The human nature never ceases to amaze. Calling a spade a spade is one of the tasks that seem so uphill to a majority of the people that telling half truths becomes second to nature. In recent years past, I have come across friends and former colleagues of mine whose pasts, by their own accounts to other people, is totally different from the one I know about them. It is a misrepresentation – to say the least. Why one would tell a big flat lie about his or her past, I do not know. I should suppose they may think that since there is something called ‘character assassination’, then it follows there ought to be an opposite equivalent of the same, say ‘character resurrection’ or even ‘character redemption’ if not ‘character resuscitation.’ Each one of us has made missteps in our lives. We all are not perfect, remember. We are each prone to mistakes –some grievous, others not. But that is not the point. Instead, the point is accepting it when it happens, getting up, dusting ourselves off and springing forward. Trying to either justify the failure , or worse still tell half truths about it in order to exonerate ourselves leaves us in no better shape than the one we were in when we miss-stepped in the first place. It is a lack of one’s decency and a display of both ethic and moral decadence for any man or woman who expects to command respect to blatantly tell a lie- worst about his/her past –that will soon be discovered faster than a hen swallows a grain of corn.
At no time in my entire life on this planet have I held former president Moi with the same high esteem I have held my grandfather, M’Emung’o, neither have I ever looked down upon him with the same contempt I do the proverbial man whose lying tongue caused the death of the clan’s unmatched warrior and hero many, many years ago. However, I occasionally stand at nothing to point out my grandpa’s failures (if any) as the situation may require, and also the positives, though few, of the man with the lying tongue. Much as we would want to heap blame on the retired president for everything that didn’t go well in Kenya during his twenty and four years of (mis)rule it would be ridiculous if not silly for us to attribute our personal failures like lack of self control and proper behavior on this old man from Sacho. It is on record that during his tenure, it is when Nyayo torture chambers were opened in order to crack down on the so called dissidents a.k.a adui wa maendeleo comprising of Mwakenya, Ngorongo, ‘82 Coup guys, University students etc. Anyone who dared to raise a finger against the powers that be had only himself to blame – but thanks to the courageous few who put Kenya first and dared to do what others dared not to even dream of. We now have greater freedom and liberty most Kenyans take for granted. It came with a price on it. The new constitution is one by-product of the Nyayo house torture chambers.
Going back in time, one will not fail to observe the monumental steps that our nation has taken since the Nyayo house torture chamber days, much of which can be traced back to the life-threatening sacrifices (some actually died) that patriotic sons and daughters of Kenya made for all of us. No wonder then, every Tom, Dick and Harry now hurries to associate himself with those that clearly opposed the status quo so that by association, may be, however remote, they can abrogate themselves a slice of the so-far-made achievements. In this unfortunate group deceitfully lays, those that betrayed the good course and even obstructed the speedy realization of the good results that we now enjoy. Talk of wolves in sheep’s skin, or watermelons.
Among the people who suffered dire and regrettable consequences of opposing Moi’s rule and advocating for freedom and justice through multi-party democracy and a new constitution were the youthful university students. Their regular street demonstrations and consequent clashes with the government (and by extension their respective institution’s administrations – which in most cases were government friendly) led to many earning themselves free tickets to Nyayo House torture chambers, suspension, and or expulsion from the university, and worse for others even mysterious disappearance and death. By late 90s, it was not uncommon to hear a story of a former student so and so who was either suspended and or expelled from the university due to political reasons- meaning they challenged the status quo. Unfortunately, this was hijacked by some, should I say, opportunists? to justify their own suspension and or expulsion even when they had been rightfully suspended or expelled for genuine reasons that were purely out of their own personal failure and had nothing to do with either politics (be it institutional or national) or with Moi himself. Say things like failing university exam, for instance, or breaking any of the other well stipulated rules and regulations of the respective institutions of higher learning.
More than once, I have come across people that I know enough to call them friends who were once suspended and others expelled from university for reasons other than those they claim to be the cause. I do not know when or why saying one was suspended from the university because of “opposing Moi” or “politics” became so fashionable that even those that were expelled for other reasons like failing exams chronically, or worse, were caught cheating in an exam always talk of their sorry state of fate having been sealed by their engagement in politics!
Although it is wrong to lie, I do not take offense at my friends for we are still buddies because we understand each other. The University is a public institution and no student operates in isolation but in the general student fraternity –talk of comrades. Nothing goes unnoticed ergo. A comrade understands that if a colleague can cheat in an exam, what about cheating about his own colleague, the latter of which has no dire consequences like slapping an expulsion like the university. Of most importance is for people to tell it like it is without fear or favor, or even embarrassment. That way, we can all face tomorrow and look the future straight in the eye without having to push our chests back and look sideways.
The society knows better now than it did then; not every suspended or expelled university student was a victim of his/her opposition to Moi or sheer involvement in politics. These friends should therefore badilika na wakati and stop punctuating their talks with “…when Moi suspended us from the university” or “…when we were fighting Moi politics…” and more ridiculously “…when we were fighting for the rights of other students…”. Names like Orengo, Mwandawiro, Tsuma, Lumumba, Kabando, Ntai, and Marx inter alia were household names to Kenyans due to the spirited fight that they waged on the establishment and the ideals that they stood for at the time. All these heroes balanced their academic work with this noble course without compromising either, unlike the opportunists. It should escape no one’s notice though that these champions never did it alone; that behind them was a formidable force of ‘student power’ that kept the fire burning although their names never made it to the fore. Nonetheless, their unmistakable contribution remains.
Martin Okariithi
Inorakia area iwiite induu ikarea kumenyeerwa no inuunkie area iwiite!
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