realm of uncertainty Not until I heard the cry of natality Despite the state of its fragility The atmosphere was filled with tranquility I knew it was time for festivity Another hope of indemnity To be black is to be courageous To be black is to be a survivor.. Chukwunwike Obi LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL While I sat under the tree of meditation Relishing its fruits of deep reflection I saw the rise of a new generation Flying to me on the wings of aspirations Their resolve was of great determination To change conditions through education and vocations They were ready to fight oppression and exploitation The spirit of mediocrity could not stand against subjugation They had chosen the responsibility for revival and redemption So I arose to give them a great ovation But a little boy interrupted my acclamation These ones are not praise seekers They are inspired by the beauty of Africa Then I picked my pen to write a poem Simply for the love of Africa. 8

25 Hungry Little Boy Chukwunwike Obi LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL If only you looked at my side You'd see that I am burning inside If only you considered my plight You'd see that I've never known light My life has been a fight For survival and for life All I've known is strife Please let a brother live. I never chose my parents I never chose my fate My life is full of talents No platforms to display I sit here in the trash cans Praying for quails and manna Dreaming of my late mama Recalling her last stammer. To those with silver spoons That glister like the moon Won't you spare a bite Or help me reach my heights? I thought I had a right to life Conditions kill me everyday At times like this Death looks so good For when I steal You chase the thief. I run from hunger I land in thirst A child that's starving Can have no rest My refuge, the garbage My bed, the grass My rants are senseless My sense is ranting. 9

26 Hungry Little Boy (Contd) To Christians and brethren Christ died for me To Muslims and faithfuls I pray so often To the famous and great Your pride is vague For the truly great man Is stirred by compassion. Of all the laws and customs Rights and obligations Of all constitutional chapters Sections and subsections A right to food Is a right to life A right to clothing Is part of living A right to shelter Makes life worth living I'm just a hungry little boy. Chukwunwike Obi LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL 10

27 Beauty Of Solitude Chukwunwike Obi LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Was it not yesterday, That I came into this world Innocent and inspired Filled with expectations Of a beautiful world Visible in my dreams? Was it not yesterday That I discovered I am unique Talented and blessed A leader of tomorrow To leave the world a better place And secure myself a place in heaven? Was it not yesterday That I ran mad Stricken and nauseated By mediocres and pretenders Destroying my homeland And frustrating all good efforts? Was it not yesterday That I found myself in this rat race Shocked and dumbfounded By the selfishness of human nature? If every man is to live for himself What then differentiates us from animals? Was it not yesterday That I spoke to my friends Youthful and strengthened Of the beauty of honesty and diligence? How I sounded like a fool! An object of derision and laughter. Was it not yesterday That I sat down to ponder Hopeful and hopeless Clueless of today Afraid of tomorrow In the beauty of solitude? 11

28 Was I Really Born To Die? I lie here in my bed Dressed in shreds of red My days have been so short Acute pains have been my lot I foresee the day I'm going to rot In the confines of a little vault Attempts to live have come to naught My dreams are filled with scenes of draught One question troubles my heart at night Was I really born to die? I've always loved the doctor's coat His ever dangling stethoscope I really want to be like him Doesn't matter the books to read I marvel at the piano's sound That makes me want to swirl around I really want to play the chords If only I could lift my corpse One question troubles my heart at night Was I really born to die? Sometimes I wish my days could end All my organs to the needy lend It is so sad I have no friend They can no longer stand my stench Just like grandma, I cannot bend I wonder who I did offend I'm told with money this would end My family still struggles to fend One question troubles my heart at night Was I really born to die? Chukwunwike Obi LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL My soul can't wait for paradise Where I will finally arise I should have appetite for rice And all my days be filled with spice This earth could be paradise too If humans could give out their loot My excruciating pains to soothe To give my skinny face a smile One question troubles my heart at night Was I really born to die? 12

29 I Still Love You Sanusi Dolapo Asisat PHARMACY OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL Alone I lie Brain cells on full-time The memory lanes Where I currently reside How stupid I was I thought I could Receive love and kindness from you But shattered you left me With the shreds of my heart Deserted me like gutter waters You made me lose my true nature My worth, my confidence All down the drain What I need is you Could you please revive this grain? Erase all this pain Glue the shreds of my heart Shower me with your rain of love Come hold me in your arms Let all remain as it all began 13

30 In The Eyes Off Topaz shared a few words with Gold She said: Fertile Green with envy. Early Blue clear skies Galahad Surprisingly Purple. Damn!! Hot in Red Pricy Glowing Yellow. Blind Shades of Gray Elegant Simply White. Fragrance Lavender seeds Silence! So says Black. Fluffy Whipping Cream Weird A burst of Orange. Solitude Lemon aids For packaging You need Brown. Suddenly!! Teal calls Matte to tell her: 'Nude says hi.' Pretty in Pink Dainty Orchids Ivory Towers overseeing Champagne Flutes. Olapeju Abigail Olatunbode LAW OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL Please Maroon 5 needs A glass of Wine Peach drinks Indigo swims After all Silver said 'Imagine, create, and design.' 14

31 Ritual Dada Ayodele COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS INDEPENDENCE HALL Clocking away is existence As I walk the shadows of life Meaningless remain earth's essence For why did he truly grant us life. A darkness of doubts as to what lies beyond Covers my vision I try to sing away my sorrow a melodious song Truly, life must be an illusion. I rise again from my nightly earthly slumber Is that all it is to life on earth Surely this existence must hold something more in yonder What then justifies my being my birth. I pinch myself to reality I must have been dreaming again But then I think to myself in reality Truly I must have something different from life to gain. For this life seems nothing but a wake And sleep an observance of daily ritual Till man breathes no more and goes on his final break Life may just be a ritual. 15

32 Olanrewaju Anjola Oreoluwa AGRICULTURE INDEPENDENCE HALL Always And Forever One day, pigs may fly The oceans may dry The ground may reach the sky And the wise may not know why. One day, time may wait for man Space may lift its ban The sun may cease to tan And grace may leave the swan. One day, you may change your mind And choose to leave me behind To another, you may now be kind And my mind, I may no longer find. But even on that day Even when all I have is gone away My love shall be the same Always and forever, my dame. 16

33 I See You Olanrewaju Anjola Oreoluwa AGRICULTURE INDEPENDENCE HALL From a distance Across the boundaries of space and time In the similitude of one divine I see you. As your image forms on my retina I die for a second Cause my heart misses a beat I see you. You're scared, you're shy You don't know if you're good enough You don't know, beautiful begs to be you I see you. I couldn't try to describe your pulchritude Otherwise, I'd fail Cause my memory, my imagination, they would never reach I see you. And when I'm with you Time collapses, words taper to winds The whole world dissolves and it's only you I see I see you. 17

34 Sweet Little Girl Adeyemi Babasanmi MECHANICAL ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL Her face, The perfect cover for what lay below, now hides her sorrow, her tears enclosed; Her hands, Her tender loving hands, like her heart, Now hardened like stone, for earth's men; It's blurry now, her once bright future; It's clear now, where she stands is nothing but wrong; This, she knows, but would not change, Sadness of heart, engulfs her within; Her eyes cry for tears, But she doesn't ever cry, her heart yearns for love, she seals this inside; One look in her eyes, she'll eat you alive, But with each bite, she dies inside; Sweet little girl, oh sweet little girl, Love you seek, Lust you find, The path you take is not divine... 18

35 A Promise Of Love Two lonely hearts, one lonely night, a simple spark, true love ignites; A promise of love, and hearts entwined, a blissful bloom had then begun; Feeble, fragile, unknown to them, a little storm, and tides would turn; A little storm, massive devastation, the lovely pair, fell to tribulation; Bridges burned in silent night, woe betide her riding knight. Adeyemi Babasanmi MECHANICAL ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL 19

36 A Home Without You Tears of pain They were all I knew Pains of betrayal That was all I'd felt Wasted emotions Was our hallmark When there was a us Fadugbagbe Oluwanifemi A. DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL But alas I felt happiness again In your absence It felt really strange Seeing as your presence was all I knew It felt like I had come home To where I really belonged A home without you. 20

37 All We Shared As I lay on my bed, memories of you keep coming back Be calm, I tell my treacherous heart He doesn't care anymore Maybe he never even did Maybe he wasn't ever capable. Fadugbagbe Oluwanifemi A. DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL All we shared runs through my mind trying to reflect on any misread signals trying to determine any misread sentences trying to know it was as real for you as it was for me. If it was, please explain the distance the space the vacuum the vast voidness created by your absence Or maybe all I had was an illusion of your presence. 21

38 This Land Is All Stone Now Even if you came back To water the already wilted seeds They wouldn't grow. Even if you ploughed The vast lands of my heart Futile is your effort Because the land is all stone now. Even if you prayed For the rains to come To touch the stony lands It wouldn't. Drought is all you're left with Dried up seeds Stony lands All because you never acted as you should have. Maybe in the next season Or another land With new seeds. Fadugbagbe Oluwanifemi A. DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL 22

39 Fadugbagbe Oluwanifemi A. DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL Not Unforgettable I thought you needed a friend, so I was there I thought you needed support, so I gave you mine I thought you needed someone to call yours, so I was there I thought you needed inspiration, again I was there. You proved to me in no small measure How wrong I was to think that How wrong I was to be there How wrong I was to stand by you How wrong I was to defend you to the world. You aren't indelible Unforgettable Unerasable Irresistible You are a mere man Strengthened by my words My actions My heart But now I take the strength back Leaving you feeble in my mind Close to obliteration. 23

40 Regrets Fadugbagbe Oluwanifemi A. DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL Regrets Tears of regrets Pools in my eyes Unshed Right on the brim. I try to hold on To think of happier times To think of good times But they are tainted. By words unsaid Feelings untold Things undone Emotions untrue. So they fall Mascara stained A streak of black Cascading down my cheeks Leaving a path behind. Not unlike what you left When you went After setting fire To my heart Leaving the black Leaving the ashes. 24

41 Olatidoye Kehinde Muyiwa SPECIAL EDUCATION SULTAN BELLO HALL An Ode To Persistency I had run on the hills and my feet become rock: strong and thick I had prod the thorny ground and my legs become thin; red and weak Aimless I move about inside sun, inside rain and I am weary and sick. I trod the thorny land of the thickest monstrous forest-jungle Rain flows from my humble face and I began to grumble In an unknown strange voice that forces out of my mouth when I stumble Beasts scare, Lions roar, and lonely I was when they begin the rumble. To the creator I shout, why all this for me and for me alone? What have I to do here, where no one and nothing seems known In the wilderness I cried for I was beaten by the sinister so unknown. My heart is full of heavy load, and no moment passed without gnashing On the knees I supplicate for I need to say and keep asking. In the desert I move, where land is hot and so very unbearable Absence of comforter crowned the ordeal and all seems unfavourable Sour is the life for thee hath treated me thus when I was invisible. Inside unfriendly naked-nature of nutrient-less weather I wander Running left and right in a shabby cloth like mad man in the marketplace The wicked hand of the rude sun slaps my skull and brushing my dying face Thus I move steps beyond for all that behind are so terrible and wicked. All this suffers no scintilla of false-talks but of pure concrete proof That I am treated in life a special soul abandoned in the roof. Behold! All condition never stay long, and so ephemeral it is I fell in trance, I wake up in Arabian desert spot of Oasis I feel relaxed, the old hath passed away, and new era it is. In the vineyard of which the running spring flows never-seized, I am The ever living courtesies which are from the Lord, all falls on me I eat, I drink and I move about in free heart in the premises of the supreme. 25

42 Friends Of A Season Olatidoye Kehinde Muyiwa SPECIAL EDUCATION SULTAN BELLO HALL They come again, my rare friends I mean the unruly sycophant friend That market the product of wits The unfriendly friend of THE SEASON Inveigle the faculties of the innocent How are you doing? So they said With beautifie-ugly face and mended voice Nothing but for their sole-wish To concretize with bizarre 'servilitude' Room to room, branch to branch turns routine Corners and every corner, they lament Ultimate-ly search, searching vain glory Watch them! Their love is shea-butter in the sun It lives no permanent Watch them! Their word is water in the basket It never get to the brim Friends indeed, When I see them Propagating the dreams The undreamt dreams I shine mine teeth to the glittering sun Burst into laughter like clapping of thunder For clean it is Nothing have they to offer Insolence mirror their being Walking majestically with creased face Hath they understand not that That a moment shalt be for their need A time they long for help And they receive not A time their face be clad in salty-water And they shalt no see help, For they are insolent But even for they know no-thing About where they head to You only see the golden seat You know not what make it Thou want be seated and pick the fruit The fruit that hath no your sweat Neither hath it your monetary My vote is never be a waste: We, our vote be no waste That seat meant not for fame seeker It is there for the diligent, and no one but that alone Stay away for the sword of Damocles Already dangle over you. 26

43 Withering Flower There once was this great flower Beautiful to behold in my fatherland From which the ancestors was made I mean the great-grand generations were made with wisdom, with knowledge, with understanding from the epoch I know, it was called Respect I know also, my land is named modest. Because both hold high the pillar of my cultures that which was passed on from the ancestors I learn clothing, I know befitting attires I learn speaking, I know moral words that settle chaos and put world in peace I learn manners, I know worthy characters I learn nutrition, I know healthy foods. I learn entertainment, I know beautiful music Music that talks moral to man's ears I learn words, I know witty sayings I learn morals, I give respects All kudos to this flower of mine great ancestors Alas! Ancestors gone, flower withers getting dried from its core root ancestors weeping: for the children respect the norms no more For they trade gold with nothing. Olatidoye Kehinde Muyiwa SPECIAL EDUCATION SULTAN BELLO HALL They call me inferior if I wear my ancestors Aso Oke They call me Low if I speak in my mother tongue I am barbaric if I eat my local dish But I am great when I stand and stretch my palms to elders for handshake I am superior when I speak in strange man's dialect They call me Fashion when I wear shameful cloths I am a VIP when I eat Amala with spoon. Banana is getting spoiled, they say it is ripening Weep no more, Ancestors for all shall be well! 27

