by Anayo Dioha
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| Just over two weeks ago, Bassirou Diomaye Faye was a little-known opposition leader languishing in jail, detained without trial on charges including inciting insurrection, who had never held elected office. One week ago, he defeated the governing party's candidate, Amadou Ba, in the country's presidential election, winning 54% in the first round. On Tuesday, the 44-year-old has been sworn in as the fifth president of Senegal, becoming Africa's youngest elected head of state. In a region where a large majority of the population are under 30, his victory offers hope to those young people frustrated by a lack of economic opportunities, with old elites seemingly clinging to power. —BBC, April 2, 2024 |
Rotten roots from decades past
Sinking deeper. Branches
Decaying, falling apart
Into their rancorous unrest
From this foisted tree of shrouded
Democracy.
Evergreen leaves pruned, trampled
Black, mutilated barks
Of overburdened trunk and branches
Bearing colonial scars and fresh bruises.
The rape, the loot; plagues and
Persecutions–the tale of many
Dark cities.
But look! A spark ignites in Dakar!
An ecdysis seems in progress.
This bloom just may smile
At the sky; it could be left to bask
In the sun.
But how will it fare around the pack
Of predators gathered at the lounge—
The inauguration lounge?
Anayo Dioha is a Nigerian and has been previously published in The New Verse News.
