Majek Fashek and our own George Floyd
Oluwaseun Omomowo
An icon of African music, Majekodunmi Fasheke, died about two weeks ago. His music was soul-stirring, inspiring and a tad bit prophetic. One of the most riveting of his songs was ‘So Long’. The song was released in 1991, enjoining Africans to wake up from their slumber and take their rightful place.
He spoke about remembering when we used to live like Princes and Princesses. I however had a problem with him saying only the angels of God were white, but that is a topic for another day, lol. Considering Majek”s philosophy, the wave of protests rocking the United States now shows how long the black man has slumbered. I sincerely hope this isn’t the long sleep of death that no alarm can resurrect.
The George Floyd tragedy might be the catalyst that accelerates the awareness of the black man to the futility of his continued existence in the west. Our necks have perpetually been under the knees of the oppressors economically and existentially, and the time to break free is now. I am however not preoccupied with the happenings in the USA, they will be alright las las. My grouse is with the compatriots who are staging black lives matter protests in Nigeria, using the George Floyd hashtag. We should be part of the search for freedom everywhere but are the people giving our own internal the attention required? When are we going to squarely face issues affecting our collective existence squarely and appropriately? Two young Nigerian women lost their lives recently in incidents that depict the abyss our society has sunk to and more are still being raped or killed.
This is our reality. This is our George Floyd. The inhumanity, brazenness, moral bankruptcy, corruption and ethnic division. We are not fighting white supremacy or privilege, we are fighting a system that is devoid of standards or accountability. This is a greater battle for us in Africa. One of those girls was raped and then bludgeoned to death. The graphic images still give me shudders whenever I think about it. That bloody, battered face is the face of helplessness, retrogression and hopelessness. That is the hashtag that concerns us. The rape matter should not be given more attention to the detriment of the girl who was killed as a result of the actions of the police officer. Their lives both matter, and justice must be served.
I conclude by asserting that the images of looting, stealing and destruction being caught on film is disheartening. The government is fully focused on quelling riots and stopping the breakdown of law and order at the expense of a proper and transparent process of prosecution for those killer cops. The narrative is gradually being changed. The victims have become the oppressors, and they will soon start being hunted. They have kuku said, ‘when the looting starts, the shooting starts.’
Majek Fashek, rest in peace. You left a legacy. You made your mark, you came, you saw, you definitely conquered.