44 Sanity If you see Àmòpé Tell her She was in my dream yesternight We had a feast under the moonlight Her eyes were the feast My eyes were the cutlery. And during the day When I walk through the busy paths That lead to the stream I see her smiling face Plastered over the faces of everyone. If you see Àmòpé Tell her There is a boy somewhere Who needs his sanity back. Olufunmilayo Edward O. MEDICINE AND SURGERY ALEXANDRE BROWN HALL 28

45 Rods Will you let me in Into the hallways of your mind And let me bask In its lucid waters. Will you let me walk On the paths that lead to you And make footprints On the melted gold that paves your soul. Or will you make me stay outside Forlorn, Cold, Lonely. I have chosen To be drenched and immersed in you Than to be mauled by rods of the rain. Olufunmilayo Edward O. MEDICINE AND SURGERY ALEXANDRE BROWN HALL 29

46 Who Will Rescue You When they all vanish Those you thought were your kin The one you thought was your lover. Who will rescue you? When the birds in your garden stop humming When the bees stop buzzing And their wings lose their vigour. Who will rescue you? When the pretty sounds stop And the silence thereof is too loud To hear your heart plead for a companion. Olufunmilayo Edward O. MEDICINE AND SURGERY ALEXANDRE BROWN HALL Who will rescue you? When loneliness becomes your lover And you are but a single lonely shrub in the desert. Who will rescue you? 30

47 Sunflower s Last Laugh Gently sat I taking in the breeze as do I everyday of my life reveling in the relief of it. Come along then did the little butterfly with its slick multicolored coat, no 'hello' said he as on me he landed He brushed off a thousand pollens and my yellow robe stained he. Back and forth moved I in an attempt to wave him off but persist did he, and on went he to sip at my nectar. A sip did he take and leave but, back came he to feed away on my all-year-round work, and with no goodbye nor thanks, empty as ever did he want to leave me. But on came a little boy, rushing towards us both; Taking off from me, the wrong choice made he For into the waiting hands of the boy did he fly, The last laugh had I As I watched him flap To his death in agony. Alabi Bidemi DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY KUTI HALL 31

48 Runaway Alabi Bidemi DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY KUTI HALL Arike, my Arike U no say no be my fault Na true say I give you belle But how I no go run? Make ur papa break my head Abi make ur fighter mama Pour me hot water? Arike, remember that night Under the 'àgbálùmò' tree U no say I no wan do Na u draw me as I wan comot U say u dey cold Say make I keep you warm I for no gree But body no be firewood I try take am gently Na you pull me, U touch my face, u kiss my lips U rub my body, u say I sweet Na so my body tingle I look ur eyes, u say make I quick, I comot your cloth, I comot my own, I... Arike the rest na story. Now wey e don happen, My mama must not hear My papa must not too... The memories of dat cold night Dey haunt me ooo Arike, my Arike Daughter of Odelana, grand-daughter of Odesola To save my head, I must tear race I no want pikin now, I no wan die too. I sabi say no be ur fault 'pátápátá' But as tins be now My Arike, I must to run. 32

49 Untitled Alabi Bidemi DENTISTRY AND DENTAL SURGERY KUTI HALL I fear for tomorrow That it may not come That if it does I may be away It looks promising Yet delicate So I try to succeed Prior to it That if it comes That if I am, Or I am not... 33

50 Tongue And Tooth Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL DEDICATION For you, Ayosunkanmi, that this hovering vulture may pass, and leave the chicks unscathed, even stronger. I Have you not heard, Ayosunkanmi Of the story of the tongue and tooth? Has it not whizzed past your ears for once The captivating tale of their lives? II Bring a stool and sit, and lend your ears to this For today I shall install myself as a raconteur To narrate to you what you must have heard In a way you never did, that its lessons elude you not. III The mouth is a wide gate; it controls entry and exit Now and then, it goes agape for all that would to come in Inside lie the tooth and tongue, neighbours as old as man Both cordial friends, now symbionts over time. IV When the tongue is itchy, it calls the tooth for a scratch When the tooth is stained, it asks the tongue for a wipe They play with water as children; splashing and jumping Often resting on each other for mutual support.. V A day comes that the mouth passes in a tasty meat The tooth wants it all; the tongue wants it all Blinded by greed, none would reason with the other For victor to take all, a fierce fight ensues. VI The tooth bites the tongue so hard, lacerating it Vexed, the tongue spits out blood and stains the tooth Seeing their distracted attention, the meat sneaks away Hurrying down the tracts until save in the tummy comfort. 34

51 Tongue And Tooth (Contd) VII The fight is over, for the meat is now gone Only the tooth and tongue are left to themselves Shall they continue in their mindless animosity Or bury the hatchet for the sake of better days ahead? VIII Sweet sister, our story is like the tooth and tongue Being together for long, the bond's become strong Quite often, our souls inadvertently seek each other They say it's the power of blood, but ours is more. IX Perhaps you've forgotten; let me remind you Of those days we shared laughters and joy Perhaps it slipped your mind; let me bring back Our memories of heartful discussions and chats. X Are they now gone, sweet sister, are they? Those periods we ate amala from same plate Rolling our morsels in drawing okra soup Are they gone like a wild wind, Ayo? XI Are they now mere memories, big sister, are they? Those moments when I braved the heat of kitchen All to listen to your sonorous voice, as you forced Into my head invaluable culinary skills, gone? XII Let it be a dream, and let me wake soon from slumber To hear you talk about kinky and fluffy hairs Let it be a dream, and let me wake soon from slumber To have you serve me tiger-nut and garnished porridge. XIII You are a jewel that I cannot afford to lose So let's get over this misunderstanding And come out stronger, regardless of who was wrong Just like the tooth and tongue, who'll be friends forever. Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL 35

52 For Dare Amuda, that intelligent friend for whom there would never be a replacement, snatched away from our affectionate grip by the cold hands of Death. *** The air of sorrow fills me like an inflated balloon Where do I begin to recount this tale Of a flower that withered before its full bloom? Was it not just yesterday That we sat at this table together Laughing, chatting, as spoonfuls of rice Took jolly rides into our mouths? When I looked into your eyes then Calm as the still waters I did not see death How come they are now shut Never to see the light of the day? Ah, your chair has gone cold And where you used to lie Flourishes an audacious vacuum How do I recount this tale Without tears streaming down my face Like the rush of cascading waters? Is this the weight of grief This stinging heaviness of my heart? Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL How Do I Deal With This Gaping Hole Are you truly gone Only to now cross my path in fantasies? 36

53 Today, I have a thousand questions Would you come to that room in Tedder Where we discussed life and philosophy Citing great minds, books and trivialities? Would you, the son of Amuda? Over and again, shame on word That supposedly potent emissary of the gods As it hovers over your lifeless body, useless. Here, memories of you are an endless album Of smiles and truth Of stark contrast to the world For you were different In thoughts and hopes Mukaila, you stood apart In words and deeds Where do I keep these memories? How do I grapple with your absence? How do I deal with this gaping hole in my heart? How? They say you were hit By a hit-and-run driver That you struggled with agony Not giving up without putting up a good fight Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL How Do I Deal With This Gaping Hole (Contd) You fought well, Ogundare You fought well Rest well. 37

54 I Remain Calm Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL Adigun's heart is racing Election is tomorrow Ajani has refused to eat Election is tomorrow Akanni cannot sleep Election is tomorrow I tell you, it's their problem Tell your mother to bring me food Tell my friend to bring the palm wine Make my bed, for I shall sleep For why should I bother myself Because of what is not? Let them all vote, let me vote too. Maybe our votes will count or not I do not know; I cannot tell But I do know one thing for sure That my worries will change no thing I remain calm, like still water Let it rain fire and brimstone Let the mouth of the earth open Let the skies turn red and sun blue Let my chicken speak Queen's Yet I shall eat tonight, my dear I shall sleep, snore and wake at dawn. 38

55 Once Upon A Time Once upon a time when my heart belonged to me When it lay fallow and grew wild as a virgin land Bringing forth grasses and shrubs and trees Lo, the grasses bowed to the shrubs And the shrubs paid obeisance to the trees And all the trees genuflected to a tree But that tree kowtowed to none, for it was the iroko And my conveyor to Earth was it So, one day came a sheen caramel-skinned lady The one with the long and spotless legs That invited eyes to a feast of lust poised on pinnacles Yet my heart was with me, for I wouldn't let go Over to my side she sashayed, and held my hand in hers Still, my heart remained mine, for I wouldn't let go Then her mouth went agape, calling angels down As she sang me a serenade, her voice mocking the nightingale's Thereafter, my heart ceased to be mine For she'd mowed the grasses as well as the shrubs Installed herself as the Iroko, to which all were subject Cultivated the land with blossoming flowers Chrysanthemum and daffodils and jasmine, the tale went Omoya Yinka Simult MEDICINE AND SURGERY TEDDER HALL Of how I had become a 'lease' in my own land, she the 'leasor' "Give me back my land," I wept and pleaded She did, but my heart would never be wholly mine again. 39

56 Race Of Hearts Hamza Fetuga ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL Harmless and pure, Her smile resonates upon all things, So palpable, his heart goes into delirious fits, Like the light feathers of a cock when it shudders, You can hear it racing miles away, Boom boom Boom boom it goes, Brisk and quick Do hearts race out of fear? Fear of appearing shy or vulnerable, Or of excitement, The kind you feel when you're lost and you find a friend to guide you, Some say its the heart merely dancing to the melodious tunes of the beloved's breath, With vigour, vitality and profound joy. His heart is insane, And its illness is its cure. 40

57 Ojutiku Shola Gabriel ENGLISH The Story Of Time And Change The story of time is a deathless plot-less tale Swinging forth and back Back and Forth Then, now and again Events change as we do. Today makes yesterday A page in the text of history Tomorrow will make today same And the next will make tomorrow too. Time and history are accomplices. They are beings with tripartite soul Of ever tossing pendulum Maintaining the swing of change. Here, the faces of labour Are the soft sour smiles Of our people- the masses. And true change in this land Strengthens the economic seeds Of our gluttonous ancestors. The Vision of a Pen. Tonight, the wind walked in Like an audacious knight And the heat sexed it to coolness The coolness played me Tones of sweet lullaby Sending me on deep trance. The trance told me plotless tales That moved from present to past And past to future. 41

58 Ojutiku Shola Gabriel ENGLISH The Story Of Time And Change (Contd) I saw the past on the wings of a dove. She was an angelic bliss gone Never to revisit this hamlet. The hamlet turned litless As a whirlwind brokedown Shades-giving trees to open Our boulevard to scalding rays. The unknown coming days Were in silent sightless view Of ever glowing light-out. There, embers of bliss Were sacrilegious perfidy As forms were ritual satires. Now is the biting foreshadow To the wheel that will be wheeled To us at the clockwise journey Of the minute's legs of time When the tunnel shall be coal Without an atom of flicker In the gory godless end. So It Ends. All is gone that was, Loose is the bond that binds. Blind no more is our eyes of flaw, Empty is the bottle of our wine. I remember all that was And all we were. Now, what we are Is but stale wine. The eyes of my mind welled up To see the beautiful scenes of the past Now turned fantastic mirage Hope out of the fist Like gone morning mist. 42

59 God s Word Morning by morning, Night after night God's word and light, I study each day Hope and life, it gives a' fresh Soothing calmly my thirsty soul. Deep in me, down in me Runs a desire, to this daily dose Mysteries, gradually I begin to unravel Explanations, Solutions I begin to find. An hour, then two and then another Lost in history and stories untold, BUT Found in this world of reality Activities, essentials I must answer to Volume of books and arcade of tests Calling, nudging to get my time TIME a student must give to them What will my savior have me do? Things to Ceasar, to Ceasar I will give Things of God, to him I will tender There is time for everything Proper balance the word instills His spirit guiding me through it all. Farayola Praise Ololade ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL 43

60 All Is Well The cock crows Loudly at dawn Leaving me awake. The sun rises Sharply in the east Meeting me at work. The moon beams Stridently in the dark Meeting me asleep. The stars sparkle Silently in the sky Leaving a certain memo. To finish, you must start To arrive, one must go All is well All will be well. Farayola Praise Ololade ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL 44

61 He Quits Carefully, slowly The loop, he knots Quietly, gently The hold, he ascends The world He never conquered Himself He never believed Hope? He wholly despised. In goes the head Off, ensues the legs Far away, he drifts Free from all Free of all. Farayola Praise Ololade ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL 45

62 Tainted A baton for a gun Shoes, for a boot Carelessly, sketchily Hey, stop he barks. Farayola Praise Ololade ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL Deceptive looks Thawing Ragged questions Puzzling Greasy palms He finally extends. Boom!!! Gunshots Away he runs Hinds above head With his shady wits Aim and yearn. 46

