O ‘ Vuzela, who stirred up Shaka’s spirit,

The warriors’ warrior, our ancestor,

The Great One who inspired us to fight apartheid

And destroyed its spirit forever.

Vuuuuu! Vuuuuu! Vuvuzela,

Who awakens our mortified spirits,

And stirs up our spirits to rebuild our great nation

Vuvuzela who strengthens the weak

And transforms their fears into strength,

And imbue them with Daniel’s spirit

To dare the lions in their den.

Those who clamour for your death

Cannot fathom the depth of the bond between us.

To the strangers who do not know you;

Yet canvass your death,

Let them know you are what you are because of the spirit of our race,

And we are who we are because we are Africans flesh and blood,

And proud of that heritage,

So, we make no apologies for being who we are!

And we will not apologise for who we are.

If the strangers can kill you,

Let them first touch the tail of a scorpion,

And be the Mandiba to dare the lions in their den

If they can, let them first enter the fiery furnace.

But who can kill the spirit of Africa?

The wise child never condemns what is dearest to its mother

Yet, Africa is the source, custodian and the spirit of civilization

Vuuuuuuu! Vuuuuuu!

Africa is tomorrow

And tomorrow is Africa,

But who can kill tomorrow?

Vu, they cannot kill you because

You are the herald of the next age,

Stirring up the African spirit

To lead again.

JOHN ODEY ADUMA is a British Chevening Scholar and Publisher of Vigilance-The World’s Leading Security Magazine.