Nganyi rain magicians lend hand to meteorological department
By our correspondent, March 19 2010
A British-Canadian project is doing just that. Launched last year, it aims to combine indigenous knowledge with modern science to build up climate change intelligence and disseminate it more widely in a community whose existence depends almost exclusively on farming. Before the project, the credibility of the Nganyi, part of the Luhya community in far western Kenya, was being undermined both by the more extreme weather as well as by their lack of access to the satellites and computer systems used by official forecasters. “Predicting intense weather is hard because it happens so suddenly,” says Thomas Osare, another traditional forecaster. “We cannot usually know in time for people to really prepare.” Government meteorologists, meanwhile, were struggling to be heard or believed. Now, each season they meet the traditional weathermen and together produce a consensus forecast. Once agreed, the Nganyi relay it back to the villagers – through ceremonies, public meetings and person to person, established methods of communication in communities where many cannot read or write. “It brings me great joy because I know I am doing something useful,” says Mr Onunga, a Nganyi community elder involved in the project. “I think the two sciences are equally valid. We are marrying our energies to help people better.” The meteorologists are also pleased with the collaboration. “The results have been surprisingly good – the community concurred that the forecast was accurate,” says Gilbert Ouma, a University of Nairobi lecturer. “Another major breakthrough is the dissemination aspect. We have been able to deliver the message in practical, usable terms – not so much meteorological terms.”
Dr Ouma is leader of a project supported through Climate Change Adaptation in Africa (CCAA), a research and capacity development programme, backed by the UK’s Department for International Development and Canada's International Development Research Centre. At the time of its launch in 2006, it was the single largest research and capacity building initiative focusing on adaptation in Africa. Currently supporting some 46 research projects across the continent, 11 of them in Kenya, it aims to benefit the poorest and most vulnerable individuals. The Road to Copenhagen As the Copenhagen summit nears the end, it is hard to overstate the threat that global warming presents to countries in sub-Saharan Africa such as Kenya. Increasingly harsh weather conditions are compounding the difficulties of communities that are often already struggling with extreme poverty. Africa is both the continent the least responsible for climate change as well as the one with the fewest resources to combat it. The African Union estimates that the carbon emissions of Africa’s 1 billion people are equivalent to those of Texas’s 30 million. A report published by the International Food Policy Research Institute in September concluded that, on present patterns, the number of malnourished children in sub-Saharan Africa will jump from 33 million in 2000 to 52 million in 2050, with more than half of the increase caused by climate change. While much of the focus in the industrialised economies has been on limiting future global warming through emissions cuts and energy efficiency, for many developing countries helping communities already affected by climate change, such as those in western Kenya, is a more immediate priority. Professor Laban Ogallo, leader of the Nganyi project, says: “Poverty reduction is clearly related to managing the extreme weather of the region.” “Through this project, we hope to learn what it is that we can share together to live today and to adapt to tomorrow.” Source: Department for International Development (UK) / International Development Research Centre (Canada) Tachoni traditional burial: Elder buried in animal skin By Denis Odunga, March 16 2010 Residents of Luvusi Village in Bungoma East District were treated to a rare ritual when a 90-year-old man was wrapped in a skin and buried without being placed in a coffin. The traditional burial - the norm in western Kenya up to the 1950s - caught most area residents by surprise and many surged forward to witness Mzee Mavachi Mandira accorded the unique burial befitting his status. As the body was brought from his hut wrapped in a blanket, girls and married women who had not reached menopause were warned to keep off the grave lest they attract curses. Split into two A bull was slaughtered at 9am and its skin split into two pieces that were used to cover the body. The burial was done before 1pm in line with the traditions of Bang’achi clan of the Luhya’s Tachoni sub-tribe. “The blanket must be in between the two pieces of animal skin. We treasure our traditions and my father must be accorded such a decent burial in respect of his wishes. He cannot be buried in a coffin as that is an alien thing,” said Mr Peter Musambai, the dead man’s nephew. He said the rituals would last three days, each day with its own unique programme. The ceremonies are conducted under the keen watch of elders, who understand and observe the traditions. “On the second day, we shall witness cows adorned in various attire mourn the dead. Villagers will arrive with their animals for the occasion before the final day that will see an elder lead the way in sharing out what the deceased left,” Mr Donald Walucho said. However, Mr Walucho said that upholding the culture was becoming a challenge as many people convert to Christianity. “In 20 years time, this tradition risks being extinct as Christianity penetrates many homes. But, it is not something that should be thrown to the dogs because traditions are part of us and we can’t wish them away,” said Mr Walucho. Most of the mourners present, however, said they had never witnessed such a burial. There was no room for many speakers except for few old people who eulogised the deceased. “We have never seen someone being buried in an animal skin more so one from a cow that has just been slaughtered. Even church services are not acceptable here as only elderly men are taking care of the process,” said Mr Geoffrey Khamisi, 27. Source: Nation Forgotten King fights to keep his kingdom