63 Shodipo Aminah ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL You re Such A Potato I'll tell you about those I meet And how I don't want them And we'll laugh and joke About how I may die lonely. You'll tell me of lasses you meet I'll tell you to try to be with them So you won't end up alone But I'll hope you pick me over them. We won't say 'I love you' like normal people We'll say stuff like 'You're such a potato' But we'll both understand what that means We'll keep this going for months. I'll tell you to go out and find love You'll do just the same But deep down, we'll hope That we both come back empty handed. One day, you'll tell me you love me Not because you haven't always But because some things have to be said And I'll blush and say 'You're such a potato.' 47

64 The Darkness Of Love Is love then the mightiest force? Is darkness not far, and obviously stronger? I ask you! Hate and anger ruin worlds and people It turns green to ash, and skin to red Perhaps they all are the same with love But I assure you, at its purest form Love is not the mightiest force It is only a force, tempered A force which must touch lightly Against the skin of its lover Yet must know jealously her depth But then, is love the most worthy? Love and hate, history has shown Are not far part They are the same liquid For love spilling over in its cup Wreak much havoc as hate ascending steam Perhaps Perhaps, the heart of man is not wicked Perhaps, none is hateful neither any love-full Perhaps, we are all the same. Olaniyan Nathaniel A. MICROBIOLOGY INDEPENDENCE HALL 48

65 Who Shall Aid Us Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL With trembling knees we bowed Headily humble like led-rams The singers chorused the chants Clashing the cymbals, ringing the bells With heart full Each unclad virgin ran towards the river Like a panicking dog Carrying empty but healthy calabashes Each held the mission to appease 'Omimio, the god of waters.' Let us dance as we summon the spirit They screamed and blew As the ambiance shrunk, the clouds trembled The blue skies threatened to submit to the call of darkness A school of children sat round a drum of parboiled unsalted but oiled yam Poor children where are your Mothers? On skins beside the river they await the decision of Omimio Their fate rely on unknown faith- Biko, come to our aide With raised voices, in cutting breaths, they cried On their errand, behold them a moving big house Rowing steadily on the big waters 'it's Omimiwa', they cried 'I have come to cleanse thee', a voice replied In the deepest deeps will I deep thee White doves flew across the sea, dancing, Rejoicing for the herald of a new future The goats bleat loudly, leaping for joy Sheep meant to be slaughtered now clustered for good hope But when Omimiwa return, laid in rest Who will aide us? For we are alone Like a lone lamb. 49

66 Singing Hearts My eyes have seen Yet I cannot confess my sin For your beauty has blinded My eyes deeply Of our love My mouth will profess. Heart-mine beats Only for you my love Though poisoned by your flaws Pinned to the hard floor For you alone I'll live In the haven of after life. Darling, Your love has made my heart fly So high on the hacienda That I pant to rest in the abode Of your heavenly soft voice love As time and tide passed without you So faint I was, that my spirit left me. The gentle breeze blew your fragrance And I smelt my spirit drawing near Oh, I cried without fancas For your sight has left me Hurting like a dagger to the heart Though our love's forbidden My lips dare not say no. The melody of thy voice Echoes on my mind as in an empty room So I dance gracefully And sing of our love Though far thou art Beside me you lay all night Caressing my soul to deep sleep. Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL 50

67 Singing Hearts Look into mine eyes Soulless it is- Yet a betraying Judas Speaking of my loneliness All thirty dark nights Oh, my love Where art thou? Soul put thyself at calm For loneliness is long gone As I look into thy lovely piercing eye I longed for thee as a Reached for our love to stay And here you are A Thomas I have become until I felt thy embracing arms. Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL 51

68 On The Road Of Ibadan Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL On the roads of Ibadan have I seen prosperity waste at noon day streets lined up with a thousand bag of unclad dirt Summoning all curse and cause Laying so many to their rest in box Then I queried, yes oo where art thou? Ah, Ibadan. On the roads of Ibadan, lays a hopeless life seeking rest Only to be tortured by the sucking caress of maggots With all secrets non-concealed Injecting the streets with its stenchy-aroma Causing commuters to hold firmly to their nostrils As though forcing pap down a baby's throat And when the heads are nowhere to be heard, The vultures descend to merry and cherish the moment Ah, Ibadan. On the roads of Ibadan, have I seen married madness let loose Binding all sanity in a safe As all has gone wrong like a 'wrong' For the lights only shine for the prudent All senses is lost, what shall I lust? Then I cry aloud, where you, O Right? Ah, Ibadan. On the roads of Ibadan have I seen pious poverty Stare at one like a daring cat Conferring status on all bones and structure Established on garri and glucose I see eyes sunken like a ball shot into a goal post Stomachs turn deflated pot-bellies And legs straightened like a teacher's cane from long walks when wages are suspended for a year Ah Ibadan. On the roads of Ibadan have I found the key of life As I stumbled on hope And collided with faith That I've always longed for Both have suffered a journey so long Here back but finished Oh, what a joyeux As coloured meat returned to our plates And cheap fragnance fill our nostrils Oh, Ibadan. 52

69 Dark Quiet NIght The ambiance speaks of solitude In quietness lay the black night The gentle breeze whirls of serenity The flowers lay low, bored of the dark Whining faintly in loneliness 'cause all light's gone With crossed knees beneath my chin I sat on my cozy bed Like a weary beggar Gluing my eyes to the limitless sky Seeking solace from the goddess of sleep Into darkness I stared for long Lo, behold memories from past In folds and folks knocking on my remembrance Oh, how I miss homely cares and caress Mama, I cried out I miss my favourite dish, Carried on your tender-lovely hands And your smiles which you wear like an amulet Oh, how I miss homely cares and caress Then came a limpid luscious voice Luring me to itself, In the dark under a big oak tree, an artillery Same that produced Papa's end Mama oh, I cried out Lurching quickly into the safety of my covers. Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL 53

70 A Message In The Dark Cloud To my love - Pregnant clouds saw I Thousands of them At a stare into the eyes of the dark As I opened the lids covering the balls kept In my head socket Before I got hold of my feeble legs to walk me out Clatterings I heard So many that I thought the roof would fold its arm So hard they fell that my voice complained to be heard On my bed I retreated Even though shiver's struck me I'll not be defeated by this cold world. Fear not the thundering Of sky's threatening voce For in the earth, is a void A void to fill Hotness quenched and coldness feel Let the lightening shout aloud In the thickness of clouds Is kept the gift to fill our thirst The clattering sound Enjoy its melody And kiss the coldness of its world Embrace the shivers, Dearie And listen to the rains voice There is a message for you. Tejuoso Olamide COMMUNICATIONS AND LANGUAGE ARTS QUEEN IDIA HALL 54

71 (For those that would still kill) Jegede Oluwakayode INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING NNAMDI AZIKIWE HALL Dying With The King I see the rotten omelette on the faces of our kings I smell the stench oozing from their nauseating palaces I hear voices of those that died, those dying, after dining with kings. I weep as the guile of the gods thirst for bloods of the misguided I watch the Law trampled upon by laws of the barbaric lords I see dreams of Abobakus fading with the King's faints. While our Heavenly King died for us, our Earthly kings enforce death on us When we thought our cultures were the bedrock of our integrity, we are still fed by vultures in our locality Like fowls set under the shine of knives, we are cowered by the tenets of traditions. Yes! We can't ask questions! Who can inquire on the planned deaths of followers with the un-planned deaths of rulers? Who can confront the starving gods of our lands on the hearts placed on their pans? Who will ask why breathe is sniffed dry from one, breathe our priests cannot generate into one? This is my land Where my mother's breasts were sucked and my feet straightened in her arms Where I rolled condemned tyres with my white-brown pants and soiled palms Where my Father's belts flogged off evil from my skin sinews Where I was taught killing is EVIL If we ALL came unaccompanied to this world, what logic can be behind going accompanied? I hope you Rest In Peace, OBA OONI OF IFE and the SOUL(S) THAT DEPARTED WITH HIM SECRETLY! 55

72 My Baby s Gone Jegede Oluwakayode INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING NNAMDI AZIKIWE HALL In this cold night, with its shivers clogging my skin sinews And my muse for writing running tough through my veins. For my kind, writing reflects our fears, hopes, emotions, wars, joy and pains. In this,my scars will be told from my self-inflicted afflictions Fourth cold night of painful reflections. I remember when our hearts razed fire of affection, fire the racing Rivers in Jordan would not extinguish. Like the cloud thickens at the sight of rainfall, ours thickened when we stay together. When our smiles and laughter sounded like the beautiful tunes of Beautiful Nubia, they were most soothing to the souls. When your skin felt like thriving leaves awaiting the dew's touch and my starved skin yearning for your tender palms. Moments we ran the nights wrapped in each other's arms as the snail does itself in its shell. I remember when we were not just lovers, we were friends! Stroking, Teasing, Mocking, Patting and Praising each other. Sleeping together, Eating Together. My scars! BUT, I am the warrior who suddenly lost the war after carelessly surrendering his weaponry I am the gladiator who was not murdered but was drenched in the pool of his blood I am that warrior that foolishly threw away victory to distraction and folly Like Cain, deceit and falsehood drove me to vain! Now that my scars are still glaring, and darts of guilt still thwarts my aspirations, I must struggle in it! Now that I must fight my next battles in the arena with my scars grinning in mockery of my stupidity, I must deal with it! The war was you, the loss of you brought the scars in my heart! NOW, I am that banished prince who once dwelt in a beautiful kingdom A Kingdom inestimable and even incomparable to the Kingdoms in the United Kingdom I am the banished Prince who was a monkey in an almond tree and could not comprehend the true value of Diamonds I offended the gods of love and I must suffer for their fury! Now, I am that condemned Prince walking through villages of darkness and wilderness. For four nights now, I have been enslaved and grieving in my own emotions. My greatest fear is finding love as sweet as yours! I must deal with this LOSS! 56

73 Mystery Ogueji Kelechi Joseph INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL And suddenly before my eyes days turn to weeks months to years our memories playback in my head I thought our love was a bottomless pit I thought it would last for all eternity but I guess eternity doesn't go with love just like you said I didn't go with you I still love you though That's my sweetest sorrow I remember our first kiss It made my brain lie fallow Your blood-stirring touch wriggled through my thick skin Your perfume tore down my wall of self-defense Your charming look pierced my hardened heart Your dazzling beauty gave me an intoxicating sensation I loved you even more than myself It was not just a feeling It became my way of life You said you loved me too but I didn't read the irony I fell for you without insurance I was at the mercy of your seemingly harmless smile Now I'm left to rue my decision I remember when you told me it was over I realised I had been wallowing in the pit of ignorance I had been deceived by your impeccable beauty I had been fooled by your exquisite warmth but forgetting you seems impossible I miss who I never knew I am still caught in the web of your love This is my tale of misery Does love really exist? To me, it remains a mystery 57

74 My Muse Ogueji Kelechi Joseph INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL Your eyes are a kaleidoscope of everything I want to get lost in them piece by piece till I become you Maybe then I would understand your intricacies maybe then I would fathom your awkwardness contemplating you is like thinking in eight dimensions Is it the parabolic curve of your lips and how you never stutter? Or the wisdom I garner with every word you utter? Is it the smell of your perfume that always lingers? Or the sensation that your touches trigger? Is it your immaculate smile and how it never fails to dazzle? Or how you hold me at ransom without flinching a muscle? Is it how I'm still addicted to you with every dose? Or how your flaws complement you? Only heaven knows Contemplating you is a journey down an undulating road that meanders into oblivion. 58

75 Utopia Ogueji Kelechi Joseph INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL For so long they journeyed Down a sad and lonely road Sometimes with vision blurred But hope became their sight in those times And every time they walked this path of penury every step was etched in their memories But overtime The loneliness gradually engulfed their sanity The sadness nibbled their hope They didn't fuss For their destination was utopia Or so they thought Until they arrived And met people like them With faces revealing quelled expectations With an aura that exuded failure And whenever these people walked Their gait reeked of hopelessness So what did they do If not plunge Into the dark tunnels of nonexistence For to those who have walked their path Death can provide A dark appeal. 59

76 Our Thing What we have this our thing Is sacred You're the thing At the end of the day I can look forward to When everything else Is boring You're the one I tell Of a great song I heard Of an amusing book I'm reading You're the one My safe house of secrets Always floating around the cracks Immune to societal constraints What we have Might be a dream A dream that wants to fade away An illusion That might be none at all Whatever it is I would never know I don't want to ever know I'm just a bundle of flaws Stitched together With the good intention that is you It doesn't matter whatever happens tomorrow Cos we've had today If you ever leave I would be sitting By the road we met Hoping you'd pass again I'd revel in all the moments we shared Slicing each moment Into its separate delicacies Because even if you never return I would still be in love With my memory of you. Ogueji Kelechi Joseph INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL 60

77 Heaven Ogueji Kelechi Joseph INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING SULTAN BELLO HALL Oh my lady You make the music my heart dances to Your voice weaves words that become my muse Now we are dancing Your every touch is filled with longing Hands in hands, Chest on chest Our heartbeats harmonizing In this moment, we are one We are borrowing from tomorrow's happiness As we revel in our futuristic perfection In this moment, we experience every possibility Our mortality deserts us We are everlasting Is this the heaven they speak of? I pray this heaven lasts forever And ever Amen. 61

78 Heartless Heart What should I remember you for? The wickedness of your decision; Or The lifespan of your deception. Why won't I cry? For the precious time I've spent; Plus The borrowed cash I've sent. What heartless heart is yours? That received love from my auricle; But Pumped regrets in my ventricle. Which one is my fate? To remain depressed in this state; Or Try another you for dictate of faith. Adeniran Ridwan Olalekan PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL 62

