KILLING THE MESSENGER

The death of Senior Counsel Mutula Kilonzo hit many Kenyans with a jaw breaking blow. I will not jump the gun and state he was assassinated or murdered but throughout Kenya’s history, Kenya has a “good track record” of sending its heroes to the cemetery. Heroes who fought against inequality before the law, corruption and stood firmly for what is right and so far no “big fish” has been held accountable. It all begun after independence in 1965 when Pio Gama Pinto a socialist Politician was shot at close range on the driveway while waiting for the gate to be opened and it is said he was murdered for his socialist ideas, no sooner had Kenyans recovered from the loss of such a hero than Tom Mboya was shot on the 5^th of July 1969 at Moi Avenue, Nairobi while   visiting a pharmacy. Isaac Njoroge was arrested and hanged for the murder of Tom Mboya but during his arrest he asked: “Why don’t you go after the big man?” and Kenyans have never known who the "big man" was and up to now we are still in the dark. It is said Mboya was murdered to remove political competition for the presidency seat as he was seen as a political threat for the top seat. Mboya can be attributed as a King Maker since thanks to him USA has a president named Barak Obama, since it is due to Mboya’s Scholarship programmes which sponsored Barak Obama Senior to USA and during his education there he met and married Stanley Ann Dunham who then became parents of Barak Obama. In 1975 the “peoples millionaire” J.M Kariuki was bloodily killed it is said he was killed for his courageous fighting against corruption, unfair distribution of land after independence and his continuous complain against the widening gap between the e rich and poor. In 1991 Robert Ouko was murdered and his body found by a heard boy dumped in the bush, his murder was so controversial that Kenyans were forced to swallow a bitter lie that Ouko shot himself to the head then set himself on fire while dead!! It is said he was killed due to his plan to give a report on political corruption in the Government of Kenya at that time. Many Kenya heroes have suffered the same fate, heroes such as Alexandra Muge, Mugabe Were,Odhiambo Mbai just to name a few and just recently the death of George Saitoti is still raising eyebrows due to his political ambition as potential presidential candidate and his harsh fight against Drug Lords who have invaded Kenya.

Kenya may never know who the “big fish” are, who have existed since independence and have continuously killed our messengers who have brought the message of the fight against  corruption and standing for what is right, But am sure Kenyans have heard the sounds of the war drums of the fight against corruption and we  will fight till we win this battle and war, since they can kill the messenger but not the message, in the words of Fred Hampton I will conclude by saying “You may kill a revolutionary but, YOU WILL NEVER KILL THE REVOLUTION!!”