<body><div class="booster-block booster-read-block">
 <div class="twp-read-time">
 	<i class="booster-icon twp-clock"></i> <span>Read Time:</span>2 Minute, 11 Second </div>

 </div><p></p><figure id="attachment_866" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-866" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://poetry.wrr.ng/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/african-king.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-866" title="Okwesilieze" src="http://poetry.wrr.ng/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/african-king.jpg?w=300" alt="Okwesilieze" width="300" height="240" loading="lazy"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-866" class="wp-caption-text">Okwesilieze</figcaption></figure>
<p>Today I saw a mysterious thing<br>
A thing that vexed me to my very soul<br>
I saw the black man dressed like a king<br>
But crouching in the shadows with a begging bowl<br>
His children were starving in fields of cassava<br>
Dying of diseases the palm kernel can cure<br>
Homeless in a land of rock and timber<br>
“Why are you begging?” He said, “I am poor.”</p>
<p>Today I saw a mysterious thing<br>
A wonder so great I cannot tell it<br>
I saw the black man dressed like a king<br>
But lying in the dust, crying at my feet<br>
His legs were sturdy like the palm tree<br>
His forests were rich and teeming with game<br>
His muscles, they rippled like the proud Zambezi<br>
I told him, “Get up!” But he said, “I am lame.”</p>
<p>Today I saw a mysterious thing<br>
So shocking I have no words to say<br>
I saw the black man dressed like a king<br>
But standing like the lost by the highway<br>
He huddled in a cage that had no gate<br>
He could see where the keys to his chains were kept<br>
He stood in clamps but they had no weight<br>
“Why are you here?” He said, “I am trapped.”</p>
<p>Today I saw a mysterious thing<br>
How can I tell such a horrible story?<br>
I saw the black man dressed like a king<br>
But sharing a sleeping mat with poverty<br>
His poverty was a fat man with a bulging stomach<br>
Lying on his back beside a pot full of treasure<br>
This conviction was all that he lacked:<br>
That he could get up and make his own future.</p>
<p><em>from the collection, “<strong>The Revolution Has No Tribe: Contemporary Poetry on African History , Culture and Society”</strong> available at Silverbird Bookshop and also on-line on Amazon.</em></p>
<p><strong>AUTHOR PROFILE</strong></p>
<figure id="attachment_865" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-865" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="http://poetry.wrr.ng/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/dike-chukwumerije.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-865 " title="Dike Chukwumerije" src="http://poetry.wrr.ng/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/dike-chukwumerije.jpg?w=300" alt="Dike Chukwumerije" width="300" height="241" loading="lazy"></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-865" class="wp-caption-text">Dike Chukwumerije</figcaption></figure>
<p><a id=".reactRoot[8].[1][2][1]{comment10152045886515257_16646406}..[1]..[1]..[0].[0]" href="https://www.facebook.com/dike.chukwumerije">Dike Chukwumerije</a> (Dike-Ogu Chukwumerije) is an Abuja Literary Society (ALS) Poetry Slam Champion, and the winner of the maiden edition of The African Poet Nigeria (TAPng) National Poetry Slam Competition.<br>
He is a literary advocate and a dedicated social activist, whose passion for change finds expression in his works.He has self-published several books, including the highly acclaimed poetry collection, “The Revolution Has No Tribe: Contemporary Poetry on African History, Culture and Society”.</p>
<p>One of his novels, “The African American”, was long-listed for the 2012 Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature.<br>
Dike’s other poems are available at http://www.therevolutionhasnotribe.blogspot.com/<br>
He lives in Abuja with his family.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong><em>What is mine to do, is always done.</em></strong></p>
<p></p>
 
 <div class="booster-block booster-author-block">
 <div class="be-author-details layout-square align-left">
 <div class="be-author-wrapper">
 <div class="booster-row">
 <div class="booster-column booster-column-two booster-column-mobile">
 <div class="be-author-image">