79 Broken Hearts Adeniran Ridwan Olalekan PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL What about the pledge to make our affairs cloak-and-dagger That our days shall be forever together That we give men troubled feelings to wonder Of the realm of love we entered: Infliction or infection or disorder. Au naturel our hearts crossed Au fond it must be of the Divine Au fait with fate, ours shall be free of twitch We never imagine any single source of twinge In our minds was a love that shall flourish and shine. Now, fate turned around to be our Judas It came with forces to betray our trusts It exchanges my serenade with duel to stay Rueful to say the parting farewell But, our hearts remain broken with indelible-serrated scar. 63

80 Plea To Asake Slim and Shining Asake. First of the four jewels of the Ijemo* court chief I always wonder at your stories you brief I missed those sermons I used to receive Trust me again, My words are never to deceive. Remember your care I got by zero extort You know I was bold to seek love without escort So to end our differences, Do we need a court? Let's straight the line again, I vow not to distort. Exuberant were my spirits even at my privacy Exultant was I, knowing you shall be of my constituency Exchange of pleasantries, We did with decency Extrovert of you I shall be with highest consistency. Extenuating was I for all my crimes I am seriously sorry this time Your Exult mood, I shall forever take as prime Your good verses, I shall forever mime. In you, I've seen a lot that inspire With you, I picture a home I aspire From you, I'd prayed for sons I desire For you, I promise care that won't expire. Just a new chance Give another chance ASAKE. Adeniran Ridwan Olalekan PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Asake a name, literally means chosen to be blessed. 64

81 Lagos A place in Nigeria Where every Nigerian Has, at least, A faithful friend, Loving family Or Loyal foe. Aye! Lagos hosts a relation Of every Nigerian. Lagos is ours Our home Abode for everyone. Lagos has its land in Water Lagos where everybody sells: Goods, knowledge, efforts And so many other things In Lagos, Everyone is busy, Working, Wise and smart. In Lagos, Everyone is impatient- There is always a reason to rush- In every season Hustling is its language. Lagos Land of various noises, Different voices Dependent choices. When Lagos sky decides to cry It does it on every man and woman Host and guest Young and old Weak and strong Its tears soak pregnant woman And her foetus. Adeniran Ridwan Olalekan PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Lagos, It appears in every man's dream Either as centre for business Or as a good place to visit Or as home to stay. 65

82 Ogunfolu Abdulquddus Olubusayo PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Us Yesterday, I tried describing us, You and I, To a complete stranger. It was like describing space, A Revelation, Unexplainable, Vast Peace, You could only experience it. It is as describing Thermodynamics, Beyond words, Just heat, Entropy, Energy. 66

83 King of the Street Cephas Afolabi MELLANBY Hall AGRONOMY She said; I'm sorry but all I can tell you are the rumours I was told For that which you ask of me, is one tale too old, But if you're really curious, then go to that street Inside an abandoned building, lives someone you should meet. I felt a chill run down my spine as I smelt the stench in the air All sorts of garbage and decaying junk, laid everywhere And the thought of someone living in such a place was too disgusting to bear If not for my History assignment, what else will I be doing here? Then I noticed an old man, looking dark and overcast, He had an unkempt hair and eyes that stared through me like I was glass And with fear in my voice and a shiver in my loins, I asked, "Do you know anything about the King of the Streets?" He gave a sigh, and spoke as he leaned on his side, I remember that was a title used by many to appease my pride But the same is used to mock me today, because it brings sorrow to the mind I had so many friends, but now I don't have anyone Had money, friends, and women, but now I'm left with none. Because twas never part of the plan, To be an old wretched man who sits in the streets with tattered clothes and sore feet But I've drunk away my wealth, I'm a picture of bad health I'm a shadow of a shadow of a former self. Because when a man meets his doom, he is left on his own And every friend or well-wisher leaves him alone Then he realises there is nothing that he really owns Because all the world can give you is just a temporary loan A temporary loan that has so much Interest That they'll take more than you were given and leave you in distress. 67

84 King of the Street (Contd) Cephas Afolabi AGRONOMY And as he stared at the skies I saw a stream flow down his eyes He looked at me and said: Listen to me son Make the best of your time and don't do the things I've done Be productive with your youth And always stand for the truth For a reckless life will leave you with scars that a thousand years may not soothe For time is like a smoke that fades away bit by bit These were the words of the "King of the Street." MELLANBY Hall 68

85 Agan Etooluwa Atere PETROLEUM ENGINEERING She gives her nights to Ogun Her money to Sango And her time to Obatala She's like the failure of a Soccer star Jeered at when she walks the streets Some even say she eats babies Others say she's cursed She forges on time and again Like a red hot metal just out of the furnace A million promises lay at her doorstep Nine months from now they all say The bundle of joy would be hers She waits and waits under the night sky Looking to all her gods and praying silently Never doubting their efficacies But when the time comes again Maybe she really eats babies. 69

86 Government Pikin Gaily he brisk-walks A juggernaut in his little twisted mind Be it the scorching burning sun Or the vexing pouring rain His mobile Ghana-Must-Go home Hanging jokingly on his shoulder Oblivious to the world around him Smiling daintily or muttering foolishly Exposing days or even weeks of unwashed teeth The ones who think they are normal Stand aloof and judge him with their senses Omo-Ijoba they call him Chase him away from their stalls When he comes to beg for pure water Hide their children from him When he makes funny faces at them But little do they know is that We are all government pikins In our own little twisted minds. Etooluwa Atere PETROLEUM ENGINEERING 70

87 My World They say it was quite beautiful They regaled me with tales of quintessential beauty I know perfect beauty is a farce But it's my world. We felt we didn't grow fast enough We wanted to wear heels at four And beards at seven So we made heels and fixed to our flat shoes And super glue helped gum the goat hair to our chins. Regular opposites became cliché New became the future We wanted a world where similar stuff gave the better taste War and guns Terrorism and death Woman and woman Man and man With brains in heads so big we imagined And imaginations came to life. We love similar stuff; we get together Our strength lies in numbers We formed the new free; LGBT The opposite people The rice and beans people The white and black people The man and woman people Had to love us or go to hell We gave it a cliché word Freedom was the word; ironic was the matter Etooluwa Atere PETROLEUM ENGINEERING In the future We might want to wear heels at two Or grow beards in mother's womb But when heels start to pinch And beards start to itch We might wish We had not looked past; imagined past Our farcical beauty. 71

88 Friday Night and Young Let's make Friday nights memories Banging music and dancing to cloud nine Popping booze with a US soldier's dedication Till our knees get weak And we almost can't feel the gas pedal Waking on Saturday afternoons in cloud seven So that when we are sixty And we become mummy and daddy spiritual We would remember our twenties Friday nights And giggle in secret. Etooluwa Atere PETROLEUM ENGINEERING 72

89 Adewumi Michael Oluwasegun The Madness of a Woman She dances to the sound of an unheard beat Moving to the solemn sounds running in her mind She plays all the roles in a movie awaiting production She starts a song in the darkest night. Her voice is heard when the insects are silent Her voice is the sweetest sound I grew up to know Her mind is wherever I am Her mind had clicked the start of the future Her thought are all about me. She is the first musician I grew up to know She is the one who taught me the steps to take She speak to him fully concentrated on him She is the first and last to look at me day and night The madness of a mother, the sane drama to the child. 73

90 My Modern Society I live in a modern society Of perils and incessant wars Which question the soul's worth And make the godly the foolish. I live in a modern society Where they tell you to be yourself And then haunt you for being born, Or worse, ridicule your being. I live in a modern society Where glossy doctored magazine Images turn women into goddesses And lead other women into futile strife For perfection. I live in a modern society Heading for disaster masked as civilisation Without considering its old values Which it now selectively holds. I live in a modern society Of foreign ideals which are kept At a sickening half-baked length Towing away my local philosophy. I live in a modern society That hates me and my guts, That wants to kill me at all cost But with my oblivious consent. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola INDEPENDENCE Hall PHILOSOPHY I live in a modern society In which i have no president, Paper politics and empty theatrics Engender the leaders' lifestyles And the hungry me suffers. 74

91 My Modern Society (Contd) I live in a supposedly-modern society Of primitive and archaic sentiments Skeletoned by jungle-justice That is both physical and religious. I live in a modern society Of nudity, hypocrisy, corruption, Vulgarity, heresy, and spiritual death None of which you are exempted. I live in a modern society Where the abortion of the foetus Of your culture's traditions reigns And you slowly drown in the nefarious Ugliness of it all. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 75

92 I Search For You I search for you Between lyrics of songs Engraved into the memory Of every lovelorn heart By fires of loneliness. I search for you In the darkness of moonless nights Where I see nothing But the colour of your anonymous love, Where I hear nothing But the sound of your amorous voice. I search for you In the midst of a maddening crowd At a parade of charades under fancy facades, With no face to behold But truth coated with a million lies. I search for you In the corners of blue misery And on the edge of a heart Never touched, let alone broken. I search for you In unfulfilled dreams and imagined realities, Longing for Cupid's brutal wound, Longing for you, Longing for my other self. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 76

93 These Words Will Protect Us These words will protect us When the children of doom Appear at our doorstep With message from Iku On moonless nights of peril. These words will protect us When journeying missiles Tell tales of hastened mortality On serene battlefields. These words will protect us When neighbours turn minstrels That sing with livid tongues and teary gongs, Of Boko ruffians; miserable mindless machines In the hands of political puppeteers. I say, these words will protect us When promise of willing virgins Makes men deaf to the sound of logic And turns jolly streets into Sites of macabre massacre fest. These words will protect us, Be our shield and solace, Our anthem of prayers, Custodians of our sanity Against these louts of terror. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 77

94 Black or Black-ish? They call me black But the leathery coat of my flesh Is a marriage of hazelnut brown And holy good-natured resilience, My teeth are a bodily incarnate of the clouds And my tongue is blood-red fire. They call me monkey, So I guess the mirror lies When it speaks of my beauty And perhaps my tail Is a shy wench that hides Between my buttocks. They call me submissive But was it not just yesterday That Senghor and little Martin fought For my dignity on the battlefield of biased history? I told them, in the days of my youth, Not black! Maybe coloured, dark brown Or even black-ish but certainly not black! They paint me the colour of death, The unrepentant hue of perdition, But the tongue of the baptism water did not blacken When it swallowed my Gentile being. I begged them, in the days of my youth, Not black! Maybe coloured, dark brown Or even black-ish but certainly not black! Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall But now, I have eaten the apple of forbidden wisdom And the blinding light of nakedness has pierced my eyes Through solemn romance With tutored ponderance. 78

95 Black or Black-ish? (Contd) I will take it, Yes, call me black if you wish, But mind you, I am a lion Whose fiery vigour cannot be tamed, I am a hound Whose wild heart cannot be chained, Before your colour-sensitive eyes, I shall turn black to gold And I shall crucify the word, Drill nails into its chest till it bleeds out life And is born anew, Wearing the garment of glory. So, please Call me black Not coloured, dark-brown Or even black-ish, certainly black! Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 79

96 An African Bird Sings Its Last I swam in the vibrancy of youth And kissed the fresh warmth of day I felt a surge of strength so new The neighbours fled in a daze I died in every battle I fought Yet I never lost, not one I was riddled with dark thoughts But I wiped them off the wall. I was graced with titles of men And I broke all of nature's laws Above the sky was my den Below the seas were my claws The white strangers came in folds I faced them with a million's might But I fell down a virgin road My filthy kin bowed to the whites. Transmogrified was our world And comfort was soon unseated We died in the pool of our own blood To a loathed re-birth we were being led They broke our millennia-old throne Built a fancy new one and ruled A stranger took my fathers' crown Oh that dark ungodly era I rue! We still have those scars now. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 80

97 An African Bird Sings Its Last (Contd) Ten bullets did bore ten thousand holes In the heart of our quiet land We faced our enemy's foes Pale, white, red and tanned Bullets were not spared, humanity lost This injustice surpassed tears My brothers died for the tyrant's cause And even more died through the years. I lay on my death-bed of rupture Reminiscing on a lost forgotten past And fearful of an unknown future For the good days did fly like a wasp The legacy of my fathers are broken But it's too late to be hunting shadows The death of an age is coming Sing a mournful celestial carol. Kanyinsola Olorunnisola PHILOSOPHY INDEPENDENCE Hall 81

98 Religion Religion, the said opium of the masses Each set thinks the other goes to hell Sometimes angry, why won't they just understand And at times sympathetic, that they will end in hell Despite all their assumed worship Sometimes, they leave them to the Supreme Being, Maybe the hell was created for them So goes for each set in which man exists Each bound to its own dogma If you are not on my path, you go to hell But there are many paths, so many hells? Do I have to go to your hell if I'm not with you? Or we all go to each other's hell? Are there many hells or there is none at all? Or there exists just one path and others to hell? Daud O. Shittu Mechanical engineering Nnamdi Azikiwe Hall 82

