Arogundade

late Captain Thomas Sankara – to Teacher Don’t Teach Me Nonsense and from Government of Crooks (GOC), Chop and Clean Mouth Like Nothing Happen Na the New Name for Stealing to Condom Scallywag Nonsense, the hot numbers came rapidly as if Fela knew the end was near and he had to download for posterity.

Interviews with the Abami Eda, often after midnight, during this period were also livelier and full of more jibes. “Arogundade, you said you dey do human rights and Martins Luther King grandson came to Nigeria. Him no visit me Fela, wey don dey fight government so tey wey Nigeria police, not American police don beat; Nigeria police sabi beat o. Him no even visit Beko who talk say him dey do human rights for Anthony but he come go visit policeman for Benin (jocularly referring to Chief Igbinedion). Me I no understand dis your human rights o”, he once told me during an encounter that would lead to a cover story for the Weekend Concord under the editorship of Mike Awoyinfa in the early nineties.

To go back to the beginning: If Fela’s music connects generations, if his music fills the air during mass movements as witnessed during the anti-fuel price hike protests and rallies of January 2012 and if his music would dominate the airwaves again this October, it is because in the final analysis he remains the ultimate prophet that saw our tomorrow and perhaps beyond as we shall seek to demonstrate in our own little way through the re-visit of one or two of his numbers.