In this blessed country of ours
No good deed goes unpunished
No evil is considered
Too evil to be rewarded
Penury is hard work’s predictable outcome
Indolence swells the fortune of the idle-handed
If in doubt, hear this line from a juju anthem:
Ise kekere, owo nlanla*
What do you say about a people
Who have strong arms without
Knowing what to do with them?
What do we call a machette
Sharp and shining, without a handle?
How so often the deer falls
In the town of kniveless hunters
Venison so near, but vision so remote?
We live near the river
But perish from thirst
Croaking frogs mock the madness
Of their arrogant neighbours
In our beloved country
The thief is not the one who steals
The real felon is one
Foolish enough to be caught