Today I did my share in building the nation.
I drove a Permanent Secretary to an important, urgent
function
In fact, to a luncheon at the Vic.
The menu reflected its importance
Cold bell beer with small talk,
Then fried chicken with niceties
Wine to fill the hollowness of the laughs
Ice-cream to cover the stereotype jokes
Coffee to keep the PS awake on the return journey.
I drove the Permanent Secretary back.
He yawned many times in back of the car
Then to keep awake, he suddenly asked,
Did you have any lunch friend?
I replied looking straight ahead
And secretly smiling at his belated concern
That I had not, but was slimming!
Upon which he said with a seriousness
That amused more than annoyed me,
Mwananchi, I too had none!
I attended to matters of state.
Highly delicate diplomatic duties you know,
And friend, it goes against my grain,
Causes me stomach ulcers and wind.
Ah, he continued, yawning again,
The pains we suffer in building the nation! So the PS had
ulcers too!
My ulcers I think are equally painful
Only they are caused by hunger,
Not sumptuous lunches!
So two nation builders
Arrived home this evening
With terrible stomach pains
The result of building the nation-in different ways!"
BUILDING THE NATION - Henry Barlow


According to the poet, people in the upper class are
hypocrites. Their role is to build the nation but they are like
pests, who exist only to abuse national resources. They are
not building the nation but their own stomachs, the poet
says. There is no equality. The poor suffer from lack while
the rich and politicians suffer from overfeeding.
The good news is that there is a high level of awareness
among the poor. The bitter and angry tone, irony and choice
of words by the persona shows that those who are
oppressed know that those who are on top are destroying
the nation. This is important as the first step towards
emancipation and development.