A generation which forgets it’s history is bound to repeat it. So please let us remember.
Let us remember
the massacres in the north.
The train journeys east.
Why we build our homes on land steeped with the stories of our ancestors.
Let us remember
The children starved.
The bellies bloated.
The millions lost.
Let us remember the ones who disappeared never to be seen again.
50 years on we still hear their voices, waiting to be mourned and put to rest by a country that constantly chooses to forget them.
Let us remember
The bunkers built.
The alarms sounding.
The air raids.
The society that once was but is no more.
Let us remember
The dwindling army.
The forced conscriptions.
The arms of little kids pushed towards triggers.
The loss of innocence.
But let’s also remember
The ingenuity of our people.
The Ogbunigwe.
The Pride we took in excellence.
Let us remember
The beauty of our mother tongue.
Ka anyị na-echeta
The wisdom of elders spoken through proverb.
The integrity of our people.
The fight for justice.
The country that was promised.
On this day let us remember
For a country that does not remember it’s history has no past and certainly no future.
We will always remember.
Chukwudi Anyiam-Osigwe is a graduate of St. Andrews University Scotland, and the London School of Economics. He is a data scientist, graphics design consultant, and writer. He wrote the poem in memory of those who lost their lives in the Nigeria-Biafra crises.