70. “Malingo ma Mbaamba Kooova !
owa oma ono lingani, nange o-wo-wa wano koko meyondo” !
(You proclaim that you love me, yet you drum the back of your fingers on my head)
Note: e-Mokpwe believes that normal growth and development of a teenager is retarded when his head is drummed with the fingers of an adult.
Maito, maito kaii ! It’s time to narrate Fables of the Plants and Animals Kingdom.
Mwengele is a person who extracts wine from live palm trees.
meyondo (plural) = to drum the back of fingers on the head of a person; singular, moondo
Yasi nanu: Mwengele used to address his employees “comrade” and tell them that he loved them very much and had their welfare at heart. Some of the employees particularly Yaa-ngo, Njambi, Mwe-ngo, and Tina Liye, grumbled that Mwengele did not match his words with deeds. In the course of a meeting the employees enumerated their complaints as follows:
Njambi (a cutlass).
“Mwengele has assigned me to duties where I cut and wound trees and logs every day.
I am tired of fighting all the time”.
Mwengo (a chisel).
“Yes, Mwengele has engaged me on a job similar to that of Njambi. He strikes my buttock every time he digs out branches of palm trees or a cone of palm nuts”.
Yaango (two lengths of ropes joined by unique knots and designed for climbing up and down palm trees). Yango said “look at me. Here I am with a newly acquired length because Mwengele pulls me against the trunks of palm trees every time that he climbs up and down the trunks of palm trees”
Tina Liye (a palm tree).
“I am stressed by the brutality that I suffer in the hands of Mwengele. He wounds me to create steps he uses to climb up and down my trunk. He cuts down my branches. He harvests my fruits (that is palm nuts). He destroys my bud to extract my wine from my body”
Responding angrily, Motoko mo Koova (a big calabash) rebuked his colleagues for being ungrateful to the Master, Mwengele. Motoko asserted that Mwengele had demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that he sincerely loves each of them and has their interest at heart. Then staring seriously at his colleagues Mokoko mo Koova addressed each of them:
“owa Njambi, i-nyo na mbu-nda-ngo Mwee-ngo” ! (“You Cutlass and you friend Chisel)
You came into the possession of our Master without wooden handles. The Master has since clothed you with handles”).
“owa Yaa-ngo” ! (“You Special rope for climbing up and down palm trees)”.
“You came to the Master's possession in two separate lengths of ropes. The Master has since coupled the ropes with unique knots. Furthermore, you are enjoying the privilege of seeing the beautiful towns of Gbwenga, Tiko, Ewonji, Misellele, far away Douala and beyond, every time that the Master climbs with you to the top of palm trees”
“owa Tina Liye” ! (”You palm tree”):
“You used to maintain a shabby looking cockscomb. You are fortunate that the Master has cut down your old branches and given you a smart cockscomb”).
Responding gently, Tina Liye (the palm tree) said:
“Motoko ! Shut up.
You are a fool and cannot therefore understand that Mwengele is full of guile. You are one of those unfortunate creatures who feel satisfied with the crumbs that fall from the bowl (ewoki) without realizing that they too are entitled to eat directly from inside the ewoki.
The provision of wooden handles and the haircut you have mentioned are all in the interest of Mwengele. He cannot successfully use Njambi (the cutlass) and Mwengo (the chisel) when they are not clothed with wooden handles.
He cannot use Yaa-ngo when two separate ropes have not been coupled in secure unique knots. He cannot climb to the top of my trunk without first of all creating steps on my trunk. For him to have access to my buds and fruits he must first of all cut off some of my branches. Mwengele’s interest is to exploits us. He extracts both sweat and blood from us.
You Motoko, you are the reservoir of Mwengele’s palm wine,
Has Mwengele ever served you with a mug of palm wine (liwonde la mimba)
Has he ever given you any mbiya or mawuja (palm nuts/palm oil) ?.
I am certain that not long from now Mwengele will treat you brutally to an extent that will make you weep openly”.
Eleven days later two Bassa men visited Mwengele and asked him if he knew from where they could buy a motoko mo koova (a big calabash). Mwengele quickly presented to them his Motoko mo Koove. As is expected a calabash (koova) has to undergo a test on each occasion that some one wants to buy it.
The test.
Either the seller or the buyer drums the back of his fingers on the koova. Sharp and clear sound is produced when a koova passed as good is being drummed. A koova is said to be good for use if
(a) it was harvested when it was mature,
(b) if its contents (the seeds and juice) have been completely pulled out,
(c) if it is dry and has no crack (ngeeka).
The Bassa men complained that the Motoko mo Koova was not dry enough for use. Responding, Mwengele drummed the back of his fingers on the Motoko mo Koova again and said the sound was quite good. In the course of the test the Motoko mo Koova suffered a serious crack.The Bassa men noticed the crack.They did not therefore buy the Motoko mo Koova.
Later in the afternoon Mwengele poured melting glue (i-tuu-wa) on the crack (ngeeka) that Motoko mo Koova had suffered. Motoko wailed:
“I am dying. Please, please, stop pouring melting i-tuu-wa on me.
It is burning my ribs”.
(“Jaee ! Jaee !
na nweli !
na-seeli !
soni-soni ! veme nau !
osa soole fe”).
Njambi and Yaango responded simultaneously.
“okpwa wuu !
lima taa-wa !
yoma liye-nge-nye lima sii-va” !
(As was expected, it has happened. It serves you right).
The incident became known in the Plants and Animals World as:
“malingo ma mba-mba koova” –
Guile working in concert with hypocrisy.
You proclaim that you love me, yet you continue to drum the back of your fingers on my head to retard my normal growth and welfare.
You claim to love me, yet you continue to exploit me and block my welfare.
You have repeatedly said you love me, yet you continue to take action to erase everything associated with my name and the names of my ancestors.
You say you are my friend yet you gossip me, etc, etc.
You are treacherous.
You are a hypocrite
Oma nanu. Imba Mbua Ndoko.
Mola Mbua Ndoko
P.o Box 38 Buea, South West Province
Cameroon, West/Africa
Tel/Fax: 33-32-25-35
Mobile/Cell: 79-73-47-14
Website: http://www.mbuandoko.com
Mola Mbua Ndoko,
Another excellent tale that presents African philosophical thinking. Humans, plants, animals and things form one organic intercommunicating whole.
The proverb also accurately describes the reality of life in Cameroon today!
A little suggestion on the translation of the Mokpe term, “li koko meyondo”: to knuckle someone especially on the head. The joints caused by bent fingers are the knuckles.
Have a nice day, Mola and keep the wisdom flowing.
Lyombe Eko
Posted by: Ndoko | July 19, 2009 at 01:03 PM