99 Olutayo Joy Owojuyigbe Alexander Brown Hall Medicine and Surgey The Tyranny of Mama Dero The Àkùko Gàgàrà bears her gossips from town to town Gossips of me being nothing but a greedy clown The rat at home tells it to the farm rat and to the squirrel Even the Irúnmolèinforms the ancestors of our quarrel This woman that I married was once sweet and delightful Her hourglass figure and fair face that looked so beautiful But now, the roar of a lion is nothing compared to her intimidating tone Chai! Mama Déró's words are quick and sharp, cutting into my very bone The talking drum of Àrèmo murmurs something about my manhood My own friends and relatives are afraid to visit me in the neighbourhood They are not even sure if I am the true son of my Father, the great warrior of Ìjèbú land. My God! I wonder if my manhood is still intact. Mama Déró is a terror to all - to the Chiefs and even to the Elders. She once tried to poison me but the Lord was my Shepherd The old women shake their heads at me when they see me pass I live under the tyranny of a woman called Bashòrun Gaa Kai! I married trouble. Perhaps I was under a spell Perhaps she was an angel of Lucipher from the pit of hell Her fair skin that glowed in the dark hid her true colours I actually thought she was a woman with learned cultures Aso-òpá mewa, fifty gorodom of epo-pupa 7 Forty-two tubers of yam and two cows, she asked for her son's birthday Haba! Kílódé? Is it a sacrifice to appease the gods?! Where does she want me to get the money from?! In fact, I wonder if Déró is truly my son or a bastard O jìgbìjìgbìjìgbì! I cannot even send my own son on an errand. "Don't kill him for me," she says, "Go and get it yourself." Egbàmí kè! Can't I send my own son on an errand? Oh! I should have known Mama Déró was not a saint I should have known when she cursed the deaf man that lives down the street I should have known when she agreed to marry me against her Father's wish. Little did I know her father was only trying to warn me that his daughter is a witch. O wretched man that I am! Who shall save me from the tyranny of Mama Déró? 83

100 The Creatures of Eledumare Amputated windowpanes, never would close Retreat I must into the sovereignty of the insecticide-treated net Cellules within cellules Sinister atmosphere The night of the angels of doom. Like the night of the killing of the Egyptian firstborns The caliginous atmosphere is pregnant with mourning Oh! My soul longs for the coming of the next morning. Sound of spontaneous claps from the people of Ilé-ifè Moans of affliction and tears of the ancient mammalians Paint a horrendous picture of invading aliens. A nightmare of terror Darkness with horrendous horror Forceful tenants swarming on legal occupants Including the gods and idols of our forefathers. The trust of the skin is betrayed by the night As it welcomes these strangers into our world Flying aliens from the grave of Sir Obafemi Awolowo. The tenebrous darkness from on high The deafening whispers of the night All together make an awful sight. Haunted day-to-day, darkness in every cellule Royal bodies swaddled like Egyptian mummies All looking silly like bloody dummies. One more, two more, three ànkárá wrappers The aso-òfì that spans from the feet to the face I hate to say are nothing but a redundant waste. Olutayo Joy Owojuyigbe Medicine and Surgey Alexander Brown Hall Mosquito-proof garments in this part of the planet Only arsenal for the night's onslaught Impotent defence of treasured dark and mullatto skins against flying aliens. 84

101 The Creatures of Eledumare (Contd) The imminent war of the night Conjure the mind with an evil impression Must I weep again for oppression? Lost in the shadows of time The sun refuses to lend its light My God, what a night! The metal pot is adorned With dainty potato spud But the strangers only feed on blood. I wish to trade my tender skin for the mottled shell of Ìjàpá Tìrókò And I envy the snake that sheds its skin Monstrous red spots on my youthful chin A souvenir from the bites of the flying beast. The acrid odour of the mosquito repellants Its charm like a hallucinogen. An ultimate act of perfidy. The stranger hums the songs of horror In search of another noble victim And buries its diabolical proboscis to suck blood like an evil colossus. Mógbe o! Which kain creature be this?! Streaks of the morning light Daybreak creeps on brutalized skins of the people Aftermath of the winged terrorists attack Princes stuttering out of cellules Dulling effects of previous night's fiasco Olutayo Joy Owojuyigbe Alexander Brown Hall Medicine and Surgey Our elders say, Only a mosquito would make a nice man slap his neighbor on the cheek. The Ifá Priest says they are the curse of the gods on every citizen Mosquito the dread of every indigene. Cunning as a lustful damsel Swift as the mountain gazelle Riddle of the Elders Unsolved mysteries of Sherlock Holmes Creatures of Elédùmarè they are. 85

102 Programming and Academics System.out.println ("We shall overcome"); The array of thoughts we welcome Variable k = believe; k + determination = achieve; We are but students Expected to function as 'prudents.' Input fear = Output failure; Echo ("Demure"); Our backgrounds differ But the codes we make our teacher The algorithm of success Its strings we try to possess. Print("We shall conquer"); And make proud our mothers. Ajibike Oyindamola COMPUTER SCIENCE 86

103 Being An Undergraduate Let us lay down Leave our stress on the ground See if relief can be found. Stress is a horse That races towards breakdown shore Starts illnesses that drains the purse. Many have the headache Holding on the final ace Each going at their pace. Not wanting to fall in deep Sometimes all you want is sleep But insomnia won't let some be. There will be an end to the race The day you graduate With smiles on your face. Ajibike Oyindamola COMPUTER SCIENCE 87

104 Life Akorede Oyindamola Barakat OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL FOOD TECHNOLOGY A sole battle constantly fought, By brave fighters of immense worth. Where some don't last a round, Some pass around till they last. While some don't get to take their gloves off. For these ones, Strength is not so much optional; It is an obligation. If the hay must see the rise, If their light must see the day. 88

105 Akorede Oyindamola Barakat OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL FOOD TECHNOLOGY Tell Me Your Story Tell me your story, Tell me about your life, Maybe I'll feel sorry, Maybe I'll understand your plight, Maybe I'll understand why you're suddenly so uptight, But if you don't? Don't expect me to know, That the scowl on your face is not merely for show, That your repulsive attitude is 'cos you're really on the low, I can't know these things if I'm not told, Clairvoyance is not my gift, if you must know, If you must be sad, be sad on your own, Don't shove your ineptitude feelings down other people's throat. 89

106 Defiled Akorede Oyindamola Barakat OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL FOOD TECHNOLOGY I lay down even though scared, Pretending that I had slept, While I took caution to shield my legs, With my short fiery animal-printed skirt. Alas, it wouldn't even bend, To my very own will at best, It kept rising up my length, To the top of my laps, wielding its own strength. I looked from my right to my left, And I saw that he hadn't ever left, He held his sword just by the helm, He had sworn to protect me against any theft. But as I lay on my side and felt his breath, I wondered if there was ever any truth to his words, "Does he even know that I'm still kept?" I gave out a sharp cry and wept. 90

107 Pretty Woman Pretty woman, I wonder where your secret lies, Must be in the slight curve of your lips at the corners, Or perhaps, the gentle sashay of your hips as you wander, One that makes a man's head reel like thunder. Pretty woman, super woman, Is there more to this? I wonder, To this beauteous phizog of yours, That appears as though you were the only one, That the angels of pulchre spent all the time on. Pretty woman, attractive woman, I want to believe that this is not all there is, That asides from the tiny tingly feeling your derriere emits from a man, That there's a brain in there that burns with a brilliance, And an engulfing soul with a fire-like radiance. Dear Pretty woman, Be meaningful, While being beautiful. Akorede Oyindamola Barakat OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL FOOD TECHNOLOGY 91

108 A Song: For Those We Lost To The Fires For as many of you as take the lives of the innocent, For those of you who render children orphans, Women widows, Men widowers, And families, desolate, May your souls never know rest, May your families only know sorrow, May you never have joy, As you bear your offspring, may they also die, May the earth never get satisfied with your blood May those who know you mourn you, May your family never know peace, May you never have enough to eat. As you plant the seeds, May they never bear fruit. May the land be unfavourable to you, May you thirst an unquenchable thirst. May you never be full. May you grow lean and frail And afterwards, may you die a painful death. May your body spend days on end, Out in the open, decaying. May no one come to bury you, Or acknowledge your death. May the maggots feed on your flesh, May the earth reject your body, And may the devil welcome you with open arms. Olo Egbokhare LAW QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL Much as I want this for you, I pray: May you see the error in your ways, May your offspring not tread the same path as you, May your wives not be ostracised for your reputation sake, May your soul be saved before it is too late. May the earth not crave your blood, And may you be fruitful, And perhaps suffer all the days of your life, Living in regret for your misdeeds against humankind. 92

109 Times There are times When the sea is still And makes no noise There are times When the sun hides in the clouds And it's so dark There are times When 'Thank you' sounds Like an insult There are times When I love you Makes the heart break Life is full of ironic situations And they make you wonder What then, is true. Dele Alimi Temiloluwa ZOOLOGY 93

110 It Hurts When you reach For a height Far above your limits And you fall It hurts When you try So hard, So bad To get something And you fail It hurts When life gives Love, Happiness and Joy You relish it And it takes it away It hurts And then you sit down Hit yourself hard on the head And think straight For the first time in years And you stop doing Things that hurt. Dele Alimi Temiloluwa ZOOLOGY 94

111 Barriers I tried to catch the Sun But it burns I tried to jump and fly But I fell I tried to cut my heart But it hurts I tried to see the air But I can't The world is full Of barriers we can't break But I was not fazed I chased after the impossible There were so many reasons We would not have worked But I climbed the hills And jumped the huddles But after facing obstacles So deadly and fierce I find that You were the insurmountable barrier. Dele Alimi Temiloluwa ZOOLOGY 95

112 Supernova Once in a clear starry night I stood watching the celestial beauty The firmament stood there Glaring back at me With its dull black expression I stood there, imagining what The most beautiful thing In the whole vast universe was A thought? A whisper? I really can't begin to remember But it came so sharply I saw an image so clear In my mind full of flares Of thoughts deep and bare I saw her, the most beautiful thing In my universe, my galaxy, my world Then it was almost like The skies synchronized With my thoughts and they produced An amazing sight A supernova of all colors Full of lights of different wavelengths A tear dropped from my eye In the realization that Even this beauty Compares not to you. Dele Alimi Temiloluwa ZOOLOGY 96

113 Pen Again Once I tuned my mind to observe, In the faith of words that sure springs, But I was soon to find out rudely, That the stream of thoughts doth cease, And all I could hear was my longing soul say, Patience! Once more, you will pen down, again. How is it that now I stare? I asked of myself in the ensuing silence, Maybe I'm there, I wondered, At the place of lost words and dumb speeches, But, Patience! I heard my weary soul say, Once more, you will pen down, again. Just then, rays of insight beamed in, And behold, a myriad of choices, So with the pulse of my new found flow, In the pen and paper did my itchy hand find peace, Now smiling, I turn to my humble soul to say, Patiently, once more, I am penning down again. Oduwole Similoluwa PETROLEUM ENGINEERING 97

114 The Heart Many things can the heart bear, As fragile and tender she may appear, She bears the brunt of the body's despair, But jumps for joy at the slightest repair. To the lame, she is as legs, And to the blind, she is the sight. To the deaf, she is as ears, And to the dumb, voice. From her flows the issue of life, In her is the essence to stay afloat, She plucks her strings with glee, Bearing in unison the dance of the feet. And though we may never all fathom, How it is she does have her way, We can safely trust her to lead, For she is the seat of imagination. Oduwole Similoluwa PETROLEUM ENGINEERING 98

115 Dawn Every tribe has a tale of peace Till it dawns on it, strife. Every being has a story of dreams Till it dawns on it, envy. Every tongue has a saying of praise Till it dawns on it, ridicule. Every love has a beginning of solace Till it dawns on it, fear; But be it known at morn' and noon, That so long as grace abounds in will, Every moment of life should be enjoyed- The highs and lows and things in-between, Smiles and sighs, tears and thrills, Bouts of bliss amidst glut of gloom; That at rising beneath the cover of night, It is in the hope that another heyday dawns. Oduwole Similoluwa PETROLEUM ENGINEERING 99

116 Every Day Is A Poem Every day is a poem, for each day is a gem Wait, what is a poem? But words of lines and stanzas. I write mine everyday I write it on my face Lines that paint a smile, Others paint pain. Every day is a poem, for each day is a realm, Wait, what is a poem? But words of rhythm and sound. I make mine every day, I write instead of say, Sound of things that lay, In every delay. Every day is a poem, for each day's never the same, It must reach the world, My poem must heal the world. Rachael ige LAW IDIA HALL 100

117 Voice of Hope Sweet dreams Blowing toward the tree Signifying the coming Of the ray to me. Gently did I listen To the voice of hope So careful and firm I grab unto its rope. Murmuring marvelous moments Hope hacks into my heart Success stories said so sweet Imaginations clear like real-life art. Through ups and downs obstacles lay over Determination push straight through Hope married four-leaf clover Reality dawned on breakthrough. Hope trade sighs in misty shadows of thought Dull and drawn like the Sheik's* turban Keen like the hotness of the desert Undulating doubts on uncertainty-ban. In the depths of thoughts so deeply shallow Locked in the frightful corner of the aquarium In the mire of fear my swine flounder and wallow Waiting for the miraculous ray from the silver candelabrum. Words caught fire in the mind of the thoughtful Ambiguous proverbs shines in the paragon of wisdom Smooth crescent in the lips of the hopeful Shouts of Freedom! Freedom!! Freedom!!! Kadri Babatunde Kadri PHYSICS KUTI HALL 101

118 Voice of Hope (Contd) The voice of hope emits solemn sounds Rigid water meadow like the iron heels Joy of the hopeful knows no bounds Circumambulating like a vehicle wheels. Yesterday is surely a history Tomorrow may be a mystery If today's hope turns toward victory Generations will follow the success story. Liquid like blissful dreams Dark like the blind's eye-sight Life wash me down its mighty streams But the voice of hope keeps me firm to fight. Kadri Babatunde Kadri PHYSICS KUTI HALL *Sheik- an Islamic leader, clergy. 102

