Charles Victor Uchenna Ilo lost his life fighting Boko Haram in a fierce battle to recapture the town of Monguno in Borno State in February
This poem is dedicated to all Nigerian, Cameroonian, and Chadian soldiers that lost their lives in the fight against Boko Haram, leading to the successful recapturing of sieged towns and villages: CAPT. ONI, PTE. PHILIP, CDR. CHIMDA, LT. PETER, CAPT. EVANS, COL. KABIRU, COP. JAMES, LT. IBRAHIM, LT. YAKUBU, MJ. UMARU, LT. USMAN, CAPT. OLORUNTORA, SOL. CHARLES VICTOR UCHENNA ILO (pictured), among many others. We see you, we know you, we respect you, and we thank you.
I’ve been watching you from a distance…
Patiently waiting for the day I’ll have this chance…
I didn’t see you coming, no one gave me a hint…
You passed by my street and left your footprints…
We were in darkness, you were the light…
You taught us during the day, you guarded at night…
It was tough, but you didn’t retreat…
You survived through hardships, never accepted defeat…
You were slammed and condemned as ineffective…
Unfortunately the paparazzi didn’t come along to the battle field…
Still you didn’t relent, you gave your best and kept your word…
Living each day by faith and not turning your back on a sword…
Giving your time, your energy, your resources, and your passion…
Being drenched in mud, with scars all over, you didn’t care about fashion…
They came, killed us, raped our women, and took away our children by force…
You came, helped us, fed us, and restored our lands back to us…
As you dragged your dying mate away from the battle ground…
His blood on your clothes was the motivation you needed to go another round…
And finally…you took the bullet, you took the fall…
Lying lifeless on the floor, you gave your best, you gave your all…
And now on this special day as I lay flowers by your grave…
We’ll never forget this gift you gave…
You’re the pillars on which our great country stands…
As your names will remain forever boldly engraved on time’s sand…
CAPT. ONI, PTE. PHILIP, CDR. CHIMDA, LT. PETER, CAPT. EVANS, COL. KABIRU….
Your sacrifice was not in vain, we’ll always remember YOU.