 <img alt="" src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/3de36b6da89639b3d80d015f84d2cfc35212bb0678ceb13c46dc8c712831d196?s=400&;d=mm&;r=g" class="avatar avatar-400 photo avatar-img" height="400" width="400" loading="lazy"> </div>
 </div>
 <div class="booster-column booster-column-eight booster-column-mobile">
 <div class="author-details">
 <header class="twp-plugin-title twp-author-title">
 <h2>About Post Author</h2>
 </header>
 <h4 class="be-author-meta be-author-name">
 <a href="https://www.wrr.ng/author/admin/" class="booster-url-link">
 Words Rhymes &; Rhythm </a>
 </h4>
 <div class="be-author-meta be-author-email">
 <a href="mailto:%20info@wrr.ng" class="booster-url-link">
 <span class="booster-svg-icon booster-svg-envelope"><svg class="booster-svg" aria-hidden="true" role="img" focusable="false" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24"><path fill="currentColor" d="M0 3v18h24v-18h-24zm6.623 7.929l-4.623 5.712v-9.458l4.623 3.746zm-4.141-5.929h19.035l-9.517 7.713-9.518-7.713zm5.694 7.188l3.824 3.099 3.83-3.104 5.612 6.817h-18.779l5.513-6.812zm9.208-1.264l4.616-3.741v9.348l-4.616-5.607z"></path></svg></span>info@wrr.ng </a>
 </div>
 <div class="be-author-meta be-author-url">
 <a href="https://wrr.ng/about-us/" target="_blank" class="booster-url-link">
 <span class="booster-svg-icon booster-svg-sphere"><svg class="booster-svg" aria-hidden="true" role="img" focusable="false" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="24" height="24"><path fill="currentColor" d="M 11.25 1.5 C 5.035156 1.5 0 6.535156 0 12.75 C 0 18.964844 5.035156 24 11.25 24 C 17.464844 24 22.5 18.964844 22.5 12.75 C 22.5 6.535156 17.464844 1.5 11.25 1.5 Z M 17.617188 16.5 C 17.816406 15.550781 17.941406 14.546875 17.984375 13.5 L 20.972656 13.5 C 20.894531 14.535156 20.652344 15.542969 20.253906 16.5 Z M 4.882812 9 C 4.683594 9.949219 4.558594 10.953125 4.515625 12 L 1.527344 12 C 1.605469 10.964844 1.847656 9.957031 2.246094 9 Z M 16.078125 9 C 16.304688 9.960938 16.441406 10.964844 16.484375 12 L 12 12 L 12 9 Z M 12 7.5 L 12 3.109375 C 12.34375 3.210938 12.679688 3.375 13.011719 3.609375 C 13.636719 4.050781 14.230469 4.726562 14.738281 5.566406 C 15.085938 6.148438 15.386719 6.796875 15.640625 7.5 Z M 7.761719 5.566406 C 8.269531 4.726562 8.863281 4.050781 9.488281 3.609375 C 9.820312 3.375 10.15625 3.207031 10.5 3.109375 L 10.5 7.5 L 6.859375 7.5 C 7.113281 6.792969 7.414062 6.148438 7.761719 5.566406 Z M 10.5 9 L 10.5 12 L 6.015625 12 C 6.058594 10.964844 6.195312 9.960938 6.421875 9 Z M 2.246094 16.5 C 1.847656 15.542969 1.605469 14.535156 1.527344 13.5 L 4.515625 13.5 C 4.558594 14.546875 4.683594 15.550781 4.882812 16.5 Z M 6.015625 13.5 L 10.5 13.5 L 10.5 16.5 L 6.421875 16.5 C 6.195312 15.539062 6.058594 14.535156 6.015625 13.5 Z M 10.5 18 L 10.5 22.390625 C 10.15625 22.289062 9.820312 22.125 9.488281 21.890625 C 8.863281 21.449219 8.269531 20.773438 7.761719 19.933594 C 7.414062 19.351562 7.113281 18.703125 6.859375 18 Z M 14.738281 19.933594 C 14.230469 20.773438 13.636719 21.449219 13.011719 21.890625 C 12.679688 22.125 12.34375 22.292969 12 22.390625 L 12 18 L 15.640625 18 C 15.386719 18.707031 15.085938 19.351562 14.738281 19.933594 Z M 12 16.5 L 12 13.5 L 16.484375 13.5 C 16.441406 14.535156 16.304688 15.539062 16.078125 16.5 Z M 17.984375 12 C 17.945312 10.953125 17.816406 9.949219 17.617188 9 L 20.253906 9 C 20.652344 9.957031 20.894531 10.964844 20.972656 12 Z M 19.46875 7.5 L 17.222656 7.5 C 16.785156 6.121094 16.179688 4.914062 15.457031 3.949219 C 16.453125 4.429688 17.355469 5.066406 18.144531 5.855469 C 18.648438 6.359375 19.089844 6.910156 19.46875 7.5 Z M 4.355469 5.855469 C 5.144531 5.066406 6.046875 4.429688 7.042969 3.949219 C 6.320312 4.914062 5.714844 6.121094 5.277344 7.5 L 3.03125 7.5 C 3.410156 6.910156 3.851562 6.359375 4.355469 5.855469 Z M 3.03125 18 L 5.277344 18 C 5.714844 19.378906 6.320312 20.585938 7.042969 21.550781 C 6.046875 21.070312 5.144531 20.433594 4.355469 19.644531 C 3.851562 19.140625 3.410156 18.589844 3.03125 18 Z M 18.144531 19.644531 C 17.355469 20.433594 16.453125 21.070312 15.457031 21.550781 C 16.179688 20.585938 16.785156 19.378906 17.222656 18 L 19.46875 18 C 19.089844 18.589844 18.648438 19.140625 18.144531 19.644531 Z M 18.144531 19.644531 "></path></svg></span>https://wrr.ng/about-us/ </a>
 </div>
 </div>
 <div class="be-author-profiles">
 </div>
 </div>
 </div>
 </div>
 </div>
 </div>
 </body>