The Return of Obiero

I have come back to my village,

I was born here and for the last 22 years I have stayed here,

My father, the late Jaduong’ Oloo Atipa, served in the elders’ council,

The council of elders cannot, therefore, excommunicate me from my father’s land,

I cannot be deported from my own home.

I have returned and I am not going anywhere!

I said it before and I will repeat it,

I will not and shall not apologize for sleeping with Ja-Alego’s youngest wife,

If Ja-Alego cannot satisfy his wives then he should not add many more,

He is an old man who should be dealing with other serious matters concerning the welfare of this village,

Like giving advices to the young ones and solving family disputes,

Not moving from one chang’aa den to another and later come back to his house with a girl young enough to be his grand-daughter,

If the council of elders are so offended with what happened between Abigael and I,

Then it is Ja-Alego they should be going after,

Not me.

I am a son of this soil,

I am a Ja-Siaya,

By excommunicating me from this village, where do the elders expect me to go to?

Who will attend to my father’s lands and properties?

Who will take care of my father’s livestock?

Or is this a scheme by some greedy elders to dispossess me of our land and other properties like the posho mill?

And what about our home?

Will it become “gunda” just because I satisfied a woman’s sexual desires?

It will not happen,

I swear, as long as they still call me “wuod” Oloo Atipa,

As long as my name is still Dickson, It will not happen.

I might be young with little education,

I might be an orphan with no tall relatives to fight for me,

I might be a bush man with no exposure,

But I will not let my rights be taken away from me,

I will not let greedy elders to pass unfair judgment for their selfish gains,

I will not leave my father’s land,

I will stay here and wait for whatever the elders threatened to do to me if I come back,

I am not going anywhere.

(image credits: vivowallpaper.com)