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BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
KISUMU-KENYA
MONDAY, AUGUST 29, 2011

Kisumu archdiocese catholic priest, Fr Elias Ngafia yesterday celebrated his 25 years silver jubilee of priesthood. Fr Ngafia, from Gikuyu ethnic community was ordained priest for Kisumu archdiocese on August 28, 1986 together with Fr John Obala who is the current Rector of St Thomas Aquinas National Seminary, Nairobi.

Fr Ngafia escaped death in 2008 during the presidential election violence. Rowdy Luo youths armed with crude weapon wanted to kill him because of being from Gikuyu background. The violence started in Eldoret and spread to Kisumu, Kericho, Mombasa, Naivasha, Molo, Njoro, Githima village near Nakuru and in Western Kenya.

Although Naivasha had the least number of people killed, Eldoret and Kisumu topped the list, followed by Kericho, Mombasa, Molo, Njoro, Kakamega, Bungoma, Nairobi, and Nakuru.

In Kisumu the Kikuyus were the target to revenge the killing of Luos in Naivasha. It was reported that the Mungiki attacked Luos, some of whom were burnt alive in one single house. There were no Kalenjins in Naivasha so they were not the target.

The Luos in Kisumu were also revenging the killings of their colleagues in Nairobi, allegedly by the Kikuyus. The Kikuyus were on the other hand revenging on the Luos and the Kalenjins for killing their fellow Kikuyus.

It is against the background that Fr Ngafia maintains that reconciliation and healing in Kenya is not going to be simple as such as Kenyans may think. Majority of IDPs have not been settled, the families of 1,133 who were brutally killed have never been compensated.

Moi has never been charged in court of law for the deaths of innocent Kenyans his regime initiated from December 1992 elections to 2002. The families of people killed in Molo, Narok, Pokot, Londiani, Elburgon and Burnt Forest areas of the Rift Valley. These attacks were aimed primarily at the Kikuyu.

Moi has never reconciled with Luos, Luhyia and Kisii for driving away from Rift Valley. The Kalenjin Assistant Minister Kipkalia Kones had just declared Kericho District a KANU zone and stated that the Kalenjin youth in the area had declared war on the Luo community in retaliation for several Kalenjins killed in earlier violence. In the Chemichimi (the Bungoma District), the Kalenjin attacked the Luhya community.

Fr Ngafia did not only escape death their houses in Koru were burnt with all the belongings. His mother, Mrs Peres Mwihaki Wainana, 87, who died today (Monday August 29), was forced to go to stay with relatives in Nyahuru. She was terribly traumatized as the result of the violence.

Yesterday Fr Ngafia had said even if his mother was not elderly she could not come for his 25 years jubilee celebrations because of the shock of the violence. He wondered why Kikuyu community were referred to as ‘Bim en Bim’ (a baboon will remain a baboon)’, a song first sung by Owino DO Misiani and Onyi Papa. The song was perceived to be anti-Kikuyu and Kibaki government for criticising their political leadership for turning against the people who took them to power.

The song followed the December 2002 elections that brought the National Rainbow Coalition of Mwai Kibaki to power; Misiani was arrested in 2003 for releasing the song.

Between 1972 and 1974, Misiani had also problems with President Kenyatta for his composition of Kalamindi in which he talked about Kenyatta’s development policies that benefited only his Central Province and his Agikuyu community.

People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
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