The Charles Mugane Njonjo Memorial Hospital, Kisumu

[Luoliability]

The Charles Mugane Njonjo Memorial Hospital, Kisumu « This folly i see!

Some people change in years but not in their convictions like Njonjo

[Miscellaneous]

Originally Posted by Luoliability

The Charles Mugane Njonjo Memorial Hospital, Kisumu « This folly i see!

Some people change in years but not in their convictions like Njonjo

rift valley land issues must be resolved even j.m karuiki died for fighting for the same lands which were grabbed by kenyatta and his cronies instead of being given back to their owners- after the british paid kenyatta money to do so!!

j.m karuiki on land issues [/b]


j. M. Kariuki's political life probably started in 1946 in earnest, after listening to a kenyatta speech denouncing the way colonial government was handling the natives in a political rally. Its however likely he was political earlier than that. His parents had earlier on been forced to leave their home area, chinga, located in the nyeri native reserve, back in 1928 to work in the white highlands.

There, they became squatters on a european settler's farm and were expected, as was the case with other african squatter families, to do the regular and seasonal jobs for wages. Such a life trauma was certainly likely to have made him political. In late 1940s, he joined the primary school drama and role played in the fight against colonial rule.

While in uganda for his secondary education, he closely followed the struggles that local kenyans were facing from the european settlers. On 22 october 1952, he finished his secondary school education and returned to kenya. Shortly after that, kenya was placed under state of emergency by the new governor, sir evelyn baring, and kariuki joined the mau mau uprising. After kariuki took his oath, he started working as mau mau liaison officer between eldoret and kisumu.

He also helped in soliciting money, boots and housing for mau mau. This led to his arrest in his hotel, which was working as a front to his political work. He was then detained in various camps (including kowop and langata) from 1953 until his release, seven years later in 1960.

After his release, he managed to secure kenyatta's approval in starting nyeri's kenya african national union (kanu) branch by visiting him in detention. When kenya became independent, kariuki worked as kenyatta’s private secretary between 1963 to 1969.

in late 1960, kariuki relationship with kenyatta became increasingly strained as kariuki became increasingly vocal of kenyatta's policy. Some of their disagreement were: government corruption.
The widening gap between rich and poor due to drought and the oil shock of 1973. Deteriorating relations among east african community members. Unfair distribution of land: after independence, united kingdom government gave kenyatta government funds to buy back land from the white settlers and redistribute it back to the natives. however, the land was never redistributed, but most of it was handed over to kenyatta's close friends

this was somehow similar to what happened in ussr early 90s. In 1974, he was elected as nyandarwa's member of parliament and became an assistant minister in the kenyatta government between 1974 and 1975.

this was despite kenyatta government pulling all strings at its disposal to avoid his re-election as his popularity threatened to overshadow the government of the day. He was last seen alive at the hilton hotel, accompanied by kenyatta's bodyguard on march 2, 1975. Several days later, kariuki's remains were found by a maasai herdsman, musaita ole tunda, in a thicket in the ngong hills.

His fingers had been chopped off and eyes gouged out. At the time of his death kariuki was a millionaire. It is not clear how he amassed his fortune so quickly without somehow engaging on the same vice he was very critical of. His family did not benefit from his wealth, as kenyatta's government conspired against them.

J.m kariuki is remembered by kenyans as a hero as he came to represent the force against the evils that have hemmed the country to this day.


[/quote] nobody is prepared from central province to follow j.m karuiki's foot-steps to fight the land isuues?? why??

[Miscellaneous]

Originally Posted by luoliability

the charles mugane njonjo memorial hospital, kisumu « this folly i see! some people change in years but not in their convictions like njonjo

independence however did not bring justice for kenyans - certainly not for the mau mau veterans. Kenyatta, even before being sworn as president in1963, had denounced the mau mau as terrorists. Contrary to british propaganda, kenyatta was never a member of the mau mau.


In an interview, muthoni wanyeki, executive director of the khrc, said that: "on coming to power, [kenyatta] proceeded, through the land ownership policies(and practices) of his government (and himself), to betray everything that the mau mau had stood for and to entrench the landholding patterns established under the colony"[1] it is not a surprise that kenyatta by the early 1970’s had a few detentions and assassinations under his belt.


In the words of politician j.m. Kariuki (assassinated in 1975), kenyatta created a nation of ten millionaires and ten million beggars. He wanted the mau mau platform of land and freedom erased from kenyan memory. In 1978 president moi took over when kenyatta died and continued with the same dictatorial policies. Irony is such that in 1982, mau mau historian maina wa kinyatti was imprisoned by the moi government in the same kamiti prison where the british in 1957 hanged and buried the leader of the mau mau, dedan kimathi, in an unmarked grave.


but more important than a hero's acre or a monument is a reckoning with the colonial legacy of torture, dehumanization and pauperization. Mau mau veterans that are still alive, along with their children and grandchildren, live in abject poverty, landless and without formal education