Wanga Kingdom is split into two: Wanga Mukulu and Wanga North with rival nabongoshipBy John Shilitsa, July 4 2009 The ceremony was the exhumation of Nabongo Rapando of the Wanga Kingdom, who died 73 years ago for reburial, after which a new king would be crowned. The hitch was that though the elders knew the general area where the king was laid to rest, the grave was otherwise unmarked. The search was frantic. The new king had to be crowned by 4 a.m. on the appointed day, so said Mzee Hussein Orata, 92, the man bestowed with the sacrosanct duty of leading the ceremony. The pall bearers had to deliver the remains of the old chief to the shrines before the kingdom subjects awaken. Waiting at the site was Prince Japheth Wambani Rapando, 86, the king-in-waiting. Dead of the night The search climbed a notch higher. This obscure place - the local people call it Eshembekho in Emulambo village, East Wanga Division, Mumias District - was a beehive of activity in the dead hours of the night. Young men frantically searched the thickets trying their very best to beat time. Half an hour later, there were no signs of the grave yet. Mzee Orata, then turned to divination and asked the long dead king to accept that his son be crowned Nabongo “to look after the people you left behind”. “Please do not ashame us, it is a big day for you and the people you led,” said the old man. He was entranced, talking as though the fallen king was right there, listening to him. No sooner had Mzee Orata finished than one of those combing the thicket discovered a pot with two holes that covered the head of the dead man when he was buried seven decades ago. The exhumation then began, all the while, Mzee Orata speaking in indeterminate tongues or sipping from a bottle of yellow liquid stuff which he spat around the grave. He then said a traditional prayer to the gods as the ritual got under way. On retrieval, the skull and bones were washed and anointed with milk cream fats. It was then wrapped in the hide of a freshly slaughtered bull and shipped off to the Shimuli shrine — eight kilometres away — where four other Nabongos were laid to rest eons ago. Royal lineage Patrick Karani, 65, did the washing. He was picked as he comes from outside the royal lineage. He would be paid Sh50,000, a cow and a cock for washing and transporting the remains to the shrine. He was not supposed to look behind or even rest along the way until he arrived at the shrine lest the ancestors disapproved of the ceremony. The journey to the shrine, in the chilly morning, is the longest and one that will be remembered for long. Karani carried the remains on his shoulders without resting for the more than eight kilometre journey to the 3.5-acre thicket opposite the Mumias Sugar Company. The reburial is important because the deceased Nabongo, believed to be still watching upon his people, can no longer share power with the new one supposed to be in charge after installation, said Mzee Orata. The new king says that in 1967, President Jomo Kenyatta intervened through Parliament to have the shrine preserved arguing that cultures must be respected and preserved. A sugar miller had wanted to plant sugarcane at the site. The shrine has three entrances and one is not allowed to leave using the same gate used to gain entry. The remains of the dead king were ushered in through the east gate, watched by a curious crowd of subjects. A mock war was staged before entering the thicket to symbolise the preparedness of the king’s soldiers to fight enemies trespassing the shrine. The crowd kept a distance as the elders moved into the shrine (Shembekho). Mzee Orata followed Karani closely leading the rest in a traditional song. A bull whose ear was cut the previous night was slaughtered near the shrine and its blood sprinkled on the graves of the departed Nabongos just before a fresh grave was dug and the remains of Nabongo Rapando reburied. The thicket is known for dangerous wild animals and reptiles, but Mzee Orata asked the animals not to interfere with the ceremonies. Wanga people strongly believe the dead would restrain wild animals from attacking during such ceremonies. Meat is roasted in plenty and Busaa is taken indiscriminately by the young and the elderly. The new king’s wives Julia Nanzala and Maria Adipo danced to the traditional special dance drums, spraying milk into the charged crowd. Meanwhile, the grave was refilled, and some more rituals observed at the site. Mzee Orata then led other elders to the home of Prince Wambani, where a bull and a sheep had been slaughtered. The animals’ blood was used to cleanse the home, as people enjoyed plenty of liquor in the vast compound. Accompanying the merry-making was amabwi (a dance to traditional drumbeats) as the ceremony approached a crescendo. Prince Wambani was moved to a secluded house where he was clothed in traditional royal regalia, handed a spear and two golden bracelets, and one made of sheepskin. For a quarter an hour, Mzee Orata appeased ancestors and performed rituals to install the new King of Wanga. The door was then opened and the new king stepped out to meet his people amid ululations from the crowd. His wives were carrying calabashes that contained roast meat, simsim and milk, which they sprayed onto the singing subjects of the new king. Thus did Wambani Rapando take the mantle from his father and predecessor Nabongo Rapando 73 years after the latter’s death. The Wanga Kingdom was one of the most organised political dynasties in East Africa. Some versions of oral and written history have it that the kingdom once extended from parts of Uganda to Naivasha in Kenya. According to Simon Kenyanchui in the book Makers of Kenya’s History, the Nabongo was the executive head of the central government, the final counsellor and adviser, because he was regarded as wise, benign, benevolent and neutral. He was also the source of peace and stability and the custodian of traditions and customs. Mumia, the 17th Nabongo, was perhaps the most famous among recent generations of Kenyans due to his role in the colonial history. Valuable material and oral history of the Wanga Kingdom is preserved at the Nabongo Mumia Museum in Matungu in Mumias. Rapando was born around 1893 and started ruling at a tender age of 25 years when Nabongo Lutomia died. He ruled for 18 years between 1918 and 1936, the year he died after being bitten by a wild dog. By then, Nabongo Wambani Rapando was 12 and Makari Lutomia would hold brief until 1948 when Nabongo Wambani had completed his studies at Government African School in Kakamega and Budo Kings College, Uganda. Nabongo Osundwa was the first to be reburied at the shrine followed by Kweyu, Sakwa and Lutomia in that order. Sakwa is said to have been the most fierce and shrewd amongst them all. The kingdom split in the 18th century when ailing Nabongo Osundwa summoned his two sons, Kweyu and Wamukoya and gave the former a spear that symbolised who was the chosen heir and the rope to the latter, to mean he was