By Prisca Sam-Duru
Nigeria’s 50 years since the attainment of independence to many, have been a turbulent march towards nationhood. Looking at past records on economic issues, high rate of unemployment, individuals especially youths’ involvement in societal ills and worst of them all, an inclement political climate which became disastrous during years of military dictatorship, one ponders if the country’s golden jubilee was really worth celebrating.

All the same, individuals and organizations both within the art/entertainment industries and cooperate bodies lived up to our being branded at the international scene as the happiest people on planet earth and also as late music maestro Fela Anikulapo-kuti once described Nigerians as people who suffer and smile at the same time by commemorating the nations birthday with series of theatrical performances, musical shows, publications etcetera amidst woes.

‘Songs of a new dawn,’ a collection of poems authored by Chinedu Ezuka, a trained teacher of repute is a singular effort, utilizing poetry to capture mostly the failures recorded in the Nation,  precipitated by a faulty political system.

The 61 paged book published by Peachmac communications, Surulere, Lagos is divided into two broad sections under the headings ‘Twisted Muscle’ and ‘Songs of a new dawn’ with twisted muscle containing 14 poems while a total of 17 poems are listed under ‘songs of a new dawn’.

The author moves straight to the heart of the matter with Our Voice, letting every word count as he begins the journey into dramatically x-raying the evil meted out on Nigerians by military juntas.

We feel more of the author’s outrage as he paints elegiac pictures of his accumulated experiences and what military rule represents that is mad men in power which must not be allowed in the African Continent.

The anger of Chinedu is felt the more even when he thinks he has began singing the songs of a new dawn in part II. Rather than entertain his readers with songs of hope, he goes further with mostly clear songs of lamentations on the total decay in almost every sector. He further chronicles the unwholesome activities of the police in men in black, which calls for a total reformation.

However there are a few poems like ‘Abuja’, ‘Never again’ and ‘Nigeria won’t die’, that are portrayal of hope and new dawn for our Nation.

At this juncture, one cannot help but pardon him since any attempt to peep into the future of Nigeria even with the restoration of democracy; ushers in stark realities of gloom and doom especially if we are to do an analysis of ugly events of bomb blasts in Jos, Maiduguri, and Abuja, political killings and economic hardships already preceding the 2011 elections.

The big question is, considering the series of reported cases of assassinations, so much corruption at all levels predominantly among those in governance, looting of pubic funds while the poor masses wallow in abject poverty, individuals merely chanting the slogan ‘unity in diversity’ meanwhile, there’s so much tribalism, hatred and antagonism which are results of a Nation coerced into existing on three shaky legs, as portrayed in the book; will Nigeria ever sing songs of a new dawn?. The author is optimistic however.

Employing figurative languages of personification, imageries and repetitions for emphasis, presented in readable, simple and correct language, ‘songs of a new dawn’, professes the laudable goal of forewarning to the ruling class to reflect on the negative impact that unpatriotism has so far had on the great long suffering citizens of this nation, while enjoining them to turn a new leaf and make life more meaningful for all.

Except for very few typographic errors, the handiwork of the printer’s devil, which have no significant impact on the work, the collection of poems, from a teacher of the author’s caliber, one expects no less than the quality of works compiled in this book which make for pleasurable reading and academics especially in the post primary schools and I have no hesitation in recommending it to all and sundry.