Monkey dey work, baboon dey chop

Monkey dey work, baboon dey chop ("The monkey is working but the baboon is eating") is a proverb in Nigerian pidgin.[1] It is commonly used to describe situations where one performs the labour while another reaps the benefits.[2][3]

The saying is widely used in Nigeria to criticise exploitation and social inequality.[1][4][5] It often appears painted on walls and vehicles, especially in large urban areas.[4][6] In Lagos, it is frequently seen on danfo trucks, with drivers using it to express frustration at perceived injustices such as extortion by touts and traffic officers, with one driver lamenting: "I chose this slogan because it expresses the anger I feel everyday on the road. I work tirelessly each day like a monkey, while the baboon [referring to the touts and traffic officers] stand somewhere and just chop [eat] from us."[4] In 2011, workers at Nigerdock staged a protest against unfair labour practices and racism of the all-white management,[7][8] carrying placards with the saying and similar variations like "We work like elephants and eat like ants."[8]

It has also been used to criticise political corruption,[2][9][10] as well as colonial and post-colonial exploitation.[11][12] In 1983, Nigerian author and later Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka released Unlimited Liability Company, a two-sided musical composition, in which he adopted the saying to criticise the political environment under President Shehu Shagari's administration,[13] particularly the perceived hypocrisy and corruption of the ruling circles.[14] Historian and social critic Bala Usman used the saying in his 1979 work For the Liberation of Nigeria to attack global oil companies operating in Nigeria, arguing the industry is set up to priotise their interests, often to the detriment of the country.[12] The saying was popularly used by Fela Kuti in his songs.[15][16] In his Unnecessary Begging (1976), he delivers a revolutionary message and warns of retribution for injustice:[17][18]

Nigerian pidgin

Everyday, everyday, I dey hungry
Everyday, everyday, no house to stay
Monkey dey work, baboon dey chop
Baboon dey hold the key of store
Monkey dey cry, baboon dey laugh
The day monkey eye come open now-
Baboon dey vex
Monkey refuse to work
Baboon dey vex and craze
Then he start to beg and beg-
Unnecessary begging, as we dey call am for area...

Translation:
English

Everyday I am hungry
Everyday, I have no place to live
The monkey works, the baboon eats
The baboon holds the key of the store
The monkey cries, the baboon laughs
The day the monkey's eyes open-
The baboon worries
Monkey refuses to work
Baboon worries and becomes agitated
Then he starts to beg and beg-
That is unnecessary begging, as we call it in this area...

During the 2011 Liberian presidential election, incumbent Ellen Johnson Sirleaf played on the saying in her campaign slogan: "ugly baboon wait small, small monkey still working."[19]

References

  1. 1 2 Mensah, Eyo Offiong (2013). "Proverbs in Nigerian Pidgin". Journal of Anthropological Research. 69 (1): 87–115. doi:10.3998/jar.0521004.0069.105. ISSN 0091-7710. JSTOR 24393641.
  2. 1 2 Eribo, Osadolor (2008). "Another Face of Slavery". In Viviane, Saleh-Hanna (ed.). Colonial Systems of Control: Criminal Justice in Nigeria. University of Ottawa Press. doi:10.2307/j.ctt1ckph37. JSTOR j.ctt1ckph37.
  3. ↑ Igboanusi, Herbert (2002). A dictionary of Nigerian English usage. Internet Archive. Nigeria : Enicrownfit. p. 185. ISBN 978-978-34225-5-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  4. 1 2 3 Agbiboa, Daniel E. (2017). "Mobile bodies of meaning: city life and the horizons of possibility". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 55 (3): 371–393. doi:10.1017/S0022278X1700012X. ISSN 0022-278X. JSTOR 26846979.
  5. ↑ Uroko, Favour Chukwuemeka (5 September 2023). "'Peace, Peace When there is No Peace': The Impact of Prosperity Gospel on Suicide Rate among Nigerian Youth". Perichoresis. 21 (3): 119–131. doi:10.2478/perc-2023-0025.
  6. ↑ Agbiboa, Daniel E. (2015). ""Policing Is Not Work: It Is Stealing by Force": Corrupt Policing and Related Abuses in Everyday Nigeria". Africa Today. 62 (2): 95–126. doi:10.2979/africatoday.62.2.95. ISSN 0001-9887. JSTOR 10.2979/africatoday.62.2.95.
  7. ↑ "Workers Allege Racism In Nigerdock". P.M. News. Lagos, Nigeria. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  8. 1 2 "Nigerdock Workers Protest Racism, Anti-Labour Policies". Daily Champion. 27 May 2011. Archived from the original on 3 August 2011.
  9. ↑ Nwaka, Jacinta Chiamaka (2020). "The Return of the Gods? Trends and Implications of the Rising Popularity of Fetish Rituals and Occult Practices Among Nigerian Youth". Africa Development. 45 (3): 53–76. ISSN 0850-3907. JSTOR 27000069.
  10. ↑ Yusuf, Ayo (23 December 2024). "EcoJustice Africa Established to Bring Violators of Environmental Laws to Book". This Day. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  11. ↑ Duodu, Cameron (24 September 2006). "The IMF must listen to Africa". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  12. 1 2 Mayer, Adam (2016). Naija Marxisms: Revolutionary Thought In Nigeria. Pluto Press. p. 124.
  13. ↑ Osundare, Niyi (1994). "Wole Soyinka and the Atundá Ideal: a Reading of Soyinka's Poetry". Wole Soyinka : an appraisal. Internet Archive. Oxford; Portsmouth, NH, USA : Heinemann. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-435-91151-5.
  14. ↑ Jeyifo, Biodun (2004). Wole Soyinka : politics, poetics, and postcolonialism. Internet Archive. Cambridge, UK; New York : Cambridge University Press. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-521-39486-4.
  15. ↑ Isichei, Elizabeth Allo (2004). Voices of the poor in Africa : moral economy and the popular imagination. Internet Archive. Rochester, N.Y. : University of Rochester Press; Woodbridge : Boydell & Brewer. p. 242. ISBN 978-1-58046-179-5.
  16. ↑ Waterman, Christopher A. (1998). "Chop and Quench". African Arts. 31 (1): 1–9. doi:10.2307/3337615. ISSN 0001-9933. JSTOR 3337615.
  17. ↑ Veal, Michael E. (2000). Fela : the life & times of an African musical icon. Internet Archive. Philadelphia, PA : Temple University Press. p. 150. ISBN 978-1-56639-764-3.
  18. ↑ Emezue, GMT; Smith, Charles (2015). "11. Fela Anikulapo Kuti". New Black and African Writing: Volume 2. Handel Books.
  19. ↑ International Crisis Group (2012). Liberia: Time for Much-Delayed Reconciliation and Reform (Report). International Crisis Group.
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