to play second fiddle to his brother, says King Wambani Rapando. When Osundwa died, Wamukoya, with support from some elders, decided to oppose his brother and elders felt he had betrayed their fallen Nabongo. He then secretly plotted to steal the remains of his father. However, Kweyu’s warriors were on high alert and waylaid Wamukoya and his faction as they were transporting the remains to the current Matungu shrine. A war ensued and Kweyu’s forces carried the day. However, Wamukoya was allowed to attend reburial of his father’s remains at Shimuli Shrine and was sent away five days later. That is how the kingdom split: Wanga Mukulu under Nabongo Kweyu and North Wanga under Nabongo Wamukoya. Wamukoya was succeeded by his son Shiundu who handed the mantle to Nabongo Mumia. Nabongo Mumia would later collaborate with the British colonisers and emerge as a famous king ruling a vast area. Traditional brew Kweyu was succeeded by Sakwa known for his habit of sitting on the laps of his wife as another one held his straw while he sipped traditional brew, says Mzee Orata. When Joseph Thompson and Carl Peters visited the kingdom for the first time in about 1884 and hoisted a flag on Nabongo Kweyu’s farm, King Sakwa who was in charge then lowered the flag, burnt it and chased the visitors away. However, the white men were welcomed by Nabongo Mumia, says Mzee Orata. Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher visited the home of the just installed Nabongo Wambani Rapando accompanied by then President Daniel arap Moi. “Thatcher was so impressed and it’s after her visit I was shocked to learn the colonisers regarded me a king,” says Wambani Rapando. A majority of the five MPs who have served Mumias hailed from Wanga Mukulu. They are; John Owashika (1970 – 1973), Francis Obongita (1973-1979), Ellon Wameyo, who was re-elected for four consecutive terms, Wycliffe Osundwa and Benjamin Washiali, the current MP. “An MP is elected leader, and he must be acceptable to the majority,” said Mr Osundwa who attended coronation ceremony for King Wambani Rapando. The biggest challenge facing the new king is the struggle to reunite the two kingdoms. The two kingdoms have challenged each other’s legitimacy with the North under Peter Mumia II. “The true and legitimate kingdom belongs to us,” said Orata. In a telephone interview, Mumia II told Lifestyle that he was the undisputed King of Wanga. According to the elders, Prime Minister Raila Odinga falls in the line of Nabongo Sakwa, son to Nabongo Kweyu who was chosen by Nabongo Osundwa as his heir and not Wamukoya who rebelled and went to the North instead. Source: NATION US envoy crowned Wanga elder
By Cosmas Butunyi and John Shilitsa, May 28 2009 At the Nabongo Mumia Cultural centre in Matungu constituency, Mr Ranneberger looked a little bewildered as instantly-composed praise songs were belted out in his honour, complete with baptism that came with a new name, Shiundu. The ambassador acknowledged the rich culture of the Wanga, which he described as “the only ancient kingdom in Kenya”. “He is beyond being made a warrior, so we made him an elder,” explained the claimant to the throne, “His Highness” Prince Peter Mumia II. Mumia II presides with the help of a Council of Elders, but the Kingdom and its titles and organs are largely non-existent, having no official recognition and no authority except maybe over a few cultural issues. The elders work through five committees that carry out different tasks. These include advisory, historical, cultural affairs, information and publicity, and investment. The “monarch” is free to name whoever he pleases to the council of elders. The association with Mr Ranneberger provides a welcome fillip for an institution crying out for attention. And maybe a little more because at the function last week, there was a plea for financial assistance. The Kingdom required some Sh146 million for a multi-purpose hall and guest wing, amongst other improvements on the cultural centre. In his brief State of the Kingdom speech, the Mumia II said that though the region had a huge untapped potential in natural resources and manpower, it was mired in poverty. “We only need a little push and the rest will be done,” he said, adding that the region was once the granary of Western Kenya. “I will take the requests seriously and look into what we can do even though we have a difficult budget situation I will make an honest approach to do something instead of making false promises,” Mr Ranneberger responded. He was shown the regalia donned by the Kingdom’s leaders of yore. The journey into the culture of the Wanga Kingdom would not be complete without a visit to the mausoleum where the remains of the past kings Nabongo Wanga, Nabongo Mumia I and Nabongo Netia, were buried. The current Wanga monarch has been relegated to performing traditional ceremonies such as weddings and funerals. If he ever gets officially coronated, he would become the 28th ruler in the history of the kingdom. But he may have a long wait, for unlike in neighbouring Uganda, there are no plans to revive the traditional kingdoms. According to Prince Mumia, the Kingdom dates back to 1050AD with the birth of Nabongo Wanga to King Mwanga III. He would be exiled from Uganda to settle in Lela, Nyanza Province, and eventually Imanga, in what came to be Mumias District, where he was taken in by area chief Mumia as a herdsman. His stay was short-lived, as he was kicked out when the chief’s wife saw him with a rare ring (omukasa), which meant he was royalty. He settled in a nearby village and ousted the chief. He later moved to Matungu around 1100AD and died in 1140AD. Successful leader Nabongo Mumia I went down in history as the most successful leader of the kingdom. Born in 1849, he succeeded his father Nabongo Shiundu in 1880. “He was a brave, shrewd and intelligent king and ruled with supreme authority,” says Mumia II. He was the King, Chief Justice, Commander-in-Chief and final appeal authority at all civil and criminal cases in the vast kingdom “traversing Western region to Naivasha and all the way to Jinja, Uganda.” The Nabongo also had chiefs representing him from among other communities, with Chief Chabasinga taking care of Busoga Jinja; Chief Lenana Talai the Maasai and Chief Odera Akang’o in charge of the Luo. ‘‘Mumia I became so popular that whites like Joseph Thompson and Bishop Hannington visited between 1883 and 1889 and sought his guidance through to Uganda,” says Mumia II. Bishop Hannington, who was killed in Uganda days after meeting Nabongo Mumia I, was buried in Mumias, with his grave now at the periphery of a football pitch.
