Of Justice, Jungle Justice and Our Collective Definition

a cartoonized atmosphere of jungle justice

There is something sinister about the way we think and about our collective definition and understanding of the word ‘justice’ as a country. When you, a patriot with some modicum of common sense take a critical look into the scope by which different interpretations are being read into justice, you conclude that your country is sick, or perhaps mad, and nothing else.

In Nigeria, from the pedestrian purview, justice is synonymous with words like lynching, ‘jungle justice’, a mob attack, while from the elitist viewpoint it’s an avenue for subduing the commoners into a damnable quietude of class submission. Quite miserable enough, from the legal point of view, justice is a partially corrupt judge donning the wig of bias. 

Or what definition can you give to a country that grants widely-known Machiavellian political looters and betrayers of public trust a presidential or national pardon, but can dock and jail hunger-ridden and hapless commoners with hard labour for a pardonable slight defiance? What is the difference between a law that sends a poor man to a 10-year imprisonment upon a simple theft of #1000, triggered by frustrated living, and that of some ignorantly emotional entities among us who lynch someone to an early grave because of a tin of rice? 

Let'us Talk the Man Called Brymo

Brymo

You as a poet or a literary/art enthusiast, when they mention Brymo in your presence, the image that strikes your mind is that of a poet like Alexander Pope or Jonathan Swift. These two great figures of the 16th century, the Restoration Period in the hierarchical periodization of literature, are known for two things: timelessly relevant thematic preoccupation and brave artistic ingenuity.

Looking into the contemporary phase of Nigerian music scene, with an insightful look into Brymo's music artistry and spirit, especially his gradual rise to stardom as an artiste of Maikori's Chocolate City; his wonderful collabo with Ice Prince in Oleku and the rest, you wonder why does Brymo not choose to be a literary figure -perhaps a poet- rather than being a mere artiste?

In the course of this reflection you will be like if Brymo would be a singer -after all, music is a distinct and unique part of art -why does he choose to sing in the period when epochal influence on pop, hip-hop is total bunkum and immorality? Why does he launch his career by the time the general acceptability of any genre of music is arguably defined by how long you can constitute street mediocrity on microphones?