Bilomelele bye Lukingi Masaaba: Poems of Mount Elgon

And O the lofty blowing of the horns

At various stations of the homeward journey

When the horn-bearers suddenly –

Blared their message to the mountain

Sounded their object to the plains

Announced their cause to the sunset

Declared their purpose to the sunrise –

Bv…..u!

Bv…..u!

Bv…..u!

Bv……………u!

Signifying that in the sundry homesteads

Of the candidates returning from afar,

An impending deed was to be done –

That would never be undone or done again!

This is the apex of Wangusa’s poetic career to date. As a category, the work is characterised by being phenomenally rooted in indigenous culture. And besides being strongly lyrical, it is dynamic, dramatic poetry. There are here multiple voices, various personas in life’s problematic arena. It is poetry not to be just recited but to be performed for maximum effect.