Wanga launch Nabongo cultural centre
By John Shilitsa and Walter Menya, Dec 30 2008 It could be the latest addition to the growing tourist sites in Kenya’s western tourism. It was an occasion few wished to miss, and some trekked long distances to the newly constructed centre on the outskirts of Mumias Town to witness its official opening. In attendance were Nabongo Peter Mumia II, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi, and ministers James Orengo, Fred Gumo, Oburu Oginga and Alfred Khangati. Others were MPs Eugene Wamalwa, Ben Washiali, Alfred Odhiambo and National Heritage permanent secretary Jacob ole Miaron. Traditional greeting When he took to the podium, Nabongo Mumia II hollered “Kualulukha! Kualulukha!” and the crowd, familiar with the traditional greeting responded in unison “kulama”, which means a tree will survive even when it shades off leaves. As he bellowed those words, Nabongo wanted to reassure the community entrusted under his guidance by the ancestors that the once vibrant Wanga Kingdom that dates back to 1,000 years would remain strong. Nabongo cultural centre was the brainchild of Nabongo Mumia II to help conserve traditional artefacts and history. At the centre, visitors will see these great pieces of art and culture in a museum and a library. Within the compound is a prototype traditional Luhya homestead, complete with huts for the man of the house, the wives and sons. This is where the PM’s entourage sipped traditional brew using long straws. Besides, there is a mausoleum where the past Kings (Nabongo) were interred. The Wanga king gestured at the mausoleum opposite the traditional homestead, saying: “There is the place where Nabongo Wanga, Nabongo Mumia I and Nabongo Netia lie.” Next to the past Nabongos’ graves is a space where the current King could be laid to rest some day. The entire work is envisaged to cost Sh46 million, with Mumias Sugar Company contributing Sh12 million towards the project through its corporate social responsibility. The Government has largely funded the remaining part. The work is not yet complete. “We want to have a multi-purpose hall, an eco-tourism cultural village, botanical garden, residential wing, and tourism van and sports field,” said Nabongo. Despite the elaborate celebrations to welcome the cultural centre, Nabongo Mumia II has reservations — fear that his ancestors’ kingdom is fading away at a worrying rate. With the collapse of many kingdoms, Mumia says the society has very little, if anything, to be proud of in the 21st century. Many future generations risk getting lost, culturally, he told the crowd. Source: Nation Media Music Review Papa Kawele entertaining revellers in London African ‘High Life’ is Back at North London!
Papa Kawele, like most singers and players, later left the competitive and bloated Kinshasa scene in the 1970s for Dar-Saalam and Nairobi, where becoming a big fish in a small pond was increasingly the norm for most Congolese musical troupes. Today in Britain, listening to him alongside his band playing live is the nearest one comes to slicing East Africa's rich musical heritage thousands of miles away from the motherland. Live African music, has thus come to embody tradition. In away, it has the capacity to clarify and articulate or sometimes even forge popular bond between cultural affairs and political existence, especially so in the diasporal shores, where many young people of African origin are increasingly perplexed. For the benefit of my good friend Henry, and other westernised Africans like him, that often refer to live African music as either:“boring, or monotonously repetitive, and dulls the senses”, I wish to clarify to them that the sole objective of African music, unlike their western preference, has always been to translate everyday experiences into living sound, to depict life and nature therefore making it comparably richer. It has done this in two ways, first through the themes and concerns of the music we hear and secondly of the issues and events that constitute a peoples history. In other words, our music documents our history through soundtracks that are woven of events, moments and experiences. Indeed certain songs, for me, such as Super Mazembe’s Kassongo, Franco’s Azda, Mbilia Bel’s Nairobi or even Elly Wamala’s Enkuba mudungu carry the capacity to make me recall a particular place or a specific event. Rama and Kawele’s Jambo Africa Band’s exhilarating live performances at the Duke Banquet are a therapeutical cultural experience in the diaspora where one finds himself surrounded by a cycle full of aesthetic poverty. |
Ronald Elly Wanda, 11 August 2008 
The way we live.
A soggy Saturday, my kitchen windows all fogged up with vapour, the Congolese genius Franco Luambo-Makiadi singing “Azda, azda, azda… Elly Wanda ni wetu…apewe, apewe, apewe…” while I chop and stir some roasted nyama (goat’s meat) that I’d bought earlier from expensive but expedient Kampala Foods ltd at West Green Road, in North London. Could an African cook’s life get any better? Well yes, the gory British weather could change from raining to a tropical sunshine and give me a deceptive conception (albeit temporal) of being in clement kakamega- west of Kenya or at congenial Mbale- east of Uganda where Franco and his TP OK jazz band are perhaps most celebrated. Nonetheless, I didn’t care much as I had a warm Tusker larger straight from Kenya (via Wood Green’s Morrisons) standing parallel to my chopping board.
My devotion to Franco’s compositions (seen here on the right) especially when cooking remains interminable. I think it is proficiently enriching to any Afro-cuisine experience. Incontestably, he remains one of Africa's supreme artistes, in spite of his poignant death almost 18 years ago in a sanatorium in Brussels; many of us continue to find his melodies philosophically ecstatic. Whilst in the 1950s my grandfather and his lot danced to Bolingo na Beatrice, Motema ya Loko (1957), Mado yo Sango and Malambo zela (1958) as well as Lobela Ngai Nyonso Oyokaki, Oye Oye and Malambo zela Ngai. Nowadays we are still grooving to Franco (due to familiarity and early exposure to high African culture) especially his later hit songs Mario, Azda, Tokoma ba camarade Pamba, Mado, Pesa Position as well as Kabasele in Memoriam which he collaborated with Tabu Ley in tribute to fellow musician Grand Kalle who died February of 1983.
My favourite Franco hit of all time has to be mammou which Franco alongside Madilu System compactly delivered. Mammou which also came out in 1983 contains lyrics exposing “a lively conversation among two women, a divorcee and a married one who accuses the former of trying to break up her nuptials". I was ecstatic last summer while on a visit to Thika, when a Nairobi University band played and dedicated the song to me…brilliant!
Like most folks either born or brought up in Britain with East African derivation, we also grew up eating Ugali (maize meal) with sukuma wiki and kunde (greens) mixed with nyama in our Harrow-on-the-hill and later Stanmore domicile. When you have been and tasted the real thing from nyumbani (East Africa) you can’t afford to think of it anywhere else and hastily prepared by a laissez-faire cook like the BBC’s booziest chef Keith Floyd. I mean music and food in our village continue being delivered concomitantly.
Taste I suppose is a matter of taste. However, it ought to be said that having good taste doesn’t necessarily mean being tasteful. That said I’m not sure I can attest (to some gruesome cooks like a relative that I once had the displeasure of living with) that listening to Franco’s music will make their food taste any more scrumptious. The individual grew up in an environment where gender power disparity was an alien theory- the kitchen was a female province and if you were male the kitchen door would automatically read “No entry”. He couldn’t cook and his cohabiter wasn’t any better. Today in the Diaspora, the East African male specie (bachelor or engaged) has deferred this ancestral gibberish because of its impracticality and subsequent non applicability.
