We are bidding goodbye to 2011, a year that will undoubtedly go down the annals of Kenyan history as one of the most agonizing ever. From grisly accidents on our roads, cheap yet lethal brews to the Sinai tragedy, 2011 was really agonizing. Some would say that the gods had conspired against us. It was an annus horribilis, as ancient Romans would call it, and will forever remain etched in the minds of Kenyans.
Grief and agony first came calling in May, when reigning Olympic Men’s Marathon champion, Samuel Wanjiru, fell to his death from the balcony of his Nyahururu mansion. Circumstances surrounding his death have since remained unclear, with some claiming some love turned sour. However, the police seem the only people to know exactly what transpired before his death. Young Wanjiru goes down the history books as the first man to clinch gold for Kenya in the Olympic Men’s marathon, and the first reigning Olympic champion to die. The bitter family feud that ensued, as many a women came out claiming to be his legal wife, only rubbed salt into an already tattered wound. In scenes never witnessed before, Wanjiru’s mother almost ran berserk, brandishing a panga at family members who had met to plan for the young hero’s send-off. Several men also came out, each claiming to be his father. After tussles, at home and along the corridors of courtrooms, Wanjiru was finally laid to rest. Kenya paid her last respects to her son, but in a not-so honorable manner.
In July, over 6 million Kenyans were staring at starvation in their faces, as nature turned cruel and threatened Armageddon. This was the country’s worst famine in decades, and was also ravaging the whole of the Horn of Africa. Gory images of starving Kenyans, especially children, filled our TV sets. Many succumbed to the bruises of starvation. Livestock also bore the brunt as they died in droves. The country was getting overwhelmed by the wave of crises, as one Kiraitu Murung’I, while commenting on the fuel crisis in the country, once said that as a country, we were living in a state of permanent crisis. These two had seemingly opened the floodgates for more grief, as the dreaded August- September period set in. This two have been known to be tearful months for Kenyans, most notably remembered for the August 1998 Nairobi bombings.
Cheap illicit brews had returned to haunt Kenyans. First it was the death of 14 Kenyans in Nairobi’s Kibera slums. Then followed the infamous Mucatha tragedy where 17 more died after partaking of the deadly liquor, which had been laced with methanol. The liquor, called Yokozuna seemed happy on visiting pain and anguish on poor Kenyans, just as the famous Japanese wrestler, Yokozuna, who ruthlessly floored his opponents. Poor Kenyans had failed to learn from past tragedies, especially the 2006 Chumvi tragedy in Machakos, where many died, and others turned blind after a drinking spree these chang’aa dens. History had repeated itself, and sadly in a ruthless manner.
Tears had hardly dried on our cheeks when a bus carrying relatives from a dowry ceremony, plunged into Uwaani River along Machakos- Mbooni road. The result, a staggering 22 lives had been snatched away. This was a quick turn of events, from the joyful ululations of a marriage ceremony, to the agony of death, akin to the Swahili proverb, furaha huwa karaha
Then the mother of all disasters came calling on 12th September. A rainy and tranquil morning in Nairobi’s Sinai slums was disrupted by a fierce and marauding fire that was triggered by a pipeline leakage. Poor ignorant Kenyans then decided to scope the precious commodity; oblivious of the danger they were exposing themselves to. What followed was beyond the wildest of imaginations. Streamfuls of the highly flammable petroleum led to the fire that reduced innocent Kenyans and their property to ashes. Scores of people were burned beyond imagination. The whole slum had become a deathtrap. A staggering 101 people lost their lives and many more could not be accounted for. The Kenyatta National Hospital and nearby hospital were almost being overwhelmed by the number of casualties who were being brought in. Many survivors had suffered high degree burns but some succumbed to the injuries. The others lived to tell of their agonizing brush with death. This tragedy left in its wake agony, misery and destruction. Children were orphaned, women lost their husbands and men lost their wives.
On 25th September, barely two weeks after the Sinai tragedy, we lost our very own face of environmental conservation; Wangari Maathai succumbed to ovarian cancer while undergoing treatment at The Nairobi Hospital. A true champion for environmental conservation, democracy and empowering women had died. Kenya had lost her coveted environmentalist, whose gallant fight for environmental conservation gave birth to Karura Forest and ensured that Uhuru Park was not replaced by a skyscraper, among many others. Losing Wangari, freedom fighter and women rights activist Wambui Otieno and Dekha Abdi, also a renowned women rights activist, in the same year, was a big blow to the country. The worthy causes that they had indefatigably fought for had suffered insurmountable loss. They left shoes, too big for the Kenyan women to fill.
The last nail in the coffin of poor Kenyans was the rude Christmas gift to residents of Syokimau, Eastleigh, near the Moi Air Base Nairobi, and other parts of the country, were houses were demolished. Homes that they had for so long invested in building tumbled down under the might of the government bulldozers. Being rendered homeless was traumatizing to the victims. Distraught residents of these areas watched in disbelief as their coveted million-worth investments, especially in Syokimau, were brought down. The festive season had turned cruel to them.
As the year came to an end, passionate football lovers, like me and you, were left in disappointment by our very own Harambee Stars. It was a tale of so near, yet so far for our fading Stars. Missing out on the 2012 Africa Nations Cup, to be jointly hosted by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, was harsh on the passionate followers of the beautiful game. Losing out in the group stages of the 2011 East and Central Senior Challenge Cup in Tanzania was equally harsh. Our clubs did not do much better on the continental scene, as they were walloped by their opponents. Only Sofapaka offered some consolation, as they missed out on the group stages of the Confederations Cup, by a whisker. The year was full of disappointments to the Kenyan football fraternity.
For the third year down the line since the post- election violence, internally displaced Kenyans were still languishing in camps, their plight apparently forgotten by the government. Inflation also hit Kenyans hard as the cost of living literally shot through the roof. Life became unbearable, especially to the. On the political scene, this year spelled doom for the Hague sextet, as they had to appear before the International Criminal Court, for the first time. What had started as a big joke had soon dawned on them that it was indeed real. The ICC reality had become clear to them, and their date with Ocampo is drawing near. Their families and the entire country is now staring at the possibility of losing her sons to long-term cases and possible jail terms, in a foreign land, far away from Kenya.
Many will argue that the gods are to blame for these tribulations that befell our country, others see it differently. Irresponsibility, fate and destiny were blamed for the agony. But as philosophers say, destiny is the culmination of one’s thoughts and actions in life. It all depends on how you choose to perceive it.
Let’s hope and work towards a joyful and prosperous 2012. We learned lessons the hard way in 2011 and we can ill-afford to ignore them. Destiny is in our hands.
Happy New Year.
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