Ade A. Ajakaiye is a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) who has gone fully into poetry since leaving the Force. In this interview with Adewale Oshodi, he speaks on how he has been using his poetry to fight societal ills, as well as how he tried to combine writing poems with his police duties while in active service. Excerpts:
You are a retired police officer, and now, a poet, how did you handle the transition?
I have always been a poet, in fact, right from when I was in secondary school. I can remember that I wrote a 14-page poetry booklet when I was in secondary school, and also when I got to the university, I was a board member of the university magazine. I was always writing poems so the interest has always been there. However, when I joined the police, poetry took a back seat because police work is a 24-7 work which demands all from officers. However, now that I am retired, aside the work I do to generate income, I am fully back into poetry.
You have a poetry series, Songs of A Naija Man, which you use to highlight the ills in the society. How did you come about that concept?
You know ideas come in different ways. One day, I was reading the book, Song of Lawino by Ugandan writer, Okot p’Bitek and the idea of Songs of A Naija Man came to me. I write poems based on happenings in the society at any given time. I am definitely going to publish the poems into a book and that will be next year.
I will publish two poetry collections next year, with one being a collection of my Songs of A Naija Man series. I will publish a total of four books and I hope to invite all poetry/book lovers to celebrate with me during the presentation.
Do you think poetry has given you a voice now that you are retired?
Yes, to an extent. I said earlier that police work is a 24-hour work, and while I was in service, it overshadowed my interest in poetry. In fact, your duties increase the higher you go in the police, so I didn’t have much time to focus on poetry. However, there was a time I was in the public relations department when the headquarters was still in Lagos and we were producing an in-house magazine, I was writing poems during this period, but other sections in the police demand more from you than writing, but since I retired, I have fully returned to poetry.
During the EndSARS protest, you wrote a poem and used your pseudonym. Was there any reason you didn’t allow it carry your real name?
The reason was that the poem was critical of government. The manner in which the whole protest was managed by government was not good enough, especially when you saw the level of destruction and deaths, particularly of policemen across the country. I hope the government has learnt from that terrible episode so that such a period in our national life will not repeat itself.
The late General Mamma Vatsa was also a service man and a poet, would you consider yourself in his mould?
I wouldn’t like to compare myself with General Vatsa. May God rest his soul, he was a great poet. I leave the verdict on comparison for the public. Don’t forget his name rings a bell in the Nigerian literary world. My concern now is to have my books published in the first half of next year. Two will be on poetry, one will be on my service in the Nigeria Police Force and the fourth will be my articles and essays, which I wrote while in service and in my retirement.
But do you think the police have produced a poet just like you?
I am not sure, but I think I may be the only noticeable poet that the police have produced. But I do know some writers and authors in the police. The one that really stands out among them is CP Emmanuel Ojukwu, who is now retired. He has written couple of books. I am sure there are others.
As a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), who also served as commissioner of police in Lagos and Borno commands, how do you think security operatives can tackle the high crime rate?
The challenge is that the police are not properly equipped. The manpower is there, but they must be well-equipped for them to be able to tackle crime. We are in the era when technology is being used to tackle crime. I know the police leadership has acquired drones and this is a good development, so we must strengthen intelligence-gathering with the use of technology.
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The issue of mobility is another important area. Some divisions have just one patrol van working and we know that response to distress calls can only be effective if there are patrol vans to take policemen to areas where crimes are being committed.
With your experience, have you not thought about going into politics?
Everyone is a political animal and we all contribute to politics in one form or the other, even through commentaries on political issues. However, going for elective post is what I am not cut out for. I also don’t have the outrageous money to prosecute a political campaign. However, I contribute to politics through my commentaries and also through my poems.
Since you retired, you have been based in Ibadan, and it seems this is like your second home.
I have spent more of my life in Ibadan. I did my secondary school here and when I joined the police, I was in Ibadan for 10 years before I was posted out of the state, and now that I am retired, I am back in Ibadan. However, I am not comfortable with the number of beggars on the roads, especially around Iwo Road area where I live.
The governor moved them to a camp sometime ago, but it seems they are all back and constituting a nuisance to the city. Apart from that, Ibadan is a great city and I love it.
