By Mustapha Anka
An officer and a gentleman
Cherished, admired and adored
By officers, soldiers and civilians
As angels adore God in heaven
Your transition, a shocking transition
Was like a candlelight blown out by the wind
An evil wind in an evil world
Though your memories remain
Forever in our hearts
A great hero of our time
The scourge of the enemies
A commander, a lion and a desert fox
Feared by cowards, revered by adversaries
Whenever your name echoed in the battlefield
We have lost a conqueror, a brave officer
Whose name was engraved with diamond
For diamonds are forever
We are in pain, an enormous pain
As your blood flows in our veins
We will never be the same
Your death will never be in vain.
We part to meet, this I’m sure of
We will regroup to part no more, this I know
Because from Him we come, and to Him we return.
Rest in peace ‘ma men’
* Mustapha Anka, a Colonel, is Deputy Director, Department of Army Public Relations, and spokesperson, 7 Division Nigerian Army, Borno State.