Award-winning poet and journalist Akeem Lasisi has revealed that his popular performance poem, Udeme, was deliberately crafted as a political satire disguised as a romance, using the beauty of its titular character to deliver hard-hitting messages about corruption and governance.
Speaking during an exclusive interview, Lasisi explained that Udeme enables him to achieve “a kind of balance” by appearing to celebrate a woman while subtly criticising political leaders.
According to him, the poem, song and performance are dedicated to the fictional lady, but beneath the surface lies a commentary on the state of the nation.
“Udeme helps my poetry to achieve a kind of balance and to use a stone to kill more than two birds. We dedicate the poem, the song and the track to the lady, but underneath, the poetry performance is a political satire,” he said.
Lasisi described Udeme as one of his most successful works, noting the irony that many of the politicians the poem seeks to criticize have embraced it.
He recalled receiving a call from a senator who jokingly acknowledged that the poem was aimed at politicians while admitting he enjoyed it.
The poet also recounted an encounter with former Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, during a 2015 press briefing.
According to Lasisi, Mohammed surprised him by enthusiastically singing and reciting Udeme in the presence of about 14 journalists.
He shared a similar experience with Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, who, during a 2016 visit to his office at Freedom Park in Lagos, also began singing the poem upon seeing him.
While many readers classify Udeme as a love poem, Lasisi insisted that its deeper purpose is to expose the ills of society through satire.
The poet also shed light on another of his politically charged poems, Onarebu, explaining that it was inspired by events surrounding the emergence of a Senate President and the controversy that followed a satirical poem by Professor Niyi Osundare.
Lasisi said Osundare had criticised the emergence of the Senate President “through the back door,” prompting influential figures in Ilorin to oppose hosting the Osundare Poetry Festival in the city because they believed the poet had insulted “their son.” The event was subsequently relocated to Ibadan.
In response, Lasisi said he composed Onarebu to satirise the circumstances surrounding the Senate President’s emergence.
Lasisi further explained that Onarebu extends beyond legislators to criticise corrupt politicians generally, including ministers.
He said the poem depicts a lawmaker and his wife enjoying the nation’s resources while the people eventually rise in protest. However, because the demonstrations lose momentum, the politician regains power.
“The poem is telling us to sustain our protests until we achieve what we are protesting for,” he said.