Come 6 O ’clock and I’d had a liberal rest following my jolly feast, Wafula who’d called me earlier, hoots the horn downstairs. I am ready so I sneak into my Safari boots and out I go. We stop over at Charlie’s flat nearby to pick him up. I rang the doorbell for flat 65. No answer. I rang again. With a squeal of paint, the window above me opened. A middle-aged Jamaican man with a ragged beard akin to mine stuck his head out of the window, a spliff in one hand and a can of what looked like a strong larger in the other. “Yeah man, what you want?” he bellowed. “Hello sir, sorry to trouble you, I’m looking for Charlie, a friend of mine whom I thought lived here!” I guardedly responded. “I am Haile Selassie. I am the son of Jesus Christ. Come in man!” the man yelled, victoriously waving his spliff and almost spattering me with his beer. Phew!
Thankfully, Charlie who lived two doors away came. “Sorry about my neighbour. He’s jinx (schizophrenic), usually a good man but like many of our fellow brothers around here the system messed him up”, Charlie said inconspicuously, as he walked towards me like the Last King of Silver Street, holding half a cigarette and adjusting his slightly outsized and unbelted trousers. We made our way whilst listening to Samba Mapangala’s “Vunja Mifupa kama bado meno iko” later Nairobian Nonini’s nonsense followed by Kampalan Chameleon’s delicate Jamilia and fittingly Arushan T.I.D’s “Siamini kama tuko wote…” unambiguously engaging us with contemporary East African popular culture discourse.
Upon our modest arrival at Bill and David’s Pub-lies school of fun (The Three Crowns Pub) in Edmonton’s Fore Street, my friend Wafula seemed a little put out (“wouldn’t we be better off at The Gilpins?, bloody hell Wanda!”) however, he begun to melt down as soon as I’d asked the striking girl behind the bar for a Tusker. Poor old Wafula, I don’t know what he fancied more- the cordial woman or good old Tusker. The Three Crowns Pub is cheaply but cheerily done out, it has wooden floorboards, alien-style ceiling that looks deceitfully voguish and the walls simply painted black with some white. The only vague concession to East-africaness is of course its regular East African constituents and periodic dignitaries from Eastern Africa as well as the sporadic delivery of reminiscent (wazee wakumbuke) moments by Dennis the monotonous resident DJ- by no standard comparable to my old mate Edu whose mnemonic African musical deliverance is now enjoyed globally through the BBC’s airwaves.
A swift glance around confirmed six impressionably loaded right wing ‘war lords’ from Semi-autonomous Juba (southern Sudan)sitting on my left discussing what seemed like another plot- perhaps to overthrow Bill and David and turn this happy place into… As I turned to my right I bumped into my old pal Robert who’s just returned from Lake Victoria’s sunshine city of Kisumu. “Mzee Wanda, it’s been awhile! Pewa kitu before I brief you” said Bob, (wearing a clannish vest that read ‘Jaluo in the House’) disapprovingly shaking his head. Bob proceeded like Raila Odinga’s 2007 campaign manager in Nairobian ‘Sheng’ (a concoction of Swahili and English):“Kibaki amefanya watu wanamanga mchanga. Eti Rift Valley fever! Hi gava niya makausi, yani original Mount Kenya mafia… hawa watu, my friend, hawana huruma jo! Kazi yao ni kuaribia wanainchi kazi yao. Eti privatisation! Eti Kenya Anti Corruption Commission…hawa wasee ni majokers! Regime ya NARC-Kenya ni nothing, imefuta mabuyu wamob job na kusakanya ma pensions na pesa zao, kisha wanazimwaga kwa Barclays ya Nyeri! Afadhali ile gava ya Idi Amin! Ingawaje Huyo jama alikua vicious, yani alinyonga ma intellectuals na akafukuza kina ‘Mr Patels’ to Leicester- ju hawa wasee ndio walikua waki control economy na kuangaisha wanainchi sana. Kimpango, huyo msee alifanyia wateja wa UG maendeleo kiasi.”(Translation: “President Mwai Kibaki’s NARC-Kenya administration is very corrupt. Other than that, I had a marvellous vacation in Kenya”).
“Heeey yawa!!! Did you not see that?” Charlie said interrupting Bob’s annotations and my political brief whilst slyly pointing at a tall and agreeably gorgeous woman wearing an attractive Kitenge (traditional attire) navigating her way through Three Crown’s African crowd. It later became almost impossible to continue our conversation as our voices drowned amidst DJ Dennis’s deafening ragga gobbledygook, so we instead concentrated on our Tuskers whilst “Bird” watching - gender power disparity notwithstanding.
Three hours later, my warm bed was calling me, I’d downed a couple of Tuskers; ate some succulent nyama choma with cassava, had unproductive as well as meaningful conversations, met a Chinese woman selling bogus DVDs, a Ugandan mechanic, a Nigerian “law-yer,” Sudanese warlords, as well as a man who claimed to be a Brigadier-General in the Kenyan army.
Having said my goodbyes, Onyango, another big fan of Franco’s music and sober as a judge, volunteered to drop me home. “The thing is”, he tells me, as we drive home in his Bavarian-made crimson limousine, “we Africans have a problem of not qualitatively appreciating our own artistry,” he continues, “it is only when we come to these colonial cities that we magically reawaken our senses of our arts, cultures and music”, I felt for a moment there that the man I’ve known for many years as a wobbly acquaintance actually had a point.
Ronald Elly Wanda is a Political scientist based in London.
ronald2wanda@yahoo.co.uk
Actor, lawyer Sidede passes on
By John Oywa, April 30 2008
Many times fortunes searched for Peter Sidede Onyulo and often found him in a drinking den.So talented was he, that filmmakers would replace a cast member who had landed the role whenever he was given a script even in his drunken stupor.
