Ukang Ajit Eke VOTE by Emem Asikpo Andrew on www.free2runonline.com

I see you the weeping mother

of children abducted, brutalised and murdered

anguished and hopeless for life wasted

mumbling and lamenting in your helplessness



I see you the young man

struggling for years to find a job

to make ends meet, to start your family

to prove your mettle, to be a man



I see you the youth

opening your eyes to reality

of the cruelty of the world

and wondering if there is any point in trying so hard



Ntoeka mukit ke enyin esit me

for I am you and you are me

your pain is mine and your injury hurts me

Idara aya di ke usiere



We have a voice and let no one tell us any different

Our vote is our voice and we will use it

walk past the army tanks, circumvent the police road blocks

cover your heads against the rain and go to the polls



They seek to divide us with age old hatred

how can they turn me against the breasts of my annang wife

how can anyone seperate me from the strong bosom of my Ibibio man?

It is not about my tribe, it is about those who use their power to silence me.



But I have a voice and I will speak

I will go to the polls and speak the voice of God.

I will vote my conscience and make sure my vote counts

I have found my voice and I will never again be silenced.

Ms. Emem Asikpo Andrew is an engineer, a technology activist and Nigerian.
visit her blog http://memsynaija.blogspot.com/