27/02/2026
"The Voice of the People is finally awake. 🎙️ I wrote this spoken word piece for the launch of Diamond Community Radio—a poem that honors the journey from Dream FM, celebrates the team behind the mic, and welcomes a new voice for Bamenda. Read it here."
The Voice Of
The People
Diamond Community Radio
The Voice Of The People
FM 98.5
Today we gather
Not to scatter
But to rather
Celebrate a rebirth
Not of a new born
But an old broom
A new juju, with an old stick
They say a dream is a seed planted in the dark...
And for years, we dreamed.
From this frequency, we whispered of peace
when the night was loud with gunfire.
We spoke of development
when the roads were rough and the markets empty.
Dream FM...
she was the lantern in the window,
calling us home to a better tomorrow.
But seeds don't stay in the ground forever.
They crack open.
They reach toward the sun.
And today...
today the dream is no longer a dream.
For what is a dream that never wakes?
What is a promise that never becomes flesh?
Today, we shed the old skin.
Today, the seed becomes the tree.
Today, the voice that once dreamed FOR the people...
becomes the voice of the people.
Welcome...
to Diamond Community Radio.
FM 98.5
Because a diamond is not born on the surface.
A diamond is forged in the belly of the earth—
pressed by time,
shaped by heat,
polished by pressure.
And Bamenda?
Bamenda knows pressure.
Bamenda knows heat.
Bamenda knows what it means to be pressed
and still come out shining.
So when we call ourself the voice of the people...
That’s because we will carry your weight.
We will carry your laughter in the morning market.
We will carry your tears at every junction.
We will carry the farmer's prayer for rain,
the mother's lullaby,
the child's first word,
the elder's last wisdom.
Toh Clinton... Mr. Bangs... he knows the streets.
Mama Petro... she knows the stories.
Rachel... she knows the heartbeat.
Kebila Sylvester, A go die international, he is a father, a cover
So let’s build this together—
not in a boardroom,
but in the soil of this community.
So that the airwaves will crackle with life!
As every frequency carries the fragrance of home!
So that the mountains of Bamenda will echo back what they hear!
For this is no longer a radio station—
this is a gathering place.
This is no longer microphones and transmitters—
this is a mirror held up to the people.
So that When they tune in...
they will hear themselves.
When they tune in...
they will hear their struggles named,
their joys and successes celebrated,
their voice... echoed back to them.
Dream FM... taught us to hope.
But Diamond Community Radio...
teaches us to speak.
And when we speak...
the world will listen.
Welcome home.
The voice of the people is finally awake.
Diamond Community Radio
The Voice Of The People
Written by
Tanni Awa
[email protected]
Performed by
Mottanni
+237 699 444 555
www.mottanni.com