In fact, when the directors of Nowhere in Africa came calling in Nairobi, they failed to get a good supporting male actor but word had it that Sidede could fit the role.
The director then sent a casting agent to go for him in Kisumu.
He was traced to a drinking spot and driven to Nairobi for auditions. As Sidede sobered up, he did the first reading of the script, and voila he had landed the role.
The man with vast film experience who lived like any other holloi polloi passed on in Kajulu, Kisumu last week.
The lakeside residents might have seen the ‘poor’ man riding his bicycle without awe.
But Peter Sidede Onyulo, 53, was not just an ordinary film star. He starred in the Oscar winning movie Nowhere in Africa as Owour and won the Best Supporting Actor award in the Dublin film festival, an honour he was unaware of until the producer Peter Herrman himself presented the award to him.
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Peter Sidede Onyulo, actor par excellence. |
Quitting practice
In 1979, Onyulo quit his law practice to embrace theatre, a move that did not go down well with those close to him.
Onyulo summed up society’s attitude as thus; "They think this is a career that should not be taken seriously and look down upon actors. They think we are mad the way the people of Kafira thought Jasper Wendo was in Betrayal of the city."
Thankfully, his Nairobi High School drama teacher Kichamu Akivaga who recruited him into theatre while in high school did not share this view.
Akivaga enlisted Onyulo to participate as Jero in Wole Soyinka’s play Trials of Brother Jero a role that set him on the path to his destiny as a Kenyan thespian.
Upon graduating from the Kenya School of Law, Onyulo was employed Vigelegele theatre group with which he performed Sizwe Banzi is Dead.
Onyulo ventured into theatre in 1974 when he played a major role in Francis Imbuga’s Betrayal in the City, before it was published.
Three years later, he took part in The Trial of Dedan Kimathi and Betrayal in the City, which were presented during the All Africa Festival of Arts and Culture (Festac) in Lagos, Nigeria, in 1977.
Shaka Zulu
He later acted in Shaka Zulu that was directed by Alakie Mboya. He was always designated the lead roles in Imbuga’s plays; The Successors, Man of Kafira, Betrayal in the City.
Onyulo made his film debut in 1987 when he got a role in Shadow on the Sun, which was shot, in Nyeri, Nanyuki and Nairobi.
The movie was based on the true story of the first woman to single-handedly pilot a plane across the Atlantic Ocean. Although he played a houseboy, the talent and charm that he lent to the role may possibly have earned him the role of Owour in nowhere in Africa. He also acted in The Last Elephant, The Eye of a Witness, and Two Worlds.
He has been an extra in Mountains of The Moon. The award winning Nowhere in Africa was his seventh film.
Onyulo’s contribution to film in Kenya did not end there and he continued to be actively involved in the industry working with various performing arts groups as well as well as work with NGOs.
He also lent his talent to television series like Heart and Soul and the anti- FGM (female genital mutilation) documentary Price of a Daughter.
Onyulo had high hopes for the local film industry and had even alluded to penning his own play while still alive.
Despite his obvious wealth of talent Onyulo is said to have died without he opulence that surrounds venerated actors.
Onyulo moved to Kisumu from Nairobi in 1993 Onyulo moved to Nyanza in 1993 to establish a home there and also to use his Vigelegele theatre troupe for what he calls grassroots development.
Prior to the filming of Nowhere in Africa, local casting agent Lenny Juma had to physically track him down to his home near Lake Victoria.
The news about his death hit Kisumu town, with many of his peers and admirers expressing shock at the sudden demise.
Following the success of the movie, he was often a crowd puller whenever he visited his hometown of Kisumu.
He, however, remained modest stating in an interview that he was more recognisable in the streets of Munich at the time than in Kisumu.
His nephew, Mr Silas Otieno said Onyulo would be buried at his home in Kajulu.
Onyulo who was born and brought up in Kajulu, attended Muthaiga Primary School between 1965-1968, and studied his A-levels in Nairobi school between 1969-1978.
He studied law at the University of Nairobi between 1975-1978, his classmates included National Assembly Speaker Kenneth Marende, Kisumu Town West MP, John Olago Aluoch and Kisumu lawyer Alloyce Aboge, among others.
The Kisumu theatre fraternity led by the director of Misango Arts Ensemble Aketch Obat Masira described Onyulo’s death as a big blow to Kenya’s film industry.
Onyulo fell sick while at his rural home at the foot of Kajulu hills and was rushed to a private hospital and died a week later. He takes to the grave a rich talent.
He has left a mark as one of Kenya’s best-known actors. The twice-married Onyulo leaves behind three children. He was son to former Winam MP, the late Nathaniel Onyulo Otene, and only child to his mother, Mrs Winfred Odongo Oyulo.
A towering figure with a rare sense of humour and love for the theatre, Onyulo is said to have had had many more international friends than peers at home.
Those who knew him say he was a reserved man. He was a powerful man on stage but a very private man off stage. A former schoolmate, Daniel Omuok mentioned that Onyulo also had a love for drink.
He will best be remembered for his dynamic role as the cook Owour, a character he played with as much finesse and mastery as he employed in his many other roles on screen and on stage.
Additional information from
www.artmatters.info
MEETING OF CULTURES TO NEGOTIATE PRIDE PRICE
By Shad Bulimo, London Sept 16 2007
Negotiating dowry is always a hard business in most African societies. In Luhya land, tempers often flare and the suitors are sometimes thrown out of the home of the bride. No food is served for the entire period of the negotiations until a bride price is agreed. The traditional way of doing things becomes double-dutch when a different culture is introduced into the equation.
Yesterday two teams travelled this untrodden path representing Dr Walter Lusigi (father of the bride) in the red corner and Mr Roger Martin Harvey (father of the groom) in the blue corner.
It was left to Juvenal Shiundu, the Chairman of Abeingo Community Network to explain to the English Team the traditions governing marriage in Luhya land. While the English team thought figures quoted were “very high, extremely high,” members of Dr Lusigi’s team moved quickly to reassure Mr Harvey that Bride Price is not about monetary value or even a comparison of like for like. It holds an extremely emotional and symbolic role in the psyche of the people and family from where the bride comes.
