In this Land

In the midst of modern day's fray— The leaders with dispiriting sway, —make the youth feel small and humbled, Their potentials wilted, withered, crumbled. Education, once a glittering star— Now merely a launchpad. The city's fruitless search for jobs Entices graduates to farm-filled blocks, Certificates, once signs of our worth, Now bind us to soil's sun-kissed earth. We struggle on the land with pride, —though the dreams are swallowed, denied, Forcing us to compete with those— Who never drank of learning's hose. Oh! Great Spirit, What nation have we become inside? Where education's light no more shines. The bitter fruit of jobless hours, Turns bright minds into danger's flowers, —fraud, the fickle fortune-teller's chariot, Lures many into ritual's dark lair, Prostitution's shadowed bower. In this land where hope is strained, —where life's bleakness is ingrained, Our nation's youth must fight to survive, Their future's not a given, but a strive. In this land where wealth's a shield, —integrity's a toy to yield, The lower class is pushed aside, —their worth rejected, seen with pride. Offices, once merit's seat, Now dance to wealth's deceit, While empty heads with cash in hand— Lead the masses in a merry band. Connections, the thread of power, Weave the fabric of corruption's tower