The Shattering Of Democracy Poem by Kenneth Maswabi

The shattering of democracy

It's not enveloped in heavy armour
Or folded in many layers of steel
Democracy is found in the people's hearts
Closely guarded by the spirit of humanity
Democracy is the people's project
And no man can bulldoze it to the ground
It's only the people swayed by whatever circumstances
That can tear down the walls of democracy
Sometimes through silence that shatters the windows of reason
Other times through the ferocious claws of ideology
It's true that democracy is not perfect
Especially if tainted by corruption and selfishness
Or sometimes just pure wickedness
But democracy is the only hope for the people
In our diversity, we harbour humongous differences
But one thing is certain
We cherish our freedoms, peace and rights
We hold dear to our freedom of association
And our ability to determine our destiny
Even though sometimes we falter
Allowing evil men to lead us astray
We have always prayed for our democracy
To be a bastion of hope for all
Now the winds of time are changing
With so much hopelessness
We find ourselves at the crossroads
Having lost all our ability to look each other in the eye
And wish each other the best
We are divided
Some have accumulated more power than others
Some have enriched themselves at the expense of others
While others are climbing on top of the vulnerable and poor
In order to get to the top
We are a people at the crossroads
Materialism and selfishness have overtaken our selflessness
We are now competing against each other
Forcing each other to bend or break
We are shattering the foundation of our democracy
In our intoxicated state of hopelessness
Anarchy is taking root
Falsehoods and lies have been planted in our hearts
Conspiracy theories cultivated in our minds
And transplanted in our souls
We are slowly losing our humanity
As we gather around the fire of wickedness
Whether stoking up racial hatred and anarchy
Or feeding on lies, untruths and deceit
We are falling fast into the abyss of the unknown
And we need to stand together as humanity
To condemn this recklessness
To amputate this malignant tumour
We need to restore our democracy
Cut out all forms of inequalities
Remove all toxins
Bring everyone to the pedestal of hope
We need to find our true path
Inside the vault of our collective consciousness
We need to preserve our democracy

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