After our election I awakened Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao, ciao! After our election, I awakened And the cabals were in power Oh Nigerians, save our nation oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao, ciao! Oh Nigerians save our nation Because I feel split approaching And if I die as a Nigerian, oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao, ciao, ciao! And if I die as…
À tous mes frères Africains Chers fils et filles d’Anowa Les Grands fils d’Oduduwa Et dignes filles d’Adroa Vos aïeux sont engendrés par Bumba Sur le regard vigilant du maître Anansi Alors que son cousin Kraag écoute La douce musique de Nana-Bukulu Et, quand Muwa-Lisa commençait encore La formation de nos lumières primordiales Il convoqua notre astucieux grand frère, GU Et, lui légua notre spiritualité et nos philosophies Ubuntu, notre philosophie fondamentale…
Sometimes, Western society seems to have either a selective or short memory. The problem is not just that the same ugly scenarios repeat themselves century after century, but that the society pretends to be in constant evolution, whereas it retrogrades. One is even called to ask if this society is genetically engineered to select which part of its ugly past it wishes to replay on and on. In the ’50s, when Josephine…
Fare thee well, brave brothers Commissioned to fight ghosts In a war dedicated to the gods With nothing indeed godly Sleep well dear comrades Freshly plucked from the pride And sent to the infested gallows To feed the rotten cackle of the Sambisa castle Rest in peace, valiant soldiers The pride of our peaceful motherland Boldly sacrificed at the shameless alter Of a cracked nation without leadership Cry no more spouses of…
The Igbo of Nigeria believe that an eloquent speaker speaks not many words but garnishes his speech with proverbs and anecdotes. They are also excellent at passing information with short and sometimes witty stories. They fondly express it with the saying: “ilu bu manu eji eri okwu” which could loosely be translated into “Proverbs are ingredients used in cooking speeches”. For example, this popular story –The Wooden Bowl – could be reduced…
“I wanted to shoot a politician, but not seeing any of them, I then shot Police officers”, said Luigi Preiti, who yesterday opened fire before an Italian Parliamentary palace. The young Sicilian said he was motivated to do so after losing his job and being left by his wife and children. From all indications, the 49-year shooter, who had no past criminal record, is said to have bought his gun four years…
In the bid to elect the successor of Benedict XVI, the princes of the Catholic Church, the Cardinals assembled in Rome for the meeting that would lead them to the Conclave. They started with the first session this morning. A calm session in which every participant was really involved, as father Frederic Lombadi, SJ, director of the Vatican Radio, expressed it. The arena of Saint Peter also wears a festive look, with…
As the US election is seriously approaching, the RFI English presents the known and unknown candidates. Were you away of all these candidates? Not just Obama and Romney – who’s standing in US presidential election 2012? By Tony Cross A crowd waits to hear Barack Obama speek in Las Vegas, Nevada Reuters/Kevin Lamarque More than 40 per cent of people polled around the world would like to vote in American elections. Tough…
The earlier African intellectuals that first made the very experience of seeing their culture, tradition, and custom undergo mutation never hesitated to frown at the rapid transformation and transmutation of African society. They were the first to oversee the danger and prospect of cultural hybrids in a constantly evolving world. Though many of them aired their views, only those that immortalized theirs in the new technique they had come to embrace [Novels]…
The ICC has always been portrayed as a court meant to promote democracy, but from all indications is a pure invention meant to perpetuate colonization in Africa. It has always remained vigilant, just like every other branch of the UN, in matters concerning Africa. True, we do not think it is a bad thing to force democracy in Africa. We believe that the choice of where and how to force democracy in…
