[male
vocals]
[ Deep round bass, classic offbeat guitar skank, warm organ bubbles, restrained horns, Nyabinghi-style percussion touches, and plenty of stop-time breaks for the jokes. The lead should almost narrate parts of the verses, with a lively male/female crowd answering him] LEAD:
Eastern
Region!
CROWD:
LISTEN!
LEAD:
N.
D.
C.
family!
CROWD:
LISTEN
WELL!
LEAD:
Dem
say
every
step
must
be
climbed—
CROWD:
ONE
BY
ONE!
LEAD:
But
wait
a
minute...
If
every
step
must
be
stepped
on,
then
somebody
must
answer
one
simple
question.
[VERSE 1 — THE LADDER] They
say
David
must
wait.
They
say
he
must
climb
every
step
before
he
can
become
Chairman.
But
hold
on!
David
served
as
DEPUTY
YOUTH
ORGANIZER.
Later,
he
served
as
DEPUTY
ORGANIZER.
He
stayed.
He
served.
He
learnt
the
regional
party
structure.
But
when
Kevor
was
Constituency
Youth
Organizer,
did
he
first
become
Deputy
Regional
Secretary?
CROWD:
NO!
LEAD:
Where
did
he
go?
CROWD:
STRAIGHT
TO
REGIONAL
SECRETARY!
LEAD:
Ahhh!
So
the
ladder
had
no
compulsory
Deputy
Secretary
step
that
day?
If
a
Constituency
Youth
Organizer
could
move
straight
to
Regional
Secretary,
why
must
David,
who
has
served
as
Deputy
Youth
Organizer
and
Deputy
Organizer,
be
told: "
You
haven't
climbed
enough
steps"?
[CHORUS] ALL:
ONE
LADDER!
ONE
RULE!
Don't
change
the
rules
when
David
is
coming
through!
ONE
LADDER!
ONE
RULE!
What
was
good
for
you
must
be
good
for
David
too!
[VERSE 3 — THE QUESTION] Then
came
another
opportunity.
After
the 2024
elections,
Kevor
was
appointed
to
head
NITA.
And
once
again,
he
resigned
from
his
party
position.
Now,
comrades,
this
is
not
an
insult.
It
is
a
legitimate
question
about
political
consistency.
If
someone
resigned
as
Regional
Secretary
to
pursue
another
political
ambition,
and
later
resigned
as
Regional
Chairman
for
another
appointment,
then
delegates
have
every
right
to
ask:
When
another
opportunity
comes,
who
stays
to
finish
the
work?
Who
can
we
depend
on
to
stay
the
course?
[BREAK — BASS DROPS / DRUMS ANSWER] LEAD:
Who
served
as
Deputy
Youth
Organizer?
CROWD:
DAVID!
LEAD:
Who
served
as
Deputy
Organizer?
CROWD:
DAVID!
LEAD:
Who
stayed?
LEAD:
And
while
others
were
away?
CROWD:
DAVID
WAS
LEARNING!
LEAD:
Who
is
ready?
CROWD:
DAVID
DAKUDZI!
[VERSE 4 — EXPERIENCE] Leadership
is
not
only
about
how
high
you
have
climbed.
It
is
also
about
how
long
you
stayed,
what
you
learnt,
and
whether
people
can
depend
on
you
when
the
road
becomes
difficult.
David
stayed.
David
learnt.
David
served.
Deputy
Youth
Organizer—
CROWD:
HE
SERVED!
LEAD:
Deputy
Organizer—
CROWD:
HE
SERVED!
LEAD:
And
now
David
says: "
I
AM
READY!"
Not
because
somebody
gave
him
a
shortcut.
Not
because
somebody
changed
the
ladder.
But
because
years
of
service
have
prepared
him
for
this
moment.
[FINAL CHORUS] ALL:
ONE
LADDER!
ONE
RULE!
Don't
change
the
rules
when
David
is
coming
through!
ONE
LADDER!
ONE
RULE!
What
was
good
for
you
must
be
good
for
David
too!
LEAD:
WHILE
HE
WAS
AWAY—
CROWD:
DAVID
WAS
LEARNING!
LEAD:
WHILE
OTHERS
MOVED—
CROWD:
DAVID
WAS
LEARNING!
LEAD:
WHO
STAYED?
LEAD:
WHO
IS
READY?
CROWD:
DAVID
DAKUDZI!
[OUTRO — HORNS / ORGAN / HEAVY ONE-DROP] LEAD:
Eastern
Region...
The
question
is
simple.
If
the
ladder
worked
for
one,
let
the
same
ladder
work
for
another.
No
double
standard!
CROWD:
ONE
LADDER!
LEAD:
No
changing
the
rules!
CROWD:
ONE
RULE!
ALL:
WHILE
HE
WAS
AWAY...
DAVID
WAS
LEARNING!
DAVID
DAKUDZI—
IT
IS
TIME!
[FADE] ONE
LADDER...
ONE
RULE...
IT
IS
TIME!