119 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL A Battle of Terror The sight was gory, stark and insanely cold Strewn all around were pieces of flesh and bone untold Blood like raindrops in a jarring thunderstorm Blast up and beyond into a non-existent form The gruesome remains of something, hitherto someone. How it seems life has abruptly lost all significance Inhuman mortals lost in an orgy like trance Calculated insanity and a destructive rage A brazen decimation, a rapacious soul ravage A constellation of terror at ground zero Pillaged houses and the broken homes Burnt country side and earth devoid of loam Killers with no conscience, martyrs for a vain cause Devil incarnates on a killing spree and that with no pause Amputated limbs, a compulsory price survivors pay. Are we at war, many seem to ask in pain Innocent lives lost forever all to no gain When will the reign of terror come to an end? When shall we grieve and to our wounds tend If our foe's ire be unremitting, and our dead innumerable. Shall the impeccant suffer for another's grudge? Or the unlucky traveller partakes of a dish he must purge. Who then shall come to the rescue? If the helmsman can't, who will in lieu-? Save our lives, b'cos death is on a dance rampage Our brave 'men' are on the frontline The lily-livered at the baseline Our young have become hostages to treasure The old of their death so cocksure And we though long dead in our hearts live each day. Shall we look up to the creator? Or shall our liberty remain with the captor? Should we stand by helpless and vie? Watching and waiting our turns to die Or we cry till the tears are gone from our eyes? 103

120 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL A Battle of Terror Never! No! Not yet! It is not over I say! There is not much hope, not even to keep terror at bay But! We will sit and watch no more We all must stand to fight even with our sores This we will do till death's cold hands withdraw This we won't stop till the rage of terror cease. 104

121 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL The Gods Care... Really? Our lands lay waste in desiccation. The leaves parched and brownish The highway now coloured from the tireless daub of red. The gusty wind never ceasing in its ferocity Men and women had prayed for the rain to come But it seems the gods have gone deaf. Children no more could understand the strange uncertainty of weather How come the rain is late this year? Someone asked. Maybe the heavens have run dry of water another suggests Let us leave it to the gods, let them do as they please No no no! Far from it. The gods have nothing to do with this The blame here is ours to take The heavens suffer from our numerous chemicals Our trees die from deforestation Oxygen depletes and carbon in abundance My people! The climate is changing. Now tell me, why the rain won't come late Why should the sun scorch less? And the harmattan not overstays its welcome. When all we do is destroy the enduring beauty of nature. Finally the rain came; the gusty wind had long disappeared The reddish brown leaves now green again The gods at last have answered Shut it! Who told you the gods can hear you? They don't have your time. All they do is behave like zombies They talk, see and even eat Yet all they do is Laugh at your folly Your crystal sightlessness On mount Olympus, the grass is green and lush Do what you can, it takes one to survive. Will the gods do for you? What you can do for yourself? Unremitting abuse, flagrant misuse Don't forget, if nature dies, we follow We are nature, we are the gods! 105

122 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL The Ibadan Chorus Tumbling up Agodi hill Surrounded by nothing but red roofs Extending far into the horizon Such that it never seems to end IBADAN. Hitting my head every now and then A result of the pot hole infested road Pulling back our struggling vehicle At each desperate attempt to move forward IT IS STILL IBADAN. Walking through its unfriendly streets and alleys Boarding the old and scary iron mongery called 'buses' Calling the strange and funny names of places- 'AGODI' Seeing its ever busy road reek with traffic DON'T PANIC, IT'S IBADAN. New houses scattered among very old ones Old and haggard structures dominating the view New buildings with very old roofs and Fittings that have lasted decades IT ALL ADDS TO THE BEAUTY OF IBADAN. A predominance of the old civilisation Sure scarcity of the modern day civilities Yet home to the premier varsity Large expanse of land second to none in West Africa IT'S OUR PRIDE, IBADAN. The market is old, but still popularly relevant; DUGBE The building is antiquated, tall and still standing; COCOA HOUSE The school is as old as the country herself; UI Almost archaic, but then, pleasantly so. The posse of the learned and intellectual Yet houses more unschooled villagers and artisans A lovely blend of the best, not too bad and the good. It is a name and praise It is IBADAN. 106

123 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Lagos Dawn Traffic It was 6:00am that chilly morning The day was barely beginning But then, people were far ahead. The sun was not out yet From the dew the land was still wet Out there, it was a race for daily bread. Here I was seated in Lagos traffic Humans all on the move and that's pelvic Countless cars and buses trudging along All out to meet a running deadline Forced to queue in a straight static line All I could do was listen to a song. The conductor shouted "Orile, oyingbo, wharf Apapa "Gbam" Someone had hit the bus and shouted, "your papa" They were lost in a world of their own making Everything was in a frenzy and manic A cacophony of sounds that abound like static It was Lagos in traffic, you either moved or you'd be up for the taking. 107

124 Olaniyan Israel Oluwatomisin LAW INDEPENDENCE HALL Literary Decadence When I stepped into the library that tensed and dull morning Students trooping in with so much pace and benign fury Time tables had been slammed and the countdown out loud Exams, our unsolicited friend had announced his infinite arrival I smiled and sat at my regular spot perusing Achebe. Not that I was unfazed by the enormous materials on my desk Not that the examiner would pity and postpone my student's debt Not that I had gone through well enough to ramble 'I am read' Just that my time I would heartily share with some other chore Than live another's life devoid of life and literary verve. Mine was a love affair to the hilt and unstopping If it were to be wine, I would be stone drunk to stupor Sadly, my colleagues don't see it that way at all To them, I waste my time on dead men's words Our numerous 'hand-outs' was for them a most preferred option. There were times I shed unheard tears and heartfelt Those were days when I desperate and literally dependent Soggy weeks when I stared at the aging and sordid waste An entire month when I shook my head in pain at the treasures Rendered useless and heaped across the library shelves My generation loathes written words in print Especially if they are not 'coursed' and their lecturer's making My generation is extinct and has lost touch with literature Or am I the only one sane and thinking among us? Am I just lost all by myself in a strange world? Nay! Surely there must be some like me who still lives Alas! There must be one who even still reads And I don't mean the exam-motivated-conscious-perusal of hand-outs Or the time wasting and useless venture of 'la cram la pour'* I mean really living and existing with the times and Ever relevant and indispensable as a page of history. Where have the readers gone? Let them return before our world goes topsy-turvy Where have the readers gone I ask again? Before posterity misses its way ahead of time Let them return... *The art of cramming verbatim for an exam, not taking time to understand. 108

125 Ayeni Solomon INDUSTRIAL AND PRODUCTION ENGINEERING INDEPENDENCE HALL The Nigeria Of My Dream I have a dream that one day Nigeria will come to full recognition of its potentials, I have a dream that one day Nigeria will be corruption free, I have a dream that one day lives will be so precious to us, that the sight of innocent blood, tears and agony knocks everyone off their feet. Many have come and gone with the Martin Luther's model, but still all dreams seem to be living in a world of fantasy, hallucination and total darkness as everything seems unclear at the early daily crow of the cock. How long do we keep dreaming? It's high time we rose up on our feet and turn our endless dreams into reality. Classy, trendy and eye-catching is your magnificent beauty You lie in a region characterized and endowed with so many mouth-watering benefits You possess a distinguishable and enviable complexion You have the world's greatest ideas and skills Who can contest you or dare take a stand with you? You have proved yourself to be far above your equals thereby crawling helplessly like babies Sabotaging expressed and unexpressed potentials And chasing after invisible shadows that appear at twilight. Swerving into major systems of operation keeps one in complete awe And tranquility, as though a graveyard is reached Wake up from your unwarranted slumber and step into the reality of realities Loosen up tied apparels of ignorance in exchange for the attires of knowledge Gratefully, an uncontrollable grin will emerge that you indeed chose right. The Nigeria of my dream is the change we want, the change we seek and the change we pursue and the change we act. This change is not an individual race but a collective one. We need everyone to quietly take a stroll across the length and breadth of this nation in the thick of the night with the orientation that I am the change I want to see. Remember, the young ones are yet to come and that is where my dream lies! 109

126 Hands Obode Elizabeth PETROLEUM ENGINEERING OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL I'll kiss you Please you Give you my heart I'll captivate you with my smile Serenade you with my sways I'll give you my blood And if your charm is strong enough I'll give you my life But no. I can't give you my hands. You know I'll give you the words Tell sweet nothing till you melt I'll sing for you Dance with you Cry for you When you break my heart You'll have my all Except one small You can't have my hands. I need them much more Than you, than life or my heart 'Cos these hands, my hands They've picked me up when I was down They've wiped tear seeps from my broken heart And blood when words cut too deep They've hidden tear tracks More times than once And more firmly than the grave. 110

127 Hands (Contd) Obode Elizabeth PETROLEUM ENGINEERING OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL Most of all They've put my heart back together So carefully, albeit slowly No one could say it was once broken Except you see my hands Lacerated by the splinters of my heart. So no honey, no I just can't give you my hands I can go weak in the knees But not weak in the wrists 'Cause I need a surgeon's precision To piece up my heart To hide the scars I need these hands To write out the pain And how will I do that If they're marked by your touch. And I need them To carry my drawing board And model my reservoirs I'd rather be an engineer with a broken heart Than a girl with a broken heart. So you can't hold my hands I need them Unmarked. 111

128 Diamond Tears And An Empty Tomb My sister says my mother killed her My mother said I never had a sister But I hear her voice Every night She speaks With a voice that could be mine She shows me things And sings to me And tells me how Our mum killed her. She tells me of a lullaby A sweet song that charmed her soul That lifted her spirit to the heights And left her body down to rot She tells me of a black ribbon That held her neck and stopped her heart That caused her gasps to mingle with sounds From the song that caused her sleep. Obode Elizabeth PETROLEUM ENGINEERING OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL She tells me of the weightlessness As she literally came out of skin She whispers about betrayal About hurt love, broken heart and lost lives Mum says I'm out of my mind And how I wish it were true 'cause the darkness slithers And the mind's a scary place to be. So I'll go out of my mind this once And go sit by her tombstone And mourn the sister I never had With a voice so like mine she could be me My tears freeze and turn to diamonds And cut ridges in my face as they fall Turning my tears to blood Marking me forever. 112

129 Diamond Tears And An Empty Tomb (Contd) They told me later As they pulled the stones from my hand That I'd come back to my senses But how can I go back to where I never left I only left my mind Not my senses And it was to visit her grave Just once. They told me later As they slapped the cuffs on mum's wrist That some new evidence had come up Buried long before I was ever born A ribbon Blackened by blood and time They said my mum killed my sister They said I was right When I was out of my mind. I cry most nights When I leave my mind And visit their tombs The pain is numbing So I leave the senses Pain makes the tears liquid And without it they freeze Turn to diamonds Empty the tomb. My sister said my mother killed her My mum said I never had a sister And now they're dead. Obode Elizabeth PETROLEUM ENGINEERING OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL 113

130 I Saw You In My Dreams I saw you in my dreams Digging graves of forlorn tales Hunting bygone shadows Of long forgotten fables. Aye! 'Twas you I did saw; when Dead to the world and- Darkness besieged the land To shade ancient past; long lorn. I saw you in my dream Clad in raiment of gloom Shovels, picks, mattocks All harmed beneath your hands. the resurgence of a forgotten past All that were enclosed and buried In tomb of time and season I saw you digging and digging Unmasking ancient past; long lorn. I saw her pleading for justice That damsel raped unto disgrace Could hear him; heard his voice That man robbed and stabbed in owns face. My deceit, falsehood and iniquities I saw All armed with weapons of war Drawing nigh; accosting my door Alas! These I cannot savour. I saw you in my dreams Resurrecting dead forgotten scenes In tomb of time and season Disturbing ancient past long lorn. Ola Ogun POLITICAL SCIENCE INDEPENDENCE HALL Forgive! Oh forgive my wicked past That I might in peace rest! 114

131 Solitude Ola Ogun POLITICAL SCIENCE INDEPENDENCE HALL (dedicated to 2013 ASUU strike the strange respite) These days for instance, Time seems to be the slowest on earth's surface Running in slow unimaginable pace It crawls away; taking yesterday's place. The sun rises each day, upon this grotesque land And then they all desert the yard Men, women, young and old In solitude, left alone to wander the hood. Afore my modest wristwatch, I sat Like a frustrated merchant in Aduke market Guarding time as it sneaks away bit by bit Into oblivion; into the dark the dark night. Then they returned like soldiers from war Weary as if their day was marred by enfeebling tour Each strayed to bed, again in solitude laid behind the door Guarding time till slumber began to pour. Morrow will raise the sun And then the ballad will begin Again! And again and again and again Till this strange respite be gone. 115

132 Innocent Souls We that abode in castles far beyond poverty We that feast upon the wealth of the poor We that parade your streets in seductive automobiles We that coat our virtuous skins with gaudy garments We the innocent souls of the land. We that impoverish the impoverished, and enrich the enriched We that build death traps, and high ways to eternity We that build colleges, meant for advancing illiteracy We the innocent souls of the land. We the poor servants of the public Serving the masses in reverse order We the light-fingered solon Harvesting the fruit of victory We the custodian of public funds From whose eyes your billions disappeared We the innocent souls of the land. We that never relent in making promises Though we abide not by them We that never relent in formulating policies Though they be retrogressive We that never relent in holding conferences Though they be lees effective We the innocent souls of the land. We the patriots that shed the bloods of tyrants We the saints that chastise sinners Even when they sin not We the law-abiding natives; guilty of all crimes We the innocent souls of the land. Ola Ogun POLITICAL SCIENCE INDEPENDENCE HALL We that beg your vote every four-days We your evidence of true democracy We the poor servants of the public We are the innocent souls of the land! 116