Mr Harvey explained the English tradition which involves the father funding the wedding and if able, setting aside some funds towards setting up home for the newly weds which he had done and wanted this factored into the bride price. That is all fine but this wedding is not purely English and the two cultures must be considered in tandem.
After six hours of strong negotiations, offers and counter-offers both parties emerged from the meeting room with a smile on their faces – bruised but happy that they had accomplished a big task and that Roswitha Mwendelani Lusigi (bride) and Christopher Meyrick Harvey (groom) will finally tie the knot on 30th August 2008 in Nairobi with the full blessings of their families and community.
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Cultural similarities with Luo
"In the Luo tradition, when a person dies away from home and his body is not found, his clothing and other belongings are returned home to mark his return. A banana trunk is buried so that his spirits “do not haunt the living”. - Tobias Chan Ochuka, the uncle of the coup leader, Private Hezekia Ochuka, who was executed by the Moi regime in 1985 following a failed coup bid on August 1st 1981.
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Guesthouse that belies royalty of a bygone era
By Julius Bosire, Namasoli July 17 2007
A guesthouse stands in a dusty village in Butere District, which has the marks of royalty in it, having stood the test of ages.
The centre has carved a special place in the locality.
Mama Esteri (Esther) Ashiembi, 87, is an active employee of Martha’s Guest House and serves as its institutional memory. Just like Ashiembi, the guesthouse has a rich history dating back to 1932, which has kept tourists flocking to the centre in the rural area of Butere District.
The centre was initially named Monkey’s House following the invasion of the apes owing to its location in a forest at that time. It was the home of James Shiraku Inyundo, a former worker of East African Railway and Harbours, who has since died. It was later renamed Martha’s Guest House after Mr Shiraku’s wife, Martha.
The three bed-roomed house stands on Shiraku’s land near Namasoli shopping centre, a six-kilometre drive from Yala Township off the Kisumu-Busia road. The small establishment, which attracts tourists from world over, has a 10-bed capacity.
Besides, it has what is called a Christian Tourism Centre, which could accommodate about 100 people. It is utilised mainly by pupils as a camp centre where they are taught various Christian subjects and activities. The house stands with its original shape, of course with some maintenance, including painting and refurbished furniture.
A British couple — Peter and Christine Wyne — who visited the centre recently, were excited by the services offered at the place. Besides Martha’s original house, several houses have been put up in the compound with the traditional model of an African hut.
The blue and maroon gate does not give any indication of a cultural centre as one approaches the compound until the citing of a cubicle with comical drawing on the walls. Deeper inside the compound is a small hut with carvings of animals and human and then Martha’s Guest House.
In the living room are memorable photos, which include the first independence Cabinet of Mzee Jomo Kenyatta and Vice-President Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. It also has a photo of Mzee Kenyatta and three of his members of the Cabinet at the beach in Mombasa with bare chests. Another photo is that of Mzee Kenyatta and the first President of Ghana, Dr Kwameh Nkurumah.
The walls also have memorable pictures of Mr Shiraku and Princess Margaret, African native chiefs at the Mombasa Coast, where Mumia Nabongo refused to move closer to the waters for fear of losing his kingdom. Of great significance too is a traditional hut named Rosa Museum after the first African nurse, Rosa Ayuya Oloo. Apart from hosting portraits of Mumia Nabongo of the Wanga kingdom and Sudi Namajanja of Bukusu, the museum is home of various artefacts of the Luhya. In the village museum are tools used by traditional African societies. They date back to 100 years.
Digital village
There is an up-coming digital village, a cubicle to help the community access information technology. The director of the centre, Ms Judith Ombonya, says “our children don’t need to go to Nairobi to learn computers; we want them to get the studies right at their doorstep”. Why was the residential house turned into a tourist centre? Ms Ombonya explains that Shiraku believed that a house is for visitors and the owner is only a facilitator.
The story goes that when monkeys invaded the construction site, it became very difficulty to chase them away and quite often damaged what had been put up by builders. The house was put up using money Shiraku had earned as a worker with the Kenya-Uganda Railway. The man had disappeared from his home at Ebuchero-Mundeku at the age of 15 on February 13, 1924. He jumped onto a goods train shortly after it had been inaugurated in Kisumu, only to emerge in 1931.
He married on March 28, 1931, at a colourful ceremony, being one of the elite in society. The marriage certificate is part of the items displayed in the guest bedrooms. The toothless expert cook of murenda at the centre, Mama Ashiembi says she was absorbed by Martha’s Guest House as a special chef in 2002. She serves visitors with traditional vegetables cooked “the right way”.
Visitors to the guest house have the opportunity to tour Lake Victoria in Kisumu, Kakamega’s bird sanctuary, picnic at Equator in Maseno and the renowned crying stone also in Kakamega. Other areas that may draw the attention of visitors are bull fighting at Khayega in Kakamega and Isukuti entertainment at the centre itself. ===source: Nationmedia
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Is it Khayega or is it Nairobi?
In Kangemi Luhya is the "official" language
By Godfrey Miheso, Nairobi July 17 2007
As the Matatu cruises along the trimly tarmacked road towards Nairobi’s Kawangware area 46, in contrast, a dilapidated five minutes drive stretch of land unfolds, linking to the next estate. Here, unexpected armies of people progressively surface, and continue to build up further the same road into the slum as numerous rundown wooden shacks complete with rusted corrugated iron sheets for roofs come to full view.
The infrastructure therein is way below average with narrow dusty paths as roads. The region is Kawangware area 56, inhabited predominantly by a people with a common ancestry. Incidentally, most of them hail from Western Kenya. Not surprising, at the entrance to village, conspicuously stands an information centre that acquaints you with the culture of the Luhya community. ‘Orie, mbwena’ (Luhya for hallo, how are you), a middle-aged man salutes a neighbour, mounting his bike in readiness for another day of hard labour.
