*By Akadu Ntiriwa Mensema, Ph. D.
I. DE-SAA-NA THEOLOGY
Ghanaians are dressing up
Peacocking, strutting
Like ebullient vultures
In a camp of carcasses
Carcasses of used items
Carcasses of second-hand grandeur
Splendor of used bodily items
Of DE-SAA NA
Used clothes, second-hand items
Used and worn-out by OBURONI
Ghanaians love it all used
Second hand from OBURONI
From gods with white skin
User-friendly white-used items
It is called DE-SAA-NA
Using used and being used
Second hand items recycled
Ghanaian theology of second-hand
Anomalous faith
Neocolonized
Disempowered
Impoverished
Ghettoized
Hegemonized faith
That all whites wear DE-SAA-NA
Encased in mental slavery
Our locally made clothes
All our locally made goods
Lack the superiority of OBURONI
Lack the supremacy of OBURONI
Of OBURONI’s used DE-SAA-NA
II. HEAD/NECK IN DE-SAA-NA
DE-SAA-NA
Used hair, scarves, hats
Used ear-rings, nose-rings
Used necklace for women
Used neck-chains for men
Used bowties
And so we kill our local industries
Scrambling for used DE-SAA-NA
Used by our white gods
III. TRUNK/BODY IN DE-SAA-NA
DE-SAA-NA
Used shirts, lacrosse shirts, T-Shirts
Used panties/underwear
Used brassiere, lingerie
Used VICTORIA’S SECRET
Used shoes, socks
And so we kill our local industries
Scrambling for used DE-SAA-NA
Used by our white gods
IV. OTHER DE-SAA-NA
Used toothbrush
Used sponge, towels
Used nail polish, lipstick
Used hairbrush, combs
Used wedding rings
And so we kill our local industries
Scrambling for used DE-SAA-NA
Used by our white gods
V. RITUAL BUYING OF DE-SAA-NA
Ghanaian noses
Burrow into colonies of armpit
Of OBURONIS’ used DE-SAA-NA
Ghanaian noses
Explore provinces of genitalia
Of OBURONIS’ used DE-SAA-NA
Ghanaian eyes
Search for priceless white buttons
Ghanaian eyes
Look for strands of blond hair
Yes, scientific methods
Of looking for traces of whiteness
Of verifying whiteness
In colonies of armpit
In provinces of genitalia
VI. MENTAL SLAVERY & DE-SAA-NA
DE-SAA-NA
Worn by gods with white skin
Who have no body scent
No hair scent
Clothed in perfumes
To hold stench in check
No sweat, disease-free
Machine-washed
In purified water
Dried with artificial heat
Mental slavery is our bane
VII. DE-SAA-NA KILLING US
Oh! Our Ignorance
Oh! Our Dependency
Of killers of the dream
Of killers of independence
Of killers of local industries
The poverty of our minds
And our dearth of inventiveness
It is all in DE-SAA- NA
Of cradled in used clothes
Smelling it, loving it, wearing it
Using used and being used
The poverty of our minds
And our dearth of inventiveness
They are all in DE-SAA- NA
DE-SAA-NA
*Akadu N. Mensema, Ph. D., is a nationalist Denkyira beauty. She is a trained oral historian cum sociologist and Professor in the USA. She lives in Pennsylvania with her great mentor and teaches Africa-area studies at a college in Maryland. In her pastime, she writes what critics have called “populist hyperbolic, satirical” poetry. She can be reached at akadumensema@yahoo.com