133 Angels Of Tomorrow We the hope of the masses Roaming your street daily, With manuscripts of scholastic feats We the people's saviour That below bridges abode, making do With what the street provides We that in hunger dine and savour the aroma of dearth. We the light of this gloomy land the physicians of future maladies Ravaged by societal ailments the brains of future technologies Engulfed in cyber crimes the attorney of tomorrow's laws Beguiled into felony. We the hope of the masses! Perishing In the bliss of communal darkness Weapons of victory; the ransom for Retaining the unending reign of Caesar We the lamb of god(s) Bartering our innocence All for their guilt. We the omen of a better tomorrow The supposed leaders of the future In constant struggle with today The battle to survive; to survive and to live We that bare the torch skyward With hands weary of evil And bones nourished with societal vice. Ola Ogun POLITICAL SCIENCE INDEPENDENCE HALL We the mist loaded in the sky To quench the lands dearth And succour its famine We the vibrant torch of hope The beckoning light; gleaming at the edge Of this great tunnel of despair Glowing dim and dim and dimmer We are the hope of the masses! 117

134 A Dance of Divergence Now that we have rebelled Now that we have rebelled against the status quo Now that we have rebelled against the existing status quo Now that we have rebelled against the long-existing status quo Now that we have rebelled against the silly long existing status quo... Maybe not silly, but rather myopic and bipolar. Now that we decided to come up with a new scheme Now that we have come up with a new scheme of things Now that we have come up with a new scheme of thinking Now that we have come up with a new attitude of risking Now that we have come up with a new attitude of treating the mundane with disdain Now that come up with a new trajectory of self-afflicted claustrophobia Now that we have taken the second road in the woods It is now like a chess game created in hell With the king and pawns irrevocably at odds With each always trying to make a move to eliminate one another The question is, who is the king and who is the pawn Not even God will judge on this! But time will... Abayomi Ahmed-Tosin LAW SULTAN BELLO HALL 118

135 The Lone Tract Behold! I am awake to this pulchritudinous sight of a Regent in wait Alas! This peaceful slumber can never be better startled by fate It is a fantasy realised It is a dream materialised A dainty Queenly package comprising all my childhood fantasies A domination of my reverie, purged me of all my fallacies I don't care about the make-up or the beautiful dress Nor do I freak about the wrinkles and ugly streak borne of the stress It is not about what you have Nor is it about what you don't have Forgive my self-centredness, for what matters more is what I have Forgive my self-afflicted impecuniousness, for you are the only one I have.. But If I am the only one that you have Then, what matters most is what you have. Abayomi Ahmed-Tosin LAW SULTAN BELLO HALL 119

136 My Far Theme: Her Once upon a diamond with flaws from inception, A foetus out of deception, The peacock's ego and cunning outwitted the peahen, Hence, the 'peachick' is a victim of a failed bond, Abayomi Ahmed-Tosin LAW SULTAN BELLO HALL A tortuous life, fraught with the woes of a selfish maternity, Would have been milder if not for a contentious paternity, Moja mosa la n mo akinkanju eeyan But is it not better to fight to finish despite a looming 'lay-on' Ah! A jewel has been entered upon without acquiescence, And then arose a controversy about the tadpoles, The groom-to-be is expecting a negative, The bride-to-be claims that the examination result was not on the affirmative, On the verge of a break-away, The prince is counseling but the hands are even tied to break away This whole saga, a fraternal twin of the truth, Or maybe I should inquire, The whole saga, a fraternal twin or the truth? 120

137 Lagos Lagos is the muezzin's pentatonic And the wails of metal horses, That string up chaotic melodies To rob the morning air of its freshness. Lagos is the rushed rituals, Of sleep deprived professionals And financially conscious merchants On the busy roads of the city of seas. Lagos is the insult of bus conductors, Threats of tax collectors, And rants of mobile marketers Even in the coldest of mornings. Lagos is the taste of novelty, The aroma of foreignity, That you may never find Even in the city of seven hills. Lagos is the factory of money making machines. The big mall of occupational varieties. Your door will hunger knock not, If your fingers get busy. Lagos is the oppression of colours, The intimidating towering of head ties, And irritating blast of speakers That accompanies, Owanmbes of weekends. Lagos is the urchin on the roads of muds, The beggar beneath the bridge of dreams, The eastern man on the streets of Yaba, The Mallam in the stalls of Agege, The dream chaser from the Coast of Gold, And the school boy on the future road. Amos Oluwatobi Adejimi TEACHER EDUCATION INDEPENDENCE HALL Lagos is the Shangri-La of the west. A wife of many husbands, A mother of many children, And a child of many fathers. My Lagos never says no! 121

138 Words Words, When boredom paints my face with worries, Construct on it, Beautiful mosaics of smiles Made of sounds and morphs. Words, When I need to string you, Into beads of lines and rhymes, Fail me not! Words, When the palm of drummers, Beat rhythms to intoxicate men, When their artistry tease my vocal prowess, Form for me songs! Words, When cuffs and bars, Threaten my freedom, When bought justice, Prepares to drag me, Into pits of evil men, Rescue me! Words! My mouth, do not leave, When I need to make, Requests that men can't grant, But the one above! Amos Oluwatobi Adejimi TEACHER EDUCATION INDEPENDENCE HALL 122

139 A Slave In My Country The men of Thames I have chased, Out of the land that bore me. The weeds that choke harvests on my dying farm I have removed. Out of my streets that cry daily, Of the terrors that iron horses bring, I have chased away the seeker of fortunes. With blood of my kinsmen, I chased the slave masters. I become yet a slave again. My face I deface with the west's rainbow, My black skin I adore with rags of silk, My father's tongue I loathe. The eths and evs Of the Man of Thames I desire greatly. My futures I mar from my culture, My history I left to be vulture, My ancestral paths I neglect with weeds. I am black and I am enslaved. Amos Oluwatobi Adejimi TEACHER EDUCATION INDEPENDENCE HALL 123

140 The Free Man My hands impressed on paper, Satires for my leaders. And the payment it got for that Was a cuff of the warder. My mouth prayed for Sango's thunder And Ogun's anger On men that rob my wealth without arms. And my lips became pregnant for The policeman's punch! Unwanted is my voice Unappreciated are my deeds And my presence is a threat. If you feel that freedom is real, Slap the DPO When next he comes to town. Amos Oluwatobi Adejimi TEACHER EDUCATION INDEPENDENCE HALL 124

141 Orimoloye Moyosore Oluseyi PHARMACY INDEPENDENCE HALL Friday Routine We are here because our parents Don't track us with GPS, But we walk in like we own the place, Every single bottle. The barman walks up to us And asks what we want. We answer sincerely- 1 We are here to drink Orijin, Because beer is bitter, And we still really love coke. We are here to smoke cigs, Passively. Real smoking will blacken our lips, And mother would be curious. 1 -A sweet alcoholic herbal drink. 125

142 Orimoloye Moyosore Oluseyi PHARMACY INDEPENDENCE HALL An Ode To Encryption When I came across you, Empty as a curfew, As dry as an outside joke, I gripped the toilet paper tighter. I felt the need to thank you. But for the urgency in my bowels, I would have knelt beside you, Hugged you, Kissed your dryness wet. When I dropped the last bolus, I felt the need to hide you, To protect you, But you swore by inertia to never leave. To never surrender to another. The next day I returned to you, Same time. And I met you intact. I began to think I was missing a screw. Maybe you were just in my head, A figment of my hopes. But you responded in Archimedes, With your water levels rising with each bolus, You responded in Newton, Splashing water on my butt with each bolus. You are a lot like my woman, Hidden from those who don't know how to love you, Who don't beg to hide you. 126

143 The Fate Of Our Faiths I bent over the scrawls, Squinting hard to suck up their message. But the mind hobbled to get the gist. Distracted. Tobi Idowu ENGLISH MELLAMBY HALL What of the motley mishmash of happenings? The din of failed promises from our servant rulers, the bleak prospect motherland is serving...the ramifications thereof; The bright spark of a child that now scrounges meals from unwilling benefactors. The fate of our faiths, Our faiths with parallel fate leading ironically same place... Our bewildered state... The state of our unsteady state, My fate and yours that are not undefined by uncertainties. 127

144 Life Life's a gourd-ful of toil, Pouring abundance into our denominated cups; Some drink theirs to grogginess, Some manage to keep their heads... Eventually we learn no new trick to compass life. Tobi Idowu ENGLISH MELLAMBY HALL Just, as throngs before us, heaved at life's jerks So we must throng along the strait line it gives. Life but a thoroughfare...between here and there, between life and afterlife. It breathes being into human, But will smother the breath in piecemeal... You question life, it answers, but in heavy silence. We all must pass out, Life remains, turning notes over. 128

145 My Ears Are The Blue Sea My ears are the blue sea Soon it will kill your blazing words. Tobi Idowu ENGLISH MELLAMBY HALL When brooding wars In the theatre of scathing rhetoric. And didactic diatribes shoot out A retort from the labials of the rising star. We shall not count the teeth Of the moon. But dance old capers For receding stars... The word, yes Is an egg: How will it Break ungatherably. If it sticks in the spores Of a staid tongue? 129

146 The End Of A Beginning End, this is; The sky still hangs upstairs, yet. Tobi Idowu ENGLISH MELLAMBY HALL Like the thudding rain swifts Come, with fireworks and clapping dins attendants, The journey pretended to cave all in; yet, End, this is; The sky still hangs upstairs. Waking was doubts, fear of tests, of what impossible possibilities that may pop up... Just when the dust was ready to take up post, The night's tasks jumped into one's thoughts...candle must be burned; yet, End, this is; The sky still hangs upstairs. This end, know all Is but the end of a beginning Of no end. In the trip of knowledge, There is no last stop But stops along the way for respite. 130

147 Deal Of A Lifetime Tanitoluwa Adedotun INDEPENDENCE HALL Walking around the structure to find the only door. I entered for there was no structure to knock on. Never in my entire life would I have thought of coming here. But here I am, standing at the door to hades. I made up my mind to come here three days ago. Sure am having seconds thoughts, but this is a once in a lifetime deal...literally. Walking down the stairwell, descending into the depths. I remember Orpheus describing the layout of this place. Unlike him, I knew I was never going to return to the normal realm again. Walking slowly reflecting on my actions. I see a dim passage way ahead. I see skulls, lots of skulls etched into the wall. I should be scared, but I have only one last thing left to lose. This is my last adventure, my last journey...my last hope. He is expecting me, I know that for sure. Entering the large hallway I see a calm Cerberus. Good boys, they did not even bark at me. I wonder what their fierce side is like, thanks to Charon I will never know. Amazing what a single coin will get you here. looking up I see Tartarus, next to the fields of illysus. I see burning figures in it, the ladies in there must be pretty hot. I see the man himself up ahead, empty sockets staring at me with disdain. I walk up the stairs to him, stretching out his cold icy fingers for a shake. The sinister bastard chided me to get on with it, mocking me. I take the icy fingers into mine and float away...for by my death she shall live again

148 A Lump of Light When the sun shines, the Moon lies await; patiently perched on the shoulder of the weary day, till fragments of the broken day is mended in darkness. Then, it soars up forming a lump of light, a frame of little burning fire at the centre of the sky. Tolulope Oke ENGLISH SULTAN BELLO HALL 132

149 Vanity After what seems an eternal scenery, moments of overwhelming raucosity, nothingness, vanity quenches the affairs still. Tolulope Oke ENGLISH SULTAN BELLO HALL The many roads oblige to darkness, and when silence finally pervades this place, it dealt my soul the same effect; burying its ashes in mysterious solemnity. Then, when my sanity has been tossedconvulsively, I'd think of these stars as shiny sands laying ashore, guiding the path of strangers - wearied and tattered souls, to the abode of eternal silence. 133

150 Will You Walk With Me? Will you walk with me? Let us set forth on this path Side by side with enmeshed fingers Into an uncertain tomorrow, even bleak Bursting with youthful valour, invincible Till we can only daddle along, barely sighting our way Through life's struggles, a labyrinth of woes And its golden moments too, a good number I hope It may be that we bear fruit That illuminate our journey and make it merry And by your side I am lordly, magisterial at the least And you my earthly 'hur' incomparable Our gazes will never wander far, our beauty suffices And if it be that fate is cruel as to seize one or both I'd be glad to breathe my last, only in your tender arms Or less preferably yours in mine A walk with you is all I crave, my life's essence Take this walk with me and hold my hands if you please Olamide Oladipupo 134

151 Capture life s best moments IG:kevwe_photography Contacts: facebook: kevwe photography KEVWE PHOTOGRAPHY

152 Ogunfolu Abdulquddus Olubusayo PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL The Realm Walking down this dark empty road, Alone, Lost, Sad. The wind gently fondling my nostrils, The cold burning my skin, My steps heavy, Caressing the tar underneath. My heart sore, Missing the warmth of your presence, I wonder how I miss you so much, My bones bleed. Asake, You said you'd stay with me, But now even your memories Are turning misty. Day by day, The memories are fading gradually, Crawling steadily into the subatomic realm, A place where there's no pain, Only space. And on this night Asake, That realm, I shall find, Solace, I shall sought for, And care, I won't no more. 135

153 Ogunfolu Abdulquddus Olubusayo PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Scared I can't think No... No, I don't want to think instead Cos I'm scared Scared I will lose the Dreams knitted by Your thoughts Scared I would lose you Without even having you yet Your thoughts weaved dreams My slumber stolen by these dreams Now you want to chew my slumber And leave me naked with fear No oo... I can't think I don't even want to think. 136

