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‘AN EXTRA NOTE ON THE NAIRA NOTE’ / ‘HOW TO HELP YOUR CORNTREE’ / ‘LIKE 20 NAIRA NOTE, WE SQUEEZE NIGERIA INTO YOUR PALM’ / ‘THE COOKING POT’ | four poems by Noble Alobu

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Read Time:4 Minute, 21 Second

An Extra Note On The Naira Note.

After Chiamaka Nwangwu.

I wish I could capture the heart of Oshodi market,
of the sweat & creased brows
bore by hundreds of heads waiting for mint currency.
The flustered security men, worn out from condoning
the legs that have so long stood on their grounds.

I wish I could capture the worried look of the father returning
home through the blackout of Ayo-ola street,
thoughts on
the six large mouths that'll greet him in disappointment;
no big black nylon to snatch from daddy tonight
no balls of akara to munch.

I wish I could capture the tied face of the Nigerian
single-mother
as she unties the hem of her wrapper,
how would she explain it; 'children, there'll be no supper
tonight'?

I wish I could capture the frustrated look on the lonely bachelor,
the boiled anger & cooked frustration that fills his stomach
as he leaves the ATM,
resigning to another long night of eating in the dream.

I wish I could capture the amber-coloured face
of the youth corper, scurrying the road,
on wet khaki & drenched t-shirt;
debit card in hand & determination on his face,
desperate for 2k that'll last him for the weekend.

I wish I could access the four walls of Access bank,
of the angry faces
ready to pull down the edifice into shreds. The stripped woman
screaming fire & curses,
breasts dangling like loosed pendants,
minds made up to do the undoable.

I wish I could capture the hungry face of
a roommate sitting at the corner,
trying to reconcile his food timetable with his country.
heart, lost in his tomorrow—
monday: free period / tuesday: 2 oranges / wednesday:
garri & beans...

I wish I could capture the livid expressions of students
retiring to the hostels
amidst the dim-lighted campus routes,
the bitterness in their hearts & uncertainty of a new day
Thoughts about POS attendants,
the big gods
who now rule the world.

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