It is a common greeting, we learn later, since it is presumed that every one here speaks the language. Indeed not even strangers are spared this. Interestingly, the activity between area 56 and area 46 is no different from what you will find along the Shinyalu-Khayega Road. In both cases, scores of idle men and youth laze by the roadside, awaiting any passers-by in need of their services. On a good day, they might just land some few coins to meet their basic needs for the day.
“Ukiwa na bahati, waeza kupata kazi kama ya useremala, kutengeza sakafu, ama kazi yoyote tu ya mkono.” (If you are lucky, you land an offer on handy work such as woodwork, floor repairing or any other manual work),” says another resident. Economic activities are limited to such ventures since majority of the pioneers of the pioneer inhabitants lack professional skills to be absorbed in worthwhile employment..
A considerable number sell bricks, scrap metals or wood for a living while others trade in window and door frames. The women engage in less laborious tasks. They gather together in tow, at the shopping centres selling a variety of indigenous foods including a mixture of boiled maize and beans (githeri) and mandazi to supplement the family income. Mzee Hezbon Shiamala, a small-scale carpenter has been in the wood trade since the late 1960s when he, like his peers left the village for the city.
“We heard of tales of the first-rate life in the city and did not want to be left behind,” he confesses. Since he had some relatives living in the area, he moved in with them. But life had its twists and turns and it was not long before he was forced to fend for himself, many times straining too hard to make ends meet.
“I have been at this spot for about 41 years,” he confesses, as he carves out a piece of wood for seat.“ I am comfortable living here and have every reason to feel like I am back in the village.” Even though he has lived here for several years, Mzee Hezbon makes occasional visits to the village when he can. “ Christmas holidays are the best because I am sure to meet many of my long time friends and family.”
Meanwhile, he keeps in touch with his relatives via radio. Perhaps over the alleged obsession for radio amongst the Luhya speaking tribe, this well manifested here with the favourite radio stations either Mulembe FM or Kenya Broadcasting Cooperation radio. “This way we are able to keep in touch through the salaams programme,” Hezbon admits.
Residents say that laying a meal on the table is a challenge that far outweighs rent charges. The highest cost for instance, is Sh 500 for a single iron sheet mud house and Sh 250 for a single room and scrape pieces of iron sheets. A 24 year old Stanley Khayumbi is married and with two Children and admits that his greatest challenge is laying a meal on the table for his family “At least I can afford house rent”
Like a typical Luhya homestead, virtually each home boasts of at least two chicken. But for the lack of adequate space they share them with their masters. “ Mine sleep under my bed” says mama boi, as she is famously referred to . Like Hezbon’s story above, Pilot Yakahama a celebrated medicine man has lived in the region for decades and is reputed for his accomplishment in the treatment of a variety of diseases among them Asthma, Tuberculosis and various Sexually Transmitted Diseases.
He is particularly known for the dramatic manner he conducts his sessions which involve tones of unfathomable rituals. Over the years, a rare bond has developed in which residents pledge their undivided loyalty to pilot and believe his treatment is far more effective compared to the sparsely distributed dispensaries, not too different from the Shinyalu setting.
One kilometre from Khayega market a small village Called Museno, and recently christened Tusker, stands out. Here, a carefree drinking lifestyle dominates in which villagers drench themselves in local illicit brews. They say they do it to escape the frustrations occasioned by the chronic unemployment levels. Unfortunately, the youth like their parents have not been fortunate enough in securing worthwhile employment despite the fact that some of them pride in impressive credential from reputable colleges.
Like in Tusker, an estimated 50 percent of the men in area 56 consume cheap brews uncontrollably, with the youth, born and bred in the region hard hit. And with the prospects of further education appearing only as a mirage, most of them (youth ) have resigned to early marriages, alcoholism/ drug addiction their economic abilities notwithstanding. Consequently, the region’s Zebra pub is continually a beehive of activity where patrons imbibe cheap liquor, famously referred to as busaa.
‘Mbe malua malulu’ (give me well brewed chang’aa ) is a common phrase as the freely flowing drink exchanges hands . Dan Shikoli a graduate of the Maseno University in Political Sciences and also a regular customer at the Zebra pub says even university graduates who lack employment seek solace at this pub. Once a gardener at the nearby Lavington Estate, he was able to carry home at least Sh 4,000. “With this, only cheap liquor is affordable as one struggles to cater for his family”
Today, he is lucky to be working at a friend’s Cyber Café in area 46, proceeds from which are channelled to family use. Even so, he is grateful for the education he has acquired for he believes it has given an edge over the other youth in the region. Unlike Shikoli, Augustine Lumalas did not pursue further education after completing his O level, and now strains too hard to raise his a three-year-old daughter.
On this, Shikoli says, “ It is unfortunate since with minimal education and the circumstances at hand, it is quite difficult to foster the way forward.” Cristabela Ayisi now in her mid fourties, has been a bar hostess for over a decade and works long hours, her age not withstanding. She is grateful for the recent government legalisation on the consumption of local brew. “It is my sole source of income and without busaa, where will I go, and where will my children go to?,” She poses.
However, Kevin Shikokoti a patron in the pub laments that the government should not have done so since many youth are likely to loose their lives in the liquor at the expense of the countrys development. But the picture of life as a youth is not grim in its entirety. Those who care to do so are free to participate in one of a variety of worthwhile ventures. Kakamega United, a local football team is a preserve of the strong, and skilled youth was established to represent the area 56 village in both major and minor football tournaments within the city.
“It has also fostered good relations with the neighbouring youth,” says Shikokoti. Besides the close knit unity these residents have endeavoured to foster, Unfortunately the area they have called home for the last couple of decades may be no more since they face a possible eviction. It is alleged that the over 550,000 people are to be evicted by the end of the year and their homes demolished. The residents are adamant about this. “They will have to take us in handcuffs,” says Augustine Lumala an elderly man. “This is our land and we have no where else to go" says he. The residents are unanimous that area 56 remains their home, as long as they need to be in the City. ==== source: Kenya Times