154 Ogunfolu Abdulquddus Olubusayo PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Today Is Passing Slowly Today is passing by slowly I tried my antihypertensive material It seemed it was the drug I needed Cos every time my phone came alive I felt my cardio vessels constrict Each time Another name appeared I thought my heart would jump out Screaming your name Saying, I miss you But the day isn't over yet The day is passing by slowly 137

155 Ogunfolu Abdulquddus Olubusayo PHARMACY SULTAN BELLO HALL Black Your favorite color is black, I like red Pink, Green. Maybe that's why you decided To weed away the roses That were being nurtured In the gardens of our hearts Because when you cut me this morning The pain seeped through my heart, Sweetly, Steadily. But then, The blood that gushed out was different, It wasn't mine, It was Black. 138

156 An Ode To Abefele Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL With a trunk tinged in desert sand Pants painted in murky mystery Like a mane, icing beret of dark strands And matching boots aye butting misery He is Abefele, the shrewd blade Dweller of Iluubadan, a hoary land Guardian of Omoleewe, premier learners Nightmare of Omoota, the black sheep Abefele stands out Not as the rotund oracle, 'IFA' But as an Iroko among eyin Eera He stands straight and stout Not as the adrift boolu felele But as the stiff opa Oranmiyen Abefele His dull colours the world over tread His small numbers scatter like lyrics As faecal butter naughtily spread On cracked loafs of cream ceramics At the gates, he stands patiently Enjoying raw blows from nature In the theatres, he sits calmly Enduring neglect from folks immature On the roads, you shall find him A pilgrim whose Mecca is security In the halls too, they sing his hymn To calm restive souls who stir anxiety Abefele Though he wields no gun or sword of Samurai He fires off queries at unsuspecting suspects And though he looks nothing like Buratai He is fierce, fiery, awfully feared 139

157 An Ode To Abefele (Contd) Though Your genius may be hidden As aro hides the timidity of the kitten Though Your worth may sometimes suffer a deep dive As lives suffer death from the Book of Life Do not mind at all Do not mind That they mould you as a ball A bouncer bounced around to bounce A bodyguard to dancers designed to trounce And know Abefele Know that your prize is not with the mere mortal For whom you have pawned your lot It lies with none but God Who keeps you to keep them with mettle. Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL 140

158 Our Problem...Their Problem Tragic! Massive earthquake just rocked the North Hundreds displaced, several injured, many gone forth Oh, I have there, neither trade nor comrade It is their problem, none that I made Sad! Ghastly accident occurs in the East Many died at once, pregnant women, even little kids Ah, thank God I cancelled my trip this dawn It is their problem, not my own situation Another shock, schoolgirls kidnapped in the West Few escaped, others still in bondage at best This can't be true, it's a government design In any case, it is their problem not mine Newsflash! Bomb goes off in the South So great a casualty, too intense to recount Oh God, why? Family, kith and kin, all gone This is our problem, indeed something must be done.... If you make others' problem theirs alone It will soon become your time to moan But if we make them all our worries There will be no problem in the least. Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL 141

159 Our Problem...Their Problem Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL [THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE IS THE VOICE OF HOPE] If hope were to be real And all its splendour and contours we feel If it were to be borne from our hearts Like a child from its mother quietly departs Maturing beyond a mere myth Lurking in our mental labyrinth How will it seem? If hope were to grow some limbs Conjure a form that we may well behold If it were to grow a head and perchance two lips With a tongue and bubbly spirit also I wonder what it might say Help! Help! Help! For freedom it shall wail Help! As man's age-old, hoary slave Its voice will be nothing save a gentle yelp Lo! Hope hoping against hope to remain Please! Please! Please! For longevity it shall plead Please! Return to the era of burning bliss Away from qualm, a time of peace Grant me asylum in your heartbeats Here, listen! Come hear hope speak But draw near, for its voice is so weak From long years of torture and rude exile A war, without weapons with winner wearing all wounds and bile 142

160 Our Problem...Their Problem (Contd) If hope were to come to life The whole 'wild' world would too The blind may see beyond seers And the deaf, hear beyond the blue cheers If hope were to come to life Soft whispers will pierce our hard souls Weird wise words will therein flow Grow in hope, gaze at the rainbows But hey; want, whet and work too Lest you smile yet suffer as some do Lest you start and end on the same bid While still sadly glad you did. Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL 143

161 The Last Dose! 1 7 0, 1 7 0, what is it again? I try and try, but all ends in vain 1 7 0, 1 7 0, I can't seem to remember Those six little figures my poor matric number! Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL I am the unfortunate Nigerian student Hardworking, ambitious, always compliant I am the bone-eating son of a butcher Who none cares for a second to look after While busy sipping from the Pierian Spring The fountain went dry, an event unforeseen The unions cut short our bid to know Even 'IFA' oracle insisted we must go Confused and dejected, we packed our bags Thinking that the next day, we'll be back But days turned to weeks, weeks to months We waited and waited, all came to naught At first, to the union, we showed sympathy But then, the issue became just too lengthy No more were some on the fence To all, the strikers were now in defence Some learnt teaching, bricklaying and carpentry The rich ones, out of fear, swiftly left the country Some hurriedly settled down to marry Some could not endure, that they got heavy Alas! At this time, many were buried Here and there, you hear a student's obituary But no! We did not suffer alone The great union also lost one of its own Our market women cried enough is enough A Lagos lawyer said we can't take it no more Igbo youths are paid to pressure the union Vanity upon vanity, we were left in confusion 144

162 The Last Dose! (Contd) The government issues threats of no-work-no-pay When union protests, they chase them all away Go back to work, we have no money So says the vile and chubby Harvard lady Promise after promise, offer after offer Yet the union's stance stands, it does not falter Then came Goodluck, like a Deus ex machina Union got thrilled, and forgot the grounds for fracas Or so we thought Sadly, the royal meeting yielded no result After 13 hours of nocturnal discourse The season-film just never halts, not even a pause The media mediated, Sending us neither here nor there Even a silly fella Misled much through his twitter gear The game is no longer interesting The movie, no longer amusing The union has lost its radiance The students are no longer concerned The government again issues threats We will sack you all, they declare Pro-Chancellors too did speak Resume in a week or forever have your break When all hope seemed buried and lost The authorities agreed to pay somewhat The union knew it was the best they could muster And to all's joy, re-opened the Ivory Tower Kunle Adebajo LAW MELLANBY HALL When two mighty whales brawl It is the planktons that really hurt The strikers have gone on another repose But I ask, is it a stop? Have we had the last dose? 145

163 Sea Of Crisis With my eyes wide open I saw a turbulent sea Hippopo from the river Violates the precept, Scuffle the sea. I saw the tears of fishes Sharks wail for help Whales grimace But why? Inconsequential of the crocodile? Inept of the elephant? Like an epidemic Hippopo scales the tide Swam to the bank Awaited the rescue of the elephant Abdulkareem Hamid Ayinde LINGUISTICS Does the sea deserve it's fate? You know what tomorrow holds? Till tomorrow, this is what my pen holds for all. 146

164 Switching Allegiance Better tell a truth to make me weep Than tell a lie to make me smile Let me understand who I am To fathom whose I am You think you are free No escape is possible We are prisoners Just can't see the prison walls Government becomes a lawbreaker Breeds contempt for law Legalized extortion Everyman becomes a law unto himself Anarchy unleashed Until we make truth great Before we can be great Some generations are called to be great One generation plants the tree Another gets the shade It's a choice to be a part. Abdulkareem Hamid Ayinde LINGUISTICS 147

165 The State Of My Country In school, they taught us Nigeria was the giant of Africa But the teachers complained daily about our poor Educational System How can we be the best and yet be poor? Daddy complains about the situation of the country Mum worries about her supermarket sales, it's not as it used to be They showed ten thin thieves on the T.V yesterday I thought thieves had potbellies and full sacks That's how they look in my storybook - Ali Baba and the forty thieves I have a friend that stays in South Africa The country of my hero, Mandela He shows me pictures of their beautiful country And we send messages through the Is their country that perfect Or he only shows me pictures that are his favourites? I do not like the newspapers but my Dad buys them everyday The large headlines rarely speak of good things Only of people who stole An eminent personality who died Or various political problems as my Mom calls it Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL I only love them when I read Of a person's wedding or a favourite food Or the children's stories and cartoons Or when I try out a puzzle or two But I hear everything in the newspaper For my Dad comments as he reads To nobody, just to himself As if the government would listen to his pleas 148

166 He laments about the country 'Fela sang about it, they did not change 'Giwa wrote but see what happened We have still not left that same path' The time is now, if there will be a change And I sit listening I doubt he even knows I am here. But I like to hear him speak this way Just the way he speaks about my education 'You need to learn everything in school, Knowledge rules the world, my dear' It gives you freedom and an edge over your peers Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL The State Of My Country (Contd) But I read the story of Galileo In my sister's literature textbook And what his people did When he insisted the earth was round Sometimes your knowledge makes others feel scared And then you want to keep it all to yourself. 149

167 My Food Affair Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL I dream of the spices and the plating Of the scents and the colours And the explosion of tastes I would feel When I put a spoon in my mandible Tongue salivating Enzyme ptyalin secreting The eagerness to finish it all Yet the need to savour each taste To chew well in my mouth And almost never let go O wunikaj'eranpelenu Oofaofunni o je It is our wish to keep on chewing the meat in our mouth But the pull of the oesophagus disallows it It's love at first sight, my affair with foods With their seductive glances, they wink at me Inviting me to have a taste, inviting me to stay Looking quite pretty on a plate Decked in colours of the rainbow, some in monochrome All's acceptable, so long as it tastes good on the inside And the desserts, oh The fruits and the sweets The moment I decide That the diet can be ignored I'd resume tomorrow, I say With the bland drinks and the leafy veggies But today, I'd splurge a little And immerse myself in the various tastes Of the lafun and abula mix Of the tasty Ikokore dish The moin-moin elemi meje The piquant efinrin soup The sugared garri and groundnut cereal The dankwa, the robo and the baba dudu Relieving my childhood all over again No one ever said the sweet tooth ended when you grew. 150

168 To Mum Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL For months you had me in your tummy Coped with the backache, stress and nausea Then the D-day came, with the tears, screams and pains Nothing! No-one could console you I was oblivious of that day And when the nurse put me in your arms You smiled, even through your pain And I looked up at your face Still crying my small lungs off But still, you held me to suckle And when with months passing by I would cry to seek your attention Ignoring the fact that it was midnight And you had only slept a wink And I said no thanks Except the once-in a while- toothless-smile And when you screamed when I took my first step I wondered what the big deal was I was just glad I wasn't stuck in the crawling phase anymore And when my irritation increased As I grew a set of teeth You were there at all times With the tepid sponge And the soothing songs And the tears you shed When you tried to understand what was wrong with me And when school day came and I fastened onto your skirt You assured me it'll be fine You'll be back within the blink of an eye That did not stop the tears from flowing from my eyes And you listened to all my stories Of bullies and friends Of teachers I disliked and those I loved Of classworks and homeworks You never once said I was boring You only smiled and kept listening For all the stress and listening ear Here's me saying a big thank you, I love you, Mom As I'll always do. 151

169 A Rat On A Conquest I am dark grey and fluffy, And I can do a quick run, Not as fast as the hare But enough so the humans can'tcatch Tonight I shall exhibit my acrobatic skills And I shall hop onto their tables, pots and foods I shall frustrate and I shall annoy For today, I seek my revenge For my parents and my siblings Who were killed by those earthlings They caught my sister with that sticky things And she struggled and struggled but she could not leave I wanted to help but she told me not to come Else I'd be stuck with her and both of us would die She lay there whimpering and I sat, watching and whimpering too Till that homosapien came and with delight on his face took her to her grave Oh! How I cried that morning as I watched him drop her in the bin And for days, I refused to eat a thing Before that they had killed our parents We knew because my sister and I saw them with our very eyes Lying dead by the fish They had been poisoned by the Wights We ignored our hunger As we lay to mourn our parents' death Tonight I shall seek my revenge And I shall cause their regrets They'll know better than to lure me in With their aromatic meats and uncovered lids But I shall ensure I fall not in their trap Not like my uncle did as he ran Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL 152

170 A Rat On A Conquest (Contd) He fell into their metal cast In a bid to run past Their other methods to snare Or catch him in their grasp And his skin peeled As he tried much to flee I shall remember But I shan't get teary eyed As I accomplish my mission tonight To pay for all they have caused I speak with venom, 'Oh, ye humans Expect me when the night dawns'. Bello Shakirat HUMAN NUTRITION QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL 153

171 Affecting Shadows Odunaiya Lily LAW OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL The ghosts from my past still haunt me. My shadows taunt me. They are alive and haunting me. To whom do I owe an explanation? Who is willing to listen? Which one of them will understand? These ghosts are clad in blue, royal blue, the colour of royalty, they haunt me. They be making my mind a rendezvous, a stomping ground. Bringing back the shadows from the Gothic times to haunt me. Resurrecting the skeletons, breathing life on them so they can live. Stalking me to bring reminders of the past to haunt me. These things are not dead, they are alive and well waiting for the right time to strike. 154

172 Speak Odunaiya Lily LAW OBAFEMI AWOLOWO HALL When the heart is heavy and there's no words to express how deeply weighed down it is. When one can find no words to express thoughts that run jagged and jumbled up. Take out a little time to speak to yourself, Search your heart's heart. Breathe and speak to the Creator. In Him there is solace. 155

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