Honest, descriptive, lyrical reflections on Nigeria

A review of Sam Omatseye’s Tribe and Prejudice. Origami; 2017
UNLIKE Scented Offal, his last book of narrative poem where he reflects extensively on Nigerian history from the pre-colonial era, newspaper columnist and creative writer, Sam Omatseye, takes on diverse issues in Tribe and Prejudice, his latest collection of poems.

Published by Origami, an imprint of Parresia Publishers Limited and containing 30 poems, there is, however, no escaping history in this slim but potent volume. The poet’s abiding fascination with history is evident in a number of the poems including the title poem, Tribe and Prejudice, Asaba Massacre and Obama in Kenya.

In Tribe and Prejudice, Omatseye highlights a number of ills, including nepotism and tribalism that have become permanent afflictions across the land.  Deploying captivating lyrics, he recalls the not-too-distant past, when Lagos was truly a melting pot for all Nigerians and how this has changed over time. The poet also cheekily recalls events that transpired before the 2015 governorship election in Lagos, where the Oba allegedly threatened non-Yoruba people that they would drown in the lagoon if they didn’t vote for his anointed candidate.

He writes: “Once warm to the settlers/He warned indigenes to/Rise against all parasites/Not his word exactly but/The Outsiders/Who heard him, read it to mean/Something mean/ That is, they were/No longer warm, but, worms/This was not a way to embrace strangers/The Oba invoked the god of the seas/And unleashed a threat to/Dragoon the Others to the Lagoon.”

Sadly, the cancer of tribalism and the attendant prejudice is not restricted to Lagos alone. The poet, while affirming its prevalence, chronicles the conflicts it has caused nationwide. In Delta, it’s a three-way battle for supremacy between the Ijaw, Urhobo, and Itsekiri; in Osun, blood flowed like a river until sanity returned to the belligerents of Ife and Modakeke. Nigeria, Omatseye further reflects, is a cauldron of conflicts, with peace having gone on a sabbatical from the geopolitical regions. The Niger Delta remains restive while Boko Haram insurgents, despite claims of being degraded, continue their reign of terror across the Northeast; defying logic and reason to become suicide bombers.

The poet calls us to remembrance with ‘Asaba Massacre,1967’, the murder of about 1,000 boys and men by soldiers of the Nigerian Army at the onset of the Civil War. “They should have told us/It was not a welcome party/But a farewell/We would have come prepared,” he laments pitifully.  51 years after the extremely callous act, no one has been held accountable. The horror, in fact, is a mere footnote in Nigerian history.

Omatseye shows his soft side, as he croons about love in Girl Bomber and Faraway Love but is unable to resist social commentary in this latest collection. He stylishly mocks ex-Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, even if he doesn’t mention her name in The Sham I Am.  “…As I devoured/Others became voyeurs/Of my feast/ I ran when the feat ended/Not cancer, not lies/Can save me now/Not my ruby lips/Above my rude hips/Not the jets, not/The jelly of my pleas/Not the fat vats/ Now earthed and all is ended I know/What sham I am”

He also airs his views on the Almajiri phenomenon, the Awo statue at Alausa, Lagos and the endemic corruption in the country.  Rather than take sides in the debate about the statue, the poet chooses to highlight the achievements of the sage and avatar. “Some are awestruck, some have struck you/ Some want to undo you, some want to improve you/Some want to own you, some want to steal you/Some want to toss you/Those who burn you hate those/Who burnish you/But no one can banish you”, he croons.

There’s an element of tourism in the collection Executive Editor of TheNews/PM News, Kunle Ajibade describes on the blurb as “passionate, honest, descriptive, lyrical and reflective.” Omatseye describes his visit to the Osun River in A Stranger’s Invocation dedicated to the late Suzanne Wenger, with awe and reverence. A not too savoury experience in the US is captured in ‘Orlando’. June 12, 2016, was the day a 29-year-old security guard, Omar Mateen, killed 49 and wounded 58 other people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, US.

Omatseye appears to reference a belief in witchcraft with the poem, ‘Evil Pot’. He writes “The night mavens have squawked a decree/To tie her womb/So no child sprouts/ To hold their hands/So no labour counts/ To blend their bloodstream/So they are never sleek/To bind their harvests/So they never rest”.  The poet however swiftly affirms the supremacy of God with another poem, ‘Kaleidoscope’.

In Tribe and Prejudice, Omatseye’s tone is measured in declaiming the rots in our society; he eschews the stridency of a fanatic but shows our foibles; the stupidities and absurdities. He gently mocks but also celebrates our moments of glory such as the victory in the Under 17 World Cup Final in 2015. Overall, the poems